Rick was training strenuously using every simulation Falcon had in his possession, including the Phantom Road. He couldn't seem to get the championship and even Rodney's upcoming fate out of his mind, and neither could Tinsel. She wanted to practice using Falcon's courses, but they agreed not to with Gomar and Shioh for confidential reasons. She remembered the first time when she noticed an enormous structure transform right before her eyes as she, Yugi, and Joey found a Duelist; it was a rare sight since most people were interested in F-Zero racing instead.
To calm her mind, Tinsel was returning to the place where it was the most tranquil and sentimental. Her remaining friends, Draq, Leon, and the Duelists, were arriving in Port Town. The sabotage there resulted one of the ROBs missing. Tinsel noticed it during her second visit and she wondered what Dark Million would use it for.
They soon stopped at the outskirts and the canine asked, "Tinsel, why did you stop?"
She was gazing up at the sky. "Don't you want to absorb its beauty? This place always has the best sunset, with its mesmerizing blues, reds, and indigoes." She took a deep sigh as she reflected. "It makes a wonderful sight. At least THAT hasn't changed in 13 years."
The sky was so dramatic that she and her allies climbed out and sat on top of their machines, watching the city light up as the sky grew into a more darker purple. Yugi and Joey sat on their Dragons, Timaeus and Critias. Hermos was still in its card.
Leon spoke after a silence that seemed to have lasted into eternity. "Um...could you guys excuse us for a minute? I need to talk to Tinsel... Alone?"
"Yeah, I guess." replied Joey and Yugi left with him.
"Fine by me." Beastman hopped off and ran to the duo.
"Shall we?" Gomar requested.
"Let's." added Shioh.
"Do not be long." said Draq as he wobbled toward the group.
When it turned quiet, Tinsel asked in concern. "I knew you would talk to me in private one of these days. Spit it out already."
"Tinsel...if this were to be our last race, there's something that you should know..."
"What is it...?"
"It's about a pilot I used to meet...He was once a mentor to Black Shadow and his minions and soon the Federation's. His name is James, he owns the Little Wyvern and has a wife and son. Thinking that he was a traitor, they abandoned him. He has been in the shadows ever since."
"What's your point?"
"My point is that we should find him. Maybe he can help us deal with Black Shadow and possibly know the whereabouts of Jody and Stewart. And maybe help us prepare for the last race. There's only one person who could help us find him...but...even he's very elusive."
She nodded. "I know what you're saying. Falcon's actually busy training himself and Rick for the championship. Let's search every crowded street, he should be here. At least I think so...Let's hope he hasn't been relocated."
"I'm with you, Tinsel. We all are." Leon smiled and they bumped their fists. They went to the others and they were off in search of the mysterious pilot.
As the team split up, Tinsel and Gomar and Shioh eventually wound up near an abandoned base with a strange logo on it. It was a faded dark blue, with a huge white atom in the middle. The words Galaxy Dog appeared thrice encircling the image.
I hope this is the place," Tinsel wondered.
To answer her question, both she and the Furikakes were blinded by a large spotlight. "That's a little bright, don't you think?"
"Halt! Who goes there?!" a male voice echoed from a watch tower.
She gulped, "Um, it's me, Tinsel Steelus. And these are my friends, Gomar and Shioh, from the planet, Huckmine. We-we came here so we could find you, and that you could help us practice for the finals."
"Hm. That's the Silver Comet and the Twin Noritta?"
"That's us!" the aliens replied.
The lamp shut off, and their eyes took a few moments to readjust. "Proceed." the stranger called. Just then, the titanium door opened slowly, allowing the pilots to enter.
They emerged into a courtyard of sorts, and the steel compound surrounded them as the military man stepped out. He wore sunglasses, a red scarf, a green shirt with a silver coat covering it, and tights. His skinny boots reached his knees and his dark brown hair stuck up at the sides like canine ears. He motioned them to leave their vehicles, shoving his head to the left.
"Greetings, everyone. I am James McCloud, the leader of a squadron called the Galaxy Dogs. We strive on being the best war fighters both in the sky and in deep space. Discipline is our top priority around here."
His demeanor seemed to have intimidated the trio. "Uh, nice to meet you." Tinsel reached for a handshake, but he swapped it away.
"No time for talk, missy. I hear you've all qualified for the championship at Lightning, did you not? Along with Rick Wheeler, and Captain Falcon?"
"Yeah," Gomar said.
"We have." added Shioh.
"I suppose you all have been financially prepared. These training sessions don't come cheap, you know."
"Do-do you accept money digitally?" she murmured.
"Indeed. Any way is satisfactory," he replied. One could get the feeling the money was intended for defenses. There was reason for suspicion, seeing as he knew about the sabotage. Yet, Tinsel never asked.
On her key, she withdrew a hundred space credits, the duo did the same. They simultaneously chirped when the transaction was confirmed, and then downloaded to James'.
"Then let's get started. The race begins in two days, so I don't want any lollygagging. Let's move! Follow me and bring your machines."
They hesitantly did just that, though they didn't know someone slipped in from the outside as the entrance was open.
From that same tall structure, Jim was in charge of a cockpit. It was a training session to test their agility by avoiding volleys of bullets. They kept raining down on each of the hapless machines. The clanging almost hurt their ears, and they left many dents.
"Come on, you useless maggots. This is a way to become more evasive by dodging enemy fire! Black Shadow and his cronies would never stop at being reckless. And even they can throw a few trick plays. Get your heads in the game and out of your asses!" Jim hollered.
"Oh, that's very helpful." Tinsel retorted, steering her machine as sharply as possible.
"Yeah, but we can do this!"
Once the bullets rained down, the two machines were on their way, moving as intended. At least, it seemed that way at first. In the early few seconds, Gomar and Shioh found slight marks on the ground, and used them as guard rails, avoiding them at every possible turn. To see Twin Norita moving in such a fashion was to compare it to a fly, moving with supreme control.
The Silver Comet on the other hand found itself nicked by one of two stray bullets. Tinsel knew well ahead that this was not going to be easy, but she tried her best to read the situation and dodge the bullets. However, no matter where she moved, she still heard her metal being hit. Once the volley of bullets stopped, both machines arrived near Jim, to hear their evaluation.
"Looks like you two are the perfect decoys. Unlike you," he motioned to Tinsel, "who's been slacking off."
"Sir, this wasn't easy. You see, I just had some of my components replaced by-"
"I don't need your excuses, cadet. Now, you three lazy lumps follow me. There is a good ole course I want you to see." His voice was lowered for a bit. Yet, Tinsel still found a harshness in his tone.
Another session featured courses that were about 50 feet high off the ground. Tinsel thought it to be a special treat, as one of the courses were designed after the Queen and King Leagues of old. The latter boasted sharper curves and was much longer than the former.
The Comet and Noritta were idle while Jim stood by at the starting line. "This doesn't matter who wins. It is only a friendly competition. Survive and conquer it." After eight seconds, the officer shot a pistol into the air, signaling the drivers.
During the trial, the sharp drill sergeant noticed how heavily the Silver Comet descended. As he saw how the jump plates were being used, he jotted some notes down, scoffing as he did. He could only wait to see how Tinsel and the Silver Comet would do in the more difficult course: one adorned with several lethal turns. It was bad enough that Tinsel had to slow down constantly, while Gomar and Shioh were suffering as they kept on hitting the walls.
At the second lap, the rival machine decided to cheat a little as it soared to the right on the second jump. Gomar motioned to Shioh to take it and Jim noticed the stunt through his binoculars. He summoned a large UFO-like machine from a portable remote that picked the pair up from a tractor beam at the underside. It forced them back a few inches; this actually allowed the Comet to catch up. They clashed with each other from time to time, but no one was backing down. Neither had the need to use any side or spin attacks, and the Booster Fire was completely out of the question. The difficult curves and obstacles were bad enough.
By the time it was over, Tinsel won. They cheerfully returned to their coach after their victory lap. "See, Jim? I told you we'd ace this."
"Sorry for cheating, sir." Gomar replied bashfully.
He wasn't impressed to their discouragement. "You made a very risky move on your part, Huckminers. This was supposed to be no contest, but yet you acted foolishly to win it. Never make that same mistake, as it could cost you your pathetic lives." he said sternly.
They both drooped their heads in shame.
"And you. You may have won that race, you're extremely lucky while you kept slowing down at each sharp turn. I appreciate your humbleness, but you still have failed miserably."
"What?" She couldn't believe what he was saying. "What do you mean? Where did I go wrong?"
"Your Comet was far too heavy when it landed after each Jump Plate. You need to make a longer distance and soar like a comet should. You're just a fallen meteor on that race."
"But...how?" Her mind shifted to the gap temporarily, before Jim was able to snap her out of her reverie.
"Tinsel!" That made her jump back to the present. "Daydreaming won't save you, either, the mind must always be as sharp as a great white's tooth. I'm incredibly surprised you hadn't mastered it, every pilot knows how to make longer jumps better than you can."
"I don't understand this at all." Her throat tightened. "How can any other racer soar more? This doesn't make any sense that everyone could make that gap except me."
James' expression changed, "Excuse me?"
She told him about the incident 13 years ago. She never wanted to talk to anyone else about it, let alone a stranger.
"And what makes you think you could win? You were the only one who never made it. I saw that accident on TeleVid at that time. I was only starting out as an F-Zero pilot until I noticed Galaxy Dog wasn't getting a lot of monetary support. You're determined, but fragile. You must be able to leap over troubling pits like this one."
"You will show me?" Her windpipe loosened. Could this really be my chance to overcome my worst fear?
"Don't get all emotional on me, Tinsel. I've already lost my empathy with my family. I can't let you make the situation at hand more intolerable than it is. Follow my lead, and I shall demonstrate."
He brought over the Little Wyvern. It was nothing she had ever seen before. It was built very much like a fighter craft with its elongated wings, narrow, sharp-pointed nose, and had a lustrous grey body. He parked beside the Comet at the exact spot where the race began. He was the one who hit the Jumps first and he was almost literally flying just like a minature jet while the wings opened and closed.
He stopped after the second hop and observed her. She was still sinking rapidly after each of the plates. She hesitated next to Jim, and she was so perplexed on how he was able to make longer ascents than her.
"You need to raise the nose to make a lighter drop, and a longer leap. You have to hold back the bars as you make a tight grip, allowing the G-Diffuser to have less of an effect. Pushing the thrusters forward would cause the vehicle to land harder. You got that?"
"I think so." Taking the lessons in mind, she thought about how she could use her newly acquired knowledge to cross the gap in the White Land track. She wasn't very thrilled at the thought, and it was best not to dwell on that. She went away for a few miles, turned back, and leapt over the pit. At the same time, she instantly yanked back the controls, allowing the Comet to catch more air and land safely. She hardly even noticed the impact as she felt it was being lifted by a strong updraft. She was shocked by the performance and she almost lost control. The Furikakes were ecstatic that it really worked, as was Tinsel!
"That's it!" James exclaimed. However, she missed the other plate before she hit the dirt, slowing her down.
"I made it..." she could hardly speak. "So, this is how they do it."
"Indeed." James arrived next to her. Tinsel looked up with shiny eyes.
"Oh, how could I ever repay you?"
"You already did. When you and the Huckminers paid me for these tedious dry runs."
Tinsel didn't feel so bad; while she may have failed in the first session as Gomar and Shioh succeeded, mastering the long jump was even better than anything else. They were returning to base to retry the bullet dodge until she heard a whispering noise after she exited the cockpit.
Psst. Psst.
She looked over and walked toward the silhouette hiding behind a dome-shaped war tent. She could barely make out the six-armed figure. He lowered his raised limbs as she treaded toward it.
"Octoman? Is that you? How did you get past security?" She theorized that the place would definitely have plenty of safety protocols since Jim mentioned he needed the cash to defend against various intergalactic threats, including Dark Million.
"Never mind how, Tinsel."
Thinking she heard a sound, she looked back and saw nothing. "What're you doing here?"
"Listen. I followed all of you here. I know why you're training with James McCloud, I actually heard of your plight involving the finals and Rodney Stewart. Black Shadow means business.
"Heed my words, just in case I get caught in the Galaxy Dogs net, they're vicious."
"I was afraid you'd say that." As if their leader wasn't aggressive enough.
According to the Takoran, James McCloud was a criminal. He warned her that he trained all F-Zero pilots, including those that were in the Task Force, as well as Dark Million, making him a traitor to his cause. He's actually a mercenary, always caring about having money in his pocket, and never emphasizing for anyone he trains. The squadron he created, the Galaxy Dogs, help the Federation to defend the universe. Yet, working with the enemy made her very uneasy. She was so excited to show her friends what she could do, that she actually lost sight on who James McCloud was.
She managed to escape avoiding all the spotlights and she kept hiding herself from the cameras as she attempted to blend into the opaque compound. She looked up the intel inside the Comet. For the most part, much of James McCloud's story was true. But info on his machine revealed it had an E-level body strength. Among the worst in its class, but it had boost and grip strength in the B-class. It was known as one of the modified fighter jets belonging to the Galaxy Dogs. Jim actually convinced Space Dynamics to make this contraption. James McCloud alone...was the main suspect.
She entered the area with the watch tower, and then she aimed her nozzles while she tried to dodge more bullets. She kept going around until she found her target. She shot out two ice beams, freezing the massive gun! This instantly disabled it, and Jim lost all control.
"You goddamn crotch-licking-" The pilots heard the sergeant shouting and swearing unintelligibly inside.
"What did you do?" Shioh was stunned.
"You froze the machine gun..!" Gomar said, motioning to Tinsel.
"Let's just say that it's time for a little payback. James isn't the man he claims himself to be. He's nothing but a rebel to his own squadron and his trainees."
"What?" The Furikakes were perplexed. Before she had the chance to explain, they saw him step up to the Comet. Tinsel exited and marched toward her new adversary wearing a face of hatred.
"I know all about the Galaxy Dogs. You're very canny, Jim."
"What the hell are you talking about?" he responded in a cold voice.
"You think you're a fair soldier? I've seen your records, thanks to two friends of mine. One of them knows what you've done on his home planet, and another obtained some data to prove it. You always believe that you and your squadron have a squeaky clean reputation, and are all that and a bag of chips. You guys are nothing but scoundrels, only going for the gold, literally. In other words, you worked for Dark Million and caused nothing but sabotage over your own greed!"
"How dare you say such blasphemy! You ungrateful slut! You should be thankful that I was the one who taught you to make longer leaps with your wasted machine."
"That machine happens to be made by the late Dr. Clash. He gave up his life for us!" That infuriated Tinsel so much, that all she wanted to do was destroy the corrupt man in front of her!
"Then it was HIS mistake for creating it. Even I could do a far superior job than him. But no matter, since you're nothing but a-" He pushed Tinsel a few inches back forcefully. Then, he did it again, and she lunged back. The Huckminers just stood there as they watched her right arm being bent in a dislocating fashion. Then, James' face was splattered with a gooey substance. Her arm was free, though pretty sore. She did use her left arm and held out a pistol as Octoman appeared. Jim took off his soiled shades, revealing his copper eyes, and grinding his teeth.
"Tinsel's innocent, she's not wrong. She was the one who donated a portion of her prize money to my home world, Takora. My people have been hunted down like dogs by the Federation, and its always torn by bloodshed and poverty. You should know this by now since you, too, are a veteran, yet you follow a tainted path as you took advantage of the Galaxy Dogs and manipulated the Platoon's beliefs about us! Our ways of living and our existence has been tarnished because of you!"
"Wait 'til the Task Force hears about this!" the alien duo chimed.
That put the treacherous man on edge. He actually went on his hind heels and slipped into the Little Wyvern. Octoman and Tinsel climbed into their corresponding machines and went on the pursuit as they saw their enemy leave the compound, kicking up sand in the idle faces of the extraterrestrials. Startled, they decided unanimously to alert the first person that came to mind.
"Rick, Rick! You gotta help us! I hope Falcon's with you!"
He was lucky he was still inside the Dragon Bird, a simulation just began to run. "Gomar...? Shioh?" He listened on all the transpired events, putting him in a sense of utter shock.
At once, Port Town's alleys felt a gust of wind. The Silver Comet moved at lightning speed, avoiding the walls and careless pedestrians with only one target in mind. The Deep Claw was on her tail. The Wyvern actually slowed and bashed onto it, to the point where sparks flew. "Eh oh." Tinsel made a side attack, however, it caused a chain reaction that made the octopus skid and collide into a wall. The Wyvern was weak, but it managed to hang in there. Tinsel needed to find a way to cut him off, otherwise she'd be a goner if he should clip her. A ramp was visible to the right. She had to take it, or else she was forced to try her luck with a wider turn and lose even more time.
For a moment, she saw the horrific White Land gap. But very quickly, she put it out of her mind. She needed to be at her best if she was chasing down a criminal.
At the incline, she felt her machine hop into the air. But she immediately knew what to do. She adjusted her control in the air, pulling the nose back, but she also made sure it wasn't lurched too far. As a result, she gained a bit of speed while keeping it quite level.
Meanwhile, the Little Wyvern slowed down, anticipating her crashing onto the surface just before it. Yet, that didn't happen. The Silver Comet landed right onto the Little Wyvern's front and boosted right off of it. Quickly, she leaned over to the left, in order to create a giant U-Turn and block his further passage into the major streets.
For a moment Tinsel experienced some glee in conquering it, but she remembered exactly what needed to be done.
The cockpit opened up and she pulled out a gun.
"Freeze, scumbag!"
She shot out a volley of ice, freezing the Wyvern gradually on contact. Jim managed to jump out of the cockpit as his precious machine made a few wipeouts and then exploded. Octoman grabbed the stunned pilot with all his inky, firm arms.
Before James was apprehended by the Platoon, with its cruiser sirens wailing in the distance he explained he used to have a close friend in the military named O'Donnell. They joined the army together, and Tinsel was astonished that it wasn't really the air force.
They were on a mission soaring over some thick canopy, and one evening they received orders to extract their men from an enemy base. They were in a massive air carrier, and it was attacked by bullets and fire bombs.
"Rescue 101 has been hit, we're going down!" O'Donnell cried.
"Damn!" Jim growled.
They ran from the wreckage and wound up in an onslaught somewhere deep within the jungles. It was a perfect place for an ambush since it was so dark during the wee hours and the foreign terrain. James was injured from the crash, then O'Donnell ran toward the group of terrorists resulting his demise.
"O'Donnell!" He shrieked in horror as he witnessed his wingman killed right in front of him!
"No one saw me so I was able to escape. That night changed my life forever." Jim's mind returned to the present, in handcuffs. "I...never trusted anyone anymore."
"And neither could anyone ever trust you. You have no soul, McCloud." Tinsel said bitterly.
"We were nothing but tools here!" Gomar and Shioh protested.
The officers loaded him in the slammer; Jim was relieved that his family wasn't there to see this humiliation.
Being that he lost a close friend during a combat mission, and abandoned his men in the process, Tinsel felt that he actually lost himself. That he no longer cared about his new cadets, only using them for his financial gain. He had no heart nor any values. Not even his own wife and son. All he does go for was cold, hard cash since he didn't seem to give a damn that Dark Million is a threat to the galaxy.
As the heroes saw Jim being pulled away permanently, Tinsel wondered what would become of his own squadron. She never felt so torn. "One day, you will find atonement for what you have done." she thought aloud as she gazed up at the astronomical amount of stars.
She shielded her eyes while she was blinded by the bright headlights ahead. She could barely make out the Blue Falcon and the Dragon Bird in the distance. The two pilots ran up to her.
"Are you alright?" the bounty hunter asked.
"Yeah, we were going to save you." her best friend added with concern.
"From what?" Tinsel wondered.
Rick and Falcon heard a distress call from Gomar and Shioh, and discovered there had been an accident somewhere in the backstreets. By trusting their instincts, they followed the trail and it was actually both Tinsel and Octoman who stopped James McCloud in that fierce hunt. Falcon filled in the gaps: Because of James' criminal activity, his son, Todd, will take his place as squadron leader, and leave his father strained. Thanks to Falcon, even the commissioner was convinced from the cephalopod's redemption. James' fate remained unknown because due to his treachery, he would either serve a very hefty prison time and/or permanent cold sleep in Planet Alcatran. Rick was very surprised that a former traitor managed to put a stop to a spy for Dark Million.
"Looks like we owe you one, Octoman. Especially for what you did when you prevented Miss Killer from winning at the Cosmo Terminal."
"We'll settle on this later, Wheeler. ...We do have the championship, after all." He walked away into the darkness.
Tinsel's head shot up. "Octoman? Could you make a promise? Will you be there and root for us when we march on for the title?"
He accepted with a wink and drove elsewhere in the Deep Claw. The Duelists recently briefed in they will go with them, and put their monsters on stand by like they did last year in case Black Shadow and his minions would cause another accident.
Because of Jim's absence, Tinsel freely invited Falcon, Rick, and the Furikakes to the advanced version of the old circuit. Rick was impressed that the Comet was able to make a longer leap than it did before. And the Twin Noritta mastered its tactics on misdirection and agility. After the race, with Falcon as the victor, she explained that it was Jim who taught them before Octoman and Clank unveiled his true colors. She was a little miffed they knew how to make longer distances and they didn't tell her how. Rick assumed she already knew, but sadly she didn't. He wondered if she could use that same technique, and offered her to try it at White Land.
She immediately turned sour, "No, no! I'm not going back there!"
Everyone looked at Tinsel, wide-eyed.
"I am NOT...going...back there!" she said as she was driving away. Then, she stopped at a corner. "I am not going back there." She shook her head, "Uh uh. Nope." The last thing she wanted was to re-experience the course she had long dreaded for over a decade. Tinsel never wanted to go back, at least not until Black Shadow would be defeated for good, much as the perpetrator having his tail between his ironized legs.
A/N: I just noticed a trope known as the Canon Foreigner, a character that has been expanded to a different form of media, and/or into another universe. In this case, with GP Legend, they are Rick/Ryu, Lucy, Lisa, and Haruka/Miss Killer. I'd seen that every foreigner strives to be something known as a Canon Immigrant, someone who's popular enough to be introduced to the original material. This is something I always wanted for Rick, from GP Legend/Climax to the original franchise, or perhaps Smash Bros. That sadly hasn't been done, however, I still consider it since he, along with the other characters, made it here in Ending it All, as well as the other stories for F-Zero.
This was actually non-canon info; James McCloud is only a mercenary and he didn't really design the Port Town courses. It would be quite interesting if he did, though, including the UFO used for the Grand Prix 13 years prior. In here, he was the architect of both things, and his technicians from the Galaxy Dogs built the two courses and the space craft.
I was thinking of using the Port Town theme from Climax when the Comet chases the Wyvern. In my opinion it is better than in X and GX, since there are a few noticeable fragments of the original song there.
The Duelists made an appearance again, but I wasn't really into the latter seasons, as the Dragons may give you a hint. It just became more and more complicated as the show went on. I was a casual fan of it anyway.
The last course is Lightning: Thunder Road, a shout-out to the scarce Grand Prix in GX, the AX Cup. They say you could unlock it using a Memory Card with F-Zero AX data, but it's only from those rare arcade cabinets. I never experienced them personally, and I felt I really missed out. However, from a LP, the only circuits that stood out the most was the Thunder Road, and Outer Space as well. I was shocked that the anime actually featured the latter course, although I saw the show before I discovered AX.
I'm not a huge fan of James McCloud. Sure he is a Starfox reference, but having him as a fighter pilot working for almost all racers for the sake of money, including for Dark Million, kind of rubs me the wrong way. I see him as a spy for Black Shadow. Like Tinsel said, I felt he lost himself and cash was the only driving force in his life, not friendship, not love for his family, not even his heart. And overall, Jim was a very underwhelming pilot to use, and he hardly had any references to the former Starfox leader at all. Much like him, his fate is unknown; he serves a very long prison sentence, but it's a mystery whether or not he could have the death penalty from his betrayal or perhaps permanent cold sleep.
Another exhausting Lap done. It was a complete drag to make, involving James and the Galaxy Dogs. Now it's finally off to the glorious Championship! See you then!