Chapter -Twenty-Six-

The lizard, pinned down behind the remains of a shattered statue's pedestal, shouted to Marcus and Fara before firing off two more random shots. "You'll both kneel before the might of the new Venom government when we overrun this system! You will learn to respect our superiority!"

Fara peered around the corner and fired another shot to keep the enemy pinned down. "A government only exists with the consent of the governed. That's how Corneria works and you will learn to respect our freedom and our will!" She squeezed the trigger again then muttered, "That sounded hokey didn't it?"

"I don't think he cares anyhow," Marcus murmured. "So, yeah... I'm sorry I didn't listen – you're only pinned down because of me."

The lizard fired two more shots in return. "I will cut your throat, Cornerian vixen!" shouted the reptile in reply. He ducked back behind the concrete block in frustration.

Marcus ran his right paw through the tousled vanilla tuft of headfur between his ears. "But I sensed something strange… I can't explain it but I think there might be some sort of emergency."

Phoenix drew out a makeup compact and used the mirror to peer around the corner. She watched to ensure that the enemy wasn't trying to move up. "Do you think Venom used another bomb on a nearby planet like the last one?"

"No, it's not that… that felt more emotional when it was happening. This is different but I can't explain it. The thing is, I have this strange feeling like there's a huge uproar going on all around us. It somehow involves the forces here. They suddenly know something we don't."

A gunshot struck the mirror. It burst in Fara's paw – she tossed the remains to the ground. The fennec reached around the corner and fired off two more shots to keep the enemy pinned down. McCloud gasped and shouted, "From the right!" No sooner did he call out, two lizards attempted to flank them by running up the opposite end of the alley.

Phoenix shoved the fox against the wall then brought the handle of her blaster into the first lizard's snout. She gracefully extended her leg, connecting with the other reptile's face. He spun on his heel and collided with his partner. She jerked her knee up, smashing the second lizard in the face then aimed the blaster, open firing on the other. She reached for the dazed second lizard and, quickly, snapped his neck. She saw Marcus, out of the corner of her eye, flinching from the sound of a snapping spine.

"I'm sorry – it's my training. This is why I didn't want you here."

"No, don't mind me… you're impressive. You're badass, even." Marcus slumped behind Fara, fed up with his inability to help. "I really think we should open a private channel to the team – encode it or something. How can Venom seriously pinpoint our location based on a single transmission! This planet has more wireless radio chatter than any other in Lylat!"

"Radio silence has helped me survive in stealth many times in the past," she replied. She leaned around the corner and opened fire again then ducked back behind the building's corner. Two more gunshots passed into the opening of the alley, glancing off the facing wall. "And we don't want them to find out that Jane is here."

"If anything, they've already called in to their field commander about us, Fara. I'm not sure, but it's possible that our return is why I sense this strange uproar. If you ask me, we should use disinformation by opening up the radio and calling ourselves a reconnaissance team, sent in to assess the situation on behalf of the Cornerian Embassy. It's only a few blocks from here – it's perfectly believable."

Fara cut her gaze to Marcus and frowned. She held her weapon vertically with her left palm beneath her right wrist. A wisp of steam floated above the blaster's barrel. The city breeze, which created a slight wind-tunnel effect in the alley, caused her headfur to rustle gently. The soft sandy strands nearly touched her shoulder from going a few years without cutting it. Her gaze dropped, looking him over, then lifted to drink in his demeanor. "I see you truly believe this is the best course of action. You're a natural-born leader like your…"

Marcus lifted a paw to quiet her. "Stop – I'm honored by the comparison but dad used to tell me how he got that from Peppy every time he flew. It made him feel like he was competing. I would never try to out-fly my father – I just want to be me. I don't care how similar or different our little quirks may be, I just want to follow my heart. I grew up being told to follow my instincts… right now my gut says to open the communications line. We need intelligence if we're going to survive this." He paused and placed a paw to his ear. "Hey, they stopped shooting."

Fara blinked in stark realization. "You're right…" She peered around the corner and gawked at the empty intersection. "They're falling back…?" She drew the fancy sunshades down from her forehead and panned her gaze from left to right, scanning for hostiles. "Now what's going on? I swear, if that idiot feline is picking off our targets, or if some crazy lady is attacking the city like the one from Fichina…" Phoenix grinned then turned back to Marcus. "Do you sense anything out there?"

McCloud grew quiet for a moment then nodded. "There is a sense of fear. A change in their plans… they dread something or someone and want to fall back to protect Venom. …Look!" Marcus raised his right paw, pointing into the sky. In the distance, dozens of Venom ships launched, leaving white vertical strands in the wind like streamers at a farewell party.

"They're falling back to protect Venom?" Fara looked dubious. "From what? The Venom rebels were crushed in the 'One-Day War'… Hell, we were there for it! There's no way they could have amassed enough help to stop the return of the empire!"

"I can't sense details," Marcus replied. "Let's just hurry back to GreatFox as soon as possible. The one thing I can sense is that we're so far from a priority right now that I think our presence here is safe. I want to make haste…" He turned back to the street and waved for her to follow.

Fara holstered her blaster and grasped Marcus by the forearm. "Hold on, flyboy. We can't launch while they have so many ships in the air. They would have altitude superiority and shoot us down… Think about it, hon: all those guys shooting down at us at the same time… I don't care how good of a pilot we both think we are… neither of us can dodge rain drops – especially ones as numerous as…"

Marcus lifted his paws again. "You're right. We should wait until it's clear. I'm just being impatient – they're the ones in a hurry. I'm sure it won't be a very long wait at the rate they're pulling out of the sector. Being a good leader means making smart calls… and that requires listening to the advice of the professional in this situation."

Fara leaned forward and brushed her nose against the side of his muzzle, just beneath his ear. "Now you're learning, Marcus. They're preoccupied with leaving – let's count our blessings."

"…Instead of becoming an easy target – you're absolutely right." Marcus stepped out onto the street and opened his mind to the area. "It's hard to tell, but I think we're safe. I, uh, don't sense being in anyone's crosshairs."

"What about the bio weapon?" she asked.

Marcus shook his head slowly. "When we first arrived, I sensed very primitive thought patterns – alien ones. But even that's gone. I've never seen someone pack up shop so quickly before now."

Phoenix placed her sunglasses into a special case. "I'm surprised by their efficiency in pulling off such a grand-scale evacuation." She moved back to the mouth of the alley, knelt to one knee and placed a paw to her headset. "Phoenix to GreatFox – we've completed our mission."

Crimson's voice filled her ear. "Mission accomplished huh? So you guys took out the bio-weapon? By the way, Imperial occupation is fleeing the planet in such large numbers that we had to pull back and sit in orbit behind Eladard's moon. They're all heading for Venom. Did you guys do that?"

Fara frowned and said, "I doubt it. And our mission wasn't accomplished, just completed. They packed up the bio weapon and ran. Faster than I've ever seen any other force mobilized – ever. Something is definitely up."

"It might have a lot to do with the fact that the StarFox carrier has just appeared out of nowhere. We need you two back – it's an emergency. The General wants to know if the GreatFox carrier is a trap and, if it's not, they want to know the status of the passengers before anyone boards the ship."

Fara's eyes widened. "Why not run a sensor sweep?"

"An anomaly is causing glitches – we need Marcus' telepathy. Get him ready, Fara… he can't use his abilities if he's emotional. Get him relaxed and don't let him know what he's about to scan – if he has a completely neutral mindset, he'll be the most effective. If you tell him his parents might be dead on that ship, he'll be a wreck."

Marcus approached Fara and cleared his throat, having sensed the conversation through her. "Tell him that emotions won't cloud my ability to sense my mother. Kursed's hate and murderous rampage made me emotional, but I connected to her so well that I was even seeing her actions in my day dreams."

Fara froze, turned to Marcus then cleared her own throat. "He already knows, Crim… Red. He's standing right here, stoic as can be, telling me that he has a special link to his mother – emotions won't hinder him. Let us know when the last Venom fighter has broken through the stratosphere. We'll be back at the pod, waiting for clearance."

"There's no time," replied Crimson over the radio. "Head to the pod, we'll fly by for a pick up. We're going to change our trajectory and come down from behind the planet. We'll be coming from the west." He sighed softly then said, "If they're alive, Vivian's mom is going to be really upset." The audio connection closed at the source. Fara then turned to Marcus and frowned at him.

McCloud fidgeted nervously. "I should be the one to talk to Lucy. I was with Peppy up until the day he died, it's my responsibility."

Fara shook her head and cupped the side of his face. "Leave it to Vivian – they'll need a 'family moment'. After all, you'll need to be the one to console your father. He loved Peppy as a family member, you know?"

"Are you going to be all right, seeing him again?"

She eased her paw through his headfur then rubbed her fingertips behind his left ear. "I've thought of him as married, not to mention dead, for five years. If anything, I expect him to feel awkward – he believed in a lie for decades. The only one I thought we'd ever have problems with was Falco, because you were involved with his daughter." She began walking back towards the pod with Marcus behind her. "As it turned out, he was understanding and cool about everything. Aside from a little bout of awkwardness, I'm sure everything will be fine."

"If they're alive," Marcus added, coming alongside of her. "I'm praying my tail off right now," he admitted in a soft voice.

Wolf O'Donnell turned from the sensor scope back to Dash. "It appears a Cornerian ship is tractoring the anomaly object away from the sector – I can't scan for details, our sensor array has acted fickle for a very long time." He cut his gaze to his daughter then to her mate and finally back to Bowman. "So what's all this crap about my cargo and how in the hell did you even know about it?"

"It's a radioactive metal," said Carey. "They could see it from the next sector away if they knew what to look for in the data readout from the sensor sweep. I'd guesstimate your cargo hold is worth more than the entire current Venom economy at this moment."

Wolf canted his head, leering at Dash. "And I understand you wish to buy this metal from me? What for?"

"We need the raw materials to create a power source for our…"

Wolf backhanded Bowman across his face. "That is for lying to me. So, are you using it to make some sort of weapon? The raw energy readings this stuff gives off causes our long-range sensors to act weird. Something that gives off its own energy is only good for one thing – making a weapon."

"Mister O'Donnell…" Dash reached his hand to his jaw.

The lupine offered a snarl. "Don't lie to me, boy. Your money is only as good as your credit. I don't do deals with people who run scams."

Dash nodded with a sigh. "It's to make a weapon. Also, it's a serious danger to your health and to the health of your family and to the clients who frequent your home."

"Shut up," snapped Wolf. He approached Bliss, narrowed his gaze then placed a paw on the side of her face. He use his thumb to brush a bit of her facial fur aside then frowned. "You've got a cut – looks like you've washed the blood out of your fur. You saw combat or something?"

"It's a long story, daddy," she told him, adding, "He's got money – this is a fantastic deal."

"Is that so?" Wolf dropped his paw from her face, turned towards his desk and folded his arms. "You're talking like you've either bit your tongue or you're recovering from a broken jaw – which is it?"

"A little bit of both." Bliss folded her arms then said, "Mom is going to stomp your ass if she finds out you've got that nasty crap down in the hold and it could cause birth defects."

"That would explain your idiot brother," replied O'Donnell with an inward grin. They both knew he was joking – that the shipment of the Uranium didn't coincide with the birth of the twins. He turned around and sat on the desk. "So, Bowman, this is your ace-in-the-hole to get control of Venom back from that chump Andrew?"

"Venom respects power. If I wield more power than my cousin, they'll follow me."

Bliss turned to her employer and glared at him. "Then why are you letting Andrew take all the credit for the attack on Corneria? They probably think he's a demi-god right now."

Wolf approached Bowman. "So you are responsible for the first attack and you want enough raw materials to make a second. You know, that attack was hard on business. Why the hell should I invest in your little war game? What are you trying to prove?"

"Andrew claimed he set off the first nuclear blast when, in fact, the only attack he organized was the assassination of the General. When I have another bomb to back up a future threat, Venom will expect Andrew to rise up and accept my challenge. They'll see him unable to deliver – that cripples his credibility. I'll use the bomb on him. Then the rivalry over who owns Venom will be over – it will belong to me, the rightful heir by blood."

"Men…" Carey rolled her eyes.

Dash turned to Granton and said, "Andrew's government platform opposes gender equality relationships like the one you're in right now."

Carey held up her paws. "Don't talk politics to me, asshole."

Bliss turned to Wolf and cut a sly grin. "See why I love her, pop?" She turned back to Bowman and told him, "You're losing merit. If you fail negotiations here, you'll screw up everything. It only takes my word of mouth to tell everyone that Andross is dead and that you're faking his existence. Then you will be the laughing stock of Venom. Give us one good reason why not to melt down this crap, drain it into a few missile casings, and shoot it into the nearest blackhole…?"

"Andrew will use Venom to crush Corneria," said Dash. "When last I ruled over Venom, there may have been tension, but there was still peace."

"You're a joke," retorted Wolf. He rolled his eyes, including the implant. "You tried to get power hungry, but you crashed the Venom economy and could never stage a large enough resistance. We all remember that you were a failure as Venom's leader."

Dash sighed in frustration. "Andrew and Andross left it in ruins – what did I have to work with? Besides that, I was young and inexperienced." Without warning, a loud proximity warning chirped in alarm.

"Now what?" Wolf slid off his desk and approached a computer terminal. He logged in then pulled up the sensor grid. "…What in the F-?" he trailed off in confusion then, after a moment, finished the last word of the statement. The timber wolf glanced over his shoulder at Bliss. "Tell the goons downstairs to scramble – launch all fighters. Venom has a sizable fleet inbound from Eladard and they're headed here. The border patrol asked what's going on and this fleet destroyed the patrol."

Dash's eyes widened, worried about the Uranium. "Venom is attacking Sargasso?"

Wolf snarled at the monitor. "The head ship has sent a text-only communication. It reads, 'surrender your station and its cargo or prepare for destruction.' You idiot!" He approached Bowman and struck the ape in the face. Dash crumbled to the floor under the powerful jaw-jarring punch. Wolf narrowed his eyes down at the man on the ground. "They must have followed you, knowing you would lead them to the next weapon or, at the very least, where to get the materials to make another.

"This is what I'm going to do, Bowman… I'm going to surrender you, then send the cargo to a remote location via instant transmission. It'll be up to them to torture you since they'll want to know where another bomb is… Bliss?" He cut his gaze to his daughter.

Young Bliss withdrew a blaster and put the barrel against Dash's forehead. "Get up, old man. It looks like your plan backfired."

"I'm your employer!" Dash got to his feet, keeping his eyes on her weapon.

"Oh pipe down," replied the half-breed with a smirk. "I'm your last chance at survival here, so stop whining." She turned to her father and said, "You always told me that business comes first… even before family. You told me that the blood of your family will still be there tomorrow, but that business can dry up overnight if you don't make it your first love."

"Are you going to help him escape?" Wolf sneered.

She grinned at her father in a knowing way. "Still love me, daddy? We'll need that Uranium, too." She turned the gun on her father and winked at him. "Don't be upset, I've got my priorities straight: Business before family, just like you taught me."

"Fair enough," said Wolf. "I suppose I'm proud of you for showing that you've got more gull than your brother. Go down to the hold and set the instant transmission coordinates. Then, you and Mister Bowman will have to take the stealth-enabled escape pod. It only fits three people."

"You're going down to set the coordinates; I've got to keep my eye on you, daddy." She then turned to her mate and said, "Coming, honey?"

"Why not," said Carey. "You'll need me if you're going to be around this radioactive metal, Bliss." She turned back to Wolf and said, "See you around, Mister O'Donnell. Tell 'mom' I said hello."

"I'm sure Nicky will be thrilled to hear about all of this," Wolf replied, heading for the door. "This way, you three. We're running out of time, so don't dawdle." He led the three out of the room at gunpoint.

The rottweiler's broad shoulders filled the main view screen. His eyes shifted beyond Fara Phoenix to Marcus McCloud. "So, it's true… You really are in charge of the new StarFox team." Captain Parker canted his head, looking back at Fara Phoenix. "And seeing you is like being face to face with a ghost."

"You were quite the hot-headed little flyboy, Simon." Fara afforded him a smile. "I'm proud of you. You finally took your career seriously and now look at you… Captain of his own ship – very impressive."

"I had a good instructor," he replied. "On that note, I'm pulling the Proteus back to a safe distance. I hope you understand… we have reason to believe this ship could be a Trojan Horse, designed to strike from inside the Cornerian fleet. I have a duty to the safety of my crew."

Marcus offered a faint smile. "At least now that we're out of Sargasso airspace, we can see that the crew is alive. We'll handle everything from here, Captain Parker. Thank you for your help!"

"We'll be in orbit over Katina, should you require emergency medical facilities. We have one of the best surgeons in the fleet aboard this ship. Bon chance." He closed the connection, prompting a Cornerian logo to fill the view screen with the ship's identification number encircling the Planetary Defense Council's seal.

The screen changed, showing the GreatFox carrier. Gouges and gashes lined the polarized hull plating. A gash ran from the front starboard to the aft section. Pock marks from collision with asteroids dotted the metallic enclosure around the bridge. Fara frowned. "It looks like they've been through a war."

McCloud wanted to remain optimistic. "We've had a forward-mounted cannon ripped clean off and we're a patchwork mess. We don't have any room for pessimism. This could be the answer to our prayers – a second StarFox team to help us fight Imperial Venom."

Fara nodded and placed her paws on a nearby computer console, leaning over it. Her near-shoulder length sandy headfur pooled to one side. "You're right – the cruiser looks far worse than their ship."

Marcus cleared his throat and said, "ROB, scan the docking clamps and prepare us to board the GreatFox carrier. Are you able to dock the ships without a pilot on the other bridge?"

"Docking with one pilot is feasible – ship separation is what requires one active pilot on each ship. Networking with the carrier section now…" He paused then said, "Synchronizing with carrier data storage; preparing to backup data and harmonize computers into Raid-1 system, stand by… Ship storage drives now connecting in Raid; re-installing backed up data and combining archive data from both drives."

"Enough," Falco muttered. "We don't need a freakin' play-by-play, it's borderline melodramatic, ROB. Dammit," he walked off the bridge.

"What in the…?" Theodore turned to face Marcus.

"He's worried they're hurt," McCloud explained. "He feels this is taking too long – he's frustrated and… like I said – he's worried about them."

Vivian sighed. "My mother is on that ship." She placed her right palm over the front of her overalls, taking comfort in the feeling of Nibbles wiggling around within the pocket. "Both of Teddy's parents are on that ship. Marcus, your parents are on that ship. He's that pressed over his friends, but what about the rest of us? That's flesh and blood family over there… we're worried too."

Marcus held his paw up. "He's lived with most of them for his entire life. Especially my father. He's not flesh and blood but he's definitely just as worried as we are… and he has a different way of showing his concern. We sit here and bite our nails; he gets impatient and loses his temper. Everyone is different. C'mon, let's go down to the lower deck and wait for the connection."

Fara placed her paw on McCloud's forearm. "Wait…" She licked her lips slowly then frowned. "What if this is a trap? We've caused Venom a lot of grief lately… if this is their way of taking us out, we'd be done for… What about sending ROB over in a shuttle, just to be safe?"

Marcus paused to think it over. He turned to ROB then asked, "Can you verify that this carrier is not a clone ship?"

The robot typed a few buttons on the control panel then turned around to face the crew. "The serial number matches on the ship, the docking clamps, and the connectors on the belly of the cruiser match the automated confirmation code on the receiving end. That is the authentic GreatFox carrier. The hull has undergone stress factors that verify it was indeed victim to a trans-dimension gravity slip, or at the very least, all relative theories concerning a gravity slip."

Fara fluffed her headfur. "Remember to look twice before crossing the road, Marcus. But earlier you said you can't sense your mother?"

"I sense something faint, but she's unconscious – not dreaming or in a state of alpha. If she's comatose, I can't connect with her. I appreciate your idea of sending over ROB in a lifeboat, but your objection is overruled… We're going to dock but we're not going to board it just yet. Instead, we're going to take the entire GreatFox Flying Fortress away from this populated sector and then we're going to run tests. We'll separate the ships and send over volunteers, including myself."

Fara opened her muzzle to speak but nothing came out. She tilted her head then nodded. After a moment, she smiled."That's a fair compromise." She looked ill at ease and thought, 'Marcus, you're the leader – don't put yourself in unnecessary danger.' She offered a weak grin to him. However, other harbored feelings remained as an undertone in her thought patterns.

McCloud cut his gaze to Theodore and Vivian. "Guys, get our ships out of here. I want to be far away from Venom's forces, far away from populated airspace. I'll be back, I need to talk to Fara." He turned to her then nodded towards the conference room behind the bridge. They walked out of the command center and waited until the doors slid shut behind them. Marcus turned to her and frowned. "I know it was probably hard for you when you first woke up; you must have felt like you lost everything – for the most part, you did. But I'm not going to die just because I take the reins every once in a while."

Fara looked uncomfortable. "This is awkward, Marcus. I never intended to have any feelings for you."

"You're twenty-five and I'm twenty-two. Just because you're supposed to be in your fifties doesn't mean anything. Seriously, Fara, we talked about fate and freewill earlier. Sometimes things happen for a reason. Maybe you were put into stasis and woke up when you did because it was fate. Maybe how we handle our situation is our freewill. Maybe what we make of it will be our destiny, you know? But I sense you have feelings for me, I'm falling for you and I'm lucky that you're so patient."

The fennec's ears lowered, put off by the fact that he was right. She took another deep breath then nodded in agreement. "Okay, you're absolutely correct. But it's awkward having your feelings read to you by someone else. Listen, I've prepared myself to come face to face with Fox and his wife. Do you think they're going to feel discomfited that you and I have grown close? It borders on gauche."

"Actually, I have no idea. It's possible that my mother will sense our feelings and empathize with our situation… At least, I hope so. I'm not sure. They're already going to be emotional and floored to find out they have a grandson. I'm sure it's going to be …weird for them to find out that I've not even seen him yet… I know they're going to be overwhelmed with all this stuff going on."

Fara placed a paw on the side of his face. "I've been dwelling on that, too. I think we should keep our relationship private for the sake of… well, I don't want anyone to feel like we're flaunting it – we'll stay professional in public."

"Are you sure you're going to be okay when you see dad again?" Marcus licked his lips apprehensively and said, "I mean, you guys were…"

Fara placed her finger against his muzzle to quiet him. "It's ancient history, Marcus." She brought her other paw up and cupped both sides of his face. "Fox and I only dated for a very short time; meanwhile you and your first serious relationship were together for about two years. You're over Violet and here she is - acting very distant towards you. Even though you're one another's first, right?" She waited until after he nodded then said, "And you guys were together much longer. I've had five years to get over the fact that my first 'serious boyfriend' is married. You should be able to sense that from me, right?"

"You're still hard to read because of my emotions. I get a little silly around you – the way I used to feel about Violet when I was still, you know…"

Phoenix laughed softly. "You're a sweetheart, Marcus. I understand – I never thought I'd feel giddy around a boy ever again… then I met you. It's like breathing underwater, but at the same time, I feel like I fly higher with you than when I'm without you."

Marcus offered a sheepish grin, looking to break the slight tension. "So, you're not upset that I ran out on the battlefield and got us pinned down in an alley?"

"You came to me with crucial information," Fara reasoned empathetically.

Marcus shook his head. "I could have radioed you – you said we could use encoded field transmissions, but not to call the ship."

"It's okay," she replied. "You came out because you wanted to watch my back, right?"

"That's exactly the reason I came to find you."

Fara caressed the side of his face with her palms. "We're on the same page. In reversed roles, I'd have backed you up, too… and without saying anything, just in case they were monitoring our transmissions. Yes, you disobeyed a direct order, but you're in charge of this team and have the authority to override my commands. Now, if Red or any of the others disobeyed your order or one from Falco …or even me, I would be very disappointed."

"I'm glad you understand."

"I'm open minded." Fara lowered her paws. "…at least I try to be." She took a deep breath then said, "Are you that pressed about boarding the GreatFox carrier now? I know you only made that call on the bridge to compromise with me, or at the very most, to placate me… but I trust you and I trust your instincts. Hell, it seems like every McCloud has good instincts. If you think it's not a trap, then we should go over there immediately in case they're hurt."

"I appreciate it," said Marcus.

"I know you half-expect me to act strange when I come face to face with Fox." Fara took his paws into her own and gave them a gentle squeeze. "I really like you; I only have these feelings for one man at a time. And, quite honestly, in the past month that we've been working together, I feel closer to Marcus McCloud than anyone else I've ever dated. When you came back from the hospital, after changing your name, it was like you were a new man. You had a deeper level of maturity in your eyes and... I don't know what to say. Heck, maybe when this stuff blows over, we can actually try doing something traditional."

"Dinner and a movie, huh?" He took her paws into his own and smiled. "I'd like that. Thank you for trusting in my judgment. Now that the ships are docking together, I want to get over there as quick as I can."

She offered a slow nod then drew her paws from his. "Let's go and make sure everyone is all right."

"I'm glad you're seeing things my way," said Marcus. He reached into his pocket and withdrew a silver container. He pulled dark sunglasses from the case and put them on to hide his mismatched eyes. "Once they're safely in medical, I want to run a two-point patrol and track the enemy ship movements. We'll record their wake patterns, try to guesstimate their fleet size and see if they've made any pit stops on the way back to Venom." The GreatFox rocked slightly, followed by a loud, distant metallic 'clang'.

Marcus cleared his throat then said, "Docking is complete. Let's go down to the carrier and investigate."

Fara nodded slowly and fell into step behind the vulpine team leader.

Down in the lower deck, Theodore and Vivian were ready with a stretcher and Falco had his arms folded, waiting for the hallway to pressurize. Fara and Marcus stepped into the room and remained quiet. The light above the door flickered then illuminated in a bright green. The doors swished open. The metallic corridor led to another set of doors at the far end, labeled "Carrier Bridge" in bold black lettering.

Crimson stepped into the hallway behind them, approaching Marcus and Fara from the left. "Real fast, we need to talk."

McCloud, emotional as ever, quirked his brow at Crimson O'Donnell. "Red, our families are on the other side of that door."

Theodore, Vivian and Falco continued up the connector hall, leaving Marcus and Fara to stop, halfway down the corridor. Crimson lowered his voice and licked his lips, taking a deep breath. "My sister just sent me an encoded message – she said Dash Bowman is behind the attack on Corneria, not Andrew. She's still his acting body guard; she discovered plans for another attack."

Fara covered her muzzle with her left paw in silence. Marcus' eyes widened. Crimson shook his head then glanced over his shoulder furtively. He returned his gaze to them and, in a soft whisper, said, "Dash Bowman was the one who recommended we fly with Theodore… what if he's a spy?"

Marcus leered at his friend. "Impossible, he's Slippy's son. I'd have sensed something."

"Lately, we've all been emotional and distracted," O'Donnell mused, adding, "He already dislikes his father – what if he doesn't stand for all the same things… I don't want to doubt him, you know? However, he was friends with Bowman, the guy behind the massive attack on Corneria… we should, at the very least, keep an eye on him."

Fara rubbed her temples with her fingertips. "We have to treat this very delicately. I've been at the center of a situation involving traitors, before John Pepper was a General. We can't let Theodore know we suspect anything – he might not even know Dash is doing this. Dash could be keeping that low profile so Theodore will continue to keep communication with him as a friend. It's difficult to say. For now, let's plan our next step carefully, as well as get these other pilots into a medical bay."

A/N: I cut this return-chapter into a two-part piece just to build suspense! I'm working on the new one RIGHT NOW. I'm also on vacation in Florida so I'm not sure if I'll finish it between now and when I come home on Wednesday. I'll try, but no promises. Chapter 27 will have a lot of action, but first… I'll start it by having all our characters cross paths and tie up loose ends. We all want to know how Fox and Krystal's crew feel… we want to know how they'll take learning about Peppy's passing, Beltino being on his death bed and, of course, how Krystal and Fox will respond to Star "Marcus" McCloud, his bastard child and his new relationship with Fara. Also, after re-reading the ENTIRE SERIES in Chronological order, I found a lot of small loopholes to fix, especially in THIS story. I've made notes at every mistake, so I'll go back and fix them soon... not every little editorial (just yet), but when I use the wrong name of a character in the wrong spot, or when I have a conflicting scene... yeah, I'll be fixing all of that REAL soon. For example! Falco is like, "Are you still hanging out with your buddy, Crimson?" LMAO, WOOPS! Marcus met Crimson on Katina after his family was MIA, when Crimson was on the planet, doing a job for his father... he stayed on Katina when he basically 'left home', after an argument with Wolf. Falco should NOT have known about Marcus and Crimson's friendship! So I'm going to go back, fix that, and do a better scene where Falco and Crimson meet one another for the first time. OH, and I noticed I was titling the chapters of this story for C23, 34 and 25... But I didn't do that for the older chapters... woops. I'll fix that at some point, too! lol

Now...

I've got the first four pages of chapter 27 done. I've got Slippy waking up first and things are tense for Theodore. Then, Marcus has a scene with his mother, while Fox wakes up and talks to Fara in person... then Krystal speaks to Fara, one on one, followed by Lucy and Amanda waking up. And boy, oh boy, does Vivian dread telling her mother that Peppy is gone. Since Vivian spent the last 8 months taking care of Beltino, who is now bed-ridden, the first thing she does is tell Slippy to go and see his father then talk to his son, since all this stuff is going on.

I'm sure you're ALL on edge, wanting to know how Fox, Fara and Krystal are going to interact with one another. I've not decided yet. :D

However, for all of you who were HUGE fans of Marcus and Fara working things out, so far it's working! See? I always take care of my fans. lol.

I want you guys to know something interesting: I based Violet and the situation involving baby Falco on what happened between me and my ex-wife in 2005. She's bi-polar but insanely smart and absolutely beautiful. Her mother dislikes me but is civil and pleasent to me in person. If I call and she just happens to answer, she won't just hang up, you know? That's how Katt treated Marcus. My ex-wife named our first son after her father, as he'd passed on about one year into our relationship. She explained to me that he wanted a son to carry on the family name, so Violet has the same mentality. She thinks her father is dead, right? Falco never had a son, at this point, so Violet names her first born son after her father in his honor. I guess you could say I did that in the story because it's my way of saying I respect my ex-wife's decision to do such. I respect her, too.

Fara represented 'moving on' with someone 'familiar'. but that never happened for me, in real life... but the fans loved Fara, so I kept it going. Also, my third son, (the second to come from my relationship with my ex-wife), was born after the divorce. She disappeared from me for a while and didn't return my calls or anything... I drove down there on her birthday out of the blue and she didn't LET me see the kids... I was upset. I meant no disrespect towards my ex-wife (whose name I'll not mention, because she would probably not like it and I wish to respect her wishes). She told me that I put her as a 'second priority' in life, so I wrote that Violet feels that way about Marcus... I wrote that he put his team before Violet and she took it personal. When I wrote that Katt drove away with the baby and Marcus got forced into a fist fight with that bully driving the tow truck, that came from an incident with my oldest son, when I was in a small argument with HIS mother. She and I were struggling to get along over some sort of misunderstanding and so I ran out to her car in the apartment complex parking lot. I knelt down by the driver's side window and gave her some money... I didn't have much to give, but I gave what I had. She took it, reluctance in her eyes... then drove away... just as some guy was pulling up to start a fight with me for sitting in the middle of the lot, even though he had a lot of room to go around me. He just wanted to start a fight...

Needless to say, I was going through a lot of emotional stuff between chapter 12 and chapter 18. That's why this story reflected it. My buddy, Wulf51, told me that she respected me for writing during such emotional times, and said she commended me on my "Testicular fortitude". heh. I love that term.

I'll be returning to the theme of Marcus' son soon enough, but I have no intention of turning this story into 40 chapters or more. However, I already have people ASKING FOR A SEQUEL in Marcus' life. If you guys wanna read it, LET ME KNOW! He'd go and finish at the accademy, Crimson would begin his first year (and leave the team for a short time, in order to do so), making the team go on a few missions as the canon group seen in the COMMAND ending... Marcus, Falco, Lucy's daughter and Slippy's son. Marcus would remain under that name for the entire story and be about 23 years old. Fara would be in it, but she wouldn't fly EVERY mission with the team. However, she would have a full-character role, not just some cameo like Crimson, Bliss, Sugar (you'll be amused how she plays a quick cameo at the end of this story, for what I have planned thusfar), etc.

I was just going to leave a very short A/N at the end of this chapter, but after so many months, I felt I should say.. SOMETHING, you know? And, so, I decided to ramble - sorry! For any of you guys who are 'hard core fans', now you know that this story has more meaning to me than some realize.

Also, I plan on finishing Reflections of Peppy (and have been keeping notes on what I want to do for future chapters and how I want to relate them to the series... for example, I'll eventually show how Peppy got a hold of Fox McCloud's headset communicator, because he gave it to Star, very early on in this story... so I want to write how Peppy got a hold of it!) and Reflections of Fox McCloud (because Fara is just so fun to write about and Fox's youth is very cool, since we can all relate, after playing the games that made him famous, right? Right)!

In any case, I still plan on finishing Spy Cooper, Similar Paths Taken, The Curse, my 'Bandwagon Story of Doom', and I'm even going to post Act2 of "Greatest of Three Evils", but I'm not going to 're-write' it, like the 'bandwagon story', because that would be time consuming! Oh, and how could I forget to mention Nothing Passed Tomorrow? That's quite a cliff-hanger I left off at, huh? Both Fara AND Fox are under Illeria's power... that's pretty hard core! lol But I want to finish this series because it's what people are waiting to read right now.

I just wanted to make sure I actually reminded you guys, I never "GIVE UP" on any story, nor will I ever retire an unfinished story. I just... take a little break. ;)
After all, I DID just update the Bandwagon Story like, what... last month I think? So there ya go!

Thanks for reading guys! See you next chapter!