"You still alive back there McCloud?" Wolf asked over his shoulder as the Wolfen slowed down, beginning to lower altitude as they approached the randevu point. He started to prepare the ship for the landing, the skis extending from their wells.
"...I'm here." Fox responded groggily, he had been crammed behind Wolf's chair for what felt like an eternity, but was more like around eight hours of space travel. He had come very close to upchucking the small amount of food he had eaten.
"...Guess I didn't fly fast enough." Wolf teased as he focused on the landing process. Off in the distance a few shadows presented themselves, marring the pristine snow. It looked like the Cornerians had gotten there first. The figures were huddled around what appeared to be a large cargo ship, smaller fighters parked next to it as escorts. Nobody was obviously standing out as Leon- Wolf guessed that he was still in one of the ships.
"What d'ya think the odds are that they're holding out on me, Fox?" He asked, trying to be nonchalant. "They're your boys, think they'll do a clean trade?"
"Just, do what you promised and they'll do the same. You're not dealing with criminals here."
"...Yeah, bet Andrew heard the same thing. Look what happened to him." The Lylat Wars had certainly changed the Cornerian's approaches to diplomacy.
The Wolfen continued its descent, coming to a near-stop and pressing its skis into the snow a safe distance from the others. Wolf took a deep breath and prayed to whatever higher power he didn't believe in that this would all resolve okay. The cockpit opened up with a loud 'hiss' as the pressurized air dissipated into Fichina's atmosphere. He took a quick headcount; One… Two… Three… There were at least seven soldiers out there, more than would normally be necessary for a one-for-one exchange. As uncertain as he was, Wolf knew that the best chance to get Leon back safely would be to just do what he agreed to. The grizzled dog reluctantly unholstered his blaster and opened up the pilot's compartment to stow it away.
As he angled it in, his paw brushed past something he forgot that he owned. A small weapon that was kept in the ship for emergency situations, his pocket-pistol. It didn't pack much of a punch, but was concealable enough to hide in a boot or a jacket pocket, something that could be used as an absolute last resort. Making a decision he hoped he wouldn't regret, Wolf grabbed it and stuffed it away deep in his right boot, feeling it imprint against his ankle.
"Alright, get up." Wolf commanded to Fox as he reached back over the seat. Fox wasted no time in obeying, eager to get out of the ship and even more eager to return to safety. He rose to his feet with Wolf supporting him from under his arm. Together, they jumped out of the cockpit and landed in the snow. Wolf stuck the landing but Fox tripped to his knee with a whimper, his chest wounds didn't respond well to sudden impact.
"Get up, get up. Everybody's watching." Wolf snarled under his breath, looking over towards the Cornerians. They had begun disbanding from their huddle, looking a bit more attentive and taking positions in front of the ships. Wolf couldn't spot any weapons, but his eyes weren't exactly what he was galaxy-renowned for. It took a moment but Fox gathered himself and stood up again, close to shin-deep in the snow.
"HEY FLEA BAGS," The grey wolf shouted over the icy winter winds as he approached, leading Fox by the arm. His animal fur-laced hood was pulled up and over his head and ears. "YOUR BOSS BETTER BE HERE OR I'M GUNNA BE PISSED."
A couple of them muttered to each other, then moved to the side. One knocked his hand on the transport ship to signal the bay door to drop. As it did, a bright florescent light spilled out over the evening tundra. Two figures stood in the entryway, one of them unmistakable in their silhouette. A lithe, slender body with a long curled tail distinctly standing out among the bulky canines. While Wolf couldn't see their face, his heart knew exactly who it was. It took a lot of effort to suppress his excitement on the spot, he had to keep playing tough. Without hesitation he began to trudge through the snow with more conviction, eager to get a closer look.
"O'DONNELL." A commanding voice shouted from the transport bay, it sliced through the overwhelming sounds of the winds like a knife through butter. "DO YOU MEET US HERE UNARMED?"
"...NOTHIN' ON ME." Wolf shouted back, patting himself down and holding his arms up to quickly demonstrate the fact. The dog-general nodded in understanding and began to lead his captive down the ramp and into the snow.
As the two canines approached each other, Wolf strained his eye trying to get a good sight of Leon. He hadn't seen him since they had parted for the mission days ago and his mind was abuzz with worry. The chameleon appeared to be dressed in his skintight black wool top and tights, no coat or anything else to protect his cold blood from the harsh elements. He was also hanging his head, walking no faster than a hobble with great difficulty as the general pulled him along. Wolf's heart rate started to escalate.
"What did you do to him?" Wolf blurted out as soon as they were close enough to speak without shouting. "Where's his coat?"
"He's alive." Pepper replied, artfully dodging the more pertinent question. "Your chameleon didn't make things easy for us, you're lucky that we're willing to relinquish him to you. He's been violent and uncooperative this entire time, even under captivity. Under normal circumstances we'd have put him down, but your legacy carries some degree of respect, O'Donnell. We have taken care of him and are now ready to pass him off to you in exchange for McCloud." Fox perked up, locking eyes with the General with a vibrant smile. It was the first one he'd had for the last few days. "I take it you've been very hospitable?"
"He's alive." Wolf hastily responded through clenched teeth, jerking Fox forwards and into focus. "Battered, bruised, but breathing. Give me Leon. Now."
"Quiet. Let him speak. Fox? Are you okay?"
"G-general!" Fox responded, he was shivering but it didn't stop his enthusiasm to see a friendly face again. "I-I'm fine, we're fine. It's all fine. I j-just want to go home." Pepper smiled in return.
"Good. I think everything's in order then. I'll count to three. When I say three let him walk over to me and I'll let Powalski walk over to you. Agreed?"
"Fine, just count." Wolf responded gruffly, just wanting to expedite the process. His paw fished around in his jacket pocket until he found his keyring. He pulled it out and grabbed Fox's cuffs for the last time, pulling him closer than would normally be appropriate.
"Fox." Wolf whispered into the captain's large fluffy ear as he fiddled with the key against the handcuffs, his muzzle was turned away so that Pepper couldn't see. "Understand that you're alive right now because of your 'master' here. Nothing you've said to me, nothing you say to me and nothing you could ever do would stop me from hating you. I will kill you, Fox." The metal cuffs unlatched and fell into the snow. His words sent a chill down the fox's spine, something that stood out even in the heavy cold. Despite that, the determined young pilot stood his ground, he wasn't going to let himself be intimidated now.
"...I hope you reconsider someday Wolf." Fox responded, rubbing his newly unrestrained wrists. "You're not a bad person, and I think in another life we could have been friends." Wolf responded with a sneer, pushing him away by the shoulder.
"C'mon old man, COUNT." He commanded, growing more and more impatient. The general happily obliged, having just finished removing the handcuffs from his own prisoner.
"One."
As the first number escaped Pepper's lips, Wolf looked around the area one final time to scan for a possible ambush… Nothing in particular stood out.
"Two."
On the second count, Wolf's gaze was reunited with his teammate. Leon was almost completely still, limply hanging off of Pepper's shoulders and unable to support his head… Was he starting to go through hypothermia?
"Three."
Inhaling sharply and unsure of what was going to happen next, Wolf gave Fox another push, slamming his palm commandingly against the square of the former captive's back. The fox stumbled forwards, then regained himself and started to walk. Pepper followed suit, releasing his grip on Leon's arm and giving him a pat on the shoulder. The chameleon was stationary for a moment but slowly started shuffling his feet step by step, understanding what he had to do. He looked absolutely miserable and didn't seem capable of moving faster than a snail's pace.
Time almost seemed to slow down, each second that Wolf watched his teammate… His friend… It felt like an eternity. This feeling was only exacerbated by the butterflies fluttering hard in his chest. He had to suppress the desire to run over and help, worried that if he did he would be considered out of line. At the same time, Fox was still very capable and was briskly making his way back over to the Cornerian side, passing up Leon roughly two-thirds of the way across.
Not even halfway home, Leon's progress was grinding to a halt. He slowed further and further as the stinging winds wore him down. Slowing to a near stop, he teetered in place for a moment before succumbing to the cold, slumping down over his knee. Wolf couldn't just watch any longer. "Leon?! LEON?!" He stopped holding back and rushed over in a panic, sensing the urgency. Struggling to hold himself upright, Leon finally collapsed to the side- falling straight into the strong, well-timed arms of his beloved Boss. Wolf wasted no time in taking care of him, frantically ripping off his large furred coat and bundling it around his freezing chameleon. It wasn't much, but it could help retain whatever body heat was left for another few minutes. He wanted to rejoice, scream in excitement that they were reunited. But the reality was something completely different. Pepper wanted Leon to die here, and he might just get his wish.
For the first time in many long years, the cracks in Wolf's tough-guy persona began to show. The walls he had built up around his emotions had been put to the test in recent events, but this final blow began the crumbling, something that had the power to change him for the rest of his life. Leon meant more to Wolf in this world than he had ever considered, something that he struggled to realize for a long time and still hated himself for allowing to happen. He always told himself he would never grow attached to anybody, that he could up and leave at any time and not feel regret. But that simply wasn't true anymore. He was here now, with the most important person in his life dying in his arms. Someone would have to pay.
"PEPPER WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!" Wolf bellowed at the top of his lungs; he hugged his teammate tight against his body, causing his claws to dig into the jacket material. The other two had already embraced and were making tracks back to their transport ship. "YOU LYING, DOUBLE-CROSSING MUTT. YOU PROMISED ME! YOU PROMISED HE WAS SAFE! YOU TOLD ME HE WAS OKAY!"
"A proud Cornerian makes no promises with terrorists, O'Donnell."
Punctuating his sentence, a bright red flash streaked out over the horizon. Illuminating the darkness for a split-second and penetrating the snowy wind with a loud bang. A sudden piercing impact to his upper chest caused Wolf to drop Leon from his tight grasp and stagger backwards. The general's intentions were clear now and he should have seen this coming from a mile away. There was no pain. Everything just felt numb.
"...Told ya' you'd pay for messin' with us, ya gullible chump." Close to a kilometer away, entrenched on the far side of a hill from the exchange and safely disengaged from any of the action, one could hear Falco snickering as he operated the cooling flush on his trusty long-rifle.
Wolf reeled from the shot, a big thug like him knew how to take a hit without going down but a long-rifle was testing the limits. His sharp canine teeth bared in a deep feral growl as he stumbled and did his best to recompose himself. He was bleeding profusely, but it only served to cause the adrenaline to pump faster through his body, quickly intoxicating his mind. In one fluid motion Wolf gathered his remaining strength, reaching into his boot to grab the emergency pistol then whipping around and wildly pulling the trigger in Pepper's direction. If he was going down here, he was taking the filthy dog with him.
Copious laser blasts illuminated the landscape as he stood his ground and squeezed off as many rounds as he could. Pepper was caught off-guard, not expecting any kind of immediate retaliation. Most of the shots missed, but one landed square on his leg and another in his hip, causing the less-hardened general to grunt and fall into the snow.
There was so much more Wolf wanted to do, he wanted to storm over and finish Pepper off. He wanted to kill the rest of the dogs who had all begun to panic and ran back to grab their weapons. He wanted to kill Fox. He wanted to kill them all. He wanted these things, but in his state it just wasn't meant to be. The adrenaline quickly bled through his body from his chest wound and the wolf collapsed forwards, side-by-side with Leon in the snow, stubby barrel of his pistol steaming. As the reality of his fate came crashing down on him, their eyes finally met. Wolf's deep purple eye locked with Leon's gorgeous yellow irises, the two looked at each other in a moment of mutual understanding. And in that moment, all of this was okay.
"Leon…" Wolf couldn't tell if he was speaking out loud or just thinking in his mind. "...I love you." The way that Leon was looking at him… He could tell that he already knew.
The world began to fade to black as the curtain closed on Wolf's consciousness. But not before he heard one last thing transmit through his communicator.
"With the way that trouble follows you, I knew you would need my help. I just didn't think it would be so soon. Fortune smiles upon you this evening, Wolf. As the Black Rose is still in your service."