Fox sat on his Arwing, looking at the pale green skies of Venom in awe. "Hard to believe how far this place has come since we sent the terraforming device here," said Fox quietly. "Just a few years ago this whole place was an uninhabited wasteland. Now look at this – the seas are habitable and the planet is livable again."
Bill Grey wiped off his visor as he looked up to Fox above him. "You said it, bud. I never thought this day would come. But Dash has really transformed this place. One moment he's helping us fight the Anglars, the next moment, he's taking over the whole planet!"
Fox shook his head in disbelief. "I just don't know what he's planning, with him being related to Andross and all."
"I don't think that'll be an issue, Fox. Dash told me he was going to lead Venom towards an agreement with Corneria. They hope to sign a peace treaty soon. Soon Lylat will be united again."
"You're starting to sound like General Pepper there," chuckled Fox. "You've changed quite a bit over the years, too."
"Being a father kinda helps with that, I guess," Bill replied hesitantly.
Fox lowered his head, keeping eye contact away from Bill, with a glum look on his face. "Yeah... I guess... How is your daughter?"
"Great, just great, bud..." said Bill with a huge grin on his face. "She's just learning how to walk now. She's really special, bro. I can't even describe it in words."
"I'll bet," Fox replied, still facing away from Bill.
Bill looked over to Fox, seeing his sad face. "Something the matter, Fox?"
"Nah," said Fox, shaking his head. "Just wondering how things would have been if it turned out differently."
"Don't worry about that," Bill said, climbing up to Fox's Arwing. "I'm sure you'll find someone you like out there. You're a decent enough guy, Fox. Don't get discouraged."
"That's not what I meant," Fox said sadly.
Bill sat beside Fox, confused at his words. "Oh? Well, what do you mean, then?"
"I just don't know what to do with Star Fox, man. I mean, Slippy left for his fiancee, ol' Peppy retired, and Falco just left me recently as well. Said he was looking for something different or something. I think he saw the writing on the wall. Star Fox isn't needed anymore. I just think... The team's been a source of identity for me. Maybe it's a good thing we're not needed anymore, I guess, but I don't know what to do with myself, much less worrying about if I'll have a child or not."
"We'll think of something," said Bill, putting a hand on Fox's shoulder. "Just think, I might be able to pull a few strings and I could get you a place here with the Army, maybe working for Dash or something."
"Thanks, but I was thinking about something else," Fox said, finally making eye contact with Bill.
"What, then, exactly?" asked Bill, showing intrigue with his tone.
Fox chuckled again, showing a rare smile from his face. "I don't know, man, you'll just laugh at me when I'll say it."
"You know I'll support you no matter where you go," Bill said. "Even if I do laugh, I do it out of love, right?"
"Ha! I'll bet!" Fox was now completely beside himself. "Well, I'm not even sure if this is a good idea or not. But I want to make sure my kids are safe wherever they go, right? This galaxy's screwed up as is, even with Venom and Corneria coming together. There will still be criminals running around. People with more than a few grudges against me. People who easily recognize me for what I've done. I just don't know if I should leave myself out in the open like this, you know?"
Bill looked like he was dead certain on what he was going to say, even if he didn't have the words coming to him almost immediately. "Don't be so sure that you know what your kids want, if you end up having any. When my daughter grows up, I'll let her decide what she wants to be. My dad was so strict when I was growing up, I pretty much did the exact opposite of what he told me to do. If he said left, I went right. If he said white, I'd say black. He told me not to go to the Air Force, and I went. He couldn't stop me."
"Funny how that works," said Fox. "My dad didn't want me to become a pilot. Yet I always looked up to him. Always wanted to follow his lead. Yet he never wanted me to go to the Academy, just like your dad." Fox let out a sigh, reminiscing about old times. "You think we're guided by fate? Or do you think we're in control of our destiny?"
Bill leaned back in stunned silence, almost falling off the Arwing. "What makes you ask that?"
"The fact that we're still here, despite all the shit we've been through, making mistakes almost daily."
Bill just laughed back. "I don't know man! I'm the wrong person to ask!"
"You promised not to laugh!" Fox said jokingly.
"Sorry," Bill mocked back. "Don't say I didn't warn you!"
An audible tone came from Bill's communicator, and Bill grabbed it from his pocket, showing concern about the message. "The procession's coming around soon. Everywhere looked clear the last time I checked, but I'll go check again."
"Sounds good," Fox responded. He brought out his binoculars and scanned all the buildings that were near the main street. "There isn't a single window open on the entire street," Fox said to Bill. "Let's keep an eye out, though."
"Of course," replied Bill, setting up his sniper rifle. "Streets look bare, too. I'll just give them the go-ahead, then, if there's nothing to report."
"If you say so," said Fox.
Bill turned to Fox, noticing his skepticism. "You don't sound too convinced, Fox…"
"I just have a bad feeling about all of this," Fox said. "No particular reason, I'm just worried. This just feels too perfect."
As the procession came around to the front of the parliament building in the distance, a huge crowd of supporters could be seen greeting Dash Bowman, the leader of Venom. Bowman stepped outside the limousine, waving briefly to the crowd before heading up the stairs and inside the building.
"So far so good," Bill stated to Fox. "Looks like Bowman got inside no problem."
As the crowd started to disperse, Fox noticed a dark figure, covered completely by the sweater he was wearing, scanning each of the members of the crowd in intense detail.
"It's quite an unusually warm day here today," Fox said to Bill. "Don't you think that guy in the sweater is a bit overdressed?"
Bill zoomed in his lens towards the man in the sweater. "That does look suspicious, bud. Keep an eye on him while I aim the sniper rifle. I don't want him to go anywhere."
Fox got a closer look at the hooded man, trying to pry through his disguise. It was very difficult to see through, given the complexity of the situation. "It's obvious that he had his eye out for Dash, but why didn't he go right at him?"
Bill hastily focused his sights as he zoomed in on the hooded figure. "Too many witnesses in the area, most likely. The crowd would have also gotten in his way if he decided to attack. I'm all ready now, you can keep scanning."
Fox brought his binoculars to where the parliament building was, and noticed Dash sitting at his desk near the front of the building, meeting with some delegates. "He looks pretty well guarded inside," said Fox. "I still don't see anyone trying to snipe him at any of the usual vantage points, from what we can see. But what about from the points we can't see from?"
"The Army says they got the rest of the place covered," assured Bill. "They told me during the briefing that we were only to focus on the front of the building."
"Sounds like to me like some kind of trap," Fox said spitefully.
Before any of them could react, a laser came from the bottom of the street, striking the front of the parliament building, and attacking those inside the room with Dash Bowman. A large explosion then followed, and Bill and Fox fell from the Arwing, shaken by the blast. Once all the dust settled, Fox could hear the horrifying screams of the crowd, as they panicked and ran amok across the streets, making the situation much more stressful.
"The fuck just happened?" Fox bellowed out in vain. He frantically searched the area with his binoculars for the assassin, filled with rage. "What the fuck just happened?"
"I don't know man," Bill said, with his head down low. Bill couldn't find the words to describe the horror laid out in front of him. Nothing he could say could manage the situation effectively.
Amongst the panic in the crowd, Fox spotted the same hooded man he spotted earlier, running in the opposite direction the crowd was trying to go in. Fox zoomed in on the hooded man, and still couldn't look at his face. A guard then came out of the parliament building with his blaster drawn out, but the hooded man quickly fired his laser sniper at the guard, killing him instantly.
"That's the guy," blurted Fox. "Get in the ship and chase him down!" screamed Fox, as he launched his Arwing into the air, and blasted straight off to the parliament building. Once he landed in there, Fox ran inside the building, but couldn't get very far, with the building in ruins from the explosion. He ran back outside, right as a column nearly fell on him as it leaned over. As Fox went outside, out of breath, he could see a mysterious fighter jet lifting off away from the parliament building and preparing to zoom off into the distance.
"Bill," said Fox nervously into his communicator. "He's about to get away!"
"I got him!" Bill replied back, getting into his cruiser, as he sped off. Fox followed behind Bill in his Arwing, but as the two were about to close in on the assassin, a fleet of thugs came rushing in behind them, charging up their lasers.
"Take care of the guys behind us, Fox!" Bill screamed into his radio. "I'll chase down the assassin!"
"Got it," Fox replied back. He pulled away from Bill and went behind the thugs, shooting some of them down instantly. Three of them rushed forward to where Bill was, so Fox chased after them and sent in a charge shot at the group. The group dispersed, but Fox could still see the thugs nearby, reassembling their formation, as more enemy ships could be seen coming into the picture.
Fox scanned the area on his radar and found two enemies coming right at him. He got the lock-on tool ready on the first jet, fired straight at him, and the splash damage was able to get rid of the enemy right beside him, taking them both out at once.
A few more fighters were coming around from both sides of Fox's Arwing. Fox turned to the left, took shots at the enemy fighters there, then when he passed them he made his Arwing flip backward, turned to face upright again, and saw both the fleet that just passed him and the fleet coming in from the other side both in front of his firing range. Fox sent out a smart bomb and took shots on the perimeter of the fleets, hoping to get the most out of his firepower. The smart bombs exploded when the two fleets were approaching each other, taking them all out, save for a couple of fighters around the edge.
Thinking that these two enemies were the only two left remaining, Fox bolted his Arwing towards the jets to shoot them down. Just then, alarm bells rang out from his radar, signalling that there were more enemies approaching from all directions. Fox looked around the glass of the cockpit, not wanting to believe that he was now completely surrounded but he saw a whole bunch of fighters forming a circle around him, confirming his worst fears. Fox was now being outnumbered and was completely overwhelmed.
"Shouldn't we radio in the Husky unit now?" Fox asked.
"Don't worry about it, Fox," Bill replied sternly. "Once we take down the assassin, we can get out of here, fast. Just let me focus!"
Fox could only look over at his radio and how close it felt to him. It almost felt like the radio was trying to lure him over. It would be only a quick call away to send in more reinforcements, and it certainly wouldn't hurt having more fighters helping them out.
But as soon as he tried to make up his mind, an enemy fighter flew right past Fox, swerving to get out of his way, narrowly missing Fox's Arwing.
"Watch where you're going, Fox!" Bill yelled at him immediately thereafter.
"Shoot! Sorry, Bill," Fox replied sheepishly. Fox grabbed the controls afterwards and gunned down to the centre of the battle area, where some of the enemies were emerging from. Fox sent down a smart bomb and tried to break off the carrier that had been churning out ship by ship out into space, but the smart bomb had no effect.
Fox scanned the radar again, trying to look for Bill to see where he was and found him frantically trying to shoot down the assassin as he weaved around the sky, but there was a couple more following behind Bill trying to do the same thing.
"Bill! You've got a couple fighters on your tail! Watch out!" Fox said as his muscled tensed out of stress.
Fox swung his Arwing around to go in front of the two fighters that were following Bill. Fox could see them go past him where they zoomed past but Fox turned his Arwing again so that he would be able to face directly behind them while still elevating upwards. Eventually both Fox and the enemy fleet were now level, and Fox rushed to bring his Arwing to face the two enemy fighters, not hesitating to fire right at them.
The first fighter was shot down and fell off right afterwards. The second fighter, though, was smarter and dodged the initial shots Fox made. Fox kept firing, but he noticed Bill pull his jet upwards. The enemy fighter did so as well, and Fox felt he had no choice but to follow suit and go upwards.
Fox could feel the G-forces pressing down on his head as he lifted the Arwing up. Fox tried as hard as he could to keep control of his Arwing, as they kept pulling around in all kinds of directions.
Fox eventually caught up to the enemy jet as Bill leveled out and tried to speed away. Fox waited until the enemy was within the firing area of his lasers, and once it was, Fox opened fire on a flurry of shots, not wanting to take any chances on missing. But the enemy kept spinning around Fox's shot, doing aileron rolls to deflect the shots away in different directions. Fox kept firing, but the enemy suddenly darted off on a tangent. Fox turned his body to see where the fighter was going, but ignored it and went after the assassin, following directly behind Bill. Fox's radar then went haywire, showing dozens of fighters coming into the area. A few lasers came in firing from all around Fox, and in the confusion, Fox lost track of where he was and lost sight of Bill. Fox's Arwing spun around and around for a few seconds, and as Fox regained control of the Arwing, Fox searched all over the radar and all around him, frantically searching for Bill.
"Fox!" Bill screamed in the radio. "Where are you?"
"I was about to ask the same thing for you!" Fox replied in a hurry. Soon he spotted Bill's cruiser as he was being chased down by two enemy fighters, firing constantly at him. Bill tried to dodge each of their lasers, but it was all in vain. Soon the fighters got close to Bill, and they were able to shoot directly at the engine of Bill's ship.
"Fox!" Bill screamed out. "Get the guys behind me! I'm going down!"
Fox couldn't believe his own eyes and ears. "Bill! Hold on! I'm on my way!"
But as Fox got closer and closer to where Bill's ship was going towards, it took a sudden nosedive towards the ground, and exploded on impact, leaving a huge fireball in its place, blinding Fox temporarily. When the brightness faded away, Fox could only shudder in horror as he saw what remained of Bill's ship. Fox rashly landed his plane not far from where the wreckage was, and Fox sprinted over to the cockpit. As he opened it up, his body trembled in guilt and his mind started to go numb as Bill's charred remains smouldered in the wreckage. Fox carried what he could of Bill's remains, slowly lifting it away from the cruiser and away from the blaze, but even he felt the futility of this. As Fox set Bill's body on the ground, Fox could only look up to the sky and cry out in agony, shuddering in agony.
"Bill… I'm so sorry…"
In a desolate area of the Lylat System, a planet only known as Papetoon circled the universe, out of the geographical epicenters of Venom and Corneria. In this arid-filled desert lay the remains of what was once a peaceful system; a reminder of what times were like before chaos reigned over the galaxy.
Fox lay there in bed, with the stifling air filling the bedroom. It was just like any normal day, but today, it felt worse. Fox lay there, shuddering in fear, knowing of the dread when he opened up his communicator and looked at the date. Against his better judgement, he opened the communicator up and looked at the messages, and soon enough, his worst fears were confirmed and Fox's mind completely shut down as he threw the communicator back on the desk in disgust.
"The day of darkness..." "Here we go again. If only I could make this day disappear forever. Hearing about the memorial services is bad enough already."
Fox sat back up on the bed, holding his hands in his face and ashamed. "Gahh, what am I going to do now? Already the day's ruined. No sense getting out of bed now."
"Fox? Are you there?" Fox could hear Krystal's soothing voice in the distant hallway.
"Yes, Krys," Fox sighed. "What's up?"
Krystal swung open the door, looking distressed as usual. "Knew I'd find you here. Marcus is looking all over for you. You'd said that you would take him into town today."
"Aw, shit, I forgot!" Fox threw away the bedsheets in a panicked state. "Forgive me if I leave a bit rushed," he said, quickly pecking Krystal on the cheek before running down the stairs, where Marcus was impatiently waiting.
"Dad!" yelled Marcus. "Where have you been?"
"Sorry, Marcus," said Fox, nearly red in the face. "Just slept in today, that's all."
"Someday," Fox said to Marcus, "you'll have to learn how to drive these landspeeders by yourself! Then you'll be able to go out if you want."
"I'm counting on it," replied Marcus defiantly.
Fox put on his sunglasses as he opened the door outside to the blazing hot conditions outside. "I'm just surprised you haven't gotten that license yet, at 18 years old. Even I got my license at 16."
"Very funny, Dad," Marcus joked back. "Even with your sunglasses I can see through that one."
Fox simply smiled back as the two stepped into the landspeeder, and Fox strapped into the driver's seat. "Well, who knows? Maybe you'll get the money you'll need to buy one if you land that job of yours. What position was it for again?"
"Just someone working in cargo," replied Marcus hesitantly. "They really didn't say much."
Fox sped off in the landspeeder, going at an excruciatingly slow pace. "Well, just be careful, I don't trust this place, that's all."
A couple minutes passed as they drove along the side of the road, with two other speeders zooming by them as they went at the speed limit.
"I don't mean to complain, but could you go a bit faster? I don't want to be late for the interview!"
Fox strangled the steering wheel in frustration. "Shut up and let me focus," he growled.
"Sorry, dad," Marcus replied, turning away from Fox, staring into the desert. He kept to himself throughout the rest of the trip, anxiously waiting in frustration as the landspeeder practically crawled along the landscape of Papetoon.
When the two finally arrived in the city center of Newport City, Marcus practically jumped out of the landspeeder and went inside to a well-kept building, not exactly the best looking but not like a dump, either. Fox waited in the landspeeder, sitting still and not doing anything, lest he lose his focus. The radio on the landspeeder fell silent, but he could still hear all the other landspeeders whizzing by, with some of them talking about the events of years past. Fox just about got sick to his stomach listening to those people talk about the Day of Darkness.
"They don't have a clue what happened then..." Fox took out his waterbottle and drank what was left remaining to the last drop. "Man, I'm going to throw up soon or something."
Just as he threw away the plastic bottle in disgust, Marcus walked out of the building, looking nervous but appeared as if he wanted to say something to Fox.
"How did it go?" asked Fox.
"It was ok," Marcus sighed, without going into detail.
Fox readjusted the mirrors on the landspeeder, while Marcus buckled himself in. "So? Did they say anything?"
"Not really," said Marcus.
"Did they say if they'd call back or anything?" Fox said, growing in suspicion.
Marcus didn't respond, looking down towards the floor of the landspeeder. Fox turned over to Marcus and saw his solemn look on his face. "You didn't get the job, didn't you?"
"Not exactly," Marcus replied, nervously.
"Well, what do you mean?" Fox said, raising his eyebrow slightly over the rim of his sunglasses. "Did they offer you something or not?"
Marcus looked at Fox's sunglasses, as his mind swirled and conflicted within himself. Eventually, Marcus turned back towards the front of the road, not saying a word.
"They want you to go out of the planet, do they?" Fox asked skeptically.
"I don't know..." Marcus sighed. "I don't want to talk about it."
Fox let out a groan of frustration. "Well, your mom will find out, sooner or later."
"That's true," Marcus admitted. "I just want to go back home, think about life for a bit, you know?"
"I could also use another hand back on the fields," said Fox, as he was starting up the landspeeder, almost as if he was giving an order.
"Sure," Marcus replied, as if he was simply trying to dismiss the matter.
The two went back without saying much, and the awkward silence went all the way towards their home in the secluded desert, the same house built by his grandfather, James McCloud. Marcus was reminded of that fact when he saw the house as Fox pulled in the landspeeder into the driveway.
"I know what to do now," Marcus said to himself, as Fox went back inside, smiling in relief. "It's time to take back control of my own destiny, and our family's. I don't care what Dad says now."
Marcus came back inside from the sweltering heat into the relatively cool room inside the house, finding his mother, who, despite Marcus entering in as quietly as he could, still noticed him coming through the door, as she was cleaning up the dishes in the kitchen nearby. She still kept washing the dishes, but using her telepathic abilities, she was able to figure out what Marcus was going to say within seconds. She put down the dish and turned over to Marcus, nervously waiting by the front door, almost startled in fear.
"There's no point trying to hide anything from me," Krystal said. "You, of all people, should know that."
"I know..." Marcus sighed. "So there's no easy way of saying this... but I've made up my mind, even with everything that's gone on in the past. I just got accepted into the Republican Army."
Even though Krystal knew it was coming, it still came as a shock to hear the words coming out of Marcus' mouth. "You... can't be serious, can you?"
"I am serious," replied Marcus. "I know this is who I am."
Krystal came near Marcus as they both sat down on the couch in the living room nearby. "I know you've been wanting to be more than a farmer for the rest of your life... but you do realize that there's nothing but chaos out there in the world right now? People who fight in these wars only end up getting killed, or end up getting their lives destroyed. Your father is the best example of that."
"I'm aware of that," said Marcus. "But like I said before, it's our destiny to fulfill the peace in the galaxy. And I know I can't do it alone. This is the best place to start."
"I know..." Krystal sighed in defeat. "I do wish you'd reconsider. And besides, why try to hide things from your dad?" It will only make things worse.
"You know how mad he gets when things don't go his way," Marcus replied in haste.
"Now, you know your dad loves you very much... but like most people who battle in these wars, they only end up broken or worse. I want you to think about it some more, just before you do anything wild or crazy or something like that." Krystal brought her arm on Marcus' shoulder. "Please, son, think for your future. Not in the next year, but for the rest of your life."
"I will," Marcus said with confidence. "Believe me, I will." Marcus got back up from the couch and started to go out the back door towards the fields, when he stopped and turned back to Krystal. "If I'm being honest... I've been thinking about doing this since you first told me about when you and dad were with Star Fox. And it got me to thinking... why can't I help the universe like this? This is my calling. It must run in the family, I think."
Krystal leaned back on the couch, almost stunned by that admission. As Marcus went outside, she was almost beside herself, conflicted in thought as she remembered the years that had flown past her. "Fox told me not to go into too much detail telling him about Star Fox... I thought I did enough... where did I go wrong?"
Within a few minutes Krystal found the courage to speak to Fox, privately and with honesty. She found Fox sitting alone, as the sun was setting in the sky, and Fox was sitting on the ground, blissfully unaware of his surroundings, as he was enjoying the small, warm breeze filling the air.
"Fox?" Krystal said nervously. "How you're doing? Are you ok?"
Fox turned around and looked at Krystal's blue eyes, mesmerized by it's beauty, but quickly grew concerned. "I'm fine... What about you? You always have that look on your face when you're concerned about something. What's going to happen now, Krys?"
Krystal sat down on the ground with Fox, bracing herself for impact as she drew in a heavy breath. "Marcus spoke to me just now... he said he wanted to join the Republican Army."
Fox paused, staring right at Krystal, not changing his expression. But inside, Krystal could tell that Fox was almost ready to break down into pieces. "Why?" he asked.
"Honestly, I don't even know..." Krystal answered, trying not to upset Fox. "He's determined to go there, that's for sure. He didn't want to upset you in any way."
"Well, he's already done that," Fox growled, jumping off the ground in a huff. "I don't know what's messed up that kid, but I'll figure out something, talk him out of this... There's a reason we went here, as a family, into this place, so that we wouldn't get involved in what happens elsewhere anymore. I don't want him to go through with this."
Krystal got back up on her feet, looking at Fox directly in the eyes. "Just talk to him calmly, Fox. He still loves you, Fox, but he's just young, just as we were. I know the job market is very poor here, but there has to be something he can get involved with. I know of it."
Fox simply stared back at Krystal, with his blood boiling to a crisp. "Knowing him, it's probably another one of his phases. He'll get over it eventually. We just need to be patient."
"This isn't one of his phases, Fox," Krystal said adamantly. "He's really being serious this time."
"And you know this because?" Fox snarled, raising his eyebrow.
"I just know, that's all," Krystal replied. "I can't explain it better than that."
Fox slowly walked back towards the house, biting his lips as he seethed in anger. "You'll have to explain it better than that. I can't read his mind like you can, you know..."
"I know that, you fool..." Krystal turned away from Fox in frustration. "The point is, I don't know what he's going to do when he's gone, that's all..."
"That's the least of our worries," said Fox, as he headed inside the house, thumping his feet on the ground with his heavy boots. "I'm just trying to make sure our son doesn't get himself killed out there!"
Krystal followed Fox as he paced up the stairs into Marcus' room, and felt his anger seethe through his mind. Fox put on a brave face on to try and calm her, but Krystal could figure out pretty quickly that Fox was simmering deep inside. Krystal was saddened and worried, troubled at what Fox might say to Marcus. He had wanted Marcus to live on the family farm, free from any danger in the world. He was seeing his hopes being destroyed in an instant.
"I'd better not go up there," Krystal said quietly out loud to herself. "It will just get Fox mad even more with me around."
Fox went to the door of Marcus' room and noticed it was open a crack, with the light in the room barely shining through. He peeked his head through the door, seeing Marcus lying down at his side, staring out the window. Marcus then sat up and noticed Fox looking through, almost swallowing his tongue with fear. He stared at Fox, staying silent and still, waiting for Fox to start.
"So... You want to join the Army, hmm?" Fox entered the room slowly, as his body started to shake inside.
"Who told you that?" Marcus replied shyly. "I told you what you need to know."
"Really?" Fox barked sternly. "I told you, your mom can see right through everything. There's no point lying to me."
Marcus thought in his head for a few moments, before sighing in defeat. "You're right... I just don't know what to say to you -"
"You know that the Army only recruits people to kill for a living? You ever think of that?" Fox was almost seething red in anger. "The last thing I want from you is to join the Army."
"You always say about what you want," replied Marcus. "This is what I want from my life. Dad, I love you, but... This is my destiny. I feel I have an obligation to defend this galaxy, like you did."
Fox walked past Marcus as he went towards the window, taking in a deep breath. "If you knew what I went through to defend the galaxy, would you still be willing to take that risk with your life?"
"If it meant peace in the galaxy," said Marcus, "I'd do it in a heartbeat."
Fox lifted his eyebrow in skeptism. "Who's been telling this to you? All this about destiny and obligation and what not?"
"Nobody," replied Marcus. "I've been wanting to make a difference in the world for as long as I can remember. Besides, there's nothing here on Papetoon... Nobody can find a real job here."
"Is farming not a real job?" shouted Fox, lifting his arms up, almost aghast in disbelief. "What more do you need here? There's opportunity and safety all around here. Why leave?"
"Like I said," insisted Marcus, "to fulfill our destiny."
Fox came up to Marcus, close enough to feel each other's breath. "Our destiny, son? You ever think about my side of things for a change?"
Marcus stood there, startled by Fox's proximity. "You ever think of the same for me?"
Fox stepped away from Marcus, drawing short breaths and starting to sweat from his forehead. "You're not going out there to Corneria, it's as simple as that. I'm not going to lose you." He then slowly made his way out of the bedroom, leaving the door ajar. "If you want to know something, there's someone like you 20 years ago who thought the same way like you do now, always thought he had some obligation to fix this galaxy, one way or another. Then, everything he knew about the world shifted instantly, and soon he found out the truth about this galaxy - that it's run by the elite, and nothing more. They don't care about anyone but themselves. They only care about their own self-interests. They don't care who dies when it's all said and done."
Marcus sat back down on his bed, solemn and grieved. "Whatever happened to him?" he asked cautiously.
Fox drew up a deep breath, slowly making his way downstairs. "You're looking at him."
As Fox walked away, Marcus sat back on his bed, conflicted in opinion over what had happened. "He never told me about all this before," sighed Marcus. "The only thing I can do now is to avenge him - whoever did this to him. I'll fight for our honour, one way or another. I can do this."
Marcus went to sleep that night, full of confidence in his mind. As he woke up the next morning, the first thing that popped into his mind was the conversation he had with Fox the night before. "Jeez, that was a hell of a night," groaned Marcus, rubbing his forehead. "I've got to get out of here, somehow. I can't spend the rest of my life sitting idly in here."
Marcus went downstairs into the living room, seeing Fox sleeping on the couch, as usual. "Another argument with Mom last night, I'll bet," Marcus said quietly to himself. Marcus grabbed his backpack and stepped outside, making his way towards the landspeeder, when he felt Krystal's presence around him, and stopped in his tracks to turn around and face her.
"You're going to the Army... aren't you?" Krystal said solemnly.
Marcus stood there, unsure what to reply back with, before sighing. "Yes... It's what I've always wanted to do as a kid."
Krystal walked closer to Marcus, almost close enough to touch his face. "Just think, for a moment, before you do something you'll end up regretting for the rest of your life. Don't leave us like this."
"I have to," replied Marcus. "This is my calling." Seeing tears coming out of his mother's eyes, Marcus wiped them off Krystal's cheek. "Please don't cry... This was bound to happen eventually. I'll be fine."
Krystal slowly brought down Marcus' hand from her face and held it softly in her hands. "Please don't go…" she softly cried out.
Marcus didn't reply back, as he was lost for words. Marcus backed away nervously from Krystal, making his way back towards the landspeeder, stuttering his words in nervousness. "You know I always love you and Dad... but this is my time to shine."
Krystal simply nodded, not wanting to sadden herself any further. As Marcus went inside the landspeeder, Krystal could sense Fox coming outside the house.
"Wait!" Fox barked out. "Where are you going?" He tripped on the steps of the front door, and fell onto the dirt path below. Fox was barely able to get himself back on his knees when he could only see the landspeeder going away in the distance, leaving the two behind in the dust.
Fox sat there on his knees, bereft and in shock. "You... let him get away," he growled to Krystal.
"There was no use holding him up any further..." Krystal sobbed. "He was going to go, one way or another."
Fox found the energy to pick himself up on his feet, shaking the dirt off his clothes as he stumbled upwards. "I can't lose him forever, Krys." Fox turned to Krystal as she could sense the fear and anger in Fox's eyes. "I'm calling the cops on him."
Meanwhile, out in the distance, Marcus couldn't do much of anything but keep the pedal of the landspeeder floored to the ground - despite his objections. He was almost paralyzed, weaving through the dirt fields and pathways that lined the planet, navigating through the maze of roadways towards Newport City. As Marcus kept going faster and faster, and the dirt that was being tossed up in the air kept going into his eyes, stinging him with every chance they got, he kept going, determined to get to the city center in time. Eventually he found the front of the city gate, and pressed hard on the brakes, only to find them be completely unresponsive. He kept pushing and pushing on the brake pedal, but there was barely any response coming from the brakes at all.
"Shoot," Marcus yelled, "I'm not going to make it very far in this thing!"
Finally, Marcus put all his might onto the brakes, and finally got his landspeeder to slow down, but not in time to bump into the landspeeder ahead of him, waiting at the city checkpoint to enter the city. The man inside the landspeeder jumped out of there, scowling and fuming from his ears. As soon as the man came out of the landspeeder, Marcus froze and grasped the steering wheel, full of fear.
The man walked up to where Marcus was, still staring at him and his bleach-white hair and his scowling eyebrows, only intensifying the fear. Marcus kept waiting and waiting for the man to say something, but the man only kept staring deeper and deeper into Marcus' eyes, becoming more and more furious. Eventually, Marcus couldn't take the dread any longer.
"Can I... help you?" Marcus squeaked, shaking in his seat.
The man rolled his eyes, shaking his head afterwards. "Just shut up, you prick. Luckily I don't have time to mess around with jerks like you. Just go back to your den, you pup."
Marcus was startled by that glib remark, but as the man went back into his landspeeder, signed a document for the checkpoint user and drove away, Marcus breathed a sigh of relief. "I can't help but feel I've seen that guy before," Marcus thought to himself. "I just don't know where, though. I've never met this guy before in my life."
As Marcus pulled up towards the front of the gate, a security officer went up to Marcus, signalling for his identification. Marcus quickly handed him an ID card, and the security officer quickly read through it. "Go through, kid."
Marcus saw the landspeeder and the empty air behind them, and shrugged. As he sped away from the checkpoint, and stopped at the first stoplight, Marcus took another look at the phony ID he gave to the security guard. "I can't believe I got away with this," he chuckled. "I should do this kind of stuff more often."
Marcus drove through the numerous streets of Newport City, before arriving at the place he was at the day before – the military enlistment center. Tucked away inside the alleyway of the dusty streets, Marcus snuck in behind, checking to see if anyone was following him, before entering through the front door and seeing the unscrupulous attendant sitting at the front desk.
"May I help you?" the attendant demanded, as if she wanted to get the day over and done with.
Marcus' muscles twitched as he took a deep breath. "Is this where you sign up for the Republican Army?"
The attendant shook her head. "You don't apply to the Army, son - you apply to the Academy. Once you pass through the Academy, then you can try getting into the Army. Easier said than done, though. I never met someone who got into the Army without a perfect record."
"I'm willing to take that risk," Marcus defiantly stated. "I know what I need to do."
The attendant drew up a document and gave it face down to Marcus. "This is what you'll have to sign before going in. Just a fair warning though, once you go in, there's no going out of the Academy. Even if you leave in person, it still remains in you, whether you like it or not. There's no running away from the Republican Army."
"I'm well aware of that," said Marcus, signing his name at the bottom without hardly looking at the document.
As soon as Marcus handed back the document to the attendant, she gave a wry smile before turning back towards the computer on her desk, hardly giving Marcus any attention. "The next batch of people leave tomorrow. There will be a flight of people going with you at the same time. You'll be provided clothing and housing when you're at the Academy. Do you have everything you need?"
"Just about," replied Marcus. "Anything else I'll need I'll get between now and tomorrow. Besides, there's nothing for me here that I need."
Marcus left the room and the alleyway, looking up to the humid sky and pondering to himself. "The whole of my future is awaiting me," said Marcus. "Now I have to act soon." Marcus went over to his Dad's landspeeder and activated the GPS on it. "The least I can do is to give this back to Dad. I'll have to get a license of my own eventually."
It was getting late in the day, and Marcus found a rundown motel not far from where the launch pad was to Corneria.
As he stepped into the room, he could smell the stench of smoke and cigarettes and other illicit drugs. He ignored them as best as he could as he crawled into the rock-like bed for the night. Day turned into night and night turned into day - and now Marcus woke up for the third time that night, not long before six in the morning, tired, restless, and in a mind of his own.
Marcus went into the washroom and washed his face with cold water, the only source of cooling in the slum of a hotel room he had to sleep in for the night. He shook his head in his sleep-deprived state. "Jeez, can't believe I'm almost there already," said Marcus, rubbing his eyes. "This could be the chance of a lifetime."
