(A/N: Wow it's been…okay it's been a very long time since I've been on here. I'm not dead, I've just been working on material that I haven't posted on FF obviously. Anyway, recently I got rather burnt out on that and decided now was the time to get back into Star Fox, but instead of continuing old stories I thought I'd do something fresh.

Honestly, even though Star Fox 2 has been around since the 90's it was only when it got formally released that I started giving thought to doing a story (especially since I really, REALLY like Fay for some reason. This game shouldn't technically be canon but thanks to Zero well…I don't know anymore so anyway, I've been away from the Star Fox universe so hopefully I'm not rusty as I fear.)

Star Fox: Insurrection

Chapter 1: Out of the Fire…

Fox McCloud sighed as he leaned back in his chair, staring at the computer screen. The report he was about to send to General Pepper was short and to the point. The general was probably aware of the current state of the Lylat System but it was the last note that he wanted confirmed. There was no doubt in Fox's mind that Andross was gone for good.

"You know, you've been staring at that monitor for the last twenty minutes."

Fox smiled slightly as he turned in his seat towards the old hare addressing him. "And you've been watching me for those last twenty minutes?"

Peppy Hare chuckled. "Just wanted to make sure you weren't stressing out on a simple report. Not that there's much to report."

Fox groaned. "You're the one that likes to file reports so I'm not sure why you're having me do it."

"Well you're the leader now so I think as leader you have the honors of telling Pepper everything. Honestly, if you were enthusiastic about that as you were flying and shooting things…"

"Alright, alright," Fox groaned. "I've just been thinking…now that he's finally gone…"

"You feel as if your father can rest in peace?"

Fox was silent for a moment. He remembered the first time he confronted Andross, how he managed to defeat him but the ape was willing to take Fox down with him. Then, just as he was escaping, he saw the Arwing, his father's Arwing. He hadn't told anyone about it, not even Peppy. For all he knew, it was just a hallucination due to the adrenaline rush one felt when they were so close to death.

"I would hope so," he muttered. After hearing of Andross' return, he felt mocked and most of all insulted because his father's "sacrifice" was all for naught. But he made sure this time Andross stayed down. "But then again, I said that the last time didn't I?"

"If you said you saw him die, then that's exactly what happened," Peppy stated. "Now then, are you going to get that report sent off or not? Everyone's waiting for you in the mess hall."

"Right." Fox clicked the send button and the report disappeared off screen. "Falco and Miyu better not be hogging all the beer."

"Look, there's no room for argument," Falco Lombardi said as he chug down a can of beer. "I'm the one who took out the most enemy ships."

"Are we talking Andross' base or overall?" Fay asked. "Cause I'm pretty sure Fox had the highest kill count."

"Overall obviously," Falco answered. "And for the record, we cleared the way for him and considering how long it took to take that base down, I think security was pretty light."

"Pretty sure Andross counts for like fifty…" Miyu said, drinking a can of her own. "Or a hundred…"

"Do we really have to compare numbers?" Slippy Toad asked, the only one of the group that wasn't drinking (Fay was not a beer drinker but she did opt for mixed drinks instead. She couldn't believe how good a bartender ROB was.). "Shouldn't we just be glad that the whole conflict is over?"

"You're just saying that cause you got the lowest number of kills," Falco teased.

"Seriously?" Slippy rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"Yeah Falco, that was a bit uncalled for," Fay added.

The door outside opened and both Fox and Peppy came inside. "Let me guess, Falco's already talking shit about how many ships he took down," Fox said.

"Too good of a guess," Miyu snorted.

"Well, I know Falco well enough so it's not surprising," Fox said as he grabbed a beer from the fridge. "I hope you and Falco aren't planning another drinking game, considering what happened the last time."

"Ugh, don't remind me," Fay groaned. "I stilll remember the stench of beer and vomit anywhere…"

"I honestly don't even know who won that anyway," Falco said.

"Me obviously," Miyu stated.

"Sure, whatever you say…hey gramps, you gonna have a drink too?"

Peppy chuckled. "Not tonight. Honestly, I might turn in early tonight. Never know what tomorrow will bring."

"Hopefully not being summoned for another ceremony," Fox said, shaking his head. "Maybe this time he'll just wire us the money."

"How much are we getting this time?" Slippy asked.

"If I had to guess based on our last payment…probably close to eight hundred thousand."

"Eight hundred thousand!?" Both Fay and Miyu gasped.

"Lower than last time but not bad," Falco commented. "At least this time we won't break the bank."

"We're running low on supplies anyway," Slippy said. "Not to mention I want to see if I can make some major improvements on those Interceptor-class Arwings."

"They seemed to do rather well, even though the shielding on them doesn't quite stack up to the standard Arwing," Fox said.

"I may be able to increase the shielding without compromising speed." Slippy then sighed. "I may end up scrapping the Heavy Arwings though. They can take a beating but I think Peppy and I prefer the old Arwings. Then again…I can always try beefing up the armor on our ships as well."

"Oh here we go," Falco groaned. "At this rate, it's gonna take weeks before any of us can fly again if he gets what he wants. I want some R&R after this but I'd go crazy without flying."

"Okay first of all, no one's doing any repairs tonight, that can wait til tomorrow," Fox declared. "Second of all, regardless of setbacks or kill counts, we won in the end and we should be proud of that. So let this be a night of celebration…but not where something gets blown up okay?"

"Alright! Now we're talking!" Fay said happily.

Miyu facepalmed. "This is going to end badly, I just know it…"

About two hours later, Miyu was standing outside as Fay was currently throwing up in the toilet. "I told you three shots ago that maybe you should stop," Miyu pointed out.

"Are you going to be doing this all night?" Fay groaned.

"Only until you finally learn your lesson."

Meanwhile, Fox and Falco were watching the scene while sitting at a table playing cards. Peppy had finally gone to bed and Slippy retired to his room to read more of his comics. Falco snorted in disgust. "I swear, those two act like schoolgirls…"

"Not too different from some of the girls I met at the Academy," Fox chuckled as he looked at his hand.

"Oh? Do tell how you would know," Falco grinned.

"Uh…" Fox blushed slightly. "Apparently the McCloud name was more popular than I imagined…Anyway, they earned their place here. I remmeder first meeting them like it was yesterday…"

"And I remember how I thought you were crazy," Falco quipped.

"Only cause you didn't want to split more of the pay."

"Well…yeah but I admit…they're decent pilots. Pretty sure I'd do better in one of those Interceptors but I can still outperform them in my regular Arwing."

Fox said nothing as he stared at the two girls. He could still remember when he brought up his new idea privately with Peppy.

Three Months Ago…

"New members huh?" Peppy said as his reclined back in his seat in his room. "Do the others know about this?"

"Not yet,"Fox said. "Considering you're the only remaining original members of the team, I thought I'd get your input."

"Well, I gotta say I'm flattered, but what's this really about?"

"I want to build more on what my father started," Fox said. "With more manpower, not only would be able to get more done around the ship, we would play a far more significant role in any future Cornerian conflicts."

"Well…even with Andross I doubt we'll achieve peace with Venom so easily so you may be onto something. So who do we got?"

"Two candidates, both female." Fox quickly noticed the smile on the hare's face. "What?"

"Nothing, nothing…"

Fox rolled his eyes. "Gender aside, these two stand out the most in their class." Fox then handed over the two folders to Peppy.

"Hmm…" Peppy looked through the first file. "Fay's a skilled engineer and has earned top marks. She discovered how to increase the Cornerian Starfighter's engine speed by thirty percent. She apparently also comes from an aristocratic family on Corneria…pretty sure they wouldn't like her running off with a group of mercenaries… and then there's Miyu who has earned top marks in marksmanship and easily one of the best pilots in her class." Peppy then looked up to Fox. "And just how do you know they'll be willing to join us?"

"I got in touch with some people at the Academy, word gets around," Fox replied. "As far as I know, they're on the fence about leaving. I'm going to try to offer them a third option."

"If Bill hears about this he's going to give you hell for it," Peppy warned him.

"Bill knows I wouldn't undermine him," Fox assured him. "Besides, if they decide to turn me down, that's the end of it."

"So you're just going to head down, walk straight into the Academy and recruit them?"

"That's exactly what I'm going to do," Fox said with a grin.