Hey everyone! Well I know I said this would be a 3 part series, but I have decided to make it just a 2 part. This 2nd entry is a little bit longer but has a ton more action.
I would like to give a serious shout out to Snake Of The Rose for editing this behemoth. You freaking rock bro.
So, I hope you enjoy the final installment of Chapter 7.
This ones for the fans.
Chapter 7: Hero of war
Part Two
"The car's on fire and there's no driver at the wheel
And the sewers are all muddied with a thousand lonely suicides
And a dark wind blows
The government is corrupt
And we're on so many drugs
With the radio on and the curtains drawn
We're trapped in the belly of this horrible machine
And the machine is bleeding to death
The sun has fallen down
And the billboards are all leering
And the flags are all dead at the top of their poles
It went like this:
The buildings tumbled in on themselves
Mothers clutching babies picked through the rubble
And pulled out their hair
The skyline was beautiful on fire
All twisted metal stretching upwards
Everything washed in a thin orange haze
I said: "kiss me, you're beautiful -
these are truly the last days"
You grabbed my hand and we fell into it
like a daydream or a fever
We woke up one morning and fell a little further down -
for sure it's the valley of death
I open up my wallet
And it's full of blood."
"Oh my god...I can't believe that just happened...Dispatch, this is chopper 312....The whole...Christ, the whole fucking street on the north side of the hospital just...It exploded! We lost everyone! No one is responding. I can't see anything down there! We need everyone you can get down here, NOW."
"....Ten-four chopper 312, we have dispatched the military units near by. They are on their way, ETA ten minutes"
"Okay, ten-four. God damn....did you see that?"
"What is your status 312?........312?"
"We're fine....We're okay. Wait....look! Down there! Follow those vans! That has to be them! Dispatch, we are in pursuit of a small group of what looks like three black vans. They are headed uptown, going north on Jade Ave. Please send units to intercept, we gotta take this guy down!"
"312, we don't have anyone left. Our numbers are scarce enough, I'm sorry but you are on your own. Just keep perusing, until we can get some military assistance. Over."
"God damn you have to be fucking kidding me....Alright...10-4. Suspects are headed into the uptown commercial area. All the buildings here are about sixty stories, if not higher. We will try to keep track of them best we can."
"10-4...Keep us posted, and we will keep you posted."
"Roger that..... Watch the buildings! We don't want to clip the rotor!....Okay wait...looks like they are coming to a stop...OH SHIT!! LOOK OUT!! GOD DAMMIT!! Where did that come from?! What was that a fucking rocket? Dispatch we are under attack!! We...AAAHH! WE ARE HIT!! WE LOST THE TAIL ROTOR! WERE GOING DOWN!! WE ARE.....SHIT WE'RE GONNA HIT THE BUILD..."
"312? Chopper 312 please respond!.....All units....Chopper 312 is down...Any available unit, please respond...Anyone! Please respond!"
--
--
Two figures sat with their backs against an old car that was parked sideways in the middle of a ruined metropolis street.
They kept their heads low, held their plasma rifles close to their chests, and they knew they could be inches away from certain death.
The rain poured from the sky, soaking the post apocalyptic streets of the downtown area of Corneria City.
Nightfall was nearly upon them, as only the very top of the sun could be seen as it sunk below the horizon. Day light was nearly dead, and the blackness of night was slowly creeping over the city; claiming the land for itself.
The sky lit up with a blinding white flash, illuminating the entire city, and piercing the cracks and shattered windows of the abandon buildings with light.
Soon after, thunder exploded from the heavens with a force so powerful it rattled the foundations of the monolithic ruins of the city. It also shook the bones of the two unfortunate souls that happened to be stranded in the middle of it all.
Those two individuals were none other that Fox McCloud and Falco Lombardi.
The two held their position with their backs against the abandon car and they didn't dare move. They both slouched low, keeping their heads below the windows of their makeshift cover.
Adjacent to where they resided was their transportation, an old pickup truck a civilian back at the hospital let them commandeer in order to pursue Magnus. It was a fine vehicle indeed. Sturdy, could handle the war torn streets of the city, and could hold their few bags of supplies they managed to salvage from the wreckage of their hummer that was destroyed in the hospital bombings.
Now it was parked across from them with the engine still running, and a massive hole punched right in the middle of the windshield.
Slippy gave Fox some intel on where Magnus and his men were hiding out, before Fox and Falco set off. It was the 1st Corneria Bank Tower. A massive seventy-story sky scraper that was one of the tallest buildings in the downtown area. Slippy also recommended that they took an alternate route to their destination. Hitting the building head on would most likely throw them right into a trap. It made sense tactically speaking, so with Slippy's aid, they planned their route through the narrow back streets of the city.
They didn't count on snipers though.
Now they were pinned down. It was a miracle the sniper didn't pick one of them off as they drove down the street. Not to mention the abandon car in the road they had for cover was indeed luckily placed in their favor.
It caught them by total surprise. Fortunate for them, they were trained soldiers and knew how to react. The shot broke through their windshield, and within seconds Fox slammed on the breaks and they bailed out into the street, running for cover.
Now they were trapped and had to come up with a plan, because as far as they could tell, no help was coming anytime soon.
Falco held is rifle close. He feathers were soaked, and he was almost shivering from the cold.
He looked over at Fox, who almost seemed to be zoning out of the situation; his face was totally blank.
"Fox! You alright? Stay with me man!" Falco called out over the roar of the pouring rain.
Fox slowly swiveled his head towards the avian, "I'm...I'm fine....I'm alright..I'm good."
Falco just nodded his head in acknowledgment, "Man, that is one fucking huge hole he punched in the windshield. He isn't using a plasma sniper rifle for sure. Did you see where it came from?"
Fox shook his head, "No...The rain is to heavy, I couldn't see anything."
"Fuck. Alright, now what do we do?"
Fox sat in silence.
"FOX!" Falco yelled.
"I'M THINKING!" Fox yelled back. "We should be safe here for now. The trucks headlights will keep him from getting a clear shot at us. I'm sure he's using night vision or something."
"Well, we gotta move, and soon. He might have called for back up and they might be cutting through the buildings to flank us!"
Suddenly a thunderous boom cut through the cold air.
It wasn't thunder.
One of the headlights shattered and died.
"OH SHIT!" Falco yelled out.
Soon after, the other was shot out as well.
"Okay yeah, he's definitely using night vision. Now we are gonna be plain as day if we move," said Fox. "Stay below the windows."
"Yeah, no shit." Falco shot back.
They looked around, trying to find a way out of this situation, but didn't see anything that could help them. They were out in the middle of the street. If they tried to run for one of many buildings that lined the street they would most likely be picked off before they made it to shelter. There were other abandon cars littered throughout the streets but they were all in the wrong place.
"Fox!"
The vulpine looked eyes with his long time friend. He could see the fear in Falco's eyes.
"Fox, we got nowhere to go man. We have no options. We move, we're dead." Falco hung his head low and shook it in disbelief. "We are freaking dead Fox."
Fox had nothing to say to that in return. Falco was right.
Falco continued, "Man, Peppy was right, we were getting in over our heads here. No wonder he didn't come with us. Fox we should have waited for help; we can't do this on our own. There is just no way, we can get out of this, man we are so..."
"FALCO SHUT UP!" Fox barked.
Falco's beak clasped shut, and his eyes grew wide with surprise.
"Yeah, I screwed up, I'm sorry! But now I don't need you losing hope on me now. What has gotten into you?! I have never seen you like this!"
"Sorry Fox, I'm just keeping it real, shit just ain't going right for us."
"Hey." Fox placed his hand on Falco's shoulder. "I will get us out of this. But only if you stop bitching already."
They only way to get Falco back in the game was to piss him off, and Fox knew this.
Falco scrunched his brow, "Hey screw you buddy! And I'm not bitching I'm just.."
The car window above Fox's head exploded, showering the vulpine in bits of shattered glass. Fox fell over on his side, holding one hand over his left ear.
"FOX!! You okay?" Falco cried out.
Fox rolled up against the car once more. This time he sat even lower from the window.
The vulpine lifted is hand from his ear, and Falco could see the very tip of it was singed off.
"That....was close." Fox stammered out. "He's just taking shots; he's trying to flush us out."
Another shot was fired, this time punching right through the center of the car and exiting between Falco and Fox. The two nearly jumped out of their skin.
"Did you see that?! It punched right through! We gotta get out of here Fox; it's only a matter of time before he takes one of us." Falco yelled over the storm.
Fox put two fingers against his communication piece in his right ear, "SLIPPY WE GOT A PROBLEM!"
Slippy's startled voice broke through the static, "WAH! Uhh, Fox? What's wrong?"
"An enemy sniper has us pinned down out in the streets and we are out of options! The rifle he's using isn't energy based and it's punching right through our cover! Help us out here Slippy!"
Up on the Great Fox, Slippy dug through many displays on his computer terminal that displayed all sorts of field information.
"Okay Fox, I'm thermally scanning the area where you are...."
One of Slippy's monitors showed the city's layout and had icons that easily pinpointed Fox and Falco, due to the tracking devices implanted under their skin. A thermal scan ran over the city image, and light up another figure about one mile from their position. Slippy used a touch pad to manipulate the image of the city bringing it to ground level, and then setting it at a view parallel with the horizon.
"Fox! I think I see him, about a mile down the road, on top of what has to be some sort of office complex. It's a ten story building on the left side of the street. Can you guys see it?"
Falco slapped his forehead, "Yeah Slip, I would take a look and everything, but the whole, getting my head blown off my shoulders thing, might ruin my look."
"Oh...right! Uh....haha. Sorry guys."
"Whatever Slippy, can you give us some useful information?" Falco asked.
"Yeah, can you find anything out about the kind of weapons Magnus' men are using? Any schematics? Anything?" Fox added.
There was a moment of silence as the frog dug through any information he could find in the classified army files.
"What from what I can find, there's only a few documents on these ballistic weapons they have been seen using." Slippy reported.
"Okay, anything on long range weapons?" Fox asked.
"Ummmmm…oh! This looks like it could be it possibly. The M82...50 Caliber sniper rifle. Shoots a 50 caliber projectile at two thousand and 99 feet per second, and can travel one thousand eight hundred and fifty meters. This, bullet it fires can pretty much punch through anything."
The two Star Fox members down on the ground looked at the gaping hole in the middle of the car.
"Yeah, we know," said Falco.
Suddenly another blast was heard and another hole was punched through the vehicle. This time it pierced the car's gas tank, causing it to leak fuel upon the ground.
"SHIT! OKAY SLIPPY! I DON'T CARE HOW FAR IT CAN KILL ME FROM! GIVE US SOMETHING USEFUL!" Falco screamed into his ear piece.
Slippy sat in his captain's chair with in the Great Fox, holding his ear piece away from his head.
He slipped the com device back onto his ear, "I....I don't know what else I could tell you that would help. Uhh, it has a night vision scope, uhhh…has a seven round clip...and..."
"Wait! Slippy! How many rounds?" Fox interrupted.
"Uhh, seven?"
Fox counted the shots. One in their windshield, two in their headlights, and three through the car they were using for cover.
Fox turned to Falco, "He's got one more round before he has to reload. We have to get him to fire one round before he just decides to change his clip."
Falco's eyes darted around in thought, "What if he already did? What if the reports are wrong? What if it's a ten round clip? Or five, and he already has a fresh one?"
"Well unfortunately, there's only one way to find out." Fox activated his com piece. "Slippy, we'll keep you posted, we are going to move soon. Fox out."
"Okay Fox, how do we get him to fire?"
Fox looked over his shoulder and saw an old abandon department store on the left side of the street. It was about forty feet away, and it was their only chance.
Fox let out a sigh, "We run for it, and hope he's a terrible shot."
Falco let out a laugh of disbelief, "Wuh...what? THAT'S your PLAN?! You gotta be kidding me!"
"We run for it, he shoots, hopefully misses, and that will give us time to make it to safety if he has to reload. You got any better ideas?" Fox snapped.
The avian paused, "No, I don't. So lead the way captain." Falco gave a sarcastic salute.
"Besides, the odds are against him in this weather. I'll be impressed if he hits one of us."
They both made their way to the very end of the car crouched down as low as they could.
"Okay, you ready?" Fox asked.
"Yeah, I'm always ready to cheat death. Man, I hope he shoots you."
"....Thanks." Fox rolled his eyes. "Alright, on three..."
Falco nodded his head.
Fox began the count down, "One...."
Their hearts started to race, this was it.
"Two."
This was the deciding moment for the entire mission. They were either about to make progress, or die trying.
"THREE!!"
They ran like hell.
Out in the open, they became plain as day on the other end of the snipers night vision scope. They revealed themselves to the shooter that resided within the top floor of a distant building.
"GO GO GO!" Fox yelled as they both ran for the building with their heads tucked low.
They were nearly there, they were almost safe.
The sniper lined up his shot, and readied his trigger finger.
Fox turned his head for the final time; he could faintly see the building Slippy described through the fog.
A flash of lighting painted a white haze over the snipers scope just as he pulled the trigger.
It threw off is aim, just enough.
Fox saw the orange and red muzzle flash from one of the buildings top floor windows out of the corner of his eye.
The bullet screamed through the dead, cold air towards its target.
The two Star Fox members held their breath, waiting for the fatal blow to come. But before they could think any further, the bullet missed its mark.
A massive chunk of one of many concrete pillars that were part of the buildings outer foundation exploded nearly a split second after Fox passed it.
The vulpine and avian shielded their faces from the flying debris as they sprinted towards their safe haven.
Fox and Falco made it up onto the sidewalk, ran full bore, and smashed through the department stores' large front window.
They both tumbled to the ground in a shower of shattered glass, but within moments they jumped to their feet with their plasma rifles drawn; they had to be ready for anything.
The store was nearly pitch black inside. They activated the flashlights mounted on the end of their weapons, and took a look around.
There was nothing hiding in the blackness of the abandon store. The ground was covered with dust and chucks of broken ceiling tiles. Spiderwebs covered the old clothing racks that held nothing but forgotten, moth ridden apparel.
"Clear?" Fox routinely asked.
"Clear." Falco replied.
They lowered their weapons, let out a sigh of relief, and took a moment to catch their breath.
The vulpine smiled, "We made it. I can't believe we made it."
Falco, still trying to catch his breath, placed a wing on Fox's shoulder, "You.....are one, lucky.... son of a bitch. If we make it out of this, we are going gambling."
Fox just laughed, and the two bumped fists in celebration.
"Fox! Fox! You guy's alright?!" It was Slippy.
Fox activated his ear piece, "Yeah Slip! We made it! We're okay. We were able to get inside a nearby...."
"Fox, sorry to cut you off, but it looks like that sniper is getting ready to move!" Slippy reported.
Fox looked up at Falco with a concerned look.
"We gotta take that guy or we're gonna have a repeat of what just happened out there," said Falco.
Fox nodded his head, if they didn't catch this sniper, this would probably turn out to be a long night.
"Slippy, we are going to try to catch up to that sniper. How do we get there!?" Fox said with a commanding voice.
There was a brief pause.
"Back alley! Behind the building you are in right now. It's a road used for deliveries and such and runs for about five blocks worth! That's your best bet! I'll keep watch on you guy's and give you directions as you go. The building is about a mile away."
"Thanks Slippy. Fox out... Alright Falco, ready for that three minute mile?"
"Hell ya, with this soaking wet gear on, should be a snap." Falco replied.
"Alright, follow my lead. Let's move." Fox ordered.
With rifles up they carefully made their way through the darkness. They passed through the back storage room and set their sights on a large metal door that had an old busted exit sign above it.
Fox shot off two rounds of his plasma rifle at the door's hinges which made them red hot. The vulpine gave the door a swift kick and it broke free revealing the rained soaked back ally. The door fell to the ground as Fox and Falco emerged from the old store. They checked their corners and then sprinted full speed down the ally.
Their military boots were heavy with water as they trudged along the cracked concrete. Lighting flashed in the sky illuminating the narrow road ahead.
Then, within seconds, thunder exploded from the heavens. The storm was right on top of them.
They paced their breathing as they ran through the pouring rain holding their rifles close to their chest. Catching this sniper was a top priority. If they didn't, it would be another game of cat and mouse, and they didn't have time for that. They had to take this guy down, maybe even get some information out of him.
The back alley came to an end, at least for this block. They came to a stop, and checked their corners once more, looking left and right making sure they were running into a trap. Truth was, it was almost nightfall, and with the fog and rain, they couldn't really see anything.
Fox gave Falco a hand signal to move forward to cross the street before them. They stayed below the cover of the abundance of abandoned cars left out in the street. They swiftly made their way to the continuation of the back ally on the other side of the road. Once more they were in a full sprint, treading over broken concrete and all sorts of garbage and debris.
"Man, they really need to clean up this dump." Falco said through his heavy breathing.
Fox didn't reply. There was no time for small talk. They ran on for a minute or two.
Slippy lit up the com channel again, "Okay Fox, you are more than halfway there. You have to cross over one more street, and then it should be the 3rd building on the right. You can't miss it."
"Thanks Slip, our friend still in the building?" Fox asked.
"From what I can see, yeah, he is. Just ran another thermal scan, he's definitely there, but he's on the move. Probably going down the stairwell."
"Roger, we are about to cross the final street. Keep an eye on us Slippy."
"Will do Fox, please be careful! You remember how these apes are!"
"Don't worry about us, we'll be fine. And Slippy?"
"Fox?"
"Thanks...Thanks for doing this." Fox closed the com channel.
"Hey Fox, where the hell is my thanks?!" Falco yelled.
"You'll get it when we take this guy! Now keep going, we're almost there!"
They ventured across the final street separating the clusters of buildings.
Almost there.
Funneling back into the next ally, they saw a dark figure explode out of the back door of one of the many office complexes about fifty feet away.
"Shit! There he is!" Falco reported.
It was the sniper from before. The large rifle slung over his back made it obvious.
Their target fled.
"He's running for it!" Fox yelled. "We can NOT lose him!"
The cold from the rain, the heaviness of their soaked uniforms and all other odds that were against them faded away. Their basic soldier instincts kicked in as they bared their teeth, determined to catch their prey.
As Fox and Falco gained on him, the sniper rounded a corner into another intersecting ally way.
Within seconds the two followed their targets lead.
"Watch it. Watch it!" Fox caution his team mate.
It would be easy for this sniper to catch them off guard being caught up in the heat of the chase.
They safely turned the corner, finding the sniper still on the run, and continued their pursuit.
Up ahead they saw the sniper vault off an old dumpster and grab on to an extended service ladder on the backside of one of the buildings.
They had no choice.
Within a few moments Fox followed suit. He slung his rifle over his back and climbed the dumpster.
The sniper was nearly to the top of the six story climb.
"Watch the roof; don't follow until I reach the top." Fox ordered.
"You got it."
Fox jumped for it. He hit the ladder wasn't parallel to the dumpster, which made Fox's landing a little difficult. The vulpine made the leap and grabbed hold of the bars as his body swung with the momentum, and then slammed into the ladder. He found his footing and began his ascent.
He looked up and saw the sniper climbing over the top of the building onto the roof.
Fox climbed as fast as he could, now passing through a metal shell that covered half of the ladder.
Falco anxiously watch his Captain make the climb, he hated having to wait, "HURRY IT UP FOXIE!"
Fox finally made it to the top of the building on to the roof. The sniper was sprinting across it as fast his feet could carry him.
Before Fox could even turn, he heard the slam of Falco jumping onto the ladder.
The vulpine couldn't wait, he might lose the target. He gave chase once more.
The Magnus troop made it to the end of the building top and jumped the gap to another rooftop below.
His bound to the other building was a bit short. The snipers chest slammed right into the side of the brick structure, knocking the wind out of him. With his arms wrapped over the ledge of the building to he hoisted himself up with all his strength.
He staggered to his feet, and took a few steps before he heard the sound of another pair of boots making a perfect landing behind him.
He knew he was caught.
The sniper reached into his black trench coat, and pulled a pistol as he turned towards his pursuer.
But before he could even reach his side arm, Fox slammed right into him. The impact of the blow lifted the Magnus troop off the ground. Then with Fox on top of him, they came crashing down, right through a sky light window.
The window shattered into a thousand pieces as they fell through it.
The two fell about ten feet, down into a business conference room.
Their landing wasn't very smooth either.
The song of shatter glass rang out once more as two soldiers smashed through a large glass conference table.
The sniper landed flat on his back, with Fox right on top of him. The weight of the vulpine nearly caved in his chest.
Fox rolled of the snipers body, on to his back. He coughed and gasped for air as pain shoot through his body from the impact. Lucky for him the sniper broke is fall, but he already did have some fractured ribs from his crash one week ago, so the pain was pretty intense.
Fox let out a moan of agony. His left shoulder was killing him. He took a glance at it and saw it was a bit out of place. Fox had dislocated his shoulder from the fall. Perhaps he clipped it on the iron frame of the table during impact.
Suddenly light shined down upon Fox from above.
"Fox! You alright?!" It was Falco.
"Ye...Yeah..." Fox let out a few heavy coughs. "I'm alright....I think."
Falco guided the light beaming from the end of his rifle over to the other body in the room below.
"Oh shit, he ain't alright. That's for sure." Falco said.
Fox turned his head and saw a sickening sight.
The sniper was quite dead.
He was an ape, but more slender and agile looking that the other brutes that have come up against. His eyes were dead and empty, and a pool of blood formed under his head.
"I'll be right down Fox, take it easy. There's a roof access door over here," said Falco.
Fox didn't respond; he was too busy beating himself up in his mind for making such a careless move; he almost got himself killed.
The sounds of Falco's footsteps could be heard from above, making their way across. Then followed the sound of a door opening and slamming shut.
"Where you at Fox?" Falco called out.
"Over here....oh... god... oh...shit...." The pain in Fox's shoulder was excruciating.
Falco's flashlight flooded a nearby hallway with light. He followed the sound of Fox's voice into the conference room.
He found the vulpine trying to get to his feet.
"Whoa whoa, hold on Fox." Falco placed his rifle on the floor with the light pointed towards Fox.
Falco placed Fox's good arm over his shoulder and helped his Captain up.
The Avian looked up at the shattered window above and watched the rain fall through, soaking the glass covered floor. The wet glass glistened in the shine of Falco's flashlight.
Fox pulled his arm away from Falco and stood on his own, but stumbled a little to one side.
"You alright Fox? Shit, that was quite a fall." Falco asked with concern.
The vulpine hobbled over to a near by wall and leaned up against it. Falco shined his light on Fox and saw his left shoulder was sagging a bit. Fox dislocated his shoulder during the fall.
"Oh man...That looks like it really hurts." Falco said, with a bit of a laugh.
"It...does." Fox glared at the avian.
Falco approached the vulpine, placed his wing on the injured appendage, checking to see if was indeed just dislocated.
Fox sucked air through his teeth, trying to hold in the pain.
"Well Foxie, It ain't broke. It's just...out of place. Ready to man up?"
Fox knew what that meant.
The vulpine gave a crooked smile, "You want the honors?"
Falco laughed. "Man, I gotta do everything for you?" Falco tighten his grip around Fox's shoulder
"Alright Fox, on three.....One...."
"Just do it Falco."
"Aright." And with a sickening crack Falco popped Fox's shoulder back into place.
"GOD DAMN...UGH!" Pain surged through the vulpine's shoulder as he hunched over and shoved Falco away. He clenched his jaw together as hard as he could and sucked air through is teeth, trying to cope with the blinding pain.
Falco just rolled his eyes and turned away, "Come on Fox it ain't that bad. You could have broken your leg or something." Falco walked over to the now deceased Magnus sniper troop.
"Or you could have been smashed to death by a hundred and fifty pound fox, like this poor asshole." The avian added.
Falco keeled down next to the dead sniper and looked over his body, checking for anything that could prove useful. "Nothing personal buddy, we know you were just doing your job."
He unbuckled the strap that held the snipers rifle to his back and slipped the gun from underneath his body.
"Damn Fox, you gotta take a look at this thing." Falco looked over the rifle in awe.
The weapon was long and slender like any other plasma sniper rifle but the design was a bit primitive. It had some weight to it as well, especially in the center, where the ammo clip was placed.
Fox now stood beside Falco looking over the weapon, "Looks like we got a new toy."
"Yeah, sure does. Here, hold it for moment." Falco tossed the rifle towards his captain.
Fox caught it in but wasn't expecting the weight of the weapon. It pulled at his arms and caused his shoulder to receive a stabbing pain through it, but he did his best not to show it.
Falco shoved the frame of the table they smashed through to the side so he could search through the snipers coat.
He didn't find much. A ration of some sort, a few ammo clips for the rifle. Falco held up one the ammo clips, and pulled one of the many projectiles it was housing.
"Holy...shit," muttered Falco in amazement.
He held the five-inch 50 caliber bullet up to take a better look, and couldn't believe what he saw.
"Fox, look at this thing! Man, if one of us was hit by this..... Jeez laweez, this thing could probably take an arm off. Especially if it's going as fast as...well...whatever the hell Slippy said."
"I wonder where they are getting these weapons; they have been out of production for so long." Fox added.
"Well it's pretty damn obvious why they are using them. To be honest I can't wait to try this baby out." Falco took the rifle from Fox's paws and slung it over his back.
"Well, from how things are going, I'm sure you will get your chance." Fox cracked a smile.
Fox activated his com link, "Slippy, Fox here. We uh..." Fox looked down at the dead sniper. "We neutralized the sniper and we are going to be heading back to our transportation. We secured a weapon; it has to be the one you informed us about. I want everything you got on this weapon, how to fire it, reloading procedures, what to do if it jams. Everything."
"You got it Fox; I'll contact you once I gather that information for ya." Slippy replied over the radio.
"Thanks, Fox out." The vulpine gazed up at the shattered sky light, and watched the rain shower in through it. I hope my luck doesn't run out on me. He thought.
"We done here Foxie?" asked Falco.
Fox nodded his head, "Yeah, let's get back to the truck. And let's hope we are the only ones who know about this."
"I'm sure no one is gonna miss this guy." The avian scoffed.
--
--
Fox and Falco ventured back through the ally ways to their transportation. They found the truck just as they left it. The engine was still running, the headlights were blown out, and there was still a gaping hole right in the middle of the windshield.
It was better than nothing.
Fox rummaged through their supplies and found some medicine to ease the pain he was in. Truth be told, he was in a lot of pain. If it wasn't his ribs, or the pain in his chest every time he took a deep breath, it was his shoulder was now in a world of hurt.
They communicated with Slippy once more before continuing on with the mission. The final objective remained the same.
Magnus. The army wanted him alive, but Fox couldn't care less.
Slippy also filled them in on the sniper rifle they found, giving them everything they needed to know.
The two Star Fox members sat in the cabin of the truck, ready to push on. Fox at the wheel, and Falco in the passenger seat, his feet up against the dash board, and the new sniper rifle braced against his shoulder.
Fox put the truck in drive, and they slowly drove into the rain soaked night before them.
Water poured through the center of the windshield causing the inside of the vehicle to become more than a little damp.
"I feel like from now on, we should just shower ourselves down before a mission. I'm getting used to being soaking wet all the god-damn time." Falco complained.
Fox curled a smile, and let out a laugh under his breath, "Yeah, I hear ya."
"So Fox, I know you hate it when I ask you this, but what is the plan."
Fox was quick to reply this time. "Well, it's pretty simple. We roll up, we take Magnus, and we go home."
"No...no. Bullshit. Fox, I have noticed this trend of, not thinking clearly, you have fallen into. So let me get this straight. You think we are just gonna show up, walk right through the front door, and take this guy? I really doubt this is going to be a cake walk Fox. Why are you so eager to do this anyway? Why can't we wait for backup or something?"
Fox didn't respond, he just kept his eyes on the road. It was pitch black, and having no headlights made things a little difficult when it came to weaving in and out of debris and abandon vehicles.
"Fox, talk to me man. This could be suicide! Don't be risking your tail over some personal vendetta against this guy. You can't take this shit personal Fox. This is our business, and if you let your emotions get in the way, you are just gonna get yourself killed. Don't you wanna be around for your friends? Don't you want to see Fara again? I don't think Star Fox needs to lose another Captain."
Fox slammed on the breaks causing Falco to fumble the gun onto the floor.
The vulpine was fed up. "Alright Falco tell me this, if someone shot you point blank in the chest in the name of destroying everything you ever fought for, would you take it personal? Huh?"
Falco was caught of guard, and was lost for words.
"Well?!" Fox demanded an answer.
"Uh yeah....I probably would."
"Well there you go, you solved the mystery. Now will you do me a favor, in fact, as your Captain, this is an order. Shut the hell up, or get out."
"Jeez Fox, take it easy. I get it. You don't have to bite my head off. Man, what's gotten into you? Ever since we plucked you off Venom you have been....I don't know Fox. You haven't been yourself, and I don't think you are ready for what we are about to get into."
"Falco...There's just too much at stake now, and if the military is right about Magnus being as important as they say he is, we have a chance to end this before it even starts. That...and twenty million credits."
The avian shook his head, "Just drive Fox. If we go back now, they are probably gonna toss us in jail anyway for the shit you pulled on the base. I'm surprised they haven't caught up to us by now. "
Fox placed his foot on the gas pedal and gave it a push, causing the truck to lurch forward once more.
"I doubt they will try to stop us, besides, this is our job now, our contract," said Fox.
"There is no contract Fox. If anything it's a word of mouth contract. I honestly wish Fara was here, I think she is the only one that'll ever talk some sense into that thick head of yours."
Fox just shrugged off that last comment. He just didn't care anymore. He wanted all this to be over, he wanted the fighting to finally stop, and if it meant taking out Magnus, so be it. He hadn't talked to Fara in ages anyway, it's not like she's waiting for him to come home, so Fox didn't let that stop him.
"But whatever Fox. Onward with the suicide mission! At least we get to go out with a bang." Falco said sarcastically.
Fox scrunched his brow, "Don't you remember what Peppy told us before we were sworn into Star Fox?"
"No, not really."
Fox sighed, "Every mission, is a suicide mission."
"Then why they hell didn't he come with us? We haven't even heard from him once."
"You know why he didn't come. He said he would slow us down, and he wanted to be there to tell the military what happened when they showed up."
Falco shook his head, "Yeah, if they showed up. You would think in a situation like that, during times like these, they would be all over it. Something isn't right Fox, this all feels wrong."
There was a moment of silence as Fox continued to drive on into the night.
Then Falco spoke up again, "I mean, what if we get there, and there's like, a small army of these guys. You really think we are going to have a chance?"
Fox just shook his head, " Magnus thinks I'm dead, we might be able to catch them off guard."
"You really think that matters? You think he's like, 'well Fox is dead, now no one can stop us.' This ain't a movie Fox. I'm sure they are prepared for...gee, I don't know, in case the Cornerian Army shows up?"
Fox just kept driving.
"Alright, fine. Let's do this. Two guys going up against the uprising of Andross guerrillas, no pun intended. I like the odds."
"You really think Magnus has that many men at his disposal right now? Slippy said they only tracked a couple of vans to this location."
"Yeah that's pretty gutsy holding up in the bank tower, but I guess it makes sense, this place is a ghost town," agreed Falco.
Fox brought Slippy up on the com link, "Hey Slippy, you watching us?"
"Sure am Fox, you're almost there, like a couple of blocks. When you hit Jade, make a right, and it should be the tower on the right."
Falco joined in, "Hey Slip, any signs of movement near the building?"
"Ummm, no. It's dead out there; they might all be inside due to the storm. I'm not getting any readings from surrounding buildings either, but be careful! This storm might be interfering with the scanners, so we can't be one hundred percent certain. From what I saw about an hour ago, they shot down that police helicopter that was trying to trail them."
Fox's and Falco's stomach sank; they might be running into another sniper situation. Only this time, they would be dodging rockets.
"So be careful, I doubt you should drive up to the front of the building, maybe try and cut through the parking garage that's behind the bank tower. You should be able to sneak in from there, and....uhhh...." Slippy let out a heavy sigh.
Fox could tell something was bothering the toad, "Slippy?"
"UGH FOX! Do you really have to do this?! Have you completely lost your mind?! You are just going to get yourself killed! You have no idea what you are getting in to! I mean, come on Fox, think of your friends for once! Think of your team! We need you as a leader! We can wait Fox, we can get the military help, and you don't have to do this on your own."
"Slippy, I'm not. I got Falco with me."
"FOX! This is no time for jokes! Why don't..."
"Hey that ain't no joke!" Falco snapped.
Fox continued, "Slippy if we don't do this more people are going to die at the hands of this man before anything can be planned. So keep an eye on us Slip, we are going in. And that's an order."
"UGH, fine! Slippy out."
"Christ McCloud, you bring the saying 'crazy as a fox' to another level. Wait look! Stop!"
Fox slammed on the breaks.
A sign sat on the center divider in the middle of the road.
"Jade Ave" was what it read.
"Almost there." Fox said. "Front door or back?"
Falco looked around, "Well I don't see where the hell this parking garage is, so I don't think we have a choice."
They reached the intersection and made the turn. There was no going back now, they were more than certain they were being watched, they just didn't know from where.
The thunderstorm above was beginning to lose its luster. The monstrous thunderheads passed over the north mountain range leaving small scattered rain clouds in its wake. The rain was still falling but with each passing minute it became lighter and lighter. The moon was full and finally pierced through the clouds as it rose from the horizon, acting as the faint spot light that pierced the thick blackness of night. The fog was still thick, visibility was still low, but the moonlight brought a calming peace to the two mercenaries. Maybe they would get through this.
They have been in worse situations anyway. Surviving a mission on Solar would make anyone feel invincible. That feeling of invincibility seemed to have diminished for Fox and Falco. They were out of their element, had this been an attack on a enemy space cruiser, they probably would already be coming home. Instead, they are on the ground, with no mission brief, and a couple of clips of ammunition.
They had the training for this, as any soldier would, pilot or not. They just didn't have the experience like a foot soldier would.
Little did they know, that was all about to change.
Fox put the truck in park, and killed the ignition.
There it was, the 1st Corneria Bank tower.
The monolithic structure loomed over them, seeming to stretch on forever into the sky.
The building had seen better days. Being such a large structure it took quite a beating. Many of the floors large glass windows that wrapped all around the building were completely blown out. Chunks of the building were blown off, exposing twisted steel and concrete. It almost looked like something came and took multiple bites out of the skyscraper.
It still stood though, sturdy as ever. Cornerian architecture was an engineering marvel; a true site to behold. These buildings could take tons of abuse before they would crumble to their foundation, and that's mainly why a lot of the city's newer builders were still standing.
The two mercenaries began to gear up. They outfitted themselves with military combat vests that were able to hold extra ammo clips for their plasma riles as well as a few grenades. Falco slung their newfound sniper rifle over this back. They didn't have much to work with, but hopefully luck would rule in their favor once more, as it always seems to.
They headed for the front doors of the office tower, weaving in and out large chunks of fallen concrete that came from the building itself. With in moments they reached the end of the buildings courtyard and arrived at the front doors. It had but one set of large glass double doors on the north entrance side.
Rifles in hand, Fox placed a paw on the door handle, and gave it a pull. The large ten-foot tall glass door was quite heavy and usually opened automatically back when civilians frequented the building before the war.
Falco watched Fox's back as he pulled all his might and opened the door.
"Alright, let's go." Fox whispered to his teammate.
Falco kept his rifle and swiftly passed through the door as Fox held it open. The vulpine followed close behind, the door slowly closing shut behind him.
"Slippy, we're in. I'll keep you posted." Fox quietly reported into his com link. "Come on Falco, let's move."
With the vulpine leading, they made their way through the buildings ground floor; the lobby. Moonlight started to slowly flood into the large room through the large outer glass windows. The lobby was thick with dust and dirt making it apparent it was abandoned long ago. In the middle of the lobby was a large circle shaped desk made from what seemed to be marble. That had to be the receptionist's desk, the building's main hub for information.
Fox and Falco took cover on one side of it, and poked their heads up taking a better look around.
"Fox, doesn't look like there's anyone one home," said Falco.
"Yeah, looks clear to me." Fox relaxed his weapon and stood up.
Falco followed suit, "Alright Fox, now what?....Fox?"
The vulpine pointed up towards a security camera that was fixated on where they stood. What made it even more unnerving was a small green light on the front of the cameras casing was illuminated.
"They know were here." Fox calmly stated.
Soon after one of the elevators lit up, then another, and then another.
"Oh shit, here they come!" Falco yelled out.
"Come on take cover! MOVE!" Fox ordered.
They both moved back to the cover of the reception desk, which was about forty feet away from the elevator shafts.
They shut off their flashlights on the end of their rifles and just waited. Their hearts raced with each ding of the elevator shaft.
Fox pulled a flash-bang grenade from his vest.
Suddenly, multiple flood lights that were placed on the upper floor of the lobby came to life, blinding Fox and Falco. Now they couldn't see anything.
The elevators reached the bottom floor; a loud more audible chime rang out. Soon followed the sounds of the doors sliding open. About six apes draped in black military gear came pouring out of the elevators with ballistic rifles in hand.
"Kill them both! Move!" A deep boom voice yelled out. "They're on the other side of that desk open fire!!"
Fox pulled the pin from his grenade and tossed it over the desk.
"Take cover! Grenade!"
The flash-bang blew up, blinding nearly half of the apes.
"HIT 'EM!" Fox yelled out.
Fox and Falco popped out of cover, rifles ready, chose their targets and opened fire.
Plasma rounds were now flying through the air as the apes tried to collect themselves.
Fox managed to clip one in the head, sending him crashing to the ground, shooting his own gun in the air as he fell.
Falco landed a few shots on another ape but his efforts seemed futile. Their vests were absorbing the shots from their plasma based weapons.
"Aim for the head!" Fox yelled.
"Always do." Falco replied.
"Doesn't look like it."
"NOT THE TIME FOX!"
"KILL THEM!!!!" An ape yelled out.
Fox and Falco fell back behind cover as the apes returned fire.
It seemed all hell was raining down on them now. The bullets from their rifles ripped through their cover sending chunks of marble and dust through the air. Their weapons were so loud Fox almost had to cover his ears it was so unbearable.
The two mercenaries crouched down low as they could, trying to avoid getting killed.
The shooting stopped.
"MOVE IN! RELOAD!"
Fox saw another place where they could take cover and not get flanked. About thirty feet to his right were the banker counters.
"MOVE MOVE MOVE!" Fox yelled at his comrade.
They stood from cover and fired a couple of rounds at the apes. Then they ran like hell.
If they had stayed behind the receptionist desk they would have been easily flushed out or flanked do to its circle shape.
Some of the apes dove behind the receptionist desk for cover, others just took the shots.
Falco fired some rounds over his shoulder as they sprinted for their next position on the makeshift battlefield.
"OPEN FIRE!"
Just as they dove over the banker counters, everything around them seemed to explode from gun fire. Old computer screens, stacks of paper, chunks of marble counter top, and other types of debris filled the air. Fox and Falco landed flat on their backs on the other side of the banker counters and watched as the bullets punched countless holes in the wall right above them. Falco let out a moan of pain. He nearly forgot having the sniper rifle strapped to his back, and landing on didn't feel to good either.
The got to their hands and knees and crawled along the inside of the desk. They were out of sight now, but the bullets kept coming tearing up everything around them, and on occasion punching through a weak part of the long banker counter they were using for cover.
They kept crawling, slowing getting ahead of where the shots were landing. At least they were out of site.
"FRAG OUT!" One of the apes yelled out.
This made Fox's fur stand on end, as well as Falco's feathers.
Within seconds, about only a few feet behind them the grenade exploded on the other side of the counter leaving a gaping hole in it.
"THROW ANOTHER!"
Fox and Falco just laid flat on the floor with their heads covered.
Another blast ripped a large gaping hold in their cover. This time it was only but a few feet ahead of Fox.
Their ears were ringing from the explosions, their vision was blurred, and now they had gaping holes in their cover in both directions.
Fox turned towards Falco, kneeling on one knee, still a bit dazed.
"You alright?" Fox asked.
Falco propped his back up against the wall with his plasma rifle close to his chest. He just nodded his head in a agreement.
Then Falco's eyes grew wide, and Fox felt a large presence behind him.
"Fox look out!!!" Falco yelled.
Before Fox could even react, he was grabbed by the throat and lifted a few feet from the ground. Fox dropped his weapon to the floor.
He struggled and choked for air as one of the apes held him by his neck.
Falco aimed his rifle but before he could fire it was kicked right out of his wing's grasp. Then he had the barrel of a gun pointed right in his face.
"So this is the great Fox McCloud. The one who killed our great emperor, Andross. Magnus was very displeased to discover you are still alive," said the hulking ape that held Fox up.
The ape continued as Fox struggled to free himself from his grasp, "You are very foolish vulpine, expecting to come here like you are, and kill Magnus. You didn't even fare longer than a few minutes. You have my respect; your bravery is quite evident. But you fight in vain, you can't win this battle, and you can't stop Magnus. Kill the bird, my brother, and let his Captain watch him suffer."
The ape holding his rifle to Falco's face gave an evil smile, "As you wish."
Falco held his breath as millions of thoughts rushed through his head. His life flashed before his eyes.
Fox was helpless; he couldn't do anything to stop it.
The ape pulled the trigger....
But nothing happened.
"What?? ARGH, these damn weapons keep jamming!" The ape complained.
He pulled the trigger a few more times, and hit the side of the rifle trying to get it to operate.
Fox felt the grip around his neck begin to relax with allowed him to take in a gulp of air.
This was his chance, the apes were distracted.
The vulpine grabbed his combat knife from his vest and thrust it over his shoulder, driving it right into the ape's eye.
The brute let out a roar of pain has he dropped Fox to the ground.
The vulpine didn't even look back to see the fruits of his efforts. The moment he hit the ground he crossed his arms reaching under his combat vest and pulled out a pistol for each hand.
In one hand his blaster, charged and ready. In the other, the black handgun Magnus left behind at the hospital.
He took aim at the shocked ape standing in front of Falco, who was still trying to get his rifle to clear.
Fox opened fire. The mixture of the two different weapons proved deadly.
His blaster caused the ape to stumble backwards, but didn't penetrate his combat vest. The ballistic pistol on the other hand ripped right through it, blood spurting from his chest with each blast.
A few rounds and he went down.
Four to go.
Falco scrambled to his feet and grabbed Fox's plasma rifle since his was kicked all the way to the end of the banker counter.
Fox guided his aim over to the ape that had him by the throat moments ago.
"ARRRGGHH!" The ape ripped the knife from his skull, blood spewing from his eye socket.
"YOU WILL PAY FOR THAT!" The brute roared.
"I don't think so." Fox replied.
The vulpine let the rounds fly once more, sending a barrage of blaster rounds and bullets slamming into the ape's chest.
The brute threw Fox's blade in the air as he crashed to the ground.
Fox watched the knife tumble through the air in his direction. He dropped his blaster to the ground and snatched the blade out of midair, and placed it back in its holster.
Three to go.
Fox noticed the pistol's slide was locked open and showed an empty bullet chamber. He pulled an ammo clip from his vest that he salvaged from the sniper. He noticed the gun was strikingly similar to how the blaster operated. He pushed a small button on the side of the gun and the empty ammo clip slid out and bounced on the floor. Then he slammed the fresh clip in the bottom of the weapon and ratcheted the slide, chambering a bullet. Although the weapon was foreign, it still seemed natural to use.
Fox glanced left, seeing Falco crouched behind cover with his plasma rifle ready. Falco reached under his combat vest and pulled out another ballistic pistol, the same one they took from the sniper's body.
"Here Fox, I'll soften them up, you take them down." Falco handed the gun to the vulpine.
The apes were in disbelief seeing their comrades brought down by the two much "inferior beings."
"ENOUGH! KILL THEM ALREADY!" One of the apes screamed.
Fox sprung to his feet and sprinted forward through the hole that was blow out of the banker counter.
He saw two apes directly in front of him and one on his left flank.
"Falco! Hit the one on my flank!"
The avian took aim and let lose a storm of plasma right in the chest of the ape soldier. The impacts of the rounds caused him to lose is footing. Then before he could retaliate Fox took aim and shot three rounds. Two in the chest, one in the head.
The ape was down.
Then Fox turned his attention forward finding himself just a few feet from the other two apes.
The vulpine had one advantage, they were scared.
Falco shot the ape on the left, distracting it as Fox shot the other in the leg.
The ape with the bullet wound in his leg hobbled over in pain. Next thing he knew, Fox slammed the pistol right into his forehead causing him to fall flat on his back as the vulpine ran passed him.
The remaining ape watched out of the corner of his eye as his fellow soldier crashed to the ground with a spit forehead and a bloody bullet wound to the leg.
"AHHHH!" The ape let out a battle cry as he sprayed bullets in frustration at the vulpine.
Fox twisted around and dove backwards over the receptionist desk firing rounds at the final threat.
It all seemed to happen in slow motion, bullets whizzed by Fox's head as he fell to the ground.
The vulpine landed perfectly, yet by accident, in an old office chair. The impact of his body sent it tumbling over backwards, spilling Fox out on to the floor as it crashed to the ground.
He fought to his feet, a bit dazed. He realized he had emptied the clips in both of his guns.
He went for a fresh clip but then was startled but the sound of a large figure slamming into the circle shaped desk.
The final ape was perched upon the desk, aiming down the sites of his rifle. He breathed heavy as Fox could see blood running down his arms and chest. He hit the ape alright, but the brute's anger and adrenalin was keeping him alive.
"You...you killed my BROTHERS!" He roared in a primal rage. "NOW YOU WILL PAY!"
But before he could end the vulpine's life, the apes head exploded into bloody bits and chunks. Fox was sprayed with a shower of blood causing him to stagger backwards falling right on his tail.
The brute's body stood there for a moment headless, then toppled over, crashing to the ground.
Fox coughed and gagged up blood that wasn't his own. "What the FUCK just happened?!"
Next thing he knew he saw Falco standing on the other side of the receptionist desk with the sniper rifle in hand and a huge smile on his face.
Fox just sat there, his eyes wide in shock.
"You gotta try this thing out." Falco said.
Fox staggered to his feet, wiping the blood from his face, "A little much?!"
Falco shook his head and rolled his eyes, "Hey man, I like to get results when I pull the trigger."
The avian looked down at the headless ape, "You don't get better results than that...God damn."
Fox just shook his head, "Search the bodies Falco. I'm gonna contact Slippy."
"Aye-aye Captain....and you're welcome."
Fox activated his com link once again, "Slippy you copy?"
"Yeah Fox! You guy's alright? Your vitals were all over the place!"
"Uhh yeah, were fine. We just ran into a couple of guards. Nothing major."
"Oh thank goodness! I was shaking in my chair waiting to hear from you guys!"
"Well, we're still breathing. You got a pinpoint on Magnus?"
"Uhhh, from what I can see on the scanner readings, there's a lot of activity on the top two floors."
Falco picked up one of the rifles from a dead ape, "Great, that's only, what... Seventy stories up?"
Fox let out a sigh, "Okay Slip, thanks. Hey, I noticed they were using the elevators. Does this building have power?"
"No Fox, the whole grid is down in the downtown area," Slippy replied. "They might be using some kind of generator to power certain parts of the structure."
"Okay Slip, thanks. We are gonna start our ascent. If you see anything on the scans that we should know about let us know."
"Roger that Fox! The storm is clearing up as we speak, so within a half hour I could probably give you one hundred percent accurate info from the infrared scans. As for now, just watch yourselves, I don't want you walking into a trap."
"Thanks Slip, Fox out."
Falco approached Fox, his arms full of weapons and ammunition. He laid it all out on the desk and they took a look at what they had.
They each took a ballistic rifle and all the ammo clips they could fit on their vests and ammo belt.
Fox contacted Slippy once more and inquired about the rifles. They were called M4 carbine assault rifles. Slippy gave them all the info he had on the weapons, from operation procedures, to how much ammo they held, and how to clear the gun when it jams.
They locked and loaded and left their energy based weapons behind. The apes seemed to have vests that were designed to absorb plasma rounds, thinking they would be the only ones using old weapon technology.
Fox and Falco stood before the elevator doors.
"You really think we should take one of these things? I mean, say we get to the top, as soon as the doors open, we are shot up like fish in a barrel." Falco explained.
Fox pushed the call button on the wall, and the doors slid open, "Don't worry, I got a plan."
"Wow, that's a first. Does it involve taking the stairs?"
The vulpine stepped in the elevator, "You really want to climb seventy flights?"
"Dammit McCloud." Falco shrugged and joined his captain.
They stood side by side with their new found weapons in hand, ready for anything Magnus could throw at them. The elevator doors slid shut, Fox pressed the button labeled "70", and the elevator began its ascent.
However, nothing could prepare them for what they were about to encounter next.
The elevator slowly climbed the shaft, giving the two mercenaries time to catch their breath.
Fox and Falco watched as the floors passed by, the light illuminating the level they were on.
Falco cleared his throat, "So uh...How's your shoulder?"
"Hurts like hell." Fox replied, without turning his head at the avian.
"You want any pills? I got some."
Fox shook his head, "No, I'm alright. We're almost done here anyway."
"Alright tough guy. If you say so." Falco shrugged.
The elevator was half way to the top.
They stood in silence.
"Okay Falco, here's plan. When we reach the top floor, I'm sure they are going to be waiting for us so..."
Suddenly Fox was cut off by the elevator coming to a screeching halt. The lights in the elevator car flickered as they stood silent, their hearts starting to race with anticipation.
Fox lit up the com link, "Slippy! Slippy do you read? They shut down the elevator on us!"
There was a bit of static but the message still went through.
Slippy replied, "I know Fox I'm trying to figure out where they are controlling it from, maybe I could remotely hack into the buildings power grid and getting it running again and....wait....what the?"
Slippy's voice was drowned out by a thick wall of static.
"Slippy! Slippy! You copy? Dammit!" Fox slammed his fist on the side of the wall. "We were so close!"
"Alright, what the hell do we do now Fox?!" Falco snapped.
"Hold on, let me think!" The vulpine sighed and ran his paw over the top of his head.
Suddenly the static died on the com link and a voice could be heard.
Only this time, it wasn't Slippy.
"Fox McCloud you are quite the persistent one aren't you?"
It was the voice of Magnus Veridan.
Fox bared his teeth and scrunched his brow, "Magnus! You aren't going to get away with..."
"Oh enough with the heroics Fox. How could you even imagine taking me from this place? You don't even know what awaits you at the top of this broken structure. Do you always blindly jump into situations such as this? Do you really think you are invincible? That could be your one true weakness Fox McCloud. You think you can do anything. You think you can defy the inevitable! I watched you kill my men just moments ago, and I must say I was impressed at your efforts. However, a bullet proof vest can not save you from your next obstacle. Prepare to say hello to an old friend Fox."
Fox and Falco looked at each other with puzzled faces.
Then what happened next was truly terrifying.
The lights in the elevator car went dark, and their ride to the top came to a screeching halt.
Now it was pitch black, they couldn't even see each other.
"Shit, Fox I don't like this." Falco started to panic.
Trapped in a box hundreds of feet of the ground as the tendency to make someone "lose their cool".
"Stay cool Falco, we will get out of this. I promise." Fox tried to comfort the avian.
Fox clicked on his weapon mounted flashlight and cut through the blackness. Falco's shadow was painted over the wall as he held his weapon close.
"Well now what do we do Fox, we are trapped like fucking rats in here!" Falco yelled.
"CHILL!" Fox tried to contact Slippy, "Slippy, Fox here, we are trapped inside the elevator! Magnus cut the power and we need a way out of this. We need some help here Slippy!"
Nothing but static.
"SLIPPY DO YOU COPY?!" The vulpine shouted.
This Fox's ears perked up when he finally heard Slippy's voice break through the interference.
"FOX!.....it.....something....down the...ator shaft." Slippy's words were constantly interrupted by static.
"What? I didn't copy that Slippy say that again?"
Both mercenaries pressed their ear pieces nearly into their skulls trying to hear what Slippy had to say.
The interference finally broke away," THERE'S SOMETHING COMING DOWN THE ELEVATOR SHAFT!!"
"WHAT?!" Fox barked in confusion.
Then the unthinkable happened.
Something slammed into the top the elevator car. The impact was fierce, causing the two to stumble to the floor as the elevator shook violently.
"What the HELL was that?!" Falco yelled as he shined his light on the ceiling.
"I....I have no idea." Fox replied in total shock.
They could hear something above them. Something or someone was now on top the elevator car.
"Fox, what do we do...?" Falco whispered to his Captain.
"Don't move, don't speak." Fox held up his fist, ordering Falco to hold.
Then a thunderous slam came from above and large dent was put in the steel above them.
"Oh my God," Fox let out under his breath.
Another impact was forced into the steel above, leaving another bulge in the steel elevator's ceiling.
Then another, then another.
Fox and Falco's stomachs were in knots and their hearts were racing faster than they ever felt.
"FOX WE GOTTA GO RIGHT..." Falco was cut off by the sound of something that made their skin crawl and fill the air with a thick sense of dread.
The howl of a wolf.
"It can't be." Fox said.
Sounds of snarls and growling could be heard through the mangled steel above.
Then their fears escalated to another level when the steel finally gave way just a bit. They could see a dark grayish claw trashing about as it tried to reach the contents of this suspended prison.
"SHIT IT'S GETTING THROUGH!" Falco yelled out.
"OPEN FIRE!" Fox commanded.
The two comrades pulled their triggers and let the bullets fly.
The muzzle flashes caused a strobe light effect as bullets drilled into the ceiling above.
They fired every round they had at whatever the hell was trying to get to them. The click of empty ammo clips rang out as they held down their triggers.
"Did we kill it?" Falco asked, still pointing his weapon at the mangled steel ceiling above.
The sound of something trickling on the floor was audible.
Fox pointed his light to the ground, it was blood.
"I think....I think we got it." Fox sighed out.
They held their breath as they waited for something to happen. Flashlights pointed upward and staring at the small hole that was punched in they prayed they killed whatever was trying to get to them. If it could punch through steel, they couldn't imagine what else it could do.
"What the hell was that thing?!" Said Falco, his voice trembling as he spoke. It was clear the avian was shaken.
The vulpine let out a stuttering breath, "I don't know Falco but I think we got..."
Fox was cut off by the sounds of grinding metal on metal. The elevator car dropped a few feet.
"SHIT! IT'S CUTTING THE CLABLES!" Falco ejected the empty ammo clip from his weapon.
"No! Forget shooting it! Help me get the doors open!" Fox ordered.
They slung their weapons over their backs and took position on each side of the elevators sliding doors.
"PULL!" Fox screamed out.
They pulled with all their might and managed to open the doors just a bit as the elevator dropped another couple of feet.
The both slid on the inside of the door keeping each side open with their bodies. Now for the second set of doors that was on each floor. Once more they pulled with all their strength and wedged open the doors. The 2nd set was a bit harder because it was a few feet above them since the elevator was dropping down further and further.
"Here! This will keep it open." Falco wedged his sniper rifle in between the 2nd set of doors; keeping them open.
"COME ON FOX GO!" Falco yelled.
Without hesitation Fox climbed out of the elevator to safety. Fox spun around and extended his hand towards Falco, still holding his side of the 1st set of doors open.
"FALCO COME ON!" Fox pleaded.
Falco reached out with his left wing and Fox grabbed hold of it.
The vulpine pulled with all his might.
The final cable was cut, and the elevator was set free.
Falco escaped with only but two feet of clearance. If he was pulled from the elevator any later, his legs could have been severed off, or worse.
They could hear the elevator scream to the bottom of the shaft hundreds of feet below, until finally it slammed into the ground floor.
They struggled to their feet, shaken physically and mentally.
"Shit Fox, that was too... fucking.... close. You see why I wanted to take the stairs now?" Falco ran his wings through his head feathers as he tried to catch his breath.
Fox grabbed his rifle from his back and loaded a fresh clip into it, "Slippy, do you copy?."
"Yeah Fox, I'm here. You guys okay?"
Falco butt in, "Yeah we're just fucking dandy! How are you?"
"I'M A NERVOUS WRECK THANKS FOR ASKING!" Slippy screamed.
"Guys chill out!" Fox snapped. "Slippy you have any idea what the hell that was?"
"No Fox, but its moving fast, very fast....It's....it's moving through the air ducts!"
Fox and Falco could hear something scurrying above them, causing clouds of dust to fall from above.
"Yeah Slip, we know."
They took in their surroundings. The floor they were on was nothing but a sprawling office space. No walls, just one giant room. Cubicles covered nearly every square foot of the office floor. It seemed that who ever once occupied this office left in a hurry. Tables and chairs turned over, office supplies everywhere, it was a mess. A thick layer of dust and dirt covered nearly everything. All the windows were blown out and the moonlight shined through, faintly illuminating everything around Fox and Falco. This was also one of the floors that took a direct hit. A large gaping hole made its presences at the corner of the office. They could feel the cold wind blow through, giving them chills.
That wasn't the only thing running shivers down their spines at the moment.
They hear something crash to the floor about fifty feet away.
Falco jammed a fresh clip into this assault rifle, "Here it comes."
Fox whispered into the com link, "Slippy, what floor are we on."
"Forty-fourth and Fox, there's a helicopter on top of the building. I think I'm seeing figures loading it up and in a hurry too. They might be leaving Fox, Magnus might be trying to escape!"
"Thanks Slip, but we got another problem on our hands at the moment. Fox out."
Fox made eye contact with Falco, "Let's move, stay low, watch my back. Lets nail this thing."
Falco nodded, "You got it."
With their flashlights on, the two mercenaries slow crept through the office. They moved inch by inch, checking every corner, every nook and cranny. There was a stair well at the far end of the office, that was their destination.
Moving through the office made them feel like they were in a maze with all the cubicles.
Suddenly they heard the sounds of movement to their right. The both turned and aimed their weapons with lightning quick reflexes. All they could see was an empty desk, tucked away in a cubicle.
Maybe they were just hearing things.
Fox felt like his heart was in his throat. He gripped his weapon with all his might, he never been so nervous in his life. There wasn't a doubt in his mind Falco felt the same way.
The wind whistled as a quick gust passed through the shattered windows frames.
Then from behind they heard what sounded like a desk crashing to the ground, followed by the sound of glass shattering.
They both whipped around and held up their weapons shining light down the cubicle corridor they were passing through.
They didn't see a thing.
"It's fucking with us." Falco said a quiet as he could.
Fox tapped on the avian's shoulder to get his attention, "I say we just run for it, try to make it to the stairwell."
"I don't think that is going to make a difference Fox."
"You got a better idea?"
Falco just stared at the vulpine, then he spoke, "No, I have no fucking idea what....."
It all happened so fast.
With the furry of a freight train, something exploded through the cubicles to their left and in the blink of an eye, Falco wasn't standing before Fox anymore.
"FOX HELP ME!!! AAAAHHHH!!"
A sense of fear came over the vulpine like he had never felt before.
It all happened in slow motion.
Fox listing to the screams of his teammate being dragged away as he made his way through a path of smashed debris left behind by the beast.
That's what it had to be, some sort of monster. Something that came right out of your worst nightmares.
Then he finally caught up the screams, and his flashlight reviled a sight that indeed came right from Fox's worst nightmares.
Falco was on the ground, and over him was some sort of half beast, half machine, clawing away at him.
"FOX HELP ME PLEASE!!"
Fox opened fire on the creature.
It took nearly ten rounds until it finally stopped.
It twisted around, and Fox saw its face.
It was the face of a wolf, intertwined with metal.
Fox felt like he was going to throw up. He knew who it was.
They had brought him back.
The beast howled as its metallic snout twisted into anger and drew it's attention towards the vulpine.
It stood from Falco's body, and readied to strike.
Fox stepped back and opened fire.
A combination of sparks and blood spurted from the wolf's body. In a flash it jumped straight up through the ceiling, escaping the punishment from Fox's weapon.
Fox could hear it above him, but it was moving away.
The vulpine looked to the ground and saw a fallen avian.
"FALCO!" Fox ran to his comrade's side.
He was torn up pretty bad, but he was alive. He had cuts all over his face, a black eye, and claw marks on his chest that ripped all the way through his combat vest. Blood tricked from the gapping wounds on his chest.
Falco was in shock and his breathing was sporadic.
Fox tried to comfort the avian, "Come on bro, stay with me, you are going to be alright."
Falco turned his head towards Fox, his face draped in utter fear, "Did...did you see it?"
"Yeah, I did. Shit...God, dammit." Fox cursed at himself.
"It was Wolf, Fox. It was him..." Falco started to break into fever of coughing.
"I know Falco, I saw his face. I can't believe it either, I don't want to."
The sounds of movement from above filled Fox's ears.
"Fox! What's happening! Falco's vitals are going crazy!!!"
"He's down Slippy! He's hurt bad, we need an evac now! This mission is over; we gotta get him out of here now! THAT'S AN ORDER!"
"Alright! Okay! Hold on! I'll see what I can do."
Fox held the fallen avian in his arms. He could almost feel Falco's spirit being drained from his body.
"Hang in there Falco! Come on man, you can pull through! I'm gonna get you out of here, please...." Fox was being overcome with emotion, "Just please hold on."
Guilt washed over the vulpine, Falco was right after all, they were in over their heads with this mission.
Slippy lit up the com link, "Fox, I can't get a hold of anyone, the entire network is down! There is no help coming! Do you read Fox? You are going to have to find another way! Fox? Fox?!"
The vulpine didn't respond.
"FOX DO YOU COPY?!"
Fox was pinned to the ground, and fighting for his life.
He was caught off guard as he was helping Falco to his feet.
He was now face to face with Wolf, back from the dead, and clawing and tearing his flesh and fur from Fox's body.
Fox protected his face, and tried to push the crazed cyborg off of him, but he wasn't strong enough.
He pulled his knife, but in a blink of an eye, wolf pinned his arm to the ground.
Wolf opened his jaw exposing his razor sharp teeth, and lunged for Fox's neck.
He was going to tear out Fox's throat.
Fox closed his eyes and waited for death.....but then, something strange happened.
He opened his eyes and saw Wolf frozen in place with his mouth open just inches from Fox's throat.
With a yelp Wolf sprung off of Fox's body, and stood beside him.
Why did he spare me? Fox thought.
"Isn't he just a marvelous site to behold?" A voice surprised the Vulpine.
Fox whipped his head to his left and saw Magnus walking towards him, through the office debris.
He was accompanied by at least ten or twelve troops. Fox couldn't really tell, his head was spinning and felt like every ounce of energy was spent trying to fight off Wolf.
Fox struggled to his hands an knees, "What did you do to him?!"
The ape laughed, "Why we simply gave him but a second chance!"
Fox got to his feet, his legs shaking from weakness.
The sounds of nearly a dozen rifles being cocked and aimed rang out.
Magnus lifted his wrist, and pressed a few buttons on some sort of device he was wearing.
Wolf's head twitched, and then he made his way over to Magnus's side.
Fox watch the lupine wonder like a zombie over to the ape.
Then Magnus turned his attention to Fox once more, "Re-animation of the dead. One of Andross's many great achievements in scientific research. It took us years to get this far but as you can see, the results are quite astounding. He doesn't think, he doesn't feel, he doesn't care. He is nothing but a puppet that obeys my every command."
"You sick bastard!" Fox growled.
Fox got a better look at wolf. His legs were nothing but metal appendages with tubes running through them, pumping blood and other fluids. His torso seemed to still be him, his gray fur still apparent. It was sickening how his metal waist crudely dug into the rest of him. One of his eyes was now cybernetic and the other one, although still organic, didn't have an ounce of life in it. His tail was split in half and his body was covered in scars. He was a truly terrifying site to behold.
"Implanted in his brain, or rather what was left of it when we found him on venoms surface, is a small CPU. We have figured out how to control single individuals that survive the process but how to control several at once...we are coming closer everyday to finding the answer to that. As for now however, have just one of these cybernetic soldiers on the battlefield can easily tip the scale. Their power and agility set them apart from the rest. They don't need weapons to be precise and deadly. It all boils down to primal instinct. I tell him to kill, and he does so. I tell him to stop, he obeys. It's a real shame he be dead in about four months. Although it doesn't show, he's in excruciating pain and his organs won't be able to hold up forever."
"F..Fox..." It was Falco.
Fox looked over at the avian. He was still alive. He rolled on to his side and looked up at this captain who could barely stand himself, "Cap this son of a bitch."
Magnus laughed, " Such spirit your friend has! I admire it with much enthusiasm, indeed."
The ape walked right up to Fox, "As do you, Fox. I thought I killed you but here you are standing before me once more, thinking that you have the power to end this all here and now."
Fox bared his teeth. He knew if he tried anything he would be dead for sure.
Magnus continued, "Even if you did kill me today, it wouldn't change a thing. My fellow brothers, scattered all over this system, will carry out what needs to be done."
"No, not while I'm still breathing, you and your brothers, can go to hell." Fox growled.
"Oh really? Well in that case I have terrible news because..." Magnus brought up his wrist and looked at a display mounted on it, "You have only.... ten minutes until we shatter the foundation of this building and bring it crashing to the ground."
"What?! No!" Fox yelled.
Magnus just laughed, "Yes, it's true. Think of it as a symbol of a new beginning. The tallest, most awe inspiring structure in all of Corneria City, falling to the ground. I'm actually glad you arrived here Fox, you can be part of the celebration! Oh my what a mess this will cause. I'm sure it will be enough for a declaration of war. I PROMISE YOU!"
Magnus hooked his right arm and punched Fox right in the jaw.
The vulpine fell to the ground.
"So today is the day that Fox McCloud is buried in the ruins of this City!" Magnus yelled as he kicked Fox in the stomach.
The vulpine let out a groan of pain, and coughed up blood as the steel toed military boot slammed into him.
"To day we are finally rid of these damned McClouds!"
Fox struggled to his feet, but was kicked right in the chest as rose, sending him falling flat on his back.
"Wolf! Pin him to the ground!" Magnus commanded.
In a flash, Wolf pinned Fox to the ground with a single claw over his neck. Fox struggled with all his might but nothing could break the lupine's grasp.
Magnus keeled down next to Fox, "You want to know something? Oh I bet you are going to love this."
Fox's choked and gasped for air as his legs thrashed and kicked, trying to break free.
"Good, I can see I have your undivided attention, I'm sure you will be interested to hear about your father."
Fox stopped struggling, "What did you say?"
"Take a good look at Wolf, Fox. He is one of the few who actually survived the surgeries necessary to transform him into what you see today. You want to know who else passed through the program? You want to know who else we plucked from a burning wreckage upon Venom's surface?"
Fox's face turned to sorrow and dread, "No!! NO!! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!"
Magnus smiled, "Ah, wise Fox. You know where this is going, but yes, your father didn't die in the crash. We found him barely hanging on to life by just a thread. We saw the opportunity, and we seized it. You father served as a great test subject for cybernetic studies; also, we didn't have to worry about bringing him back from the dead, as he was already alive. I remember the screams during amputation, oh my, that was quite an experience doing the procedure on a live subject."
Fox felt a rush of anger run through his body like he never felt before. He wanted to tear Magnus apart, but he couldn't, he couldn't break free. He was so frustrated, so exhausted; tears began to roll down his face.
Magnus shook his head, "Yes, I'm sorry Fox, I'm sure this is difficult to hear and sadly, this story has a sad ending. He did survive the transformation, but within a month's time, there were ....complications, and we lost him. It was a shame too, he was nearly combat ready. Died in the name of science he did. Such a noble.... sacrifice."
"I'm going to kill you, you sick fuck." Fox snarled.
"Let him go Wolf," Magnus ordered.
The lupine obeyed, and released Fox from his grasp.
Fox coughed and gulped in air as the pressure was released from his neck.
The vulpine rolled on his back and crawled towards Falco who was still laid out on the floor.
Magnus took pleasure in watching him suffer; he knew Fox was in pain.
The ape spoke, "You are out of options Fox. This time, you will die. I will not make the same mistake twice, and I will watch you take your last breath. So I bid you farewell."
Fox heard the ratcheting of a pistol from behind.
The vulpine was right next to Falco. The avian turned his head, and locked eye's with his captain.
"We ain't out of options yet, hang in there Falco." Fox whispered.
Slippy voice came screaming through his com link, "FOX!! What's happening?! You vitals are going berserk! You are both near death! I can't get a hold of anyone! I think they are jamming the military communication network grid! Fox PLEASE RESPOND! PEPPY! ANYONE PLEASE RESPOND!!"
Slippy watched in terror as Fox and Falco were surrounded by a dozen other figures on his thermal scan. He knew they were in huge trouble and he couldn't get them back up. He didn't even know the building was rigged to blow. He didn't know what to do.
"This isn't fair!!" Slippy cried out slamming his fist on the computer console before him.
"Any final words you wish to speak, Fox McCloud?" Magnus pushed his pistol up against the vulpine's forehead and pulled back the hammer with his thumb.
"Yeah...there is," said Fox.
"Oh? And what could they possibly be? Are you going to beg for your life? What are your final words?"
Fox pushed his finger against his ear, and activated his come link, "Landmaster."
Magnus' brow scrunched in confusion, "What did you just say?"
"What did he say?" Slippy sat with a puzzled look on his face in his chair on the Great Fox,"Did he say...land....mas...Landmaster? LANDMASTER?! THAT'S IT!!! LANDMASTER!! YES!! HA-HA!!"
Slippy began to type feverishly away at the computer terminal, bringing up the Land Master on screen.
"Why didn't I think of this before? I can test out my new A.I. I installed with in the tank." Slippy announced.
The frog turned to Rob, "Open the hangar, we are launching the Landmaster. NOW."
The hanger door on the Great Fox slowly began to lower.
Deep within the hangar, that was now lit with flashing red warning lights, the Landmaster Tank roared to life.
Inside the cockpit, the heads up display lit up, and ran a diagnostics check.
"Landmaster Tank Automated Piloting System, online, awaiting command." A robot female voice said over the Great Fox's com link.
"Landmaster! FIND FOX! NOW!" Slippy yelled over the com link, as he lifted the safety on a large red button before him. The button was labeled "launch LMT.
He slammed his fist on the button.
"Locating Fox McCloud." The tanks A.I. responded as the main engines fired up.
Hundreds of images flashed one of the Land Masters many displays, until finally it came to a stop. An icon with Fox's face on it appeared on screen.
"Location confirmed."
The launch sequence initiated and catapulted the tank down the hanger at incredible speed.
The war machine screamed out of the hanger and fell to the city below.
It fired its bottom thrusters, slowing its descent to the broken metropolis below.
Finally it touched down, slamming into the top of another office sky scraper.
It adjusted its heading and ignited its main thrusters. It tore across the top of the building and dove right off the side, diving into the city below.
It slammed into another building top, causing the office tower to buckle. The windows of the buildings top floors shattered as the tank slammed into it. Once more it gunned it off the side of the building.
Now it was heading right towards the side of another office tower, but nothing was stopping this machine from reaching its destination.
It slammed into the side of the building, crashing right through it. It exploded out the other side sending shattered concrete, glass, and twisted metal in all directions.
Nothing could stop it.
A distant boom could be heard, rattling the foundation of the 1st Corneria Bank tower.
Magnus head jerked at his troops, "What was that?! What happened? Did the charges blow?"
A brute responded, "No sir, the charges are still set to blow in about five minutes."
Another distant rumble passed through Magnus' ears. It shook the building once more, causing office debris to shuffle to one side.
He lowered his weapon from Fox's head, and turned towards where the mysterious sound was coming from.
About fifty feet away, he could the edge of the forty-fourth floor. Parallel to the bank tower was another office spire that reached into the sky.
Something caught the ape's eye.
"IT CAN'T BE!"
The Landmaster erupted from the other building, sending it's self on a crash course with the bank tower and right for Magnus.
It soared through the air, and cleared the gab between the buildings.
The tall twenty foot tall ceilings gave the Land Master enough room to fit perfectly within the building. It plowed through the office debris sending everything flying through the air, or smashed beneath its massive treads.
Magnus dove out of the way of in the incoming agile machine. It nearly crushed him. Magnus' men stumbled and fell to ground as the tank ripped through the office.
The Landmaster came to a sliding halt beside Fox and Falco.
Anger came over Magnus' face, "WOLF! TEAR IT TO PIECES!"
The ape reached for his device that controlled the lupine but before he could insert the command, a bullet tore through his wrist, and destroyed the device.
"WHAT?! NO!!!" Magnus tripped to the ground holding his injured wrist.
Wolf let out a mournful howl as he fell to his hands and knees. This mind was now free from the ape's control.
Magnus breathed heavily as he looked up from his bleeding writs and saw Fox standing by the Landmaster, holding a smoking gun.
"You...WILL PAY! KILL THIS FUCKING FOX ALREADY!"
The brutes rallied together reading their weapons, and rushed towards the vulpine.
"OPEN FIRE!!" An ape commanded.
Wolf's head shot up bearing his teeth, and his snout twisted in anger. "No."
The apes opened fire, but before any bullet could claim Fox's life, Wolf, with his lightning quick agility, tackled vulpine to the ground.
Fox through Wolf was going to kill him, but as it turned out, his reasonings were quite the opposite.
Hundreds of rounds drilled into Wolfs back causing sparks and blood to spurt from his body. The lupine yelped out in pain as he took the shots. Fox watched in silent horror as crude lead filled the vulpine's body.
He had saved Fox.
They emptied their weapons clips and the gun fire came to a stop.
Wolf twisted around with a look of rage in his face. He let out a snarl as he slow approached the apes.
The apes were shocked at the lupines actions and started to back away in fear. The brutes were powerful creatures themselves, but they were nothing compared to the strength Wolf possessed.
The lupine was on the hunt, and let out a bone chilling howl.
He charged the apes running on all fours.
They knew they couldn't stop him.
A clenched bionic fist slammed into the chest of one of the apes sending him flying through the air, screaming.
He turned to his next prey, a brute that had enough guts to try to fight back.
The ape through a punch but Wolf just caught his fist in his own paw. Then the lupine grabbed hold of the ape's arm.
"NO! PLEASE NO!" The ape cried out.
Wolf ripped his arm clean off.
The ape fell to the ground screaming in agony as blood spewed from an empty arm socket.
Wolf's head snapped to another ape. He swung the dismembered limb at the brute's head and took it clean off.
Fox looked on in terror as Wolf slaughtered all of Magnus' men. It was almost to much to take, Fox wanted to throw up as he witnessed the bloodbath and listened to the screams of brutality.
Time was short though, no time to waste.
Fox climbed to his feet and ran over to Falco.
He helped the avian to his feet, "Come on Falco, WE...ARE...LEAVING!"
Falco rolled his head to once side, "Fox, that freak ripped me a new one, I'm bleeding out pretty bad."
"Just hang in there bro, I'm gonna get us out of here."
They hobbled over to the Landmaster tank. Sensing their presence, the main hatch automatically opened.
Falco saw the ape missing an arm dead on the floor.
"Actually I'm feeling fucking fantastic, come to think of it," Falco coughed out.
Fox hoisted the avian up onto the side of the Landmaster, and Falco rolled into the back seat inside the tanks cockpit.
Fox lit up the com link, "Slippy this is Fox! This building is about to blow, I lost track of Magnus, I think he slipped out."
Slippy let out a sigh of relief, he didn't think he was going to hear Fox's voice again, "Copy that Fox! I think I saw him make it to the elevator and....WHAT?! IT'S GOING TO EXPLODE?!?"
"Uhhh...Fox out."
"Come on Fox, let's blow this joint!" Falco complained.
"One sec." Fox drew his pistol and rounded the tank. Wolf was still fighting off the remaining apes, but beyond the brawl he could see an elevator door closing, with Magnus inside.
"Fuck." Fox said to himself.
Magnus held his bleeding wrist in his other hand, and breathed heavily. He was scared and couldn't believe was just happened. He lost his men, control of Wolf, and worst of all, Fox McCloud was still alive.
The elevator reached the top of the building and the doors slid open. A helicopter awaited the ape.
Back on the forty-forth floor, Wolf took his final life. An ape with a snapped neck, covered in gaping wounds, fell to the ground dead.
Fox closed his eyes from the horrid site. However, with in the second his eyes were shut, as he felt a presence before him.
Fox jumped back. Wolf was right in front of him.
The vulpine drew his weapon. Even though Wolf saved him, he wasn't taking any chances.
He didn't get the response from Wolf he was expecting. The lupine cowered in fear before Fox, and carefully crept toward him.
Wolf kneeled down before Fox whimpering with great sadness. Fox could see Wolf's body heal itself. Bullets were pushed from his body, and the wounds began to close. He could see the lupine's face wince in pain.
If he only knew the suffering Wolf had been through.
The lupine looked up at Fox.
The vulpine could see the life that was restored in Wolf's one good eye. This once mindless drone was free from his psychological prison.
Wolf slowly reached up and clasped his hands around Fox's, and guided the vulpine weapon, pressing it against Wolf's own forehead.
Then Wolf spoke, "P...please..e..end my...suh..s..suffering."
His mouth didn't even move when he talked. His voice just came from some sort of voice box installed in his throat.
Fox's stomach sank, but he knew what he had to do. He could see the misery that Wolf was in. No one deserved what he was forced to go through, but Fox had to know something. "Why did you save me?"
Wolf's good eye rolled upward, looking up at the vulpine, "Because you were right all along."
The lupine slid his thumbs over Fox's and forced the trigger back.
A gunshot rang out, and Wolf collapsed before Fox. His body convulsed and contorted upon the floor until finally, he laid limp. His eyes went blank, and his mechanical body shut down.
He was finally free from his suffering.
This was the second time Fox killed Wolf O'Donnell, but there wasn't any glory in this. Not anymore.
"Fox." Falco calmly called from the Land Master.
The vulpine turned around, and holstered his weapon.
"Come on man, let's go." Falco said. He saw what had happened, and now wouldn't be the best time to yell at his Captain.
Suddenly the sound of a thunderous explosion rocked the bank tower. Everything around them started shaking violently.
The explosives were detonated. This building was going to collapse any moment.
"ALRIGHT, I don't give a shit about your feelings anymore. MOVE YOUR FUCKING TAIL FOX!"
Fox ran for the Landmaster and climbed up into the cockpit. The main hatch closed as he took his place in the front seat. He pressed a few buttons and disabled the autopilot.
"Sever lacerations and fractures detected on both passengers. Administering morphine now." The ships A.I. chimed.
A mechanical arm emerged from the head rest of Falco and Fox's seat. It jammed an auto-injecting syringe into their necks and released the drug.
The both let out a sigh of relief as their pain was eased.
"Alright Falco, HERE WE GO!"
Fox grabbed hold of the controls, and punched the throttle.
The Land Master roared to life once more and lurched forward slamming Fox and Falco into the backs of their seats.
The steel supports of the building were starting to give way and the ceiling above was crashing down on them.
"HOLD ON!!" Fox yelled.
Fox dove the Landmaster right off the side of the crumbling bank tower.
"SHIT, BRACE YOURSELF!" The vulpine ordered.
They were headed right for another building, and there was no way to redirect the tank.
Behind them the Corneria Bank Tower started to tip over, sending itself on a crash course into another office spire.
Fox could barely keep the Landmaster under control as they plowed through another abandon sky scraper hundreds off feet above the city's underbelly. Everything was shaking like crazy due to the forces of hundreds of thousands off tons of concrete and steel crashed to the ground.
Even over the roar of the Landmaster's main thruste,r they could hear the moan of the bending steel supports as the towers crashed to ground like dominoes.
"THE WHOLE FUCKING CITY IS COMING DOWN FOX!" Falco yelled.
"YEAH I KNOW! SHUT UP!" Fox drove the tank through the other side of another office building and fired off the bottom hover thrusters.
They went skyward, before crashing right into another building.
"All power to hover thrusters!" Fox commanded.
"Affirmative." The Landmaster's A.I responded.
They could feel the G's they were pulling increase as the velocity of their climb increased.
Soon they were above the city's sky line and landed upon another towering structure.
Fox rotated the tank around, and they saw the destruction Magnus left behind.
A massive dust cloud swallowed the downtown area as they could see the tops of the sky scrapers collapse to the ground beneath the light of the full moon.
It was fortunate that this part of the city was abandon, but the cost and manpower it would take to clean up this mess was far beyond what this city could supply.
"Unidentified aircraft located." The Landmaster informed Fox.
A holo-display appeared before Fox, showing a lone helicopter trying to leave the city.
"Slippy!" Fox opened the com link, "Confirm that target!"
"It's Magnus for sure! That chopper took off from the bank tower as soon as the explosives detonated."
"Fox."
The vulpine looked over his shoulder, back at Falco.
"Let's make that son of a bitch pay, in spades," said Falco.
"Thought you would never ask." Fox punched the throttle.
__
__
Magnus watched from the side of his chopper, as the down town area fell to the ground.
He smiled at the wake of destruction he left behind, and felt a sense of victory.
"You through you could stop me did you? You didn't even come close Fox McCloud. Now you are forever buried in the ruins of the very city you fought for."
The ape turned to the pilot, "Take us to our ship, we are done on this planet."
Suddenly a choir of emergency alarms sang out.
"WHAT?! WHAT'S HAPPENING!?" Magnus demanded to know.
The pilot brought up a holo-panel, telling him the emergency.
"SHIT WE GOT INCOMING!" The pilot yelled. "HOLD ON!"
He jerked the flight stick, and stomped down one off the rotor pedals, causing the chopper to make a quick spin.
A massive ball of plasma energy flew by the side of the helicopter, almost smashing right into them.
"Where did that come from?" Magnus yelled.
The ape peered out of the window of the choppers cockpit and saw the source of the energy blast.
A lone Landmaster tank, skipping rooftop to rooftop, and quickly gaining on them.
"WHAT?! HOW CAN THIS BE! WHY WON'T HE JUST DIE?!" Magnus slammed his fist on the helicopters flight console. "ENGAGE THE TARGET!"
"But sir! We..."
"HOW DARE YOU DEFY ME! JUST DO IT! OR I WILL DO IT MYSELF!"
The pilot obeyed and changed his heading. He dove for the city below, and charged right for the Land Master.
"You got their attention Fox! There coming right for us!" Falco alerted his Captain.
"I know, I know. Hold on," replied the vulpine.
Now alarms were sounding off in the cockpit of the Land Master.
"Incoming!" Falco yelled.
Dozens of stinger missiles were launched from the incoming helicopter. They flew in a scattered pattern towards the Tank.
"Activate anti-missile defense system!" Fox barked.
"Complying," The Landmaster responded.
Two small plasma turrets emerged from the side of the Land Master, and opened fire incoming threat.
They took down more than half of the incoming missiles. The rest made their mark and slammed into the Land Master, as it was soaring through the air towards another roof top.
The tank shook violently and emergency alarms rang out with each explosive impact.
The chopper hovered right over the top of them.
"Don't lose them Fox!" said Falco.
The vulpine did a 180 degree turn, punched the throttle, and charged another plasma round.
"Target confirmed." The tank informed Fox.
They dove off the side of the building and fired off the charged energy round from the Landmaster's main cannon.
"Come on...Come on..." The both held their breath as the green sphere screamed towards it target.
Impact.
As the chopper was trying to change its heading to make another pass on the Land Master, it was grazed but the plasma shot.
It tore into one of the choppers missile launchers, causing it to explode, and ripped through the undercarriage of the aircraft.
"SHIT! WE ARE HIT!!" Magnus' pilot cried out. "WE ARE GOING DOWN!"
The chopper was starting to spin out of control and the pilot fought with all his might to keep it from tumbling through the air. Every alarm imaginable was sounding off with in the cockpit of the helicopter.
"Keep her steady! I'm going to finish this!" Magnus unbuckled his harness and climbed into the back of the helicopter.
"What are you doing?! Are you insane?!" The pilot yelled at this leader.
The mad ape made his way over to a large weapons case and opened it up. It housed a rocket launcher, and two anti-tank rounds.
Magnus smiled, "It always pays off to be prepared."
Fox and Falco watched the chopper lose altitude as it spiraled to the ground.
"NICE ONE FOX!" Falco cheered. "WE NAILED HIM!"
Within the falling chopper, Magnus mounded the rocket launcher upon his shoulder.
Finally the pilot stopped the aircraft from spinning out of control, but they were still losing altitude at a steady pace.
"That blast ripped a hole in the gas tank! We are losing oil as well!" He informed Magnus.
The ape replied, "Just keep it steady."
How they were below the sky line, buildings surrounding them from every angle.
"Where might you be, Star Fox," Magnus asked himself.
Then without warning, the Landmaster exploded through another building about 200 yards away, heading right for the chopper.
"Excellent." Magnus took aim and fired the rocket. The force of the massive weapon caused the ape to lose his footing. He fell on his back, and the rocket launcher slid across the floor the helicopter.
"Incoming anti-tank rocket." The Landmaster informed its pilots.
They could see the glow of the rockets booster as it screamed through the air, leaving a vapor trail behind as it headed for its target.
"SHIT FOX, YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO! " Falco yelled out.
The vulpine threw the tank into a barrel roll as it flew through the air, just before the rocket slammed into them. It passed by but only inches from the bottom of the tanks hull.
The rocket slammed into the building behind them, causing a massive explosion on impact, blowing out thousands of windows surrounding the Landmaster.
Fox fired off the hover thrusters and slowed the tanks decent, and fired off a final energy blast.
Magnus climbed to his feet in disbelief and braced himself against the side of the chopper, "AHHHH!!"
The plasma round tore the tail of the Chopper clean off, causing it to spin completely out of control.
It spun like a top, crashing to the ground hundreds of feet below.
Magnus hung on for his life as the he watched the streets below become closer and closer.
The chopper slammed into the side of a building about fifty feet from the ground and then dove nose first, right into the middle of street. The rotor blade was torn to shreds as it ripped into the asphalt, and sliced into the abandon vehicles littered in the street.
"Target...Destroyed."
--
--
Magnus' eye's slid open. His body was in screaming pain.
He looked around, and found himself still inside the destroyed aircraft. He was lying on the ceiling, the chopper was on its back.
He looked himself over, and saw his arm was broken. It was bent completely backwards at the elbow.
Blood ran down his face as he crawled over to the cockpit. He found the pilot, still strapped into his seat, hanging upside down.
He was dead, a blood stained busted windshield before him. A pool of crimson red, gathered below the dead pilot.
"You did well brother." Magnus said. "You served your empire well."
The ape laughed to himself, "You see Fox...You can't kill me. I'm still breathing. You haven't won yet."
Magnus managed kick open the co-pilots door, and crawled into the street.
As he slowly made his way out of the fallen helicopter, he saw something coming towards him.
A pair of blinding headlights approached his position.
His vision was blurred, his hearing was muffled, and he could barely make out what it could possibly be.
He managed to get to his feet, and held up his good arm, shielding his eyes from the bright beams of light.
His hearing started to return, and he could make out the low rumble of what was much larger than something that usually patrolled the streets.
Whatever was moving towards him came to a stop. The sounds of a hydraulic hatch could be heard.
Then he could see a dark silhouette moving towards him from the light, through the smoke and dust caused by the chopper crash.
It was the silhouette of a fox.
"No...No you can't do this." Magnus pulled his pistol from his coat but before he could even lift his weapon, a gunshot rang out.
His weapon flew from his hand, and then two more shots were fired and drilled right into his chest. Blood spurted from the ape as the bullets hit him.
Magnus cried out in pain as he fell to his knees, with his arms to his side. Sounds of bullet casings rang out as they bounced off the broken city street.
Next thing he knew, Fox McCloud stood before him; bloody and bruised He held a gun in his hand, and had an unsympathetic look upon his face.
"Ah, Fox McCloud." Magnus let out a sickening laugh, "The great hero of war. Come to finally bring me into custody?"
The vulpine pushed the gun against the apes head, "I'm no hero."
Fox pulled the trigger and killed Magnus.
The ape fell flat on his back, as blood poured from the bullet wound. Fox dropped the weapon and watched as Magnus drew his last breath.
It was finally over.
But at what cost? Half of the city was completely destroyed. Maybe if Fox only listened too Sergeant Richards and took down Magnus at the hospital, this disaster might have been avoided.
None of that really mattered anymore and Magnus was dead.
The wind blew through Fox's fur as he stood in the moonlight. The sky was nearly clear, the storm had past long ago.
He could see the Great Fox still circling the city up in the sky.
Falco climbed out of the Landmaster and joined Fox at his side, looking down at the dead ape.
"Bastard had it coming to him." Falco said. "Mission fucking accomplished."
"Fox! Fox are you alright? What's your status? Did you catch Magnus?" Slippy asked over the com link.
Falco answered, "Yeah, we got em. Fox shot him in the fucking head."
"Oh....well. Mission accomplished?"
"Yeah, I guess." Fox replied.
Falco shook his head, "Damn Fox, you really done it now. If this guy is as important as they say he is...or was, it's safe to say we are pretty screwed. A lot of people are going to be after us now Fox, good guys, and the bad."
Suddenly they were surrounded by the sounds of screeching tires. From every angle came Cornerian military transports; their bright headlights blinding Fox and Falco.
Falco sighed, "Late to the party, as always."
Troops poured out of the hummers, plasma rifles drawn and ready. They surrounded the two mercenaries.
"MOVE, GET OUT OF MY WAY!" It was Sergeant Richards.
The black wolf pushed through his men and found Fox and Falco, standing before the dead body of Magnus Veridan.
He walked up to Fox with his teeth bared in anger. "Do you have any idea what you have just done? Now all our leads our dead! He could have taken us right to the rest of his subordinates! Now we have nothing to go off on."
Fox looked down at the dead ape, and then back up at the wolf. "That's your problem. Maybe next time, you will think before you drag us into something. Now get out of my face."
The vulpine looked over at Falco, "Come on, let's go."
The small crowd of soldiers moved out of the way of the Star Fox members, and allowed them to leave.
"What? You are just going to let them leave? Apprehend them!" Richards barked. "That's an order!!"
They ignored him; they had more respect for the two mercenaries than their Sergeant at the moment.
Fox and Falco walked along the moonlit cracked streets of Corneria City, back to the Landmaster, and leaving the distraught Sergeant still yelling at his men, far behind. Their uniforms were torn, they were caked in dry blood, and they barely had the strength to hold themselves up.
Visions of today's events flashed through Fox's mind, the hospital bombings, the sniper, the shoot out at the bank, Wolf, and finally putting a bullet in Magnus' head.
It all happened so fast, all in one night. Truly the life of a mercenary.
"We did good." Fox said to his comrade.
Falco lifted one brow, "Yeah...we ain't dead. That usually means we did good."
"FOX! FALCO! HOLD UP!" They knew that voice.
The turned around, and saw Peppy running up to them.
"Christ, look at you two! You are a mess! Come on, we need to get you some god-damn medical attention already!"
Falco scrunched his brow, "Well look who it is. We wondered what happened to you."
"Boys, you have to understand! They took my communicator! They had me in custody!"
Fox held up his hand and silenced the hare.
"It's alright Peppy. We'll see you on the Great Fox."
They left the hare just standing, in disbelief.
The climbed into the Landmaster, and fired it up.
Fox activated the autopilot, "Landmaster, take us home."
Peppy watched as the tank spun around and drove off down the street; towards the Great Fox.
The bottom thrusters fired off, and it ascended into the night sky.
Fox and Falco peered over the side of the tank as it climbed towards the Great Fox. They could see the ruined city below; the dust from the collapsed builds starting to settle. Smoke rose from where Corneria Bank tower use to stand. The fires left over from the explosion that leveled the building started to spread through out the urban wasteland.
This was going to really devastate Corneria. Hope for the planet ever getting back on its feet was now farther away than ever before.
"It's a beautiful world," Muttered Falco.
The vulpine let out a heavy breath of air. He felt like he could pass out any moment from the pain that was returning to his body. The morphine had long ago worn off.
Fox sighed, "Maybe someday..."
Unfortunately, the harsh reality was that a mercenary's world, would always be, far from beautiful.
"It's a beautiful world we live in
A sweet romantic place
Beautiful people everywhere
The way they show they care makes me want to say
It's a beautiful world
Oh what a beautiful world
For you
It's a wonderful time to be here
It's nice to be alive
Wonderful people everywhere
The way they comb their hair makes me want to say
It's a wonderful place
Oh what a wonderful place
For you,
Not me."
Woo! You made it! Thanks for reading and I really hope you enjoyed it. This marks the end of season one. The beginning of next season (chapter 8) is scheduled for late January of 2009.
The words right beneath the chapter title are an excerpt from the song, "The Dead Flag Blues" by Godspeed You! Black Emperor.
And the lyrics right above are from the cover version of "Beautiful world" By Rage Against The Machine.
Thanks again for reading everyone. This story would not exist today if it wasn't for all the awesome support I have been receiving.
Have a Great holiday and I'll see you all next year.
Keep it real,
Silenced Fox
