AUTHOR'S NOTE: Well, here we are again. I just can't get enough of StarFox for some reason. For those of you returning faithful readers, and those of you newcomers, I'd like to welcome you to my second StarFox fan fiction, a companion piece to my surprisingly well-received story, "A Great Day To Die". This was written, mainly because I've noticed a lack of well thought-out stories of the past of Fox and Wolf, and because I wanted to offer my own take. Since I don't want it to get boring, however, "Cubs" is basically 7 separate short stories, glimpses into the past of the StarFox universe from my own dark perspective (MUHAHAHAHA). You can feel free to fill in the blanks. Here, we'll see pivotal events in Wolf and Fox's young lives, and also, some gaze into the rise of the controversial figure known as Andross. If enough people love this, I might be inspired to write a full-fledged sequel to "A Great Day To Die", instead of just a prequel. Who knows?
-What I Learned From Daddy-
"Ya' got ta' connect this here coupling ta' the output line from th' main generator, and ya' gotta be real careful 'bout that, or else yer' gonna end up fryin' yer' fuckin' fur off, ya' hear? Ya' mess that up 'n we'll be servin' yer' barbequed ass up with sum' cheese whiz an' Tabasco sauce, ya' understand?"
There was no reply.
The muscular, dark grey wolf looked over to the doorway of the dim equipment shed, to see his five year-old son crouched on the ferroconcrete floor, staring up at the dusty brown sky.
"WOLF!!" the father bellowed, catching the young grey cub by surprise, "You listinin' ta' me, boy?!"
Wolf O'Donnell's two tiny lavender eyes met his father's imposing brownish-gold gaze, his mouth open slightly in an expression of befuddlement.
Wolf's father threw his head back and laughed, slapping the large fusion generator at his side.
"Ya' look like sum' little chimpo thas' just had it's banana stolen! HAHAHAA!" his father barked.
Wolf picked himself up with as much dignity as a scruffy little wolf cub could, protesting loudly, "I aint no ape, Daddy! Don't call me that!"
"Might as well be," his father shot back, "If ya' aint good fer' anythin', how ya' gonna find a girl that's gonna go out with ya? Might as well get some little chimpo-slut wife and start splicin' if yer' just gonna put yer' head in the clouds."
"I aint good fer' nothin', Daddy!" Wolf snapped.
"Then pay fuckin' attention, boy!" his father snarled, jabbing a clawed finger towards a disconnected output line feeding off from the fusion generator.
There was a sad look on Wolf's face for a moment, but he nodded and scooted forward. His father smirked and nodded, and Wolf avoided eye contact.
Wolf's father leaned forward, putting a hand on Wolf's shoulder. Wolf tensed up a bit, then relaxed.
"Now, here's tha' output line from tha' generator, an' here's tha' input line tha' leads out ta' tha' moisture vaporators an' tha' feedin' systems fer tha' sheep, okay?" his father instructed, "Yer output line from tha' generator's hot. Why can't we turn tha' generator off?"
Wolf stared at the coupling pensively, then at the cold fusion generator, a large cylinder giving off a cold blue glow.
"'Cause it'll kill the fusion reaction?" Wolf answered unsurely.
"Thas' righ'," his father replied, "Shut it off and we're outta' power fer tha' next month while we're waitin' fer an engineer ta' come up an' restart tha' fusion reaction. Ya gotta' handle it hot."
Wolf nodded with a vague smile, his eyes wide.
"So, take tha' input line by tha' base 'a tha' coupling. Careful ya' don't touch the end, or--"
"Barbeque," Wolf interrupted quietly.
"Thas' righ'," his father said, "Don't you be sassin' me, boy."
"Yessir," Wolf nodded, wrapping his small hands around the coupling base.
"I'm gonna hold up tha' input line, an' you connect tha' two. Doncha mess up, ya hear?" his father intoned.
"Yes, Daddy," Wolf nodded.
His father held up the thick input line, and Wolf heaved the output coupling upwards, grunting a little bit because of the heaviness of the line. Wolf carefully looked at the output plug and the input socket, lining them up carefully, and then slowly pushing output to input. The two couplings connected with a light snap.
"Alrigh, now we got tha' power conduit runnin. We just gotta' seal tha' line. Grab tha' plasma cutter from tha' toolbox now," Wolf's father instructed.
"Yes, Daddy," Wolf said, taking his hands off of the power conduit and shuffling over to the bright red toolbox behind him, wrapping his hands around a thick silver cylinder the size of a flashlight.
"Alrigh, now set it ta' 'weld' an' put it against tha' sides a' tha' coupling."
Wolf did so.
"Now, press tha' button, an' work it around tha' sides a' tha' coupling real slow like," his father instructed.
Wolf pressed the button and saw a small triangular blade of plasma rise from the end of the plasma cutter, and he carefully touched the beam against the sides of the coupling where input met output. The metal heated up rapidly, melting and fusing together in an orange glow.
"Ya' know, ya' can build one a' these plasma cutters pretty easily," his father informed him as he worked, "I can teach ya' how someday"
Wolf carefully worked the plasma cutter around the coupling, biting his bottom lip as he concentrated, his pointed canine ears perking upwards at attention.
The mix of blue and orange light cast an eerie glow on the young cub's face, and he seemed, for once, at ease.
Wolf completed the circle and pressed the button once more, deactivating the plasma cutter.
In a minute, the metal cooled and hardened into an airtight seal.
"Not too bad, son," Wolf's father grunted, scratching the cub between the ears.
Wolf's scruffy tail wagged slightly.
"Are we done, Daddy?" Wolf inquired, looking up at his father.
"Yeah, we're done fer now. Go on an' play now," his father instructed.
The two exited the utility shed, walking out into the dim sun of mid-afternoon, their feet crunching on the dusty dirt of the Katinan outback. Out in the sunlight, one could see the difference between father and son, the stockier, darker-furred father next to his somewhat lanky son. Wolf wore a loose-fitting white shirt over a tan sheepskin vest and shorts, while his father was shirtless, dressed in a pair of blue working pants with construction boots. The large, crushing footprints left by his father's boots were decidedly different from the light paw-prints left by Wolf's bare feet.
Fifty meters ahead of them was a homestead dominated by a large wooden farmhouse. Standing on the porch was a slightly obese and pregnant female wolf, wearing little more than a sports-bra and a pink skirt.
"Hank!" the female called.
"What, Luann?" Wolf's father responded.
"Hey, momma!" Wolf called to Luann.
Luann O'Donnell just nodded in his direction, her attention squarely on Hank.
"I need ya' ta' help me wit' somethin'…" Luann trailed off, groping her breast with one hand and sliding another over her belly and into her skirt.
"Ya' gotta itch, mom?" Wolf called, not understanding the message Luann was relating to Hank.
"Yeah, hon. One yer' Daddy needs ta' scratch," Luann answered.
A small amount of drool escaped from Hank O'Donnell's jaws as he grinned, laughing a little bit. Something in his pants grew stiff.
"Ya' stay out here an' play wit' yer' brothers an' sisters, alrigh' Wolf?" his father growled, his eyes locked on Luann.
"Yes, Daddy," Wolf nodded.
Without another word, Hank followed Luann into the farmhouse.
Wolf took off around the farmhouse, over to the jagged ravine and dry lakebed that his twelve older siblings could be found playing in.
As he walked, Wolf stared up into the dusty brown sky, the sun a bright grey spot hidden by thick clouds. A stray Katina sand hawk flew overhead, and Wolf wondered what it might be like to fly.
He was barely around the corner when a juvenile voice called, "Hey, Merch!"
Wolf paused and turned around to see a seven year-old wolf with slightly brownish-tan fur leaning against the wooden farmhouse. He wore a sheepskin outfit similar to Wolf's.
"I aint' Merch!" Wolf snapped indignantly.
"Who can tell tha' two a' you apart?! Ya' jus' ten months younger", the wolf cub shrugged.
"Shut up, Fenris!" Wolf growled at his brother.
Fenris merely smiled.
Just as Wolf was about to turn around, he heard Fenris quip, "Wanna wrestle?"
A second passed, then a grin appeared on Wolf's face. He'd wrestled Fenris (along with most of his other siblings) before.
Wolf lost.
But Wolf was always ready for a rematch.
"I'm gonna beat yer tail red," Fenris warned.
Wolf didn't reply, waiting for a perfect moment. Even from a young age, Wolf knew how to size up an opponent. Fenris had about six inches and twenty pounds over Wolf, but Wolf knew from watching his brothers fight that size wasn't everything. When you got in close, size was more of a liability. Fenris liked to talk, and taunt, and tease. That was a weakness, too.
"I dunno why ya' just keep tryin', Wolf," Fenris shrugged, "Ya' know we're always gonna beat you. Shoot, I wouldn't be surprised if one a' us ends up killin' ya' someday. Maybe you oughta stop an' play with the girls."
As he talked, Fenris rolled his eyes, shaking his head and looking up at the sky. It was all that Wolf needed.
"I'm sure that Sally an' Aza wanna baby doll they can play--" Fenris began to taunt, but by that time Wolf had already sprung forward and grabbed a hold of his face, shoving his head into the side of the house with a yell of fury.
Fenris' head bumped into the house with a minor amount of force, enough to make Wolf's older brother scream out loud.
Fenris jostled forward, knocking Wolf to the ground in a cloud of dust.
Wolf watched as his older brother dove towards him, and rolled to the side, letting Fenris fall into the dirt.
He delivered a gratifying kick to Fenris' stomach, despite the small sting it gave Wolf's bare foot. An enraged Fenris sat up and lunged at Wolf, grabbing him by the shoulders and straddling him. Wolf tried to sit up, only to have Fenris shove him back down hard, slamming the back of Wolf's head into the ground. Fenris raised a fist and slugged down into Wolf's nose.
The impact was like a supernova; an exploding star of pain in the middle of Wolf's face. His eyes instinctively squinted shut, and even then, Wolf saw red. He could feel the blood pouring out of his nose and the tears coming out of his eyes, but he fought the urge to cry. He wouldn't let Fenris see him whimper. It would only make Fenris hit him more.
"Told ya you were a pussy!" Fenris spat as Wolf opened his eyes, "Mama thought ya' were unlucky 'cause ya' were her thirteenth kid. Yer unlucky and a pansy! Go on an' cry now!"
Wolf's eyes narrowed, and he felt a low growl rising up from his gut. A deep snarl escaped from his jaws, so low and intimidating that Fenris' eyes showed an expression of fear, even though he was clearly winning.
For the first time in his life, something took over in Wolf.
It was like he instinctively knew just how to hurt Fenris, just how to win, just how to make him suffer. More than that, he wanted to do it.
Wolf gave off a feral hiss as he went into action, his limbs moving faster than they ever had before. His left arm swatted Fenris' hand off of his shoulder, the other grabbed the side of his face and swiped him to the side. Fenris fell off of Wolf and onto the ground, and in less than a second, Wolf was on top of his older brother.
Fenris tried to grab Wolf's throat, only to have Wolf grab Fenris by the wrist and sink his teeth into his arm. Fenris began to scream, but was cut off as Wolf gripped Fenris' bottom jaw and shoved hard upwards, forcing Fenris to bite down on his own tongue and driving the back of his brother's head into the dirt, all the while biting down ever harder.
Wolf felt the moment as his teeth broke Fenris' skin and the taste of blood flowed into his mouth, which only fueled his frenzy. Fenris tried to grab ahold of Wolf's ear, to which Wolf responded by slamming Fenris' head into the ground once more, then again and again in an almost piston-like motion. With all of the strength left in his arm, Wolf plowed his older brother's head into the ground harder than ever before, eliciting a cry of agony from Fenris. Wolf tore his jaws away from Fenris' arm like he was eating a chicken leg, stripping a layer of flesh off of his older brother's arm as he ripped his teeth free. Fenris began to scream out loud, tears pouring from his eyes. He put up his hands in surrender, his mouth contorted in a whimpering sulk of terror. Wolf sat, straddled on top of his brother, breathing hard as he took in his victory.
His eyes were swollen to almost fish-like proportions.
The pads of his paws secreted a film of cold sweat.
His heart jackhammered in his chest.
Then he saw the torrents of blood oozing from Fenris' arm, from his mouth; the tears flowing from the ducts in his eyes. Covered in dust and tears and blood and fear, his enemy was totally decimated, and though there was something beautiful about it to Wolf, he finally remembered that this was, after all, his own brother.
Fenris began to sob, "Please, just stop!" his further expressions being merely bawls of distress and dread.
Wolf's heart calmed. His adrenaline ran out. His brain cooled.
Here was his elder, two years older than him, reduced to a bloody, scraped up mess, from merely seconds of intense fighting. That bite on his arm looked horrible. He really had to get help for that.
Fenris began to scream for help, the waterworks seriously beginning to run from his tear ducts. Wolf leapt off of his brother, almost scared of what he had done. At the same time, however, there was a sense of pride.
This is what I can do, Wolf thought, …Wow…
Wolf got to his feet and ran back around the farmhouse, frantic to find someone that knew how to make his older brother better. He sprinted over the porch, his bare feet slapping the wood with a hollow echo, throwing open the door to the farmhouse and rushing inside. The dim light panels of the house created eerie shadows on the wall as Wolf scurried down the hallway and over to the door of his parent's room.
"Daddy! Daddy!" Wolf cried as he kicked the door open.
There was a startled gasp as Wolf saw his parents, both naked and wrestling each other on the bed sheets.
Wolf's father was on top, nestled between his mother's legs and her rolls of fat, his teeth clenched around her bare nipple like a baby trying to feed, whilst his mother's head was thrown backwards, with one hand resting on her forehead, the other digging it's nails into her mate's ass-cheek.
All of the air was taken out of his lungs as he took in the scene, his immature eyes unable to process what was going on in front of him. Wolf stood, stunned, his feet planted on the wooden floors as Hank sucked on Luann's breast. After a moment, both of them noticed the presence of their youngest son, Luann giving off a shriek of confusion as a glare of rage dominated Hank's face.
"Goddammit, Wolf, I told ya' ta' stay OUTSIDE!!!" Hank bellowed.
Wolf was petrified, completely unable to process what his father was doing to his mother.
All thoughts of helping Fenris were perished from his mind, instead replaced by a mix of confusion and horror.
"GET THA' FUCK OUTTA HERE!!!" his father roared, using a roll of Luann's fat to prop himself upwards, the muscles of his chest flexing as a visage of fury appeared on his face.
The shout was enough to expel Wolf backwards, enticing him to flee out of the door of the room and crouch next to the doorframe as he held his ears to block out the sound of his father's screams and the squeak of worn-out bedsprings.
"I swear ta' God, tha' boy's dumb as a fuckin' rock. Doesn't know how ta' listen worth a damn," Hank grumbled over Luann's moans of pleasure.
No matter how much he tried not to, Wolf still heard it all.
"Good-fer-nothin' little pup. Gonna grow up ta' be a faggot if he ain't careful," growled his father. His mother's exasperated pants of breath seemed to only concur with Hank's analysis.
All that Wolf could do was curl up against the wall and whisper,
"Yes, Daddy. Yes, Daddy."