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War has been a constant factor of life for Lylat for over ten years. But this time? It's different. For those who say war never changes? They're absolute fools. The tactics and weapons used by the Anglars while bearing similarities were refined and had put a dent in Corneria and the Federation unlike anything since Andross; but with their own spin. It was enough to throw Corneria off it's game and let the planet damn near fall into their hands.
But now Star Wolf was mopping the floor with them. Our upgraded Wolfens were doing a hell of a job near on par with Star Fox's Arwings. They were incredibly nimble, finally had inbuilt advanced G-Diffusers and missiles instead of Smart Bombs with a tri-laser setup. Two on the wings, one on the nose. The Wolfens were finally on par with the Arwing, or at least, on paper they were.
What had changed drastically, was Fox. A temporary truce and a plan by yours truly had gone off flawlessly. But near the end when final victory was at hand? Everything shifted in a way I did not account for… Or rather, I should have accounted for.
And that was the fact I was flying with bloody pirates.
Fox had sent Falco, and Slippy off on their own with Panther. Which left Fox with me, Leon, And Wolf. It was a foolish idea on his part. However, Falco and Slippy were very effective when given specific orders and we needed a distraction. Putting the best fighter pilots in the main spear head would allow us to do significant damage to the Anglar Emperor's main shipyards before the defense force could respond.
Unfortunately, Wolf had other plans.
A communique came over the Star Wolf private channel directed to all of us. No voice, just text that flashed in red.
"Attack Star Fox."
My eyes went wide at the audacity of the order! This wasn't part of the plan! None of it was! And Fox was left alone with three members! I watched as Leon and Wolf formed up on Fox in attack positions. Fox was completely unaware of what was coming.
All ten fingers clenched at the control stick and I had to make a split second choice. Watch the man who spurned me go down in flames and destroy him, or betray yet another team and cast myself out further. I could see it all playing out in real time. Panther would get the jump on the other two and we would drop Fox like a bad habit…
The muscles in my face contort into the very definition of unbridled fury. My jaw clenches in rage at how they intended to use not only me, but Fox' good will! How dare they use my plan to get their pitiful excuse for revenge. We had a deal! And dammit, we honor our word! I dove in after the pair and opened a channel directly to Fox who bore a look of surprise. We haven't chatted much at all during the whole ordeal as I had been avoiding him for obvious reasons.
"Fox! Emergency reverse thrusters, do it now!" The panic is clear in my voice and he sees it displayed clearly on my face. Without hesitation, he hits the back throttle and his Arwing decelerates at such a speed that if he didn't have those G-diffusers, he'd either be painted all over his cockpit or at the very least unconscious.
Wolf and Leon shoot past Fox in confusion as I slot in behind the sadistic chameleon and tear into his ship with the main guns. His shields flicker several times before they burst and fail. Exposed now, his ship bucks and rocks as my red plasma tears through his G-diffusers, burning holes in his hull before a shot finds the ship's plasma core and detonates it spectacularly. The cockpit erupts in a ball of fire that swiftly sputters out in the vacuum of space.
Wolf on the other hand, manges to react and breaks off as he watches his long time friend die in a ball of flame. The reality is a shock to him and I can feel it. All the times they've been battered, shot down, they always survived. Seeing Leon go down like that shakes him to the core. Before he can get away, I lock onto him with the Wolfen's missiles and let loose a volley. More so to keep him moving while Fox recovers and gets into the fight.
Wolf's voice fills my helmet shortly afterwards, that deep commanding voice; "You traitorous cunt! I'll have at you the moment I take down your little boy toy!"
"Sod off Wolf!" I snap back, "What happened to all that talk of wanting to start anew?! What about "Remember the Aparoids?!" How long were you prepping the knife!?" Wolf didn't do things without some degree of thought. He wasn't impulsive like Panther, and he certainly wasn't an idiot… But the fact he thought I'd go along with this?! He surely had read me wrong.
I was right behind him, dogging his every step as we weaved through space. The ships equally matched, and while I couldn't get my crosshairs on him, he couldn't shake me. I knew his every move before he made it, my telepathy an excellent tool in such close proximity. But I didn't need to get at him because this was an unfair fight. Right on cue, Fox's arwing filled my Identify Friend or Foe scanner as he came flying in from the side. Powerful shots of crisp blue plasma raked along the shields in a fantastic display of marksmanship which forced the Wolfen to bank in order to avoid incoming fire. Even with the G-diffusers, it did force him to bleed some of his speed which allowed me to get right up his exhaust with another barrage.
His shields too flickered and failed. What had started out as a planned ambush by Star Wolf, swiftly became their doom. I could feel Wolf's panic and fear as he never thought for a second I would turn on him. He thought I was wrapped neatly around his finger so much that since I fit in so well and they brought me in, I was loyal to them.
Maybe they had a point, but even with my anger at Fox, I didn't want him dead. For all their promises of turning over a new leaf, the moment they had Fox isolated? It was over. The moment he gave that order, I was no longer a Star Wolf pilot. My inner light is silent as I keep hammering at Wolf's ship, he tries to weave and throw off my aim, but my telepathy lets me anticipate him at every turn. He deflects some shots with the use of the G-diffusers, but it's not nearly enough.
"Fox! Call off your crazy bitch! I surrender!" He desperately shouts over his coms.
"You fucking coward!" I snap back, "You were going to murder him in cold blood just a minute ago!"
"No I wasn't! I was going to cripple him and take all the glory for our team!" He tries to lie and I can see right through him, I'm about to tell Fox when Wolf buts into the conversation.
"Don't trust that witch! She already betrayed you once, what's to say she isn't lying now! She's off her rails, take her down before she kills us all, Fox!"
While I hated him, he did have a point. What reason did Fox have to trust me? Though I did just save his life. But Wolf is clever to a degree and can weave a pretty convincing lie. Fox doesn't have my advantages and I quickly cut Wolf off.
"That piece of shit was ready to kill you without facing you honorably. His entire persona is a facade around him being oh so honorable, but when the chips are down, he's a coward just like any pirate."
Wolf's red eye glares at me while I'm still chasing him through the stars, Fox is keeping his distance but has a clear shot at both of us if he so wanted to. I love that handsome todd, I truly do, but now was not the time for him to be the good man everyone knew him as. Right now, he needed to be a mercenary and finish the job.
"And I fell right into that pit of his lies. I thought they had changed, I was wrong, but if Wolf is willing to stoop this low, he's not worth sparing, Fox."
That handsome todd's eyes lock with mine and he can tell I'm nervous, scared even but I'm still holding onto my nerves.
"You've changed, Krys."
No shit, Fox. That's what living with pirates does to a person. The sensation of ice water dousing my heart rushes through me at the thought that he's going to side with Wolf. The world seems to fall into a sort of torpor while my eyes drift over Wolf's fighter that was scored with molten burning holes. The Wolfen's entire frame was shuddering beneath the damage, another good shot or two and the thing would fall right apart. Wolf's only hope is that Fox will intervene on his behalf.
"C'mon pup, you owe me for the Aparoids!" I see a flash of anger in Fox's eyes at the mere mention of him owing Wolf; "That debt was rendered void the moment you went to ambush me, Wolf." He snarled and turned his eyes back to me. Never had I seen Fox so wrathful… It's a surprisingly fetching look on him.
"But you're not wrong." Fox adds as he storms in at high speed to catch Wolf in another barrage of blue lasers as Wolf howl's in anger, a breach in his canopy opening up and the only thing keeping him from being ripped out are the industrial strength straps.
"You fucking bastard, I hope you and your entire family rots in hell!" Not a second later the entire ship detonates into fragments and Wolf O'Donnell is no more. My pulse is still racing as the gravity of the situation settles in. I just turned on yet another team, but Fox and I worked together to drop one of the biggest threats in Lylat. It's exhilarating, to finally know that together we had the will to carry out what needed to be done. But I need to run, I need to get out of here, no one will trust me again after two betrayals.
"Krystal!"
My mind rips itself from the hectic decision making at the sound of my name, Fox's Arwing flying alongside my Wolfen as I look to him in my black and red uniform.
"Yes?" It's clear I'm still in shock over all this as the adrenaline starts to leave my veins.
"What the hells just happened?!" Fox is confused, though he has an idea but only has part of the picture, and then I remember about Slippy and Falco!
"I'll explain while we head to help Slippy and Falco!" As we turn in the direction of their squadron beacons.
I'm quickly gathering my thoughts but also worried that if Panther got the drop on them… Oh so help me I will merc his ass right into the ground just as we did Leon and Wolf. I don't care if he and I were close, Falco and Slippy were still good friends to me. Maybe a bit too hard on Fox about our fight but they still did right by me.
"Wolf apparently had it in his head that we were gonna take you all out and usurp your spot as the premier mercenary team…" My grip on the control stick tightens just as before. Even with Wolf and Leon no longer among the living, it fills me with such vile anger at the very notion they would be so petty! During a war of all things!
"And what about you? What was your role in all this?" There was no accusation in his voice, but Fox was being wary, that much was obvious. I had just betrayed another team and killed one in an ambush, while helping my ex kill his long time rival.
"I didn't know, Fox. I swear." I say to him as I keep an eye on my head's up display. Our short range jump drives home in on Falco and Slippy's position as the light-seconds tick by, "I got the message just before the trap was to be sprung. So, I took Wolf's advice from the Aparoid War, I didn't hesitate."
He goes quiet for a moment, as he often does when contemplating something. I try to stay out of his mind but I want to know what he's thinking and what I catch shocks me. Not painfully, but heart-warming in all the right ways.
Maybe things can work out…
I was mad at her for joining Star Wolf...
She just saved me…
I should talk to her…
"Hey Krys?" He says after a long pause
"Y-yes, Fox?
"Can you stop by the Great Fox after this mess? We're gonna need help with the Anglar Emperor." I can feel his ulterior motives behind it. He wants to talk and I can't help but melt as those handsome green eyes stare into my own cyan hues. My chest pulses with the throbs of my heart racing at the mere prospect of being close to him again. He's already tried to apologize once to me and I laughed in his face before he came up with this idea for a truce, the fact he's trying again… Many would call him an idiot, a simp. But I know what it truly is, and while my pride balks at the notion of giving him the time of day, I slap it in the face like the angry bitch she is and play it cool. I need to know Fox is real about this, I need to know that I can forgive him and not want to slap his face the moment I see him.
"Sure, Fox." I say noncommittally, it stings him slightly but there is a twinkle of hope in them. The hope that things will work out.
And I share in that hope as we drop out of hyperspace and join Falco and Slippy to attack Panther. Unlike Wolf and Leon, he actually gets a legitimate chance to surrender. The self professed ladies man having his ego shattered that his "Rose" would side with their ex over him. He at least deserves some clemency, even if his thoughts were more slimy than a Venomian sewage plant.
After that bump on our road, we turn back to the Great Fox II to reassess our plan of attack.
Things are rarely that simple however.
I arrive on the deck after a brief docking procedure and wander the halls. Memories flood into my mind of all the good times I'd had here. It feels wonderful, like a home, warm and bracing as the positive emotions of many years flow through me. There's negative as well, but not nearly as powerful as the ones being formed on the bridge.
As I arrive onto the bridge with my helmet under my arm, I witness Fox having a massive argument with Falco who is berating Fox's leadership for nearly getting them all killed. Fox defends his decision as necessary and had thought for sure that things would work out. It was smart strategically, both the best mercenary teams in Lylat pounding the Anglars from both ways, but reality was that Fox should have never done that. He's still good in his heart and it's one of the things that always draws me in. Despite his suffering and pain, he still does his best to do right, even if he stumbles.
"And what the fuck is she doing here?!" Falco spouts off as he jabs one of his feathered digits in my direction. That caught me by surprise more than anything. Falco and Slippy had been in my corner during the whole ordeal and up to this point.
"She's here because I asked her to be! She saved my life, Falco!"
"Oh yeah, great! After she sided with Wolf and company! Do you have any idea how stupid you look right now?!"
Fox squares up with his arms across his chest, glaring at his long time best friend, "About as stupid as I did when I asked her to leave the team. Seems I'm making a habit of stupid choices, but this one I can at least try to put right."
Falco's crest rose high on his head as Fox refused to take the bait like some juvenile; "She's a traitor, Fox! You can't just forgive her for something like that!"
"I forgave you, Falco. How many times have you ran out on us?"
"That's not the same!" Falco squawked,
"No, it's the same, the only difference is you left of your own accord and left me and Slippy down a man when we needed help finding work." Fox cooly replied.
"Dude, you're thinking way too much with-"
"If the next word out of your mouth is dick, you are the most indescribable hypocrite on the face of Lylat," I cut in, not letting Falco have his tantrum any longer.
"How long have you strung Katt along with the hopes of a relationship, Hmm?"
"I didn't join the guys who've been shooting at us for a good while!" He rebutts.
"I did, but I made a mistake, and then I just killed Leon and helped Fox put Wolf in the dirt. Your point?" I say as I approach, the Star Wolf colors clashing up against Falco's own outfit.
His beak clacks with his eyes glowering at me. Both are full of a hatred I seldom see from the bird as I shove a finger into his chest pointedly; "I saved Fox, I could have easily let him die and the two of you along with him. But I didn't, because that would be wrong. I never wanted any of you to get hurt, even if my rage at Fox is as powerful as Lyla."
Fox surprisingly doesn't flinch at my own admission of anger. He's more contemplative now, more... secure. Perhaps the war and seeing me so far away put things in perspective. I can only hope, really.
"That still doesn't undo that you joined our enemies!"
"Falco, she came back!" Slippy finally squeaks in.
"Am I the only one who acknowledges that she is a traitor?!" Falco warbles with anger.
"No, you idiot!" Fox snaps back, "I know what she did, I'm not blind. I'm trying to forgive her! She never fired at us! When Wolf and Leon tried, she shot at them! Which means... " He stops himself, eyes turning to me as he thinks of the next words to say and if they're okay.
Go ahead. I whisper to his mind.
"Which means, her true loyalties are with us. Even if we are the biggest dysfunctional family this side of Eledard."
"Loyalty may be a strong word," I reply, "But that doesn't mean I lack care for all of you. You gave me a home after all, a purpose. It's just been a series of mistakes and I didn't make it any better." It's an apology, mostly aimed at Fox, I could care less about Falco's little outburst right now. My main focus is on Fox, Slippy and Falco can come later.
"But, if you feel strongly about that, I won't make my presence an issue," I swiftly turn on my heel and make for the bridge door as the room descends into another round of arguing. And it's heated, Falco brings up Fox's personal issues and life.
You stupid bird.
It's at that moment I feel the cold fury overtake Fox which is followed by a loud crack of a jaw being slammed by a fist and a body hitting the floor.
I turn to see Fox standing over Falco; and grabbing him by the trademark red scarf, "Don't you ever bring my mother and father into this, do you hear me? I never once hit you on Katt or any other shit you do behind the scenes. That's all you and I'm only there to bail you out and help when I can. Got it?!"
Falco's pride is wounded, he always fancied himself the best on the team and was laid low by Fox in one punch… it stings. But maybe it's what Falco needed. A blow to his ego to get him to calm down.
"Falco?!" Fox says tersely, ready to hit him again.
"I got it! I got it! Get off me ya damn furball." He says and Fox lets go before extending his fist out into a helping hand. I see hesitation at first in Falco's eyes before he relents and takes it with Fox pulling him to his feet.
"Now, I need the bridge." His eyes are turned towards me. Falco and Slippy both look at Fox, then at me and they get the message. They aren't total fools. Falco passes without a word but Slippy stops and gives me a smile, "I'm glad we had you to help us, Krystal. Just… stay around?"
I can't help but smile a bit in return, "I can't promise anything, Slip."
His smile fades just slightly, he was always the optimist amongst all of us and leaves shortly afterwards. Leaving just me, and Fox.
It's such an awkward silence, where do we even begin? For Falco's bluster, he was right to a degree, I'm a twice damned traitor… who would ever trust me after such a thing? But Fox is sitting there, leaning back against the captain's chair and we lock eyes. I want to tell him everything, how I was horrible and all the things I did I shouldn't have. That I want to be back on Star Fox.
But I can't. Before any of us utters a word I turn and leave. I expect Fox to despair and cry, but instead his head hangs low and he curses himself. The wound was just too deep, how could he ever expect me to love him again? Let alone trust him with myself.
I make it halfway down the hall as I clutch the helmet tightly, tears stinging the lids of my eyes. This feels right, but also wrong. Why can't I admit to my faults? Why am I being so stubborn?! My pride refuses to let me heal and demands of me to be a pissed off rage filled woman. My body quakes.
Go to him. Whispers my inner light.
Mend what was broken.
That was most certainly not my inner light. My eyes wander the empty halls for the source in a flurry of movements! That voice was so familiar, like I had heard it someplace before. The tone laden with kindness and a fondness for someone who knew me intimately, distinctly feminine with an accent that reminded me of the cold northlands of Cerinia.
The words echo around in my head with my cyan eyes only to rest on a figure at the end of the hall. She is most distinctly Cerinian in her garb, armored robes with a glaive adorned with a teal gem at the end where the blade and neck meet. Her otherwise beautiful face marred by a terrific burn that seems to only accentuate her haunting beauty. The wraith like vixen gives me a true smile, something I didn't expect from a woman who wore an acute case of resting bitch face.
Go to him… give him those five minutes, Krystal. The ghost says and gives me a final smile You won't regret it, and fades away. Were I anyone else, I would have thought I was going insane, but I know exactly what that was. Mnemonic influence. A skill used by Cornerian, Venomian Black ops to trigger certain individuals into doing something very specific… But in my case, that was very much Cerinian. But how?! Where?! More importantly, when!? It was something very powerful telepaths would use on Cerinia to help teach or associate ideas and foster growth. My heart is pounding. I never had that done to me when I was on Cerinia… which means at some point that I don't remember, I interacted with other Cerinians!
And what's more, they know about my woes with Fox, and she's encouraging me to go back and solve it.
But can I? I mean, he was defending me in front of Falco and he was grateful for his recuse. Fox felt genuine regret for what he did and even admitted in front of everyone he'd been making stupid mistakes. My heart races at the prospect of being back in his arms again, I'm right here. All I have to do is give him five minutes. That's all the ghost asks, that's all. If it works, it works, if it doesn't? Well, I'm back to where I started.
I've got nothing to lose, and everything to gain.
I spin on my heel and go back to the bridge. Fox is sitting in the captain's chair, head in his hands in lament. Wishing he could make things right, that he wasn't such a bumbling fool. He isn't crying, but there is a deep heartache, like someone had reached in and ripped it out. Never have I felt someone experience such emotional and physical emptiness all at once. I know cultural norms on Corneria would label him several derogatory terms in regards to how hard he loves, but on Cerinia? Such a love was celebrated, not torn down.
As telepaths, our emotions are far stronger than that of Lylatians, something I don't think Fox quite understood himself nor anyone for that matter, not even myself. I let them get the better of me and it pushed us to this point… But the stranger prospect is Fox himself; his mind is alight, his very soul burning brightly from the pain he's feeling. I've never seen a Lylatian so aglow. Fox was certainly unique among the Lylat system with just how potent his mind and emotions were. If I wasn't careful I could drown in them, metaphorically speaking.
It was but one thing on a long list that drew me in. Chief among them was how kind and strong he was, how in touch he could be with himself in private. Fox was guarded but able to expose his innermost secrets with someone he cared for. Someone he loved. Such a thing since Cerinia's fall is rare and I've gone and wounded it on such a deep level.
Oh Fox, how could I? I say with a shake of my head as I know exactly how I could, but that's behind us now, we're at our lowest as individuals, and it's up to us to reach new heights together.
I drop the helmet and startle Fox as I cross the open ground between me and the chair, he spins the chair around lightly and before he can even utter a word, my lips are on his and we're in a flurry of confused, powerful emotions that radiate like the sun. He's suddenly up and out of his chair, urging me onto my back and splays me over the table that held a holographic mission map. In response, my legs lift up and wrap around his waist with my ankles locked beneath his tail as we trade tongue and saliva. The weight of his body is sublime, the warmth of his mind and strength bathing me in a way I had missed. It was the feeling of being in a desert dying of thirst and Fox was the oasis that I drank from in both greed, and need.
A potent cocktail of passion, sorrow, and mending hearts fills the void we had left in each other and it's signalled by a heavy whine of bliss that leaves my throat. We're wild, on fire and untamed, but if we're not careful, we'll burn ourselves out and though I am reluctant to, I urge him back. Close enough that our noses touch and our bodies are together, but we need to talk… and not just with our bodies. But gods is his doing a hell of a job convincing me that make up sex right on the bridge is the way to go. Especially with those eyes gazing at me with unbridled joy and wanton desire for me.
But is it for me? Or the idea of me? He put me on a pedestal before, pushed me away. Would he do it again? It's as though he reads my mind when I speak for a change. He tells me what a fool he was, how stupid and childish he had been, but all he asks for is understanding, his life, what he's had to deal with. It's an intense reality that everyone he has ever truly loved has died because of his job, or association to his job.
It's a reality we both have to tackle, and one I am ready to live with… especially if it means more moments like this! I reply by grabbing his jacket and dragging him back down for another 'bout of snout to snout. What was supposed to be five minutes of talking was rapidly changing into something else. And by the gods did I want it, and it was obvious he wanted it too. I could care less if Falco or Slippy came through the door right now and caught us, I doubt I'd even acknowledge them as the handsome todd above me blankets and consumes my every thought process just as I do his. We are well and truly lost within each other in this moment. I start to pull at his vest and fling it across the room while his hands pull at the zipper on the front of my suit.
I need this… We need this. His lips are upon my neck with tender laps that make the breath in the back of my throat hitch. Those tender caresses of his tongue and sharp nips of his teeth make me whimper with need as he peels me out of my uniform. My rational brain tells me we should take this to his quarters, but gods if it doesn't inflame my need at the thought of possibly being caught. His lips move further south and my body shudders, toes curling in my boots with a low whimper of his name passing my lips… Oh sweet gods yes…
An hour of unrivaled passion goes by. Our bodies having mingled in every which way we could think of. What's more, was that our minds are so in tune now, more so than I ever thought possible. It's indescribable to feel what he feels, to experience the deep connection. It's almost impossible to tell where one begins and the other ends while we sit in his chair, having finished there. His knot was keeping me tied to his lap while my head rested over his shoulder. The pair of us just basking in our post make up funk. I don't ever remember Fox being this wild or untamed, but it's certainly something I want to experience again. And should fortune favor us? I will get to experience it many, many, times. For now, I am content to lay here and stew with the shared heart beat of my love pressed against my own.
In this lazy state, I let my eyes wander over the bridge as I wear a big dumb smile upon my face. The old rust bucket was needing an overhaul and hopefully our earnings that would come from winning the war would more than cover for a new warship. But my eyes turn to the corner, a wisp of smoke appearing with my eyes narrowing at it. I make out the figure of the strange vixen from before, smiling at me once again.
Find us, Krystal, find me.
My mind is hit with an image of the vixen in all her glory. Proud, noble, cold, calculating, but capable of great understanding and power. A planet fills my mind's eye as I gasp in surprise. It's a beautiful world. Purple skies and blue seas of grass cover continents. My heart races at the realization of what I've just been shown with my mind going a mile a minute.
Fox is suddenly hit with a wave of surprise as he lurches quietly in his seat and we look into each other's eyes.
"You saw that too?" We say in unison before we share a gentle laugh at just how truly in tune we are. Rubbing our noses together with gentle warmth and love.
"Yes," he says openly, planting a kiss upon my lips.
"What do you think?" I ask, wondering if he understands the significance of it at all.
"I think… Once this war is over, and we get us a proper warship, I have our next mission to plan."
I practically explode with glee as I embrace him and kiss my beloved with such force it almost hurts! The very notion he would entertain the idea of visions, let alone pursue them was new! Truly, Fox had changed and I was going to explore every depth of those changes over the coming months and years. I wonder what made him open to such things, he had been so very closed minded before! But I dare not spoil the moment with questions as things begin to heat up for another round… Gods, I never knew how long he could go! Time to push the envelope and see where life takes me.
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Well, that was a journey wasn't it? I finally got a chance to do a multi-chapter Post Command fic that I'm satisfied with. Overall, I think this is far better than what I tried to do with Eternity Awaits. Many people have been asking me if I'm done with that, and unfortunately, I have to say yes. As it is, I will change the name to "Defunct" or something of that nature. I'll leave it up as a memory of how far my writing has come and a lesson of what to do, and what not to do. Overall, I feel this story is far more satisfying than what I attempted there. There is one more post that will come as an Epilogue to wrap this all up in a neat bow, but this is the final chapter in the story itself.
Thank you for all reading and I hoped you enjoyed yourselves as much as I enjoyed writing this.
Stay tuned, I have much more in store for Star Fox.
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