Chapter 20; "The Mask Slips"

"C'mon…" TJ eyed the training blade carefully before he quickly flicked his wrist. The dulled blade spun for a bit, before TJ flicked his wrist again, letting the blade pass between the thin gap of his thumb and fingers and falling into the holster with a clack.

Zoe smirked as she sat on the edge of her bed, watching the street racer's eyes light up as he completed a simple close of the knife. "Ha! Look at that! Whattya think? I told ya I'd get the hang of it after a bit!" TJ's smile was short-lived as Zoe stood up and pulled out her actual knife, before opening it with a clack and performing a series of complicated tricks and flips with the blade, going as far as to toss it up in the air before catching it in the palm of her hand, hilt first.

TJ's smile slowly began to fade as Zoe kept showing off, before she tossed the knife behind her back and caught it flawlessly, closing the blade without a single wasted motion. Looking at TJ's dejected grimace, Zoe put on a patronizing pout and pinched his cheeks the way a mother would to a child. "Oh don't worry, speed racer. You'll get the hang of it eventually. Well, when you stop catching your fingers between the blade and the hilt."

TJ rolled his eyes at her condescending tone, flopping down onto her bed with a poof. Zoe followed, falling right next to him. The two blankly stared up at the ceiling for a moment, before they both realized that looking at the same metal grey panels was as boring as could be. Looking to her right, Zoe eyed the driver again. He looked a bit barer this time, lacking his weapons, armor, or jacket. Her eyes ran across the bare skin on his arm, the concept of lacking fur enough to fuel her curiosity. She quickly grabbed his exposed arm, making the kid quirk a brow at her. "Uh, what the hell are you doing?"

Zoe smirked. "I'm curious. You really walk around like this, with your skin exposed? Doesn't that get cold?"

Looking down at where the thief's fingers were running, TJ shrugged. "I guess. But I just throw a jacket over it. Oh, remind me later, I saw one of the guys sellin' a dope lookin' leather jacket down by that armory that looked like it was my size."

Zoe giggled as she kept gently rubbing TJ's skin, moving up to his face. "I feel like some fur would help out, though." The canine stopped, before curling her muzzle a bit. "Oh man, your acne is visible? That sucks! And you've got little hairs growing out of your face. What the hell is up with human biology?"

"Hey! I've gotten this lecture from everyone already! My skin's just naturally like that, and I don't like makin' doctor appointments!" Zoe let another giggle slip as TJ began to feel more self-conscious, looking in his phone's reflection to notice a small breakout of acne occurring on the left side of his forehead.

Before TJ could change the subject, hysterical laughter suddenly erupted from Zoe. "Oh my Gods, you're a literal Grease Monkey!" More laughter followed as TJ rolled his eyes. Despite the light insults, TJ couldn't help but notice that his face was heating up, but he could not tell if it was from embarrassment or an actual attraction to the canine. One thing he was sure of was that he did feel kind of gross.

"Yeah yeah, har-har. Lemme just go pick up my phone from Ringo. Said he'd upgrade it for free real quick, then I'll clean myself up." With one final teasing smile from Zoe, TJ was out the door.

As TJ walked down the ever-expansive halls of Andross's Requiem, he could not help but let a strange sensation wash over him. Looking around, he only saw troops for as far as his eyes could see. They all dressed in the same clothes, no matter the race, gender, or even personality. Not like there was any personality among the rank and files anyways. They each seemed to have blank stares, waiting for their name or unit to get called. It didn't even seem that death fazed them. TJ was certain that they lost a few lives on the other mission that was running while TJ, Ringo, and Zoe were racing through the city, yet no one even seemed to miss them. If this happened back in Star Fox…

TJ shook himself out of those thoughts. He kept trying to push them out of his mind, yet somehow, they always found a way back in. But home was so close. Just a few more jobs for Andrew and he'd be on the first flight back home to Earth. Two months too long.

It became clear that TJ had wandered too far, now adopting a confused grimace as he walked through seemingly unfamiliar halls. He was not arriving at the raccoon's quarters, but blinding and sterile white hallways. The kid felt like he was gravitating towards the entrance of some sort of secret lab, but it put him on edge all the same. Nevertheless, he continued his blank trudge through the serene and clean hall.

The walk was short-lived as TJ approached an ajar sliding door, with voices emanating from it. TJ got the hint that he was not supposed to be here rather quickly, but his curiosity kept his feet moving towards the door. The voices grew louder as TJ kept moving forward, while the sounds of machinery and beeps of electronics accompanied the voices. Where did he even wander off to? Did he get that lost in his thoughts? Before the questions could be answered, TJ stowed them as he dropped to one knee at the door frame.

Slowly peering into the room, TJ's eyes grew three times their normal size. Despite the dingy and utilitarian look of the exterior and almost every other room in the dreadnought, this lab looked to be beyond state of the art, even by Lylatian standards. As a somewhat welcome sight from the onslaught of grey and black military fatigues that almost everyone else was wearing, it was a nice change of pace to see lab coats and hazmat suits with bodies in them. Before TJ could get an eyeful of any potential gadgets and gizmos, he noticed that Andrew and General Shears were standing over a meek-looking simian scientist tapping away on the computer. As TJ leaned just a bit closer in, he could make out their words among the miscellaneous noise of the room.

"And what of the upgraded Androsa we sent to both areas, Doctor?"

"Well, that is the problem. The one sent to Sargasso was unable to navigate through the debris in the asteroid field, and we lost contact with the one sent to Space Dynamics after attempting to recall it due to multiple warning signals and system failures coming from it."

TJ noticed a smile crop up on Andrew's face as he leaned over the scientist, eying the computer screen himself. "Then that means that they engaged Star Fox and Star Wolf at some point. Excellent. Tell me, Doctor. Was the combat telemetry from the drones and Androsa feeding directly back to us?"

The doctor smirked. "Of course it was."

Andrew patted the simian on the back with a wide smile, lightly chuckling to himself as he did. "Then this plan has worked perfectly. Feed all the data into P-One-G-XL's brain. I trust he'll enjoy what we have gathered, and put it to good use."

TJ quickly became puzzled by the name that Andrew had uttered. P-One-G-XL? What was that? The kid thought it was some kind of big McLaren P1, but quickly shook the nonsensical thought out of his mind with a barely noticeable smile. Whatever it was, Andrew called it "he". So was it a person? TJ poked his ear around the corner once more to listen in, hearing the voice of the scientist piped up with excitement. "Oh, speaking of him, we have located another part for his build. The Cornerians have some priceless data stored on Eladard. Combined with the blueprints for the Axton Destroyers and the loose lips of almost every senator thanks to the bug the troops planted during the raid on the Congress, we now know that there are weapons schematics for a weapon that can bypass most shielding systems on standard Cornerian fighter crafts. It's being held at a run-down rail yard disguising a research lab. They plan to use this weapon on us, but if we can get someone to steal the schematics and reverse engineer it here…"

"We can make it our own, then engage the Cornerians head-on," Shears suddenly interjected, gaining a head nod of approval from the scientist.

Andrew looked over the two with prideful eyes before turning to fully face Shears. "Well, General. You have your orders. Send the thief and the driver on this mission, but do not tell them what it is. The less they know, the better for all of us, especially if they are captured and attempt to free themselves by bartering the info they know. I would not put it beneath them."

As much as TJ wanted to stay, now was the time to book it. Turning on his heels, he ran as quickly and silently as he could, just narrowly making it out of view as Shears exited the laboratory. Now that he was on the run, TJ tried to run as quickly and quietly as possible. Retracing his steps, the kid quickly found his way out of the sterile laboratory's halls and into the dingy halls of the quarters, trying to find the raccoon with his phone now before getting back to Zoe. It seemed that he would not have to look far, as Ringo turned a corner ahead of TJ with the street racer's phone in his hand.

The two nearly collided, before TJ stopped himself just short of Ringo, whose eyes went wide as he stumbled backward. "Damn, T! What's up with the bat outta hell speed y'got goin' on there?"

TJ quickly noticed how panicked he looked, calming himself down as fast as he could with a deep breath, a sniffle, and a slightly suspicious glance around the cramped hallway. "Nothin', man. Just uh, tryin' to see you, didn't wanna be late."

Ringo gave TJ a suspicious glare for a second, before shrugging and extending his hand out with the phone sitting in the center of his palm. TJ grabbed the device and quickly unlocked it, scrolling through the various menus as Ringo gave him the technological run down. "Yep, it's ten times faster, running multiple encryptions, and can even hack into multiple WiFi hotspots without any passwords needed. You could call us from a coffee shop's network, and no one would be able t'trace the call." Ringo let loose one of his signature chuckles as TJ finalized his checks, making sure everything was in place before pocketing the phone. Before TJ could thank the raccoon, Ringo followed up with a worried expression on his face. "By the way, that thing was ringin' off the hook a minute ago. S'why I came lookin' for ya. I think Shears wants you to meet him on the bridge. Sounded important."

TJ took a deep breath before nodding and wearing his smile like a mask. "Thanks, man. I don't wanna keep him waiting."

"No problemo! Good luck!" With that, Ringo turned on his heels and walked away, letting TJ drop his mask. There was no way that Shears knew he was spying on them, right? The uncertainty hit TJ like a boulder as he slowed his pace, hoping to delay the inevitable. But the delay would cause suspicion, and he quickly double-timed it.

Instinct, memory, and guides drew the street racer to the bridge of the ship, guarded by what could only be described as the most loyal troops. These guys were like stones. Blacked-out combat armor, big guns, bigger frames, and best of all, meaner mugs. Each one of these guards gave TJ the meanest side-eye he had ever received, only amplifying with each guard staring him down. The symbol of Andrew's Army shone brightly through on the backs of their combat armor in bright red paint, either marking a bull's-eye or a symbol of fear. Given how the army viewed death, TJ could only assume that they would not care either way.

Stopping just in front of the heavy metal door to the bridge, TJ was halted by two simian guards, clearly displeased with his presence. "Halt," one began, eying the driver while keeping his rifle ready by his side. "What is your business on the bridge?"

TJ looked at both of the guards, slightly confused. "I gotta meet with Shears. He wanted to talk to me about somethin'?"

The confusion in TJ's voice granted him even more side-eye from the guards before one turned to the walkie on his shoulder and clicked the button. "Alpha two-four here, I got one of Emperor Andrew's Lieutenants by the door to the bridge, Tyler Koen. Is he clear for entry?" There were a few seconds of deafening silence before the radio squealed to life.

"Copy, Alpha-two-four. He is clear for entry to the bridge."

"Roger your last."

TJ breathed a sigh of relief as the guards stepped away from the door, one of them punching in a code to the door on a nearby keypad. With an audible clunk and a hiss, the metallic door slowly slid open to reveal a whole feast of sights and sounds. The bridge was teeming with life, as crew-mates operated the various functions needed to keep a ship of this size both working and remaining hidden from prying eyes. Once again, this area of the ship looked so much more up-to-date than the rest of the ship. The air was fresh and lacked the musty recycled scent that even their own quarters carried. The kid kept the thought of inequity at the back of his mind while he looked around the bridge, trying to locate Shears. All he found however was Zoe, leaning on a wall with a bored look in her eyes before she spotted TJ, her look changing to one of happiness as she waved to him.

"I thought you said you were gonna clean yourself up?" The canine could barely hide her smirk as TJ noticed he was still wearing his outfit from the race, internally sighing as he externally rolled his eyes with a smirk.

"Yeah, well, plans change. Took me a while to find Ringo in this friggin' maze."

"But don't you know where his room is?"

TJ's tongue instantly became tied in his throat as his mind wandered to where he was just a few minutes ago. "Uh, y-yeah I do, I just got lost in thought and did circles. Then I got actually lost." Zoe shot him a confused yet amused glare.

Before the canine could press him any further, the doors to the bridge whooshed open, followed by a hail of salutes as one of the grunts shouted "General on deck!" Shears took the salutes in pride as he cast a look of superiority down onto the two street kids. "Very well. I see you two got my message." The canine's face read of determination and resolve, but TJ felt as though there was something else lying underneath that exterior. Before he could try to question or decipher it, it seemed as if Shears knew his exact thoughts. The General leaned in towards TJ, as if making sure his scars were visible to as many people as possible, especially the driver standing tall in front of him.

"I will not accept failure on this assignment. What you are recovering is crucial to the war effort, and could potentially turn the tide of this fight." His voice was low and serious, attempting to drive home how important it would be for their side to complete the mission. "You two are being sent to a CDF laboratory on Eladard, just outside of the city of Sokudo. Tyler, you will drive Zoe to the lab and make sure that you have an escape at the ready should things go south. Study the road, study the routes, and plan for everything. Let nothing stop you if the local authorities get wind of this plan.

Shears then turned to Zoe, his commanding presence towering over her. "Zoe, you will acquire a small flash drive being held by an arctic fox scientist named Vince Stazak. Do whatever you must to force an exchange."

Of course, TJ knew what was on the flash drive, but needed to know more. Shuffling his shoulders, the driver took a cocky stance and let a smirk seep across his face. "Yo, that's a cool plan an' all, but after what happened to me last time I didn't know what was in the box, I ended up here. I'd like to know exactly what's on the stick we're grabbin'. Just in case this pick-up sends me to a whole 'nother galaxy again."

TJ's cocky stance was subdued by Shears, the general letting his brow furrow before tipping his hat up, revealing his full scarring to the kid. "You are on a need-to-know basis, and you do not need to know. All you will do is evade any law enforcement that comes after you and bring the package home. Are we clear?"

With Shears staring a hole in him, TJ backed down with a grumble, before a feeling of deja vu washed over him. Adjusting his hat once more, Shears stepped back to his original position before clasping his hands behind his back. "Zoe, I will give you a week to plan your entrance and escape from this building. After the attacks at Sargasso and Space Dynamics, as well as the raid on the depot and your little race through Aquilia Wharf, the CDF will be on high alert while they try to locate us, so this should give you enough time to cool down and train." Tapping on his PDA, a holographic display popped up in front of the general, showcasing a series of floors and rooms on a multi-layered layout. "Thanks to Johan, we have acquired public blueprints for the floors and rooms, while Ringo used a backdoor that Johan left open to siphon more sensitive information about the layout of the base. As such, you will know every back door and nook in this base. You should know more about the layout of this base than any of the troopers there. At the very least, you are to get the package to Tyler. Are we understanding each other, Miss Ashton?"

Zoe nodded, but before she could respond, TJ jumped in again with a puzzled look on his face. "Whoa, hold up. I couldn't help but notice that you kept stressin' 'bout this thing gettin' outta there, but not Zoe."

Shears once more eyed the driver down, albeit in a more aggressive manner this time around. His fangs subtly glinted in the light as he approached TJ, before roughly grabbing his jaw and tilting his head up to stare down his own scarred face once more. "I know exactly what I said, Mister Koen. If she is to be left behind, then so be it. She understands the risk, as should you. The flash drive is a top priority here. Are we clear?"

TJ snarled as Shears kept a hold on his jaw, before slowly nodding. There was a tense second or so on the bridge before Shears gently let go of his jaw and stepped towards the front of the bridge, turning his back on the two. "You two are free to go. Make preparations and rest. You'll need it."

Even though he wanted to scream a million things at the canine, TJ bit his tongue and quickly followed Zoe out of the bridge. As he was walking out of the room, his eyes locked with a black labrador in a bridge tech's uniform. His fur seemed matted and greasy, while there were scars everywhere on his body. Just from what TJ could see, there was a scar across one of his eyes, a scar under his chin, and a barely visible scar behind one of his ears. There was also a stench in the room like someone used way too much cologne. Probably the labrador. Something about the canine seemed off before the dog suddenly broke eye contact and resumed whatever he was doing. TJ paid it no mind as the door to the bridge shut behind him.

The duo walked aimlessly down the ship's halls for a while, with no words exchanged as they passed more of the dilapidated ship's interior. Now, TJ was noticing the inequality a little bit more clearly. Rusted walls, squeaking floors, disintegrating ceilings. A far cry from the bridge and lab, which were all shiny and state of the art. TJ clenched his fists and shoved them into his pockets before sighing. Something seemed really wrong here, but maybe it was a misunderstanding. At the same time, he knew very little about Lylatian politics, besides the basics that he heard from Star Fox. But was that view skewed? Maybe everyone is acting so rude because they know what's at stake, or maybe not knowing really is the best for them. But at the same time, what if he's wrong…

The thoughts were nagging at TJ before he felt a tug on his arm. Turning to his left, Zoe held his arm with a worried expression coating her face. "TJ, can you come into my room for a bit? I've gotta ask you something."

TJ nodded, quickly following Zoe back to her room. The journey took a bit, but they eventually arrived at Zoe's quarters, with the canine punching in a code to open the door before ushering TJ inside. Looking around to make sure no one was watching them, Zoe stepped inside, sliding the door behind her. The room had barely changed, but now it felt like there was a massive cloud hanging over the two. The musty recycled air felt a lot more thick than usual, and Zoe's expression didn't help. Quickly, the thief sat on her bed, looking up at the other person in the room. She could tell that something was bugging him as well before she took a deep breath and stared directly into his eyes. "What Shears said, about if it came down to it. Would you leave me behind if it meant keep whatever we're supposed to grab safe?"

"No."

The response stunned Zoe with how quick it came. The stunned silence allowed TJ to sit down next to her, putting his knee on the bed for comfort. "You and me are a crew. And a crew don't turn their backs on one another. When I ran with Street Omen, we always made sure each of us made it home, no matter what. The shit we steal, it's replaceable. But we ain't. If you got a problem, I'm there to tackle it with ya, and if I gotta drop some dumb USB stick to make sure you come home, I'll do it in a heartbeat."

A smile was now plastered across Zoe's lips as she lunged to hug the street racer. At first, TJ was caught off guard, placing one of his hands behind him on the bed to catch a potential fall. But once he realized he was stable, he leaned into the hug. However, it was a "cool guy" hug, throwing one arm around her shoulder and posturing up as he patted her opposite shoulder.

The thief noticed his pitiable attempt at being cool and lunged forward again, knocking TJ fully onto the bed this time as he let loose an uncool shriek. The two bounced on the bed slightly before landing, both giggling before Zoe hugged TJ again. This time, TJ fully leaned into the hug as Zoe buried her muzzle into his neck. "Thanks, T."

TJ chuckled at the muffled voice, as well as how she was showing her affection. "Ey, it's no biggie. But honestly, I feel like a lot is goin' on here that we're bein' kept in the dark about."

Zoe pulled her head out of his neck finally, before cocking her head to the side and raising a brow at TJ's new tone of voice. "How so?"

"Okay, you didn't hear this from me, but I got lost lookin' for Ringo and wandered into this lab on the ship. I don't even know how I got there, I must've walked past a guard or somethin' while he wasn't payin' attention. This lab is just… just filled with crazy shit, like, I'm talkin' sci-fi for here levels. At least, I think. I didn't get too good a look. But, I did overhear Andrew and Shears talkin' bout some kinda thing they were building. Uh, P-One-G XL was what they called it. And whatever they want us to grab, it's meant for that thing. Should be able to break right through any shields the Cornerians have like they were nothin'."

"Go on," Zoe coaxed, hushing her voice as she rolled off of the street racer and brought her knees up to her chest.

TJ sighed as he laid down fully on the bed, throwing his hands behind his head as he furrowed his brow. "Then why did Shears get so tight when I asked him? Simple question, but he dodged it. Means that if they're fine with lyin' to us right to our faces on something that I really don't care about, what are they hiding that does matter?" Zoe's eyes slowly widened as she understood what he was saying, pursing her lips as she lost herself in thought. A sigh from TJ got her attention, before he rolled onto his side, facing her as he closed his eyes. "Seems that everyone's holding secrets from me these days…"

As soon as TJ shut his eyes, Zoe let a squeaky yawn escape from her maw. The race had left her exhausted, and now she already had another job lined up. All without pay. Even though he did not say it, she had a slight feeling that TJ felt the same way. But him going home was something tangible at the least. Her head cocked in curiosity as she eyed the sleeping human. He looked maybe two years younger than her, yet acted as if he was the head of the whole operation. The walls of bravado were noticeable from kilometers away, but yet he still kept them up.

As she inspected the human, a shiver suddenly passed through her body. She had forgotten how cold the room could get, thanks to a now glaring misappropriation of funds on the ship. And since TJ was weighing down the covers, that only meant one thing. The thief was about to make her decision to snuggle up to the street racer before she recoiled, the fact that he had not washed yet making her quickly reconsider. As the final option, Zoe got dressed in a sweatshirt, a pair of sweatpants, and extra fuzzy socks before curling up on her bed and drifting off to sleep. As consciousness faded from her mind, she could only think about what the driver had said.

Doubt was plaguing her mind now.