Chapter 9:
"…Wolf!" General Pepper stammered in bemusement as he dropped the phone from his paws.
"Funny to see me again huh, Pepper? Having a good time?" I hissed, licking my fangs. My fists tensed to a claw as my tail whipped from side to side.
Slowly I advanced to his desk. The old hound slid from his standing position and plunked into his seat, all the while keeping anxious eyes on me. An awkward silence drew on as the old general slowly soaked the realization into his slow-witted mind.
"But… but I thought-"
"You thought what? Thought that your loyal Fox McCloud took care of me back on Venom? Avengers never die, my beloved general. I'm sorry to disappoint you."
Pepper seemed all the more confused. I slowly walked around, circling his desk imposingly and keeping a hand on the hilt of my trusty blade.
"…What do you want from me?"
"Don't worry. Nothing that I don't deserve – just a little… pay back, as I call it."
"Pay back? … For what?" the general grunted.
I lowered my head next to his, eye narrowing and baring my fangs. Self-control gradually slipped from my grasp, but I still managed to retain my composure for the moment. Pepper stared back at me squarely. Perhaps remorse wasn't part of his vocabulary.
"Your father – a troublesome pirate he was. As if he left me with any choice, O'Donnell, He plotted for a rebellion! Treason is a heavy crime!" he snapped at me, quaking with anger.
I felt like slitting his throat right then and there, but somehow I suppressed my urge – I couldn't forget my mission, after all. Instead, I hesitated. The general's words reverberated in my mind.
Back in the days, father was never with me. He always left me at the Academy when everyone else spent their weekends in the security of their homes – and when he did drop by, his mind was always lingering somewhere else. "Corneria will be yours when you grow up," as he'd always say. And he spoke of Andross and of the renegades - of rebellion and of aggrandizement. It was James McCloud who took care of me most of the time. Fox would invite me over, and I would hang out at the flight deck of the Great Fox, watching Peppy and James complete mission after mission. They were good, and father was bad – so I was told by the Academy. They told me to stay away from him – to steer clear of bad influences.
No.
"If it wasn't for you, Wolf, I wouldn't have waited so long. We warned him and gave him many chances, but he tested our patience time after time. He only got what he deserved," The general continued, voice rising.
I felt strings pull in the back of my head. With a backhand swipe, I lashed at Pepper and sent him sprawling on the floor. His shades were knocked off his face and shattered.
"And the hell does that got to do with me!? I already knew that!" I roared at Pepper, biting down on my jaws so hard that blood tricked from the corners of my muzzle.
Drawn aback by my violent reaction, the general remained silent. Nor did he crawl up – he just lay there, looking up at me with determined eyes. Gathering my poise, I spat out the blood and loaded my blaster once more. No, I had a mission to complete.
"Get moving. You're coming with me," I demanded coldly in a much- subdued tone. With my blaster pointed at his temple, Pepper crawled up.
Just then, Leon bolted into the room.
"Wolf! The Imperial fleet and General Scale's troops – they're gone!" he gasped breathlessly.
"What? What do you mean 'gone?'"
"They were defeated! Team Starfox came and fended the city until the fleet was forced into retreat. The Confederate squads are on their way to the Academy right now!"
"Impossible," I muttered, thousands of thoughts roaring through my mind.
Pulling out the communicator from my pocket, I called, "General Scales, this is Team Starwolf. We got Pepper under control and we need you to clear the path for us immediately."
There was no reply. I called again, and the same static greeted my ears. In a rage, I slammed the communicator to the ground. The realization struck me then - Scales had left us behind.
"Hurry. We haven't got much time," I called to Leon, anger apparent beneath my hushed tone.
With the barrel of my blaster pushing the old general's back, I swung the door open. Suddenly, quick footsteps could be heard echoing down the main halls – hundreds of footsteps, quickly growing louder by the moment.
"He's over there!" a voice shouted, ringing down the hallway.
Cursing softly, I slammed the door shut, and, roughly pulling Pepper by the collar, I advanced to the backdoor. Yes, I knew my way around here very well. I remember – the backdoors led to the general's studies, and from the windows, I can make my escape. Hurriedly, I kicked open the door.
Just as I was about to exit, something - someone blocking my path. A feline security guard stood at the corridor, blaster raised and ready to fire. I stopped for a split second, eyes widening in amazement. A writhe grin curved the edges of the guard's mouth. The moment seemed to go in slow motion as I desperately reeled back in surprise.
With a loud blast, a pain shot through my chest. I stared at my hands as I drew them away from my body. A dark crimson coated my fingers, glinting under the pale lights of the office. I looked down, gaping dumbly. Blood slowly seeped through my shirt, staining the white fabric in a rusty red. With a sporadic gasp, I raised my gaze to guard in disbelief. His expression seemed all the more joyous. He squeezed the trigger a few more times, arms recoiling with each blast of laser. Then, a faint blurriness fell across my eyes as I collapsed to the ground, the searing pain tearing through my whole body like a wild tempest.
Quick, light footsteps drew near me. I rolled my eyes tiredly to see a pair of metal boots stopping next to my face.
"Congratulations, Mr. McCloud, your nemesis is no more. I took care of him," I could hear the feline guard speak proudly. The voice seemed to echo in the distance.
Fox. So that's who it was standing beside me? Was he here to finish me off? I was too tired to think any further. I let the pain wash over me.
Fox kneeled down, his face coming into my dwindling field of vision. I could hear soft, erratic gasps from him as he laid his hands over my head. Silence stretched on.
"What are you waiting for!? MEDIC!" he cried at last.
Consciousness gradually slipped from my grasp as darkness settled before my eyes. Succumbing to the pain, my head drooped to the side. I could not hold out any longer.
"…Wolf!" General Pepper stammered in bemusement as he dropped the phone from his paws.
"Funny to see me again huh, Pepper? Having a good time?" I hissed, licking my fangs. My fists tensed to a claw as my tail whipped from side to side.
Slowly I advanced to his desk. The old hound slid from his standing position and plunked into his seat, all the while keeping anxious eyes on me. An awkward silence drew on as the old general slowly soaked the realization into his slow-witted mind.
"But… but I thought-"
"You thought what? Thought that your loyal Fox McCloud took care of me back on Venom? Avengers never die, my beloved general. I'm sorry to disappoint you."
Pepper seemed all the more confused. I slowly walked around, circling his desk imposingly and keeping a hand on the hilt of my trusty blade.
"…What do you want from me?"
"Don't worry. Nothing that I don't deserve – just a little… pay back, as I call it."
"Pay back? … For what?" the general grunted.
I lowered my head next to his, eye narrowing and baring my fangs. Self-control gradually slipped from my grasp, but I still managed to retain my composure for the moment. Pepper stared back at me squarely. Perhaps remorse wasn't part of his vocabulary.
"Your father – a troublesome pirate he was. As if he left me with any choice, O'Donnell, He plotted for a rebellion! Treason is a heavy crime!" he snapped at me, quaking with anger.
I felt like slitting his throat right then and there, but somehow I suppressed my urge – I couldn't forget my mission, after all. Instead, I hesitated. The general's words reverberated in my mind.
Back in the days, father was never with me. He always left me at the Academy when everyone else spent their weekends in the security of their homes – and when he did drop by, his mind was always lingering somewhere else. "Corneria will be yours when you grow up," as he'd always say. And he spoke of Andross and of the renegades - of rebellion and of aggrandizement. It was James McCloud who took care of me most of the time. Fox would invite me over, and I would hang out at the flight deck of the Great Fox, watching Peppy and James complete mission after mission. They were good, and father was bad – so I was told by the Academy. They told me to stay away from him – to steer clear of bad influences.
No.
"If it wasn't for you, Wolf, I wouldn't have waited so long. We warned him and gave him many chances, but he tested our patience time after time. He only got what he deserved," The general continued, voice rising.
I felt strings pull in the back of my head. With a backhand swipe, I lashed at Pepper and sent him sprawling on the floor. His shades were knocked off his face and shattered.
"And the hell does that got to do with me!? I already knew that!" I roared at Pepper, biting down on my jaws so hard that blood tricked from the corners of my muzzle.
Drawn aback by my violent reaction, the general remained silent. Nor did he crawl up – he just lay there, looking up at me with determined eyes. Gathering my poise, I spat out the blood and loaded my blaster once more. No, I had a mission to complete.
"Get moving. You're coming with me," I demanded coldly in a much- subdued tone. With my blaster pointed at his temple, Pepper crawled up.
Just then, Leon bolted into the room.
"Wolf! The Imperial fleet and General Scale's troops – they're gone!" he gasped breathlessly.
"What? What do you mean 'gone?'"
"They were defeated! Team Starfox came and fended the city until the fleet was forced into retreat. The Confederate squads are on their way to the Academy right now!"
"Impossible," I muttered, thousands of thoughts roaring through my mind.
Pulling out the communicator from my pocket, I called, "General Scales, this is Team Starwolf. We got Pepper under control and we need you to clear the path for us immediately."
There was no reply. I called again, and the same static greeted my ears. In a rage, I slammed the communicator to the ground. The realization struck me then - Scales had left us behind.
"Hurry. We haven't got much time," I called to Leon, anger apparent beneath my hushed tone.
With the barrel of my blaster pushing the old general's back, I swung the door open. Suddenly, quick footsteps could be heard echoing down the main halls – hundreds of footsteps, quickly growing louder by the moment.
"He's over there!" a voice shouted, ringing down the hallway.
Cursing softly, I slammed the door shut, and, roughly pulling Pepper by the collar, I advanced to the backdoor. Yes, I knew my way around here very well. I remember – the backdoors led to the general's studies, and from the windows, I can make my escape. Hurriedly, I kicked open the door.
Just as I was about to exit, something - someone blocking my path. A feline security guard stood at the corridor, blaster raised and ready to fire. I stopped for a split second, eyes widening in amazement. A writhe grin curved the edges of the guard's mouth. The moment seemed to go in slow motion as I desperately reeled back in surprise.
With a loud blast, a pain shot through my chest. I stared at my hands as I drew them away from my body. A dark crimson coated my fingers, glinting under the pale lights of the office. I looked down, gaping dumbly. Blood slowly seeped through my shirt, staining the white fabric in a rusty red. With a sporadic gasp, I raised my gaze to guard in disbelief. His expression seemed all the more joyous. He squeezed the trigger a few more times, arms recoiling with each blast of laser. Then, a faint blurriness fell across my eyes as I collapsed to the ground, the searing pain tearing through my whole body like a wild tempest.
Quick, light footsteps drew near me. I rolled my eyes tiredly to see a pair of metal boots stopping next to my face.
"Congratulations, Mr. McCloud, your nemesis is no more. I took care of him," I could hear the feline guard speak proudly. The voice seemed to echo in the distance.
Fox. So that's who it was standing beside me? Was he here to finish me off? I was too tired to think any further. I let the pain wash over me.
Fox kneeled down, his face coming into my dwindling field of vision. I could hear soft, erratic gasps from him as he laid his hands over my head. Silence stretched on.
"What are you waiting for!? MEDIC!" he cried at last.
Consciousness gradually slipped from my grasp as darkness settled before my eyes. Succumbing to the pain, my head drooped to the side. I could not hold out any longer.