A/N: Hey everyone, nice to see this thing is getting underway. Anyhow, I've got this down to the next three chapters...but, may try to drag it out to 25, not sure why 25 chapters just looks better than 24 to me for some reason ^_^ Well...enjoy that chapter...and I'll see you soon as the next chapter is already about half way done...cya...

The Footsteps in the Darkness ~ SkullFox


...Chapter 21…...

-Three years ago-

Silver lay on an open table, wearing only a small device that arched up from the table over his eyes, locking completely around his head. It was as he lay there that a promising Venomian scientist looked over a small clipboard, flipping through the pages checking things off here and there. The project had been far more prosperous than he'd expected it to be. Number thirteen had so far proven that his abilities were even beyond the scope of a well-trained animal that had been serving the military for years. Yet, the scientist was worried about several results. The animal's peak psychosis was slightly unstable…it had been a severe problem with all of the subjects so far. However, it was thanks to a specialized Neural Inhibitor device placed in a key location on the fox's frontal lobe that this problem had become slightly more stable. It was as he stood there that a light pink-furred minx walked into the room. She wore a long white coat and carried several pages of recent test results…

"Well Miss Varns let's see what we have here," the ape said taking the test results.

"I'm afraid it's not looking very well Doctor," she replied passing him the pages, "As you can see his brainwaves are still very active. His higher brain functions show that he's still learning at an advanced rate, but he's still showing the same signs as all the others before him."

The doctor sighed, flipping through the pages until something stood out. "What about this?" he said pointing to a page of the paper, "Something is unusual about these scans. His readings are actually far worse than the others. Has he shown any signs of cognitive individual thought?"

The minx thought for a moment. "Not as far as I've noticed," she replied, "I have been monitoring his personal time, and keeping record of his daily progress for the last six years. However, recently he has been spending a lot of time in the terrarium."

The scientist simply looked to the silver-furred fox. "Thirteen…can you hear me?"

"Yes doctor," the animal replied in a monotonous voice.

"Miss Varns informs me that you have been spending a lot of time in the station's terrarium…is this true?" the ape continued.

The young vulpine seemed to simply lay there for a moment in silence. "Yes doctor."

"May I ask why?"

This time the vulpine's silence lasted much longer than the first time. "Because it is quite…it smells…nice."

The minx and ape looked to each other for a moment before looking back to him. "Thirteen…when did you start feeling like this?"

"Five years, four months, twenty days, six hours, thirty three minutes ago," he replied without missing a beat.

The doctor looked to the minx for a moment. "Would you mind simply explaining what happened that day?"

"That was the day I was placed in Doctor Varns' care," the young fox replied, "It was when I was no longer allowed to see Eleven anymore. The doctors explained that it was time for me to begin training. I do not know why, but Doctor Varns took me to see her favorite places. The terrarium was one of them. I liked it there…there were no voices, no shouting…no needles. I…I do not like needles," he said, "I first realized I was different when I brought Eleven to the terrarium. She did not speak anymore…she only spoke to the doctors. I began writing the things that I felt, but I knew that I would get Doctor Varns in trouble if the book were found. So I hid it…"

"Where did you hide this book?" the ape asked calmly.

Thirteen remained silent…

"Thirteen, you will respond," the doctor suddenly demanded in the same calm tone.

"No…" the fox replied bluntly, "If the book is found Doctor Varns will be punished. I like Doctor Varns. She is nice to me. She shows me things…"

The ape looked to Varns for a moment. "Has he reacted like this before?"

"No," the minx replied, "He's never been like this."

"Doctor…" the vulpine suddenly asked, gathering both their attentions, "What is SilverFox? I hear the other doctors. They say it all the time. 'SilverFox'…They point at me, call me promising."

The ape looked to the silver vulpine. "Well…in a lesser sense…you. You are SilverFox."

The young vulpine's head turned to one side. "I am…" He paused for a moment as his voice trailed off into a dull whisper. "Silver?"

The ape took a moment, stepping over closely to his associate. "Listen Miss Varns. I want you to keep this under wraps for now. I know that we're supposed to terminate any subject that shows these signs, but if I can study what is causing his psychosis, maybe I can learn how to stop it before it becomes too radical."

"Alright…" Varns said, stepping toward the table pressing a small button that caused the small device over the fox's eyes to separate at the center, the two halves retreating into the table. Finally the minx led the young fox out of the room.

The days passed by quickly, and the young experiment's life carried on as if nothing had ever happened. However, after several weeks…the pink-furred doctor that was set to undertake him, simply stopped coming to see him, and Thirteen was set under the control of the lead editor of the SilverFox program, the doctor he had talked to before. The older ape was nothing like the young minx. He was withdrawn, and very stern. He often raised his voice, and he seemed to expect so very much more from the young fox than the minx ever had. His days in the training rooms grew more advanced, and harder on him physically. Some days he would be lucky to leave the training areas with minor injuries, several times he had broken bones and cracked ribs. One day however, the young vulpine was sitting on a metal table while his overseer stood by watching a nurse patch up his newly injured ribs. It wasn't until the nurse left the room that the ape looked the young fox over. His expression seemed slightly different to the ape…

"Is something bothering you?" he asked.

The young fox simply sat there looking over a small tag he'd recently been given to wear around his neck with the word 'Silver' pressed into its surface, a code name he'd been given. "Doctor…what happened to the terrarium? It was not there yesterday."

The brown furred ape sighed. "The terrarium was…outsourced…" he replied, getting a confused look, "Terminated, removed. It was removed from the station…the CEO believed that it was counterproductive and had it removed."

"I miss Doctor Varns," Silver replied looking to the floor.

The ape sighed. "Well…she was removed as well," he said, "She was put to death when she was found smuggling information off of the base," he finished heading for the door, "She will not be working with you anymore."

Silver sat there for a moment. He'd never really heard the word before. Living as he did, he was very protected from such things. So far his training had not gone far enough for him to have actually taken a life yet. He sat there for a long time as the doctor had left. He couldn't help but wonder why it was that Doctor Varns would not be coming back. What did this word the doctor had used mean? In a state of utter confusion, the young fox thought about something Doctor Varns had taught him…

"Computer…" he mumbled, "Define…death."

There was a moment before a small confirming beep sounded. "Death…seven definitions found…" A light voice echoed through the small speakers located somewhere in the ceiling. "One: the event of dying or departure from life. Two: the permanent end of all life functions in an organism or part of an organism. Three: the absence of life or state of being dead. Four: the time when something ends. Five: the time at which life ends, continuing until dead. Six: a final state. Seven: the act of killing."

Silver thought to himself. "State of being dead?" he repeated to himself, "Computer define…terminate…most common use."

There was another confirming beep. "Terminate: bring to an end or halt."

Silver thought back to when Doctor Varns and his current overseer had used he word 'terminate' in reference to him. It was at that moment that the doctor made his way back into the room carrying a small tray with him, which he sat down before returning his attention to Silver. He noticed a disturbed expression on his face…

"Is something the matter? You have been acting strange lately."

Silver thought for a moment. "Doctor Varns…is dead?"

The ape sighed. "Yes…she is dead."

"She was…terminated?"

"I suppose you could say that, yes," the ape replied causing the vulpine's eyes to open wide.

"Terminate means the same as death?"

The ape was about to reply when he stopped with his mouth partly open. "Well yes. People often use it as a way of softening the depth of the word death. I suppose some can't handle it, then again some companies use the same term to sway certain legal issues."

The doctor, having answered the vulpine's questions, went back to his work, but didn't seem to notice Silver's radical breathing and increased heart rate. Something gripped at the vulpine's chest. He could feel something that begged him to run. He could not stop his entire body from shaking. It was now that the doctor turned to Silver, dropping the instrument he held…

"I…I am…to be ter-terminated."

The doctor slowly backed away. "Oh no." He gasped.

Suddenly a siren broke out all across the bass as a silver- furred animal flew from a small window with the brown-furred Venomian rushing after him. The alarm had been sounded, and now every animal on the base was on the alert, searching the entire base. His path led him through the halls and into the docking bay where he finally found a mass of animals all holding weapons. Quickly the feeling returned. He was well aware that every animal there was definitely there to kill him. It was as he stood there, completely petrified with fear, that the brown-furred ape rushed into the troops…

"Stop!" he shouted, "Orders are for non-lethal fire only! Subdue and retrieve him!"

The fox slowly closed his eyes, and suddenly there was a familiar pain in his right shoulder, causing him to look toward a small object that struck him. As his vision blurred, he shook his head, removing the small syringe. His vision faded and finally the animal collapsed to the floor in utter darkness…

-Present Day-

Silver shook his head. He had no idea why his mind kept rushing back to that time and that place. He swore he'd never go back, but here he was. He wanted this, he wanted to end it and make certain that there'd be no more mistakes like him. He was certain of his meaning in life, even if it was a false life, one that was never meant to be. He knew that he was meant to bring the vicious cycle to an end. His mind wandered back to the cavern he'd seen so long ago, all the dead animals that lay there in that place. What had their feelings been in that last moment? Did they even have any? What was it, to Omni at least, that was so horrible about feeling, and emotion? He wanted more than anything to just turn around and go back to Roxy, but how could they ever be happy if they were constantly on the run? Roxy had explained that she didn't care what others thought of her, or him for that matter. Her words that one night had given him a lot to think about. Something more recently had given him more to think about however, and that was the thought that the animal he'd fought on the Omni ship hovering over Titania, was actually really as was explained, his sister. The thought made him ask himself if a clone could even legitimately be called a sibling, but how could he be cloned into anything other than another male? His mind raced with questions but he also wondered if he was doing the wise thing here. He left out the fact that he'd received a message from an unknown source that night. How this person had gotten his personal communicator number was far beyond him, but now that he recognized the doctor's voice, he was not quite as surprised. The ape had seemed different when he was explaining his situation, trying to help who he called Eve escape from the space station. Silver wondered if he was actually doing the right thing. After all was there any way he could actually trust the animal that had helped create him? Could he trust the vixen that had tried to kill him before? He wondered even how it was that he was going to get aboard the space station, but the ape from the transmission had told him not to worry about boarding the station. Of course this made him worry a bit at least, but something seemed a bit too easy about all of this. Nevertheless, as his path continued, the massive station came slowly into view…at first it looked like a simple moon in orbit around a small planet. Something caused a slight shiver to trail down Silver's spine. He knew this place. Even if he couldn't fully remember ever actually seeing the station itself, he knew it. It was home, where everything for him had started, and where everything would finally end…

-The Primrose-

Vanity stood there in the docking bay with all eyes on her. The small ship in front of her bore the passengers that Krystal had sent in order to assist her in the final assault against Omni. As she stood there she remembered why it was that she hated giving speeches, so she decided to keep it short. The feline held her paws up calling for the roar of chatter among the animals to dull down…

"Everyone listen up…" she called, "I'm no good at speeches so I'm just going to say it. Krystal has sent a small team to infiltrate the Omni headquarters as we speak. We'll be given several hours before they get there and when they signal for us, we're going to hit Omni hard and fast. We do NOT want to give them the chance to see us coming. Now I know you may all have mixed feelings about this, but the rumors are true…" She sighed. "We've been being assisted by humans."

At the sound of the word 'humans' there was a sudden uproar in the docking bay as the animals all chattered amongst themselves. "QUIET PLEASE!" Vanity shouted causing the gossip to die down.

"I know what you're all thinking. To be honest I was the same way when I first met them," Vanity pointed out, "But they have helped this war effort more than you could possibly realize. There are only two of them on this ship, and if Krystal's team has been able to trust them for this much time, then I feel we can trust them just the same. One of them is a physician on a level I've never seen before. He's already cured one of Krystal's teammates of a very fatal disease and will work wonders in this ship's sickbay, and the other is an engineer and computing specialist. I am not asking you to accept them, but let me point out that without these people, the Archangel unit would never have been built. As of now these people are honorary Lylatians, and I have given them full military ranking for the time being. Any sort of action against them, or attempts to hold them responsible for their people's mistakes as a whole will be met with swift punishment…" she said finally taking a deep breath, "Now, once we have everything in order I want Bill Gray's team to meet the other First Strike squadrons near the launch pad for the new Arwings. There are some details that we need to go over before this is gets underway. Who is the lead of the sickbay here?"

A small section of animals parted leaving a lone she wolf standing with her paw in the air. "I am…" she called, "Officer Felicia Smithe."

The black feline sighed. "Alright Felicia," as she said this the gangplank of the small transport she stood by fell to the deck allowing several people to file out of the ship, "I want you to escort Doctor Hamilton to the sick bay," she said turning to the large human, "Jeffery, I think you could help most by staying there and doing what you can to help the sick or injured."

The light gray-furred wolf made her way through the crowd until she stood before the man that stood over her. At first she was nervous, she'd never seen a human before, and like any other Lylatian her age, her youth was spent hearing stories about how barbaric and horrible humans were. As she finally looked at his face, Jeff bore a soft smile reaching his hand out to her…

"Hello…" he said, "Doctor Jeffery Hamilton. Most people call me Jeff."

The she wolf quickly jolted back, half expecting the strange creature to pull her arm off. However, the man's warm expression caused her to slowly reach her paw out, and take his hand. She quickly closed her eyes only to feel a very gentle grip before the man lightly shook her paw before releasing it. As she looked on this time the wolf sighed…

"Well…Doctor Felicia…" he started, "Shall we?"

Though a bit hesitant still, the lupine slowly turned, leading the human out of the docking bay. "Now everybody get back to your stations, except for whoever leads the engineers here…"

"That'd be me ma'am!" a large voice rose from the crowd as a young bear held up his paw, "Staff Sergeant Mason Hill."

"Alright, everyone but you get back to yours stations…" Vanity corrected herself, "Mister Hill, please come see me for a moment."

The tall ursine lumbered over as the large mass of animals dispersed. As he stopped in front of the General, Vanity looked up at him. On an exception of Creed, he had to be the largest animal she'd ever seen. The bear simply stood there looking about the small group of animals. Lia, Sia, Jade, and Nick were the only one's really there. Vanity had actually expected more of Krystal's team, only to find out that several small groups had left on their own personal agendas. It was however as she stood there that she sighed a bit…

"Sergeant Hill…" she said holding her paw out toward Nick, "This is Nick. I'll let him handle introductions later. I want you to show him around the maintenance quarter and to the ships. He can point out some things that we don't know about the Keizers. I just wish Alex was here."

"Don't worry about it…" Nick chuckled. "Alex won't be long. Randy just had some things to take care of. And trust me, it's better that they did what he set off to do."

It was well after Nick left the area with the ursine mechanic that Vanity allowed the others of the small ship to be shown to some open quarters on the ship where they could all get some rest. She then made her way to Bill's assault team, only to have a young yellow-feathered avian fellow rush up to her. He paused breathing heavily; apparently he'd been running for some distance. The feline General gave him a moment to catch his breath…

"General…" He huffed. "There's a ship…Omni ship…approaching, but it's using a Cornerian Transponder signal…and the captain refuses to go through any motions without your say so."

"Is the ship active?" Vanity asked.

The bird shook his head. "No ma'am. It's dead…communications are down and it seems to be out of fuel."

Vanity thought for a moment before looking to the small group that stood a short ways off from here. "BILL!" she called causing the canine to rush over, "Take a three man tow crew out and bring that ship in." As she said this Bill quickly moved out to the small group, picking out several pilots and having them board their ships with him. "As for you…" she said turning to the avian, "Relay a message to the captain. I want no firing on that ship. We have friends out there that may be piloting an Omni craft."

Vanity could only sit by and wait as Bill Gray's small team flew out of the docking bay, before shortly returning with the a small transport vessel towing slowly behind. The ships' landing gear did not engage as the Arwings' had, and there was a loud ear-shattering screech from the belly of the small ship dragging against the deck of the docking bay. Finally Vanity rushed up to the small ship as a number of armed soldiers surrounded the vessel. There were a few moments in which the ship simply sat there doing nothing, until the emergency release of the port side doors of the small ship completely fell away, a failsafe installed into most ships in case there was a crash or loss of power after landing so that the pilots and crew were not locked inside. As the vehicle seemed to lie slightly on its side, a white and red furred minx stepped out before reaching back in. What she pulled from the ship was a large, heavily bandaged human that Vanity instantly recognized as one of Jeff's teammates…as she watched on, Alex followed out helping lighten the load that the young minx carried on her shoulders…

"Somebody give us a hand he's bleeding to death!" the large man shouted.

As everyone hesitated Vanity shook her head, "You heard him! Get that man to the sickbay now!"

At the feline's horribly loud command, a large number of the soldiers that surrounded them rushed in taking the injured human from the two before heading toward the ship's sickbay. Vanity quickly made her way to the minx who seemed to be holding her ribs. She noticed that the minx's delicate white fur was saturated in the human's sanguine life force. Alex simply hunched over, coughing heavily. It wasn't until now that she noticed the smoke billowing from the door of the ship. Her questioning glance seemed to be all that they needed…

"We took out one of their bases…" Alex said, "Well Randy and Mika did."

"But…" Mika cut in as the human went back to catching his breath, "Several fighters made it out of there…so we made an emergency jump to the last coordinates Krystal gave us for your ship…we took several hits before the jump to hyperspace. When we finally got here…the ship was dead…it was horrible in there. There were electrical fires all over the place. If you hadn't brought us in when you did…we would have died…"

Vanity pulled on Mika's shoulders forcing her to look her in the eyes for a moment before they looked to the other soldiers. "Get these two to the sick bay as well. Smoke inhalation…and someone jettison that ship. It's nothing but dead weight."

... ...

Mika and Alex were rushed to the sick bay, where they were seated and given masks to breath through that pumped fresh oxygen to them. Mika instantly took notice to the look of the place; all white, little decoration, but soft beds that they were sitting on. She only hoped that Randy would be alright, but at the moment there really was nothing she could do. She and Alex were in bad enough shape as it was. It was as she looked over to the very end of the very long room where a curtain was drawn to block the view of the savagely injured man that Mika felt a large hand on her shoulder…

"Don't worry…about him…" Alex said between deep breaths, "Randy's a fighter…he always…has been."

... ...

The bright lights were all that he could see. Blurred figures hustled around him, and all sound was lost to him. All signs of pain had left the man long ago, all there was for him now was to wait. With Victor dead, there was nothing more that he needed to live for. He could feel a strange warmth pass over him as he slowly allowed his eyes to draw shut. All his life he had believed that death was cold and full of misery…but this was nothing like he'd imagined. He felt peaceful and warm, he felt like sleeping…so he did…

Awakening with a fright, Randy shot upright. He had no idea where he was or what was happening. The last moment he could remember was lying there in some strange place while some people huddled around him. He slowly examined the area, until a faint sent caught his attention, lilac and cherry blossoms. As he kept his eyes closed, a breeze blue through the area causing the spray of fresh pedals to brush against his face. He knew these sounds and smells, and as he opened his eyes he beheld what he'd longed for so very long to see again. A small cabin sitting on a hillside, placed at the center of a grove of cherry trees, while the hills around were covered in fresh lilac and assorted wildflowers. The mountains in the distance were something he could scarcely recall, beautiful snow swept peaks reaching up into the sky. A short distance from the small cabin lay a small stone covered area where he recalled endless days of training in an effort to forget his shaded past. As he stood there in awe and wonder, he could feel the tears begin to roll down his cheeks, as for the first time in what seemed like ages a bright smile spread across his face…

Slowly walking down the hillside toward the old cabin, he lay out his hands, gently allowing the tall flowers and grass to pass through his fingers. He took his time walking. This was where he wanted to be, home…it had been so long since that word even crossed his mind, and yet it was the one thing that he wanted more than anything else. Finally stepping under an archway that led to the door of the cabin, he wondered. Why was he even here? Did he deserve this kind of place after all the things he'd done in his life? It wasn't until he pushed open the old sliding door to the small house that it dawned on him. He didn't deserve this…and it was nothing like he'd imagined. The home was empty, as were the training grounds, the fields, the hills, even the wind was empty. It was as he came to a divine realization that he slowly walked to the stoop of the small home and seated himself on the steps. At first he'd convinced himself that this was paradise, but it was what he was meant to believe. The smells and feelings were only there to draw in his hopes…this was hell for he was in the one place that he wished to be in…but he was alone. Never to see his family again, even after death. This was his punishment for all the lives he had claimed throughout his life. It had simply been a matter of time before his actions claimed his as well. He did not cry any longer, the only tears he had shed were those of false happiness. This was his hell, the one thing he'd always feared and yet constantly wrought upon himself…loneliness. And it was now and forevermore, his only companion…

... ...

It was as Mika sat there in waiting that a single familiar shape stepped away from the curtained area, a large human, now covered in blood. His chin hung low against his chest before he looked to the ceiling, slowly pulling the blood-saturated gloves from his large hands. He took a deep breath before slowly walking toward the door of the room, only to stop for a moment to look at the minx. The mask she held slowly fell from her paw as she saw the look Jeff's eyes. It was the look of a man that had just lost his best friend…