EndoWar

By: Joei Write

Chapter 1

Suspension Diffusion

Imagine a time of peace and quiet in your life when nothing is wrong. The bliss that engulfs you and your soul overwhelm you and take you to places beyond your wildest, most dangerous fantasies. Imagine a time in your life when tranquility is your God, and love and laughter is all that surrounds you. This was how the Lylat System had been in the weeks that followed the defeat of the Aparoids. For days upon days, which turned over into weeks upon weeks, there was nothing in the galaxy that caused any innocent child, woman, or man a pain in the world. Every child laughed and played, every woman greeted her man when he arrived home from work, or vice versa with the man and his woman, and for the first time in a long time, Lylat felt at ease.

Peace ruled the universe in the most dominate places, but for some the peace was only where they allowed it. The days grew longer and longer for the guns-for-hire who were credited with the peace they had brought. Team Star Fox, legendary figures with legendary weapons to match; the name sent quivers down every young one's mind at the thought of the great team they were. Fox McCloud, the proud leader and his father's son, Falco Lombardi, ace pilot and technician in technology maintenance, Slippy Toad, master engineer and Landmaster driver, and Krystal, Fox's one and only love, the telepath and ground specialist. Peppy Hare, their strategist, had recently retired, leaving ROB, their protocol droid, to look after the team, but relations among the team members only dwindled with time after the Aparoid Queen had been struck down by McCloud and his mighty teammates. They didn't know why, but they had been fighting more and more among each other recently.

They were all one big family, and all families were bound to argue and dispute at some point, but the tension inside the newly design Great Fox was becoming unbearable. It always came down to such simple things as well; what was for dinner, mission priority, cleaning duty, other domestic chores, over competitiveness, it was complete nonsense on the part of the team. Slippy had once accidently bumped into Falco, and the two almost got into a brawling fist fight. The same thing occurred later between Krystal and Slippy. Fox, the leader, was beginning to wonder what his options were to ease the tight tensions.

The only two that never really seem to be bickering was Fox and Krystal. Even though every member of the Star Fox Team knew the two loved one another, they hadn't actually told each other, they had only hinted at it. Fox had always remained professional about his job, but Krystal always teased him about it, making him blush in front of his team and causing him to stutter. The romance was the only exception however, the Team couldn't do a thing outside of missions without some kind of conflict; this was proven at the Dylitaz Surge.

The time was 0400 hours to the crew, and they were all sleeping in their separate chambers, as the lack of natural communication has pushed the boundaries even further between everyone. Suddenly, at 0402 hours, the red lights flashed, and the alarms sang with urgency. Fox was the first up out of bed; he ran from his pull-out to his closet and threw on his work pants and vest, having no time to fancy himself with a shirt and his red scarf. He threw on his boots while exiting the room, and he sped to the main control room. As he entered, he saw that ROB was already on the transmitter trying to get into contact with those who signaled for help.

"ROB…!" Fox yelled in concern. "Who's in trouble…?" As leader, he needed to show the most concern and care for his employers, even if he was a simple mercenary.

"Checking data on transmission…" As ROB continued, the door behind them opened, and Slippy ran in with his night shirt and work pants on, he was also trying to get on his work suit while running. Once he stopped, he quickly grasped firmly on his yellow gear-tech, and zipped it right up. Now fully dressed for a mission, he ran to Fox's side.

"Fox…who's that signal coming from?"

"I'm not sure…ROB is still trying to decode the signal. But whoever it is…it must be urgent if it's being sent right now…" Fox walked over to his chair and sat down in it, zipping his vest up so his chest wasn't exposed, as it was considered unprofessional to flash muscles at women and young girls, and he hadn't gone back for a shirt to wear under his vest yet. He sent out messages to all nearby ships informing them of the crisis, and as this happened, Falco came jogging into the room. His attire was milder, as it was just a t-shirt and boxers, completely unprofessional, but reasonable for a moment's notice.

"Yo…we got trouble? Where is it this time…?" Falco had always spoken that way. Fox looked over his shoulder and readied to speak to his pheasant friend.

"Not sure yet…but we have a signal identifier. See if it matches any previous transmissions!" Falco nodded and got on his own computer in the room.

ROB continued hitting buttons on his main communicator, but still the signal was coming through fuzzy. He could barely make it out with his translator, and the teammates hearing it couldn't understand anything by ear. Falco burned through hundreds of data signals in minutes trying to match the planetary dispatch, but still hadn't found a twin just yet. Slippy could fix a computer, but couldn't operate one, so he was forced to just stand back and wait for orders. Fox's fingers blazed on his keyboard trying to crack the code, and the first light of hope came from Falco.

"Yo Fox…!" He called, and everyone, including ROB, glanced his way. "I don't have a confirmed source, but the signal is definitely coming from the inner rim. If I had to guess, I'd say Dylitaz…"

Falco had a good guess; Dylitaz, it was a mildly inhabited planet, not known for much else other than hosting the G-Zero Grand Prix every year. It was a bitter world, home to many dirt-bags and scoundrels. ROB punched in his final code and the broadcast came in clear. The face of a bird, namely a pheasant like Falco, appeared in the hologram,

Attention Star Fox team, this is the planet of Dylitaz. We are currently experiencing an attack from a large group of thugs calling themselves the Black Blazars. This is an urgent message, they're robbing our town and more are pouring in by the minute. You must help us, the closest security team is still being dispatched and won't be here for hours. We need you Star Fox…help…

The message was interrupted broadly as the images fizzed and the audio when static. "Nice call Falco…" Fox complimented his friend. The friendship between Falco and Fox remained strong; they had fought the least of any pair, besides Fox and Krystal.

"Man I'm good…!" Falco boasted, but no one cared, they just smiled.

As the message ended, Krystal finally ran into the room with her full flight suit on, and no one blamed her. Krystal was given the briefing, the Arwings were launched, and within minutes, they were in the atmosphere of Dylitaz and the Blazars fell; you would have guessed there was no conflict amongst the team members by the way they worked to take down the Blazars. Everything was precise as it always was, and all commands were followed down to the wire, in essence, it was a perfect mission.

Unfortunately, this mission, along with many others since the Aparoids, was only what Star Fox was at first glance. This spatial trend went on for months, all five not agreeing and ignoring each other, and at the first sign of trouble, they erased all conflict and acted like professionals. Though this was a good thing that they didn't let domestic issues interfere with their work, it was still a problem how they never seemed to want to address it. This drove Fox mad, his leadership skills were being tested like they hadn't been before, and the fact that he wasn't on a mission only heightened it. Soon enough, he was ready to take drastic measures to save the team from splitting.

He called all of his friends in, and one by one they showed up and took their seats, though some were reluctant come. Once they all arrived, Fox silenced them, and if anyone could feel the tension in the air, it was him. "Thank you all for coming…" He began strongly, not to shy and not too tough. "I think it's about time we faced this internal struggle we're all having. My Dad, James McCloud, lead Star Fox strong and true, and I'm sure they all got tired of living with one another all the time as well. So…I'm going to propose that we…and please, keep an open mind…I'm going to propose time apart from one another." Falco became very interested, not out of interest out of fear; this was because deep down, he couldn't watch the team break up. "We shall spend a month of vacation in separate areas of the galaxy, doing whatever we please, how we please. No getting into trouble and no arguments…because as of right now…" Fox paused; he saw that Krystal was nervous. "Team Star Fox is temporary suspended of fighting duty."

There was silence at first, as everyone seemed shocked and scared, worried the Team had just broken up. "Well…" Falco said first, "While we were on Dylitaz…I heard rumors that the Grand Prix was starting soon, I've always wanted to try racing in it." Falco seemed sort of nonchalant, but Slippy took a deep breath, shook his head, and walked out of the room. Krystal looked like she was ready to cry, and she didn't walk out, she ran out. Fox felt disappointed in himself, but figured this could be good for the Team. "Fox…" Falco said and place his hand on Fox's shoulder after getting up out of his chair. "That was a very bold and brave thing you did. That couldn't have been easy to say. You're a wise leader…don't forget that…" Falco said to his slightly gathered friend. Following this, Falco went to leave, but stopped and said over his shoulder, "I'm serious about the Grand Prix. Maybe if you get bored with whatever you do…you could watch me race. I'm always open to your support buddy…" And with that, Falco left the room. The bird returned to his quarters and gathered the basic supplies. His Arwing was the first that Fox watched fly away.

Meanwhile, Slippy was lost at the situation before him. This had never happened before in the history of Star Fox since Fox took command. His work suit was on the ground and he was lying on his bed in his undershirt and night pants. His mind felt restless, and his body quaked every time the thought of Star Fox breaking up entered it. He knew that the team had been growing restless over the last few months, but never did he think that it would come to this. Slippy was about ready to just spend his suspension staying where he was, lying motionless on his bed when his computer lit up and a ringing noise was heard. He dragged himself up out of the sheets and saw that his Dad, Beltino Toad, was requesting a holographic chat with him. Not doing anything else, he clicked the accept button and watched a hologram of his father's body appear before him.

"Hello Slippy…haven't spoken to you in a while!" He said gleefully to his one and only son through the projection.

"Well, that's for good reason." Slippy said dismally, but Beltino didn't noticed, as he then said,

"I came to ask for your assistance on the new research project I'm developing. It deals with the reconstruction of Arwings so they can travel faster and longer. Are you in…?" He asked. Slippy didn't know what to say at first, but took it as a sign. Though he was against it, he responded to his Dad's request with,

"I'm in…" And the transmission carried on, which was nothing but idle Father-Son chitchat.

While everyone was off doing their own things, Fox watching the stars through the window in the main room, Slippy packing for his trip to the Orbital Gate, Falco on his way to Dylitaz, and Krystal just staying in her room, ROB was performing a scan of the ship in case any emergency protocols were to be activated in the team's absence. His results came back as negative, and so the ship was declared secure. "The Great Fox II is all ready for temporary suspension…" ROB said to Fox, who was still staring out the window.

"Thanks ROB, that'll be all then." Fox said and dismissed ROB.

"Affirmative…" And the robot proceeded to his placement table and strapped himself in. He felt his systems begin to shut down as his vision became dark and his joints got smooth. ROB had his own hopes for this mild hiccup in the Team, but he was set to the Great Fox II's computer system, and should anything happen, he was hardwired to wake up and fix it. Being a robot, ROB could fix anything on the ship with a little computer technology and the right tools. He entered his rest and then simply waited.

Fox, on the other hand, faced the biggest dilemma of all. His hand was pressed hard against the window, and he wouldn't have minded if it broke. His thoughts were only further jeopardized when he saw the second Arwing, belonging to Slippy, fly out of the ship and into the blackness of space. His mind was slowly becoming number, soon he felt as if his brain was gone. He felt he had caused this, he let his team grow apart, but his heart continued to stay strong.

He managed to get himself to move away from the window and leave the main room, not bothering to look back at it before he turned the main lights off and closed the door. He found himself sulking back to the room he called his own, but once he was there, he felt as if he needed to speak with Krystal. He had already decided where he wanted to go, but this was a special place to him, and he knew that this was going to be an offer Krystal might take him up on. As he approached her room, he noticed that there were no sounds coming from behind the door, at least none that he heard. He went to knock on the door, as he was a gentleman, but was stopped by a lovely voice.

"Come in Fox…" Krystal, she must've sensed him coming. Fox opened the door and saw that Krystal had a suitcase open and was folding clothes, gradually putting each piece into the case. "Did you need something Fox?" She asked him.

"Uh…yeah…I was just…" He scratched the back of his head, not sure of what to say, so he improvised. "I was just wondering if you decided where you wanted to go." She stopped folding her clothes and sighed.

"I was thinking of going to Corneria. It's your home after all; I think I deserve to see it when it's not being ravaged by war." Fox smiled, and Krystal giggled. "Why do you ask…?" The answer was obvious, and Krystal could sense Fox's unrest.

"Well…" Fox was blushing hard, and his heartbeat increased drastically.

"Fox…I sense you're nervous…doubtful…scared…" She was showing genuine concern.

"Well it's because I…" He decided to just be direct, as he had no other choice. "I decided that I want to go to Sauria." Krystal stopped dead, and Fox had her full attention.

"Why…? To see Tricky again…?"

"Well yes, but…I figured there are a lot of peaceful places there. Lots of sights to see, and it's…also the planet where you and I met…remember…?" He asked with red cheeks under his fur. She smiled, and nodded her head.

"Yes, that's an adventure I could never forget. You can only be trapped inside of an actual crystal how many times before it loses its thrill…" And she tittered yet again.

"Well I…" Fox began again, "I figure it'd be a good trip down memory lane for us…and I'm sure Tricky would be thrilled to see you and…and…" He was running out of ways to avoid saying it.

"Fox…?" Krystal said to him. "Are you asking me to come with you?" Defeated, Fox figure there was no point in covering it up.

"Uh…" And he sighed and lowered his head. "Yes…yes I am." And he scratched the back of his head yet again.

Krystal appeared to ponder the request, as she placed her hand under her chin and walked over to her window. "So…I have a month to do whatever I want, with whoever I want, wherever I want…and you're asking me to spend that time with you on Sauria?" She said slyly, making him panic. Fox couldn't speak, only nod. "Well…I can't think of anything else I'd rather do." And she walked into Fox's arms, hugging him, not crying, but still smiling with joy.

Fox was relived more than ever, and after all he'd been through that was saying a lot. He hugged her back, and even though his mind was at ease for the moment, the thoughts of what Slippy and Falco were thinking rampaged into his already unstable conscience. "Krystal…" And she looked up to him, "Can you sense what Falco is thinking right now?" She seemed a bit taken aback by this request, as it was a drastic change of topic, but still felt the same concern Fox did, so Krystal closed her eyes and tried and feel Falco's emotions, and she spoke moments later.

"He feels…confident…and strong about his Grand Prix race; he feels…proud…of you Fox. He thinks that what you did was a very valiant act, and he respects you for that." Krystal finished.

"And…Slippy…?" He asked her.

"Slippy is…" She did it yet again. "His mind is clouded, like it's raining. He's unsure of what to do, he's very restless." Fox figure that he should know everyone's thoughts, and asked her one final question.

"And you…?" She didn't think he'd ask her that, but sighed and responded honestly.

"I didn't know how to handle it at first, but it will all work in the end. I'm sure of it, we're not just a team… we're a family." These works empowered Fox, and he wrapped his arms around Krystal again. She returned the embrace, but a thought crossed her mind. "Fox…who will protect the Lylat System during our absence?" Fox only moved back a little and smiled without moving his loving arms from around her.

"I have that covered, I promise." And he left her to finish packing so he could prep the Arwings for takeoff.