Chapter 6: Establishing Friendships

Red found Slippy in his room which was full of computers and littered with machine parts.

"Hey, Slippy, can I talk to you?"

"Oh, not now. I'm researching the structure of the Aparoids and I'm comparing them to the new Aparoids."

Red walked over the pieces of scrap metal on the floor and looked at the computer screen, "So what have you found out?"

"I haven't found out much more than what Peppy told us. He was right about them being half-Aparoid, but that's about all I can figure out."

On the screen, there were illustrations of both types of Aparoids. On the left side was a picture of the original Aparoid and on the right side was a picture of the half-Aparoid. Slippy was searching through a slideshow that compared and contrasted the two specimens' circuits, composition, and weaponry. He then compared the programming of each, which looked like networks of random lines and symbols that Red couldn't quite understand.

"Do you understand all of this?" Red asked.

"Sure do. If you look here, you can see some similarities," He was scrolling through the slideshow, "and here, I can see slight variations, but here, it's all different."

Red wasn't given enough time to comprehend all of what Slippy was saying. "So, Slippy, this really seems to be your field of interest."

"Yeah, I guess so."

"If you could stop working for a minute, I would like to talk to you."

Slippy reluctantly stopped typing. "What is it, Red?"

Red sat down in front of the monitor next to Slippy. "I know you're very talented in the field of Research and Development," he said as he pulled out a memory cartridge out of his pocket and plugged it into the computer, "but I've noticed how I've had to save you twice in the recent battles." Red started a video on the monitor that showed scenes from the space battles of Slippy getting chased by half-Aparoids.

For Slippy, the video was a bit unnecessary, and seeing himself almost dying due to his own stupidity was a little embarrassing. "Okay, so what's your point? So what if I'm not the best flier?"

"There's nothing wrong with that," said Red, "but I see you more as someone who will start a successful research company or become the Research Director like your father. If you end up in another one of those unfortunate situations while no one is there to help you," he paused, "your potentially successful future will end…along with your life. I can help you improve. If you have any free time, I can train you so that you'll stay out of trouble. I can show you some of the tricks that have kept me alive for more than 15 years. Who knows? Maybe one day, you'll save someone else's life."

Slippy was a little stunned by this. He knew he wasn't that good, but having the rest of the team to keep him alive may have made him oblivious to the fact that he could die if he ever wasn't fortunate enough. Having this new, disturbing thought in his mind made him eager to get better at flying. "Yeah. Sure, I'll try it. When can we start?"

Red got out of his chair. "How about you finish your research? When you're ready, find me and I'll teach you as much as I can."

"O.K. Thanks."

Red started to leave the room. He stopped at the door and said, "Oh, by the way, Slippy, I need help with creating a computer virus to use against the half-Aparoids. I made a simple computer bug that was able to destroy the mother ship from that first battle, but it has many flaws that may create future conflicts."

"Sure, Red."

Fox and Krystal have been talking in Red's room for a while now. They had gotten into deep discussions about lost family members, the mission on Sauria, and small details on Krystal's past.

Red was walking down the hallway after his talk with Slippy. He was close enough to his room to hear them still in his room talking and he felt a mild sense of accomplishment. He turned around and made his way to the living rooms where Falco was.

Falco was flipping through the channels on the main display. He was basically bored out of his mind because there was nothing good on, then he saw Red walk in. "What're you doing here?" He turned his eyes back to the display and pretended that Red just interrupted a good show.

"I just came to see if you're still extremely paranoid. Do you always act this way to those who are supposed to be your allies?"

"Why do you care, showoff?"

"Showoff? I was just doing my job out there. If you wanted me to let Slippy die, why didn't you just say so?"

Falco was feeling a mix of extreme boredom and annoyance which is never a good combination. He couldn't think of a good comeback.

Red resumed, "Falco, there's no reason for you to act this unreasonable. I aided your team in those last two battles, but you don't seem to believe that I'm on your side. I told you this before: I'm here to help."

"Sure, whatever you say," Falco said sarcastically.

Red was starting to get amused, "All I ever did was drop in unannounced during a battle, so technically you're being a hypocrite."

Falco was starting to get mad.

It was just then that Slippy came in, "Oh, here you are Red. I'm ready to start my training."

Falco snapped, "And what exactly does that mean?!"

Red said to Falco, "I'll make sure that you'll never have to go out of your way again to rescue Slippy. If you ever have another problem, just tell me."

"Well I do have one problem," said Falco, "I'm about to die of boredom!"

"Hm…Try reading a book."

"That'll really make me die of boredom!" Falco yelled.

"Then you're asking the wrong guy. I promised Slippy that I'd train him in flight combat, so if you hear massive explosions outside, then don't worry about it."

"What?!"

"I'm just kidding, Slippy," said Red.

This joke at Slippy's expense was amusing to Falco, "Hey, Red, when training him, just remember that he's gullible, he can't steer properly, and his shooting aim sucks."

"Hey!"

"Sure, Falco, I'll remember."

Red spent the next couple of hours teaching Slippy on how to improve his flying. In addition to perfecting Slippy's steering and shooting, Red gave him tips on how to avoid getting tailed during battle. Red also taught him to always stay focused during a fight and never get distracted, which was one of Slippy's main reasons for getting in trouble during combat.

Eventually, Red was worn-out because he had absorbed several of Slippy's lasers during target practice. After he called off the training session, they made it back to the hangar. As Red exited his fighter, he asked, "So, do you think you're improving?"

"I think so," Slippy replied, "Thanks for the help."

"You're welcome. Just don't disappoint me in the next battle."

"Oh, believe me, I won't," said Slippy.

"Yeah, we'll see about that."

Little did they know, the next battle wouldn't be too long from now.