Author's Preface

I am a long-standing fan of the StarFox series. Ever since the first game all the way back on the SNES, the entire series has enthralled me, making me always want more. Unfortunately, also being an inherent RPG fan, the plot of a game was the most important characteristic for me, and in this aspect, StarFox was lacking…until recently. I had drifted away from the series until a close friend of mine reintroduced me to the wonders that were StarFox Adventures and StarFox Assault. Now I'm back into the game armed with (to my delight) a fuller and more complete plot.

Of course StarFox, being an action game, does not have a perfect plot. There are gaps and aspects in the it that are not explained or explored very well, which is fine; it just leaves more to the imagination of the workhorse of a capitalist-based economy: the consumers. The open plot of the game allows the fans to write their own fiction and explore the possibilities by themselves (at least until Nintendo actually releases the wanted information, like with the comic about Falco leaving the party).

The purpose of this all-encompassing fanfic is to provide a bridge in the gap between the last two games, which is where a large chunk of unexplained plot exists. This fanfic takes place from the end of Adventures all the way until the beginning of Assault and is, of course, a work in progress.

I strive for, in this fic, a sort of literary perfection. As such, I plan to weave expertly calculated text together with an enjoyable plot. The resulting fusion will hopefully result in what will be an excellent fanfic. Of course, I may be getting ahead of myself. This may turn out to be nothing more than a mediocre attempt to record my thoughts. Regardless, please be patient with me when I try to chug out these chapters. It takes a while to write, and the actual episodes may vary in length. I will not stop writing this fic until it is finished, but there may be large intervals of time between the releases of the different chapters.

And what cannot be made with literary perfection can be made up for in uniqueness. With this thought, I am doing something that has probably not been seen in any previous fanfic. After the first two chapters, this fanfic will sunder in two. On one side will be the exploits of the StarFox team, and on the other will be StarWolf. Fortunately, I will only be writing the StarWolf parts; the friend I mentioned earlier will be the one who writes the StarFox chapters. His alias is Zeus Anubis (while mine is Lunar Anubis). If anyone has any questions about a particular part or has an idea they would like to see added, then email me at is one more thing that I wish to discuss before I move onto the fic. I have made several deductions and conclusions about the more subtle things involving the StarFox universe. Some (or maybe most) of them may need to be understood for the reader to completely understand some events or subtle insinuations:

I have come to the conclusion that in StarFox 64, the order of skill of the differing pilots was probably thus: Wolf, Leon, Falco, Fox, Pigma, Peppy, Andrew, Slippy. This lineup changes in Assault to the following: Wolf, Leon, Falco, Fox, Panther, Krystal, Slippy.

There are several reasons I say this. First, Falco is beyond a doubt better than Fox at piloting an Arwing (this is stated in several sources), and Leon is undoubtedly better than Falco. The grounds for me saying the latter is that Leon is ALWAYS tailing Falco in a dogfight (very seldom does Falco turn the tables). This also happens to be my primary reason for Andrew and Pigma being better than their counterparts. But as to not get torched to death by flame mail, I have also some more subtle reasons for my accusations. Peppy seems to be rather rusty at fighting while Pigma appears to still be quite skilled. Slippy just sucks (relatively) at flying an Arwing, and Andrew just gives the impression of being a better pilot.

Now we enter the largest controversy: Wolf being better than Fox. Here's my somewhat complex reason for saying what I say. Let us just assume for a moment that Fox was better than Wolf; the order of pilots would then be Leon, Falco, Fox, Wolf. At first that list seems to be sound, but something cries out to me about the accuracy of it: the fact that Leon would assumedly be better than Wolf. StarWolf, unlike StarFox, is not an all-terrain mercenary group. StarFox can succeed in any situation, while StarWolf is inflexible, being only good at flying. Therefore, it seems rather infeasible that the best pilot wouldn't be the leader; so if Leon is better than Wolf, why isn't he the leader (StarChameleon?)?

There is also one other minor point supporting my argument. Wolf seems to be extraordinarily cocky about his abilities as a pilot; there are MANY instances stating that, but Wolf says a few things that catch my attention. He appears to be a more experienced pilot that Fox, and whenever he loses in a fight to his foe, he has an incredibly incredulous look and feel about him. This may not mean anything, but I think it does.

I believe that Falco loves Katt, but Katt does not love Falco (entirely). All of my evidence lies in the Star Fox Adventures comic released by Nintendo over the Internet.

As far as the route of StarFox in StarFox 64 is concerned, I definitely believe that they went to Corneria, Zoness, Sector X, and Titania. Note that these are 100 definite. Though I lack substantial proof for this, I also believe that they visited the asteroids, Fortuna, and Bolse. They got neither ending, since they never fought the Wolfen II's (my reason for this? StarWolf was not cybernetic in Assault, so StarFox could not have visited Venom II) nor did they kill the android Andross. My proof lies in the Adventures comic. What probably happened is they visited Venom I but killed the real Andross anyway. Them visiting any other planets is still up for debate.

It bears mention that Fox is not a charitable soul. Let us remember that StarFox is a mercenary team. Fox does not do things simply because it would be nice. This especially becomes noticeable if you read the website for Adventures.

The topic of StarFox vs. StarWolf is sort of delicate. Obviously, there are many players (a.k.a. Foxes) that can easily wipe out a whole squadron of Wolfen II's. However, plot-wise, this is obviously not the case. I have scattered within this preface my thoughts on this issue but will condense it all into one spot to make it easy to read.

I have already discussed the level of skill for the different pilots, and I have one further conclusion to make based upon my findings. Falco can beat Fox in a fight (albeit not easily), and Leon can beat Falco (sort of easily). Wolf can beat Leon, as I spoke of earlier. This means that Wolf is perhaps substantially better than Fox (but we do not know the margins of skill between the top four pilots, so it is impossible to discern how much better Wolf is than Fox). This means that perhaps StarFox is unable, statistically, to easily (if at all) defeat StarWolf.

Despite this, here is what I believe is the history of their interactions. StarFox and StarWolf must have undoubtedly met at a date (or dates) previous to StarFox 64, because the StarFox team knows of StarWolf's existence. We may also assume that they have, therefore, battled previously, the battles not ending in StarFox's favor.

StarFox encountered StarWolf (having been hired by Andross) at Fortuna and lost. The Fortuna base was, therefore, taken out (but was rebuilt by the time Assault rolled around), and StarFox traveled dejectedly onto another mission. They later encountered the StarWolf team again at Bolse. Once again, they should have lost, but the underdog miraculously pulled through and defeated StarWolf for the first time ever. StarWolf moved on (with Andrew in tow) to encounter StarFox again at a later date in time.

Having spoken of their great victory at Bolse, I should still note that their triumph was probably a fluke, and StarFox is almost definitely not better than StarWolf, at least until Assault rolls around. By Assault, Pigma and Andrew have left and are replaced by Panther (who I would like to believe is better than both). Still, StarWolf loses two and gains one; StarFox continues to have four. Even though Panther is better than Krystal and Slippy, I believe that the two teams are on par with each other in Assault.

There is one more aspect that can complicate my theories, of course: the Wolfen. It is a fact that the Wolfen was worse than the Arwing in 64; this may be part of the reason StarFox succeeds at Bolse. It is also a fact that the Wolfen later becomes equal to the Arwing (in Assault). Since we were never told how much worse the Wolfen I was than the Arwing, it is obscenely difficult to determine exactly what the strength of the teams are in comparison to each other when the two ships become equal.

Personally, I would like to believe that StarWolf was better than StarFox in 64 but not by a large margin. The StarWolf team becomes slightly worse-off by losing Pigma and Andrew then gaining Panther. The loss of quality is only slight, however, and is offset by StarFox losing Peppy and gaining Krystal (the former being better than the latter). I also believe the Wolfen I was worse than the Arwing enough to make a difference (but not enough for StarFox to win more than once). Therefore, when the Wolfen upgrades, the quality of the StarWolf team over the StarFox team becomes noticeable; StarWolf is still probably better than the StarFox in Assault and by a larger margin than in the previous game.

I believe that the animal of the character factors greatly into his/her physical abilities. My two bits of proof for this lie in the Adventures comic (the alligator character was visibly larger and stronger than everyone else while the shrew was much smaller) and in the stats of the characters in the Assault versus mode. All of the stats are generally based upon what animal the character is.

Therefore, Wolf is larger, faster, hardier, and stronger than Fox, as real wolves are better than real foxes in all of those aspects. Of course, the type of animal has little if any impact on the skills of the characters. For instance, Falco is a better pilot than Fox simply because he is, not because he is an Avian.

I am nearly done with this boring little preface. I'm truly sorry that it was so long, I really hadn't intended for it to be of such great length. Anyway, some more things should be said before I move onto the actual story. First, this fanfic takes place from the moment Adventures ends until Assault begins.

It should be noted, also, before I begin, that this fic is rated "R" for a reason; some parts of this fic may be extraordinarily violent, but not in a tasteless aspect. Interestingly, most "R" fics generally suck, because they take the "R" rating and misapply it. People reading this may be happy to know this rating can be the most powerful if used correctly, but it involves properly coordinating the aspects that actually make it what it is. We will strive to see that this is so.

Funny enough, a large motivator for the creation of this work is to surpass what I consider to be the best fanfic in the StarFox genre: "The Prize" by Darth Tabby. I read it after having written this preface and was mesmerized by the whole thing; I will be hard-pressed to compose a work greater than it, but I'll try my hardest. It is this thought that drives me.

Lunar Anubis

Prologue
By Zeus Anubis

In the deep recesses of space, the colossal ship known as the Great Fox drifted slowly. Inside, the silence was broken only by the hum of the red safety lights that lined the hallways. Everyone onboard was asleep…except for one person. Fox McCloud, the leader of the StarFox team, tossed and turned restlessly in his bed. He rolled over to look at the clock like he had so many times that night. According to Corneria Standard Time it was 0147. Fox sighed; he simply could not sleep that night. The day had been extraordinarily eventful, even by his standards. He had saved the planet Saurian, defeated Andross (hopefully for the last time), and rescued the blue fox Krystal.

Fox flung the blanket off of himself and stepped onto the cold floor. After deciding that a shower might help him relax, he quietly snuck across the hallway into the bathroom. He stepped into the shower and twisted the knobs. A blast of hot water hit him, helping him relax almost instantly. His shower, of course, caused a slight racket as the familiar screech of the pipes reacting to the running water filled the vicinity. Fox winced, hoping that the noise did not wake anyone. He mentally told himself that the plumbing was the first thing he needed to get repaired on this ship. Steam began to fill the small room as Fox grabbed a bar of soap and started to lather himself with it, inwardly thinking about how much of a bother fur was. Soon after finishing, he turned off the water and stepped out. After getting dressed and making a vain attempt to get water out of his ears, he got out of the bathroom and would have started walking toward his room had he not run into a slender figure first. Krystal.

Fox apologized quickly, "Oh, sorry Krystal. I didn't mean to walk into you."

But Krystal, being the polite little creature she was, could not help but counter with an apology of her own, "Not, it was my fault. I shouldn't have been standing out here at this time of night."

Fox stared at her; the red safety lights combined with her blue fur caused her body to be shrouded in a strange purple hue. Quickly snapping out his gaze, he responded in turn, "I didn't wake you, did I?"

She shook her head and said, "No…I just couldn't sleep."

He exhaled mentally; maybe the bathroom pipes were not as loud as he thought, seeing that Krystal's room was right next to the bathroom, "Yeah, me neither. A lot has happened today."

Krystal nodded, "Yes. Hopefully Andross will never harm anyone ever again. By the way, thanks again for saving me and for letting me stay here for tonight."

Fox shrugged, "Its no problem. You can stay with us until we can get you back to your home and family."

Krystal's ears lowered at this statement as her eyes filled with sadness. Her voice quivered as she spoke, "I don't have any family." Krystal's speech stopped momentarily as her voice hitched, "My home planet, Cerinia, was destroyed a long time ago. I am the only survivor."

Fox's own ears slumped downward as soon as he heard what she had said. He had not intended to depress her by bringing up such a delicate subject, "I'm so sorry. I didn't know."

She attempted a smile, "It's ok. It happened so long ago, I barely remember it."

Fox's eyes were the ones filled with sorrow now. Sure, he had lost his parents, but at least he had his team, which were now his family whether he wanted to believe it or not. Krystal, on the other hand, had lost everything and gained nothing in return. She was completely alone.

Krystal sense his distress and quickly tried to lighten up the conversation, "Don't worry about me. I have been wandering around the Lylat System, helping whoever I can. I can handle myself; you see…I have certain gifts…"

Fox cocked his head slightly as he looked at her quizzically, "Gifts?"

Krystal smiled. She loved telling people this part, "Yes. You see…I am somewhat of a telepath."

His face froze up in abstract horror as his mind went numb. After a few moments, he was able to form coherent sentences, "You're a telepath!" There was a loud thump that may have been Slippy off of his bed at the sound of Fox's scream. Despite the shriek, his nerves did not calm. Some of the things he had thought when he looked at her he didn't want anyone to know about. Let alone her!

Krystal quickly sensed his distress and attempted to calm him, "Don't worry. I cannot read your mind. I can merely sense brainwave patterns and discern simple emotions. It also allows me to sense danger. I can fight better by sensing when an opponent will attack."

Relief flooded Fox's mind and body, "That's a very useful gift. I can see how that would be useful in a fight."

Krystal smiled, "It has definitely proven useful before. " She yawned and said, "I will leave as soon as we are close to a habitable world."

The idea struck a cord with Fox, who secretly wanted her to stay, "You know…you can stay with us as long as you need to…" There was a small lapse in the conversation, "Well, anyway. Its late, and I think I might finally be able to sleep. Goodnight, Krystal."

Krystal sensed a little spike in Fox's emotion but decided to keep quiet about the issue. Inside, she was sort of relieved she didn't have to leave anytime soon. She wasn't sure if she wanted to or not, "Thanks again, Fox, and goodnight."

Krystal turned around and began to walk back toward her room. Fox did the same, but now he was entertaining thoughts he wasn't before. Maybe she could join the team…She could definitely fight, and her telepathic abilities could be useful to the team. After debating a few moments, Fox determined that he would talk with the others about it before he made any final decisions.

Fox entered his room, laid down, and pulled the covers over himself. As he slowly fell asleep, he kept thinking about how nice it would be to have Krystal around. A new face aboard was nice, and with Falco having come back, maybe things would become a little more entertaining. The only thing left to do was to persuade the rest of the team to let her stay aboard permanently. Her. Krystal. She was very beautiful…and kind…and smart…and beautiful…and beautiful…