Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Starfox 64 or Starfox
Adventures. If I did, I'd be stinking rich and I wouldn't write this. A big
sorry to Zoe2000 for kinda stealing her idea about an Arctic Fox. I really
had no idea she had one in her stories, too. I only noticed after I was
halfway through my story. The same to Foxmerc on the Alben/Aldon thing.
Jeez, great minds think alike, eh? Oh, Cathy Hearken, Britch Chucklin,
Alexandra Alben, and Thomas White belong to me, so e-mail me if you want to
use them in your stories, 'k?
Intro: Okay, setting. One year after the Dinosaur Planet incident. On Corneria, I guess. This is based on the N64/Gamecube setting, which means: Fox and his team are broke (kinda), Fox never met Fara, and General Pepper is not obsessed with suckers (haha). I never finished the game; heck, I don't even have the game; so don't hound my butt for stuff like 'hey, Fox didn't do that' blah, blah, blah. Gimme a break wills ya? But I'd appreciate it if you would send me a formal e-mail about it, and then I would change or update my story about that.
Okay, now on with the darn story.
"It's good to be alive," Krystal smiled. Having completed their personal mission, the StarFox team, with some grumbling from Falco, returned to hanger sweet hanger.
"It's good to know you're alive," Fox smiled back from across the table.
Everyone cleared out, except for Krystal and Fox, because Slippy wanted to drag the whole crew to watch an opera that he had been waiting to see for a long time. Fox said that he didn't feel well today, so he (along with Krystal, who threatened to roast Slippy if he forced her along) got to stay behind for a few hours, alone.
"Is that trout any good?" Krystal asked. Fox nodded as he pushed the can over to her. Supper wasn't as much fun without Tom or Peppy, but neither was a boring act of singing rhinos.
Krystal, being saved from Fox for the third time, had started to be a lot quieter. Three life traumas are enough to scare the pelt off of any fox. Fox, however, being more strong-willed, endured eight of them without the loss of sanity, and with three of them in the same year.
"I wouldn't be too sure that you're completely sane," Krystal said, reading his mind again, "Who would be sane enough to take on an entire base with only one companion?"
"One invisible companion. And with a magic rock that lets you multiply your strength by ten," Fox shrugged as he gulped down a mouthful of fish.
"There's a lot to you than your looks," Krystal said slowly after an awkward pause. Fox dropped the trout on his fork.
"What?" Fox craned his neck a bit, "oh, uh, I was going to say the same about you." He lied, but it wasn't quite a lie.
"Really? Not many people care about my personality," Krystal stabbed the trout's eye with a knife.
"Did you have a boyfriend before?" Fox asked.
"My travels give me a lot of disappointment. Well, two boyfriends, to be exact," Krystal paused, "One was a red fox from a weird place that I don't remember who only wanted to marry me because it would make him look good. Blue was a noble color on his planet. The other was a fox, well, part fox, part wolf, that liked me because his parents commanded him to. He hated me, really." Fox's jaw dropped.
"You actually had contact with other animals? You sure don't seem like it, wearing only a loincloth and a really flimsy bra for a few decades."
"Knock it off," Krystal grinned, "Yeah, I had contact with foxes. The two of them happened when I was, say, twelve and fifteen. No much contact after that with foxes." Fox's jaw dropped again, this time for real.
"A guy almost married you when you were twelve?" Fox choked on his trout.
"Yeah, so what?"
"That's illegal here," Fox waved his fork around, "You can't marry until you are, erm, I think it's twenty." Now, it was Krystal's turn to drop her jaw.
"I was taught to marry when I reached, well, maturity," Krystal said. Fox choked again on his trout.
"For foxes, that's usually what? Ten years old? Wow, that's messed," Fox coughed.
Krystal shrugged and went on with her fish, licking her plate clean. Fox, being alone, liked to do that personally, and followed suit. Fox then put the dish in the sink and leaned against the counter.
Fox remembered for a second about his first girlfriend and how she came to her terrifying end. Fox counted it as one of his traumas.
**
"Cathy, can you do this?" Fox chuckled as he kicked a hacky-sack into the air and caught it with his snout.
"Watch me!" Cathy the brown, black, and white beagle dog kicked it with the insole of her foot and caught it neatly on her snout, too, "Bill?" Bill gulped. He kicked it and it flew high, but as he raised his head to get it, Wolf pinched him in the belly. Bill opened his mouth for a yell, but the sack of beans landed in his mouth and gagged him.
"Hey!" Bill whined as he spat the yarn bag out, "You jerk!" Bill tackled Wolf playfully on the ground and gave the large gray animal a socket punch.
Fox was nine at the time, nineteen months before Wolf turned his back on him. Fox, Cathy, Bill, and Wolf were walking home from school and over the residential area that is their home. The first had to cross a small bridge before Bill, Fox, and Cathy got to their houses.
"Gotta go!" Wolf jumped up and ran away, will Bill running after him for a few steps before he gave up and rejoined the fox and the dog.
"Ooh, that's not fair," Bill harrumphed. Cathy Hearken laughed heartily. She looked stunning for a little kid. With long, straight, and sleek brown hair, she was a tomboy and followed Fox, Bill, and Wolf around. She was unusually brave, and liked to do really 'gross' stuff. Fox liked her a lot. He had known her for three years when she moved in next door to him. Being a young and naïve kit, Fox had sometimes dreamed about him and Cathy getting married. Fox laughed at the idea today. They had contrasting personalities. Even though, Fox never had a chance to tell her about his feelings.
"Hmm, do you two want to hang out at the river valley?" Cathy challenged.
"The ravine part of it?" Bill asked.
"Where else?"
"There's the water itself," Fox shrugged. Cathy laughed. Her laugh was musical, and it haunted Fox to this day.
"That's boring; I want to climb down the cliff!"
"Uh, sure," Bill said. The ravine was a steep mud cliff to the river. Years of erosion had left the dirt in a peaking cliff. Little kids liked to play beneath it, but Fox had never tried to play above it.
Being a fast runner, Cathy sped quickly away from Fox and Bill, who panted to catch up with her. They were looking at the trees and the houses across the river a second later.
"Wow, that's really cool," Bill shielded his eyes from the bright afternoon sun and walked up to the cliff. Cathy did the same.
"So green!" She said. Fox walked carefully over, too, to see the scene.
Fox couldn't really take inventory of what happened right after that; it happened too fast. It had rained the previous day and the mud and gravel was loose under the long grass. Fox's additional weight caused the weak wall to collapse. Fox, having his father's pilot instincts, caught both Cathy and Bill before they fell, he himself hanging on with his legs, digging deep into the dirt to prevent getting dragged off himself.
"AAAA!" Cathy and Bill shouted together.
"Ugh! What did you two eat for lunch?" Fox panted as he felt his arms stretched.
"Are you okay, Fox?" Cathy asked, getting her calm measures back in an instant, "Can you hang on?"
"Not. For long." Fox grunted.
"Then let me go," Cathy said with a hard face. Fox stared at her.
"It must be at least a hundred feet down!" Fox whimpered. Cathy glared at him.
"It's me or all three of us, now LET GO!" She swung his arm furiously. Fox screamed as he felt his paw slip under her flailing.
"No, no! Don't do-" Fox was never able to finish his sentence. Cathy gave a final swing and dropped down. Fox screamed, and so did Bill, but the beagle remained silent, all the way down. She never felt any pain: her neck had been snapped instantly.
**
"Oh, I'm so sorry, Fox," Krystal whispered as she heard Fox's story telepathically, "That must've been hard for you."
"Yeah." Fox sighed, "I've lost so many people."
"And you have saved so many more," Krystal patted Fox's shoulder comfortingly, "Including mine." Fox raised an eyebrow.
"Three times," Fox pointed out.
"Mmm-hmm, and I'm very grateful for that," Krystal hugged Fox and rubbed her cheek against his. Fox chuckled again as he felt himself get zapped by the static electricity. Fox pried her away.
"Why do you do that?" Fox asked as he remembered how she did that the day that Fox saved her from StarHyena base.
"It's a sign of affection, of course, and besides, it feels good," Krystal chuckled. She annoyed Fox by rubbing again. He flinched as he got shocked again. Fox sighed as he hugged back tight. It did feel good, except for the part with the electricity.
"Hey, I thought I shouldn't have left you two alone," Tom laughed. Fox and Krystal quickly pushed apart.
"It is not what you think," Fox said quickly.
"It's exactly what we think," Slippy giggled as he came in with Peppy. Peppy smiled warmly.
"'It' is a good way to get your mind off the bad things in life," his smile grew bigger, his big front teeth gleaming in the light.
"We're not." Krystal began.
"Yeah, right," Tom clapped a paw on Fox's shoulder, "Way to go, Fox. She is kinda."
"It's not." Fox pushed Tom away.
"It is, it is," Slippy was chuckling his head off. Fox groaned unhappily.
"Well, it's gonna be a long day."
**
"Ooo, back from bed, Fox? Did a certain someone-"
"Knock it off, Falco, or else I'm gonna change the password to the Great Fox and stop giving you all that money," Fox snapped. That shut him up.
".There was reportedly fifty-three dead and two hundred and eighteen more injured in the bombing on Fortuna involving the StarHyena team. Following the bombing, witnesses claim that the evil group of four started chopping down thirty-six more bystanders with a large, flaming broadsword." The dog reporter babbled.
"What?" Fox swung his head in the direction of the television. Falco, Katt, and Tom looked as well.
"This act of terrorism is a sure sign that they want Venom back in power. And on to Mitch with the weather."
"Oh, that is NOT good," Slippy dropped his jaw as he came in as well.
"I thought the General nuked the place on Corneria. How are they still alive?" Tom asked.
"They weren't in the base, probably," Slippy said, pointing out the obvious.
"Ooh, time to die, Leon." Falco muttered.
"Again," Fox finished for him, "We killed them twice already, remember? Once on Fortuna, and the other on Venom eight years ago."
"There were a lot of ships still flying around when that happened. The are most likely clones," Slippy said. Falco nodded.
"And as if killing two hundred of those morons on Area 6 wasn't enough," Peppy called from the kitchen. Fox flipped open his communicator as it started beeping. It was General Pepper.
"StarFox, I need you to-"
"I know, I just heard. You want us to take out the StarHyena team right?"
"How did you guess?" Pepper asked in amazement before he clicked off. A moment later, the communicator started beeping again, startling Fox. Fox flipped it open again.
"Did you hear that? Over-" Wolf began.
"I know, I know. The Fortuna incident."
"Yeah. Hey, do you want me to come with you? I need to stretch my skills after all these years," Wolf suggested.
"Do you have a plane?"
"No. I thought you could give me one."
"Oh, ok. Looks like Slippy has another job on his webbed hands."
**
"Well, I for one don't trust him," Falco mumbled.
"Shut it, birdbrain," Wolf growled, "It's bad enough that I'm stuck with a really dumb jet on this mission." It was true. Slippy didn't have time to paint the new Arwing, so Wolf's jet looked very plain and metallic. Among the many things that an O'Donnel hates, it was having a bland jet.
Flying through the asteroid field again, now with six wingmen at his side, made Fox feel much safer than flying with two, one of them being a complete maniac at shooting.
'Hey! I heard that!' Krystal shouted through minds. Tom chuckled over the radio.
"What?" Katt asked while doing flashy spins in her shuttle.
"Oh, nothing much."
"Whatever. How long 'til the base?" Katt asked.
"Erm. ETA: Twenty minutes. I think I see smaller asteroids up ahead. Blast 'em away!" Tom gave a 'ha' as he pummeled down four of the smaller rocks. Fox gave a competitive grunt as he blasted five more. Krystal shot, but hit Falco twice.
"Wow, I swear that must've reduced his shields by at least thirty percent!" Tom said.
"Shut up!" Krystal slouched in her seat.
Tom was true to his word. Fifteen minutes later, they were soaring through the fluffy clouds of snow towards the town that had been terrorized.
"Hmm, is it just me or is that the StarHyena team up front?" Fox squinted.
"I think it's the second answer," Tom pointed at his radar. Indeed, four Wolfen-class jets were screaming towards them.
"Break formation and engage," Falco commanded.
"Hey, that's my line!" Fox said.
"Oh, well. You know me. I always want to be the leader."
"Shoot!"
"What's wrong? Did ya hurt your poor paws on the steering."
"No, you idiot, shoot!"
"Oh, right," Falco banked sharply and spiraled away from Fox.
"Ah, the infamous StarFox," a hyena, probably Britch, came over the line.
"Ah, the infamous and moronic StarHyena," Fox mimicked. Britch fumed.
"You are going down," Britch pronounced each syllable with a sharp malice.
"Not if you're going down first, you giggling jack-"
"Hey, Wolf!" Leon shouted, surprised, "We weren't expecting your help." Leon tailed Falco and started shooting. Wolf pulled up behind him.
"Of course not. You should've been expecting my hostility," Wolf snarled as he shot the Wolfen jet. He burst the engine and Leon's ship went up in flames, but not before the lizard himself uttered a dirty curse to his former ally.
"What the-" Andrew looked behind him, "Oh, a little pink shuttle. I would suppose that rotten frog got his ship a makeover?" Katt hissed and spat like a, well, angry cat. She shot Andrew furiously with her pink lasers and the goat went down in a ball of fire. Slippy cheered from the Great Fox.
"Yay! He's dead, he's dead," he chanted.
"Ah, Peppy old pal," Pigma sneered, "Back so soon? Aren't ya gonna have a little chat with poor old Piggy?" Peppy growled, which was unnatural for a rabbit. Fox felt his anger rising. The tip of Fox's Arwing slammed into the back of Pigma's and damaged something that started ejecting white clouds.
"I'd rather not, thank you," Peppy said softly, watching from a screen as Pigma suffocated from the damage to his life support system. His ship went smack into a mountain a few minutes later, "Traitor."
"Oh, crap," Britch muttered, watching as his wingmen crashed one by one, "I'm out of here." He ejected out of his jet as Wolf shot it into oblivion.
"Hey, come back here and fight like the filthy coward that you are!" Wolf shouted. Britch laughed an annoying, nasally, high laugh, not unlike Slippy's. His cockpit landed in the snow and he jumped out.
"I got him," Fox said calmly as he bumped down in the snow, too, and started chasing Britch, who was stumbling in the heavy flakes as the top layer of snow collapsed under his weight. Fox was more careful, jumping here and there, catching up with Britch quickly. Knowing that he didn't have far to go, the gray and black spotted hyena turned and pulled out a long sword from the scabbard in his belt.
"Bring in on, McCloud!" He chuckled. Fox drew his blaster gun and shot. Britch easily deflected it with his sword.
"Cheater," Fox mumbled as he kept shooting. I have to get closer. Fox thought as his Ruby glowed red.
"Huh?" Britch looked around confused as Fox did quick laps around him. Britch stopped dead.
"Big mistake!" Fox stopped at the back of Britch's head, pointing his gun right at his brains. Britch must've been quicker than Fox had imagined. With a flick of his paw, Britch's sword turned flame, and just as Fox shot him in the back of the head, the sword swung around and impaled him in the chest. Britch lay dead in the snow, his gray fluids and his blood staining the sparkling white, but Fox did also on his back, the flaming broadsword protruding from his sternum, puncturing his right lung, stealing his air.
"Fox!" Krystal ran over to him. She must've followed him down. Fox coughed weakly.
"Yeah."
"Save your breath," she chuckled as she heaved the sword out of his chest. Fox flinched, arched his back, and yelped loudly. Krystal clamped his jaws together with her paw as she pressed the Emerald to his lungs. A moment later, the familiar flash of green light met Fox's eyes and he felt better, although still in pain and short of oxygen.
"Lucky I got here, or else we would've had to visit the afterlife again," she stroked Fox's cheek fur softly as he tried to get up. Krystal pushed him down again, "Save your strength. I know what it's like to get shot, stabbed, and sliced. It still hurts, right?"
"Mmm-hmm," Fox sighed.
"It'll be okay in a few minutes. Can you breathe?"
"Hardly," Fox coughed again, "It's really cold. The snow, I mean."
"Aw, poor Fox," Krystal laughed.
"I get enough of that from Falco," Fox pretended to look hurt as he pushed her playfully. Krystal leaned down and rubbed her cheek against his.
"Stop it!" Fox laughed as he got shocked for the third time in two days.
"A-ha! Caught orange-and-blue-pawed yet again!" Tom put his paws on his hips like a police officer. Fox quickly pushed Krystal away, and her him. The effect was the breakage of the top layer of harder snow from melting and freezing again (the melting and freezing makes the top half- inch a tad harder than the fluffy snow at the bottom, making the top support a maximum of two hundred pounds). Fox got pushed under the snow three feet deep.
"It's not what you think!" Fox's voice called, muffled, from the hole.
"Oh, it's exactly what I-" Tom stumbled as he was hit by a snowball from Fox-in-the-snow-hole.
"Hmm, déjà vu." Fox said from the hole.
**
"That is one cool sword," Tom said as Fox lay the sword and scabbard on the kitchen table.
"This is the third and last weapon, I think," Fox examined the scabbard. It had runes on it, "Hmm? Krystal's what does that say?"
"Erm, Ach Hanna. It's something like Flame of Power. Yeah, I'm pretty sure," Krystal handed the scabbard back to Fox and he sheathed the sword in it. Fox then tied the two strings that were attached to the scabbard on his belt.
"You cut a very dashing figure with that thing," Peppy chuckled.
"I know," Fox posed. Everyone laughed.
"Shouldn't we give that to the museum or something?" Slippy asked.
"Are you nuts?" Falco and Wolf exclaimed together.
"I think that head of yours has gotten a bit more hollowed than the last time I checked," Fox rapped on Slippy's skull, "If we give it to them, they won't give it back!"
"Oh, yeah. I forgot about that part."
"Well, anyway, time to go home. Make sure that General Pepper gives you hazard pay," Falco said as he led Katt out the door. Wolf waved as he went, too.
"Um, Kris, I gave you a bank account when Wolf foxnapped you, so, if anyone asks, your last name is Blue, okay?" Fox asked.
"Krystal Blue. Ugh, that sounds like Thomas' name," Krystal looked at Tom, who pretended to reel back in shock and hurt, "But it's fine."
"Oh, I'm beat. I'm gonna go to bed now," Peppy yawned and walked out. Slippy and Tom followed. Krystal held Fox back for a moment.
"Now, just to make sure; I owe you only two lives now, right?" Krystal asked.
"Yeah, and don't forget it! I have some extra credit that you have to burn off," Fox laughed. Fox thought for a moment and threw off his metal helmet, then hugged Krystal and rubbed cheeks. This time, he didn't get shocked. Krystal, however, was stunned.
"I thought you'd never do that," she smiled.
"I knew it! I KNEW it!" Tom shouted happily from the doorway. Fox and Krystal pushed away quickly again.
"It's not what you think," Fox said.
"Oh, it's exactly what I think," Tom laughed.
"Oh, jeez, this is a vicious cycle," Krystal muttered.
"Does it ever end?" Fox asked.
**
It was just another leisurely day on the Great Fox, with the money flowing in and peace restored. Fox felt a lot better now that Pigma was dead again. It meant that Fox didn't have to deal with that traitor until the next time he got cloned.
It seemed like Wolf was about to get arrested when General Pepper and three of his special guards showed up the other day. Wolf was munching on supper with Fox and Tom when they stormed in. Wolf hid under the table until General Pepper showed him the Medal of Honor that he was supposed to get.
Krystal became a bit louder again, and that was good, since Fox hated when she didn't want to talk. Before, Krystal didn't say a thing except a simple "Uh-huh" or "Uh-uh" to questions that Fox asked. Now, she was all happy again and went into more detailed answers like "Yeah that's great" or "Ugh that's just wrong".
Peppy had his birthday the day after they came back from Fortuna and everyone gave him a more formal party, remembering that Tom went screaming down the corridors when Krystal popped out of the door and shouted "HAPPY BIRTHDAY".
Fox went a few days without getting zapped from Krystal, just because they didn't save each other's lives. Fox thought Krystal owed him enough and decided that he wouldn't save her from utter death unless she really needed help. Fox wondered for a minute about the irony of that promise.
"Hey, McCloud, whatcha thinking?" Wolf sat down on the chair opposite Fox and puffed out his chest. He was wearing the Medal of Honor.
"Can it, O'Donnel. I got about sixty of those," Fox whacked his knife on his toast. Wolf's chest seemed to get smaller for a second.
"And I got about six hundred from Andross."
"Yeah, but that's the evil emperor that wants to kill everyone, right?"
"Good point," Wolf shrugged and stole Fox's toast. Fox growled a bit and got another piece.
"Wolf, do you remember Cathy?" Fox asked.
"Who?" He said through a mouthful of bread and butter.
"Cathy Hearken!"
"Oh, her. Uh yeah, I think. She's that cute beagle we hung out around, er, grade four. Right?" Wolf waved his stolen toast around.
"Yeah. Remember how she died?" Fox looked up. Wolf paused.
"Broken neck. So?"
"Ah, this is gonna sound weird, but how long did it take me to get over her death?"
"Uh, dunno. You were talking about her every day for about a year," Wolf winced as he accidentally jabbed himself with a butter knife.
"Whoa. What's it called when you get that really weird tingling in your stomach when you see a person?"
"Em, a heart attack?"
"I think that's pretty close," Fox said sarcastically.
"Nervousness?"
"Yeah, that's it. And why do you get nervous?"
"Fear? Excitement? Oi, I don't know."
"Guess!"
"Okay, okay. Erm. Love?"
"Hmm." Fox paused for a second, then jumped up and ran away, leaving his second piece of buttered toast on his plate. Wolf shrugged and took that one as well.
"Hey! Fox, Fox! I planted a listening bug on Bill!" Slippy burst in the door; nearly whacking Fox in the head with a thing he was holding as Fox tried to get out. Slippy was obviously very excited because he was squeaking like an old door hinge.
"So?" Wolf asked.
"Bill's with Colonel Alben for breakfast!" Slippy waved a radio around. Fox and Wolf leaped for it. Fox got it first and turned it on. Bill's voice came over and everyone kept quiet.
"Good morning, Alex."
"Mmm, hi, Bill."
"I made toast."
"Oh, you're so sweet when you're nice to me."
"Well, that's you."
After that, there were a few kissing sounds and Slippy fake-retched.
"Another one, please? I haven't loved anyone for a few years."
"Aw, come on, Bill. You still owe me for last night."
"Yeah, I think I fell asleep right after. It was so tiring."
Fox, Slippy, and Wolf stared at the radio as Fox put it on the kitchen table. Fox exchanged glances with Wolf and they both tried to cover their laughter by stuffing paws into snouts.
"Hmm, who knew nailing up drywall was such hard work?"
Slippy turned it off and let out a long 'Oh'.
"Ha! Our Bill! Imagine that."
"Oh, I'd rather not talk about it," Wolf laughed, "I think I'm gonna be sick."
**
"The mechanism is almost complete, sir."
"That's good. Did you perfect the brainwashing process of the chip?"
"Yes, sir, but there would be a few things that he could still remember. Vital things, like talk or walk."
"Of course. Or else what use would he be? If he can't pilot for us, what good is he then?"
"The chip had been made to stay in one place."
"And why is that?"
"That way, the chemical release would be regulated, and therefore our enemy wouldn't forget everything or forget too little."
"What happens if the chip is removed?"
"The chemicals would stop, and the host would slowly regain memories."
"How long until they are all back?"
"That depends. It takes usually from a few minutes to a few hours, depending on the type of person."
"McCloud is a stubborn one. He shouldn't take more than a few seconds. I'll just pray that his friends don't find out."
"They wouldn't expect a thing. They'll just think that Fox went nuts and just wanted some more killing done."
"That's the best case scenario. Nonetheless, Caiman, good job. You know that praise doesn't come easily out of me."
"Thank you, sir," the frog turned and went out the door, hoping that Andross' plan would work out.
**
"Now, Tom, you are going to tell us where your parents are or else I'm gonna slice you to bits," Krystal waved her staff threateningly. Tom just laughed harder.
"Oh, come on, Thomas. It's almost tradition that we would like to see the parents of a new member," Peppy said. Tom, if it was possible, laughed even harder. His face turned scarlet red beneath his fur.
Peppy was right. Every new member of the StarFox team must show the rest of the team who his or her parents are. Katt, on one paw, had dragged everyone to Zoness for a few days the previous week. She stayed quiet all the way, and the reason became apparent. What they ended up in was a small cemetery. Her parents had both been killed. They were killed during the first wave of attacks to Zoness about ten years ago. Katt, age 12, hijacked a Venomian plane after she saw her parents murdered in front of her eyes and turned it into her pink shuttle as it is today.
Wolf's parents were also dead. They were killed when their ship to Fortuna had been shot down accidentally by an ignorant Cornerian pilot who disobeyed orders. Wolf was stuck living with a pair of mice since he was eight years old.
"Aw, shut up!" Fox said, clamping his ears together as Tom howled with laughter.
"My real parents," he managed to gasp out, "Oh. Ha, ha, ha, ha."
"Yes, yes?"
"They're both, well, Arctic foxes. Heh, living under gravestones over five million light years away on a planet that has been totally obliterated!"
"Uh, that's not funny," Slippy said bleakly.
"Nor is it possible! That's too far," Krystal shook Tom's shoulders as he leaned against a wall, shaking with laughter.
"Yes it is, if you've been living on a ship with hyperdrive capabilities since when you were a one year old kit! It's funny because. I though the two crewmen of the ship, both males, were my parents! Ha! For over ten years I thought that!"
"Wow. Do you even know your parents?" Fox asked. Tom stopped laughing quickly.
"My story is a bit like Krystal's. A crazy scientist murdered my parents, and after, the scientist blew up my world. I don't know where it is, and I don't have a star map on my leg."
"I thought your dad gave you your necklace for a birthday present," Fox said.
"Oh, I lied. I stole it from my ship's dead commander when Venomian units attacked it. I stole a shuttle and got out when I was, say, twenty. We happened to pass by the Lylat, so I landed on the bluest planet I could see. I have lived on Corneria since."
"This is messed up." Fox mumbled.
"I know," Tom chuckled.
"We have a lot in common, then," Krystal said seductively as she leaned her shoulder towards Tom.
"Erm, yeah, sure," he said as he backed off. There were some bits of long chuckling across the room.
"Ah, Fox, I see that you're not laughing."
"Shut up, Slippy."
**
"When can we start?"
"We can start tomorrow, sir. I can just inject the chip in Fox with a syringe when he's on the streets. He'll never know what hit him."
"Good, good. You will receive a prize when you get back, Caiman."
"Thank you, sir. You are too kind."
"Oh, to you, maybe, but not to the people of the Lylat once Fox obeys my every command. I can taste the tainted blood of their veins already."
"You are a very evil and sadistic maniac, sir."
"Why, thank you, Caiman!"
"Of course, sir."
"Did I reward you for cloning me again yet?"
"I don't think so, sir."
"Aw, cut the 'sir' crap. I think I like 'your majesty' better."
"Of course, your majesty."
"That's a lot better."
**
"Can you go shopping for food again, Fox? I think Falco cleaned us out yesterday," Peppy sat down on a couch.
"Sure thing, Peppy. I'll be back in a flash," Fox put on his jacket and went outside.
It was a nice day. The warm sun was out with a refreshing breeze. Fox gave a 'eh' nonchalantly and decided to walk instead of taking Wolf's old car. That museum artifact was getting really busted up.
Birds sung (the wandering bards with stereos playing rock music in their wings, anyway) and the streets bustled with activity. There were so many people going this way and that, Fox nearly got trampled.
As he neared the general store, Fox saw a familiar green toad walking by. Shrugging it off, as his memory wasn't working too well, Fox went by without a word. Suddenly, something sharp poked him in the right shoulder. Fox looked back. The green frog was gone.
"Ow," Fox looked at his shoulder. There wasn't anything bleeding, so Fox decided not to worry about it. Entering the general store, he racked his brain for what he had came shopping for. A moment later, he was wondering what his name was. Fox felt himself get dizzy as he was dragged out by a green thing that he thought he had seen just a second ago.
**
"Ugh, I'm starving. Where's that orange-butted, absent-minded fox?" Peppy mumbled after an hour of waiting.
"Wow, you can get pretty cranky when you're hungry, old rabbit," Krystal giggled as she set down a plate of old carrots in front of the graying hare. Peppy picked one up and nibbled a bit. It was a bit dry.
"Mmm? How long has this been sitting on the counter?" Peppy asked. Krystal picked up the can and read it.
"Uh, today's the 16th, so this thing has been on the shelf for. Three months over the expiration date."
"Ack!" Peppy spat the orange pieces out, "Oh, I'm gonna murder Fox for this!"
"Yeesh, talk about delirious of hunger," Tom chuckled. His stomach suddenly gave out a loud rumble, "Hey, where is Fox, anyway?"
"Oh, you two! I'll go to the store and find him," Krystal slid on a cloth jacket and walked out.
"You better hurry! I don't think Peppy's going to like my flies," Slippy called after her after gulping down another spoonful of the insects. Shoving his can towards Peppy, he said, "They're really good with hot sauce."
"Aaargh!"
**
"Mr. McCloud? No, I don't think he came by today. You usually remember those things, so I'm pretty sure," the raccoon storekeeper answered when Krystal asked him where Fox was.
"Oh? Is there another store that he might've gone to?" She asked politely.
"I don't think so. Mr. McCloud really likes my tuna, so I'm pretty certain that he wouldn't go anywhere else," the raccoon, Mr. Spiraltail, grinned. Krystal grinned back warmly.
"Sorry to bother you, then," Krystal waved a good-bye and pushed the door open, "Hmm, I don't think he's that forgetful." Krystal mumbled to herself, thinking about Fox. 'Oh, I'm so stupid! Fox?'
'Uh?'
'Fox, where are you? Peppy wants his carrots, I think! Ha! He called you a orange-butted, absent-minded vulpine.'
'Who is Peppy?'
'Ah, knock it off, Fox.'
'Knock what off?'
'Cut the smart Alec stuff and come back to the hanger.'
'What hanger?'
Krystal growled angrily. 'Come on, Fox!' Silence. Krystal growled again and stormed off into the store again to buy food.
**
"Who am I?" He asked. He was in a large metal-walled lab. There were flasks and monitors on the tables, the counters, the cabinets, and even on the floor. The lighting was a bit of, since there was only one bulb hanging from the ceiling.
He looked at his paw. The paw was a dull orange. He looked at his tail as he grabbed it. It was orange, too. A frog appeared in the doorway opposite where he was sitting. He noticed as well that he was sitting in a small, metal chair.
"Regulate the chemical control now," Caiman heard through his radio. The fox didn't hear.
"Your name is William Robins. Don't you remember me?" Caiman was sure to put on a convincing tone. William shook his head. William examined his clothes. He was wearing a green jumpsuit with a cloth jacket. The jumpsuit looked like it had a tag ripped off of it.
"Who are you?" William asked.
"I'm Caiman, your best friend!" Caiman said, shocked, "You must've had some concussion. It wiped out all your memories!"
"It must've. Where am I?"
"Oh, it looks like I'll have to start all over again," Caiman sighed, "You are in an underground lab on Corneria. Remember that planet?"
"Yeah, it's where I live," William turned his attention to Caiman. He was wearing a black leather jacket with black jeans. He had a red cap on that read 'A'.
"Okay, good. We are soldiers that work for Venom, working on a case to kill the assassins of Emperor Andross."
"Andross," William repeated. That name rang a bell.
"Yeah. We're working undercover. We need to seek out a blue fox, a white fox, an old, gray hare, a pink cat, a blue bird, a gray wolf, and a green frog. Well, not me! We need to kill them all. They are traitors," Caiman said. William looked up suddenly.
"Those animals colors sound familiar."
"They should. They were once our friends, but now, they are our enemies. Anyone who calls you Fox is a traitor. Anyone who calls you McCloud is a traitor. Those were your codenames, remember?"
"Yeah, sort of," William shrugged. Caiman gave him thumbs up.
"Now, grab a gun and let's go find those morons!"
**
Krystal grunted as she tried to carry all five of the bags by herself. It wasn't well going, and the tuna almost spilled.
"I hope Fox got back all right," she mumbled to herself as she saw the hanger door. Walking in, she saw that someone had already opened that hatch, "Oh that was nice of Peppy. I guess he's getting really impatient. Wow, he missed breakfast, and now it's time for lunch." Krystal said as she looked at the watch that Fox gave her a few days ago.
Climbing in carefully, Krystal walked slowly up the steps and into the kitchen. A loud groan made her drop all the bags.
"Krystal," Tom wheezed. He had a laser hole through his chest. Peppy was on the floor, as well as Slippy, unconscious. They were all shot in the torso.
"Who did this?" Krystal shouted as she pressed the Emerald to each of their wounds.
"Fox did!" Tom moaned as the hole cleared up.
"What?" Krystal asked as she attended to Peppy and Slippy. Blood was flowing freely from the wounds, and that meant that they were fresh. Krystal almost slipped on the red liquid when she was rushing to Slippy. Blood was everywhere.
"He went nuts! He came back with a frog, and they shot us! I think they took the sword, too."
"It couldn't have been Fox."
"It was. He had his jacket and jumpsuit. The Ruby was on his chest, too," Tom coughed as he straitened up, "I think it's on the security camera, if you don't believe me."
"Let's see, then," Krystal dragged Tom off into the cockpit.
Tom, still winded, punched in a few buttons and a color movie appeared on the screen. There was Fox, in his helmet and suit, with a green and ugly frog. They quickly shot Tom first, then Slippy, then Peppy after Peppy talked for a while. They didn't make out the words; the movie had no sound.
"No."
"Yeah," Tom looked at the floor. When he looked up again, Krystal had tears in her eyes.
"That is not Fox. It must be a mistake. I know Fox and that. That. That is Fox," Krystal sobbed. Tom put a paw on her shoulder as she cried softly.
**
"Wonderful, William! Three down, five more to go!" Caiman clapped his hand on William's back, "Now didn't it feel good to get rid of the traitors?"
"You know what?" William looked up as Caiman drove the hover car from the murder scene quickly, "As long as they were bad, that felt real good."
"Way to go, way to go," Caiman smiled. Andross was going to be very happy with him.
**
Krystal waited until everyone was asleep on the Great Fox, then she got her staff, clamped on her bracelets, and headed out. It was going to be easy to find that traitor. All she had to do is scan his memories. Tom can't come; he was still hurt. No one must know; they will stop her. The whole idea was beginning to sound impossible for Krystal.
Krystal decided to steal Wolf's car, just because it was a lot quieter than hover cars. Getting the hang of the controls after she banged into a few obstacles like trees or rocks, she sped off to the east, toward Andross' secret lab.
**
"Good job, Caiman," Andross whispered in the control room. The lab itself was divided into three parts: A living space, the lab itself, and a control room. William was currently in the living space. Caiman was with Andross in the control room. The entrance door to the elevator shaft was beside the living space.
"Yes, but I think I detected a fault in my design. I guess I was too hurried, I didn't have time to make the system electric-proof. A shock can electrocute the whole chip."
"No matter. I just need to kill five more of those idiots, and then Fox McCloud will help me rule the Lylat."
"Hmm, a good and simple plan always works best."
"Right you are, Caiman. Your reward will be here shortly. Is ten thousand credits enough to quench your thirst for wealth?"
"More than enough, your majesty."
"Heh, heh, yeah, suck it up, Caiman."
"You are very cruel, your majesty."
"I know. Go get something to eat, then. I think I made a sandwich earlier in the lab."
**
Creeping slowly toward the strange cave, Krystal readied her blaster gun. The cave itself was small and dry, and it ended shortly in an elevator door. Knowing that Fox would know of her presence if she used the elevator, Krystal forced open the door and climbed down the shaft itself.
**
"Mmm, Andross outdid himself on this one. I wonder where he got the pickles." Caiman muttered to himself as he munched happily on the large sandwich. Little did he know that a blue fox crept up behind him and readied a knife.
**
"Ugh, this guy eats like a pig," Krystal murmured as she cleaned off the knife on her shirt. Caiman, as his nametag said, didn't bleed a lot when she slit his throat. The poor moron didn't even have time to look at his killer. Krystal got herself up again and turned around.
"I got ya!" William leaped at her and tackled her to the ground. Jerking her blaster away from her, he pulled her up by the neck and put her in a half nelson.
"Let go," Krystal wheezed, totally helpless at what the orange fox was doing to her. Krystal coughed in a strangled way. William loosened his grip a bit.
"I like it better when my prisoners are alive," he hissed in her ear as he shoved her along to the control room.
"Fox, what are you doing?" Krystal managed to whisper through confined air.
"My name isn't Fox!"
"Yes it is! You're Fox McCloud! Have you gone completely insane?" Krystal wriggled a bit as William loosened his grip a bit more. He was going at a quick pace, his foot catching on her heel as he strode along.
"Are you insane?"
"Let go, Fox. You can't be like this," Krystal felt a tear roll of her cheek.
"Stop calling me that! My name is William!"
"You have gone mad," she said in a low tone. The door to the control room opened and Fox pushed her in. Andross turned in his rotating chair.
"Ah, what a unpleasant surprise! We don't have jail cells, so I guess it would be a Venomian tradition to drink the traitor's blood and burn them alive. But, I'm busy," Andross turned back to his computer, "Too bad Caiman had to go so soon. Oh, William, the torture tools are in the cabinet on the other side of the room. I think I could be able to hear her screams, but insult her louder so I can laugh, okay?"
"Fox. They've brainwashed you," Krystal whispered. Her quiet cries echoed off the dimly lit, metal walls. The light came from the computer only.
"I don't know what you are talking about," William said as he clamped one of Krystal's paws to a handcuff nailed to the overhang of pipes. William unsheathed his sword and Krystal shuddered as she heard the metallic ring of death. Coming up behind her, William touched his cheek on the right side of Krystal's head. The flat edge of the sword was raised beside her left cheek and Krystal felt the cold metal against her fur.
"Fox, you don't know what you are about to do!" Krystal cried, "Let go!"
"I do know what I'm doing: Getting rid of a traitor," William smelled Krystal's fur. She must've taken a shower before; she smelled a bit like rosemary, "It's a shame a beautiful vixen like you should go to waste. I kinda like you."
"I'm not a traitor, Fox," Krystal whimpered as William nicked her neck with the blade.
"They all say that," William's tongue darted out and tasted the drop of blood that came out, his cheek still touching hers.
"Fine, kill me, but make it quick," Krystal whispered, almost silently, in William's ear. She slowly rubbed her cheek against his; "You're not you, I know that." William suddenly felt himself get shocked by the static electricity and flinched. He didn't say a word as he turned back to where Andross was sitting with his back to them. He walked over.
"It's a shame Caiman wasn't here. He would've enjoyed the screams of agony," William said.
"Yeah. I should go and say on how much he's actually missing out. I think I'll clone him."
"No don't. There's only one good way to tell him and one good place to be," William said as he silently raised his sword, "And that is in person and in hell!" Fox screamed as he plunged the sword into Andross' neck and severed his spinal cord. Andross hung limp and his blood stained the chair. Heaving the sword out again, Fox jabbed his shoulder with it and dug a finger in the wound. Surprisingly, he didn't flinch in pain during the whole ordeal, and he flicked out a small, oval shape that was no bigger and a grain of rice from his cut.
"Fox?" Krystal asked from the other side of the chamber.
"Yeah. Too bad I learned to read minds, too," Fox spat on Andross' corpse and sliced Krystal's handcuffs with his broadsword. He placed the small bug in a vial he found in his pocket, "Slippy would want to see this thing."
"He brainwashed you. I told you that!" Krystal jumped up and hugged Fox tight. She held him so hard that he couldn't breathe. She quickly let go, "You are back to being McCloud again, right?"
"Uh, yeah. Read my mind, if you want to make sure," Fox smiled. Krystal hugged him again.
"How did you learn to do that?"
"Um, I don't know. I think you just stretch your mind. It came a bit naturally after all those times you scanned my memories," Fox shrugged. Krystal took off his helmet and threw it away. She rubbed hard on his cheek.
"I don't know what to do. Laugh or cry."
"You can do both at the same time, you know," Fox looked deep into her eyes for a moment. He tried very hard not to crack up.
"Oh, don't think this is the start of a relationship, Fox," Krystal frowned, "Don't think. Know." Suddenly, she pressed her lips against his. She held it there for a second, then let go slowly.
"This isn't the most romantic of places, you know," Fox smiled. Krystal nodded and led him out, one paw on his shoulder and vise versa.
**
"But you still shot me," Slippy whined. The bug explained everything, and everyone forgave Fox for nearly killing them all. The story was long, and for the third time, Fox made everyone sit on the couches and listen quietly.
"That's good, though. Real good," Falco patted Fox in the back, "Who doesn't want Slippy dead?"
"HEY!"
"Sorry for that laser hole in your back, Peppy," Fox grinned.
"Oh, I'm fine. Actually, after Krystal's special medicine, my back pain is gone," Peppy sighed. Krystal lied, of course, to everyone about how she saved Peppy, Tom, and Slippy's lives.
Fox smiled at Krystal, and she smiled back from the other couch. Secrets were kept, always. Even when they block people you trust from vital things, just incase they go nuts on you.
**
A/N: Too bad the romance part didn't come out well. I think I should write another story about Fox and Krystal. I am done and thank you for reading.
Intro: Okay, setting. One year after the Dinosaur Planet incident. On Corneria, I guess. This is based on the N64/Gamecube setting, which means: Fox and his team are broke (kinda), Fox never met Fara, and General Pepper is not obsessed with suckers (haha). I never finished the game; heck, I don't even have the game; so don't hound my butt for stuff like 'hey, Fox didn't do that' blah, blah, blah. Gimme a break wills ya? But I'd appreciate it if you would send me a formal e-mail about it, and then I would change or update my story about that.
Okay, now on with the darn story.
"It's good to be alive," Krystal smiled. Having completed their personal mission, the StarFox team, with some grumbling from Falco, returned to hanger sweet hanger.
"It's good to know you're alive," Fox smiled back from across the table.
Everyone cleared out, except for Krystal and Fox, because Slippy wanted to drag the whole crew to watch an opera that he had been waiting to see for a long time. Fox said that he didn't feel well today, so he (along with Krystal, who threatened to roast Slippy if he forced her along) got to stay behind for a few hours, alone.
"Is that trout any good?" Krystal asked. Fox nodded as he pushed the can over to her. Supper wasn't as much fun without Tom or Peppy, but neither was a boring act of singing rhinos.
Krystal, being saved from Fox for the third time, had started to be a lot quieter. Three life traumas are enough to scare the pelt off of any fox. Fox, however, being more strong-willed, endured eight of them without the loss of sanity, and with three of them in the same year.
"I wouldn't be too sure that you're completely sane," Krystal said, reading his mind again, "Who would be sane enough to take on an entire base with only one companion?"
"One invisible companion. And with a magic rock that lets you multiply your strength by ten," Fox shrugged as he gulped down a mouthful of fish.
"There's a lot to you than your looks," Krystal said slowly after an awkward pause. Fox dropped the trout on his fork.
"What?" Fox craned his neck a bit, "oh, uh, I was going to say the same about you." He lied, but it wasn't quite a lie.
"Really? Not many people care about my personality," Krystal stabbed the trout's eye with a knife.
"Did you have a boyfriend before?" Fox asked.
"My travels give me a lot of disappointment. Well, two boyfriends, to be exact," Krystal paused, "One was a red fox from a weird place that I don't remember who only wanted to marry me because it would make him look good. Blue was a noble color on his planet. The other was a fox, well, part fox, part wolf, that liked me because his parents commanded him to. He hated me, really." Fox's jaw dropped.
"You actually had contact with other animals? You sure don't seem like it, wearing only a loincloth and a really flimsy bra for a few decades."
"Knock it off," Krystal grinned, "Yeah, I had contact with foxes. The two of them happened when I was, say, twelve and fifteen. No much contact after that with foxes." Fox's jaw dropped again, this time for real.
"A guy almost married you when you were twelve?" Fox choked on his trout.
"Yeah, so what?"
"That's illegal here," Fox waved his fork around, "You can't marry until you are, erm, I think it's twenty." Now, it was Krystal's turn to drop her jaw.
"I was taught to marry when I reached, well, maturity," Krystal said. Fox choked again on his trout.
"For foxes, that's usually what? Ten years old? Wow, that's messed," Fox coughed.
Krystal shrugged and went on with her fish, licking her plate clean. Fox, being alone, liked to do that personally, and followed suit. Fox then put the dish in the sink and leaned against the counter.
Fox remembered for a second about his first girlfriend and how she came to her terrifying end. Fox counted it as one of his traumas.
**
"Cathy, can you do this?" Fox chuckled as he kicked a hacky-sack into the air and caught it with his snout.
"Watch me!" Cathy the brown, black, and white beagle dog kicked it with the insole of her foot and caught it neatly on her snout, too, "Bill?" Bill gulped. He kicked it and it flew high, but as he raised his head to get it, Wolf pinched him in the belly. Bill opened his mouth for a yell, but the sack of beans landed in his mouth and gagged him.
"Hey!" Bill whined as he spat the yarn bag out, "You jerk!" Bill tackled Wolf playfully on the ground and gave the large gray animal a socket punch.
Fox was nine at the time, nineteen months before Wolf turned his back on him. Fox, Cathy, Bill, and Wolf were walking home from school and over the residential area that is their home. The first had to cross a small bridge before Bill, Fox, and Cathy got to their houses.
"Gotta go!" Wolf jumped up and ran away, will Bill running after him for a few steps before he gave up and rejoined the fox and the dog.
"Ooh, that's not fair," Bill harrumphed. Cathy Hearken laughed heartily. She looked stunning for a little kid. With long, straight, and sleek brown hair, she was a tomboy and followed Fox, Bill, and Wolf around. She was unusually brave, and liked to do really 'gross' stuff. Fox liked her a lot. He had known her for three years when she moved in next door to him. Being a young and naïve kit, Fox had sometimes dreamed about him and Cathy getting married. Fox laughed at the idea today. They had contrasting personalities. Even though, Fox never had a chance to tell her about his feelings.
"Hmm, do you two want to hang out at the river valley?" Cathy challenged.
"The ravine part of it?" Bill asked.
"Where else?"
"There's the water itself," Fox shrugged. Cathy laughed. Her laugh was musical, and it haunted Fox to this day.
"That's boring; I want to climb down the cliff!"
"Uh, sure," Bill said. The ravine was a steep mud cliff to the river. Years of erosion had left the dirt in a peaking cliff. Little kids liked to play beneath it, but Fox had never tried to play above it.
Being a fast runner, Cathy sped quickly away from Fox and Bill, who panted to catch up with her. They were looking at the trees and the houses across the river a second later.
"Wow, that's really cool," Bill shielded his eyes from the bright afternoon sun and walked up to the cliff. Cathy did the same.
"So green!" She said. Fox walked carefully over, too, to see the scene.
Fox couldn't really take inventory of what happened right after that; it happened too fast. It had rained the previous day and the mud and gravel was loose under the long grass. Fox's additional weight caused the weak wall to collapse. Fox, having his father's pilot instincts, caught both Cathy and Bill before they fell, he himself hanging on with his legs, digging deep into the dirt to prevent getting dragged off himself.
"AAAA!" Cathy and Bill shouted together.
"Ugh! What did you two eat for lunch?" Fox panted as he felt his arms stretched.
"Are you okay, Fox?" Cathy asked, getting her calm measures back in an instant, "Can you hang on?"
"Not. For long." Fox grunted.
"Then let me go," Cathy said with a hard face. Fox stared at her.
"It must be at least a hundred feet down!" Fox whimpered. Cathy glared at him.
"It's me or all three of us, now LET GO!" She swung his arm furiously. Fox screamed as he felt his paw slip under her flailing.
"No, no! Don't do-" Fox was never able to finish his sentence. Cathy gave a final swing and dropped down. Fox screamed, and so did Bill, but the beagle remained silent, all the way down. She never felt any pain: her neck had been snapped instantly.
**
"Oh, I'm so sorry, Fox," Krystal whispered as she heard Fox's story telepathically, "That must've been hard for you."
"Yeah." Fox sighed, "I've lost so many people."
"And you have saved so many more," Krystal patted Fox's shoulder comfortingly, "Including mine." Fox raised an eyebrow.
"Three times," Fox pointed out.
"Mmm-hmm, and I'm very grateful for that," Krystal hugged Fox and rubbed her cheek against his. Fox chuckled again as he felt himself get zapped by the static electricity. Fox pried her away.
"Why do you do that?" Fox asked as he remembered how she did that the day that Fox saved her from StarHyena base.
"It's a sign of affection, of course, and besides, it feels good," Krystal chuckled. She annoyed Fox by rubbing again. He flinched as he got shocked again. Fox sighed as he hugged back tight. It did feel good, except for the part with the electricity.
"Hey, I thought I shouldn't have left you two alone," Tom laughed. Fox and Krystal quickly pushed apart.
"It is not what you think," Fox said quickly.
"It's exactly what we think," Slippy giggled as he came in with Peppy. Peppy smiled warmly.
"'It' is a good way to get your mind off the bad things in life," his smile grew bigger, his big front teeth gleaming in the light.
"We're not." Krystal began.
"Yeah, right," Tom clapped a paw on Fox's shoulder, "Way to go, Fox. She is kinda."
"It's not." Fox pushed Tom away.
"It is, it is," Slippy was chuckling his head off. Fox groaned unhappily.
"Well, it's gonna be a long day."
**
"Ooo, back from bed, Fox? Did a certain someone-"
"Knock it off, Falco, or else I'm gonna change the password to the Great Fox and stop giving you all that money," Fox snapped. That shut him up.
".There was reportedly fifty-three dead and two hundred and eighteen more injured in the bombing on Fortuna involving the StarHyena team. Following the bombing, witnesses claim that the evil group of four started chopping down thirty-six more bystanders with a large, flaming broadsword." The dog reporter babbled.
"What?" Fox swung his head in the direction of the television. Falco, Katt, and Tom looked as well.
"This act of terrorism is a sure sign that they want Venom back in power. And on to Mitch with the weather."
"Oh, that is NOT good," Slippy dropped his jaw as he came in as well.
"I thought the General nuked the place on Corneria. How are they still alive?" Tom asked.
"They weren't in the base, probably," Slippy said, pointing out the obvious.
"Ooh, time to die, Leon." Falco muttered.
"Again," Fox finished for him, "We killed them twice already, remember? Once on Fortuna, and the other on Venom eight years ago."
"There were a lot of ships still flying around when that happened. The are most likely clones," Slippy said. Falco nodded.
"And as if killing two hundred of those morons on Area 6 wasn't enough," Peppy called from the kitchen. Fox flipped open his communicator as it started beeping. It was General Pepper.
"StarFox, I need you to-"
"I know, I just heard. You want us to take out the StarHyena team right?"
"How did you guess?" Pepper asked in amazement before he clicked off. A moment later, the communicator started beeping again, startling Fox. Fox flipped it open again.
"Did you hear that? Over-" Wolf began.
"I know, I know. The Fortuna incident."
"Yeah. Hey, do you want me to come with you? I need to stretch my skills after all these years," Wolf suggested.
"Do you have a plane?"
"No. I thought you could give me one."
"Oh, ok. Looks like Slippy has another job on his webbed hands."
**
"Well, I for one don't trust him," Falco mumbled.
"Shut it, birdbrain," Wolf growled, "It's bad enough that I'm stuck with a really dumb jet on this mission." It was true. Slippy didn't have time to paint the new Arwing, so Wolf's jet looked very plain and metallic. Among the many things that an O'Donnel hates, it was having a bland jet.
Flying through the asteroid field again, now with six wingmen at his side, made Fox feel much safer than flying with two, one of them being a complete maniac at shooting.
'Hey! I heard that!' Krystal shouted through minds. Tom chuckled over the radio.
"What?" Katt asked while doing flashy spins in her shuttle.
"Oh, nothing much."
"Whatever. How long 'til the base?" Katt asked.
"Erm. ETA: Twenty minutes. I think I see smaller asteroids up ahead. Blast 'em away!" Tom gave a 'ha' as he pummeled down four of the smaller rocks. Fox gave a competitive grunt as he blasted five more. Krystal shot, but hit Falco twice.
"Wow, I swear that must've reduced his shields by at least thirty percent!" Tom said.
"Shut up!" Krystal slouched in her seat.
Tom was true to his word. Fifteen minutes later, they were soaring through the fluffy clouds of snow towards the town that had been terrorized.
"Hmm, is it just me or is that the StarHyena team up front?" Fox squinted.
"I think it's the second answer," Tom pointed at his radar. Indeed, four Wolfen-class jets were screaming towards them.
"Break formation and engage," Falco commanded.
"Hey, that's my line!" Fox said.
"Oh, well. You know me. I always want to be the leader."
"Shoot!"
"What's wrong? Did ya hurt your poor paws on the steering."
"No, you idiot, shoot!"
"Oh, right," Falco banked sharply and spiraled away from Fox.
"Ah, the infamous StarFox," a hyena, probably Britch, came over the line.
"Ah, the infamous and moronic StarHyena," Fox mimicked. Britch fumed.
"You are going down," Britch pronounced each syllable with a sharp malice.
"Not if you're going down first, you giggling jack-"
"Hey, Wolf!" Leon shouted, surprised, "We weren't expecting your help." Leon tailed Falco and started shooting. Wolf pulled up behind him.
"Of course not. You should've been expecting my hostility," Wolf snarled as he shot the Wolfen jet. He burst the engine and Leon's ship went up in flames, but not before the lizard himself uttered a dirty curse to his former ally.
"What the-" Andrew looked behind him, "Oh, a little pink shuttle. I would suppose that rotten frog got his ship a makeover?" Katt hissed and spat like a, well, angry cat. She shot Andrew furiously with her pink lasers and the goat went down in a ball of fire. Slippy cheered from the Great Fox.
"Yay! He's dead, he's dead," he chanted.
"Ah, Peppy old pal," Pigma sneered, "Back so soon? Aren't ya gonna have a little chat with poor old Piggy?" Peppy growled, which was unnatural for a rabbit. Fox felt his anger rising. The tip of Fox's Arwing slammed into the back of Pigma's and damaged something that started ejecting white clouds.
"I'd rather not, thank you," Peppy said softly, watching from a screen as Pigma suffocated from the damage to his life support system. His ship went smack into a mountain a few minutes later, "Traitor."
"Oh, crap," Britch muttered, watching as his wingmen crashed one by one, "I'm out of here." He ejected out of his jet as Wolf shot it into oblivion.
"Hey, come back here and fight like the filthy coward that you are!" Wolf shouted. Britch laughed an annoying, nasally, high laugh, not unlike Slippy's. His cockpit landed in the snow and he jumped out.
"I got him," Fox said calmly as he bumped down in the snow, too, and started chasing Britch, who was stumbling in the heavy flakes as the top layer of snow collapsed under his weight. Fox was more careful, jumping here and there, catching up with Britch quickly. Knowing that he didn't have far to go, the gray and black spotted hyena turned and pulled out a long sword from the scabbard in his belt.
"Bring in on, McCloud!" He chuckled. Fox drew his blaster gun and shot. Britch easily deflected it with his sword.
"Cheater," Fox mumbled as he kept shooting. I have to get closer. Fox thought as his Ruby glowed red.
"Huh?" Britch looked around confused as Fox did quick laps around him. Britch stopped dead.
"Big mistake!" Fox stopped at the back of Britch's head, pointing his gun right at his brains. Britch must've been quicker than Fox had imagined. With a flick of his paw, Britch's sword turned flame, and just as Fox shot him in the back of the head, the sword swung around and impaled him in the chest. Britch lay dead in the snow, his gray fluids and his blood staining the sparkling white, but Fox did also on his back, the flaming broadsword protruding from his sternum, puncturing his right lung, stealing his air.
"Fox!" Krystal ran over to him. She must've followed him down. Fox coughed weakly.
"Yeah."
"Save your breath," she chuckled as she heaved the sword out of his chest. Fox flinched, arched his back, and yelped loudly. Krystal clamped his jaws together with her paw as she pressed the Emerald to his lungs. A moment later, the familiar flash of green light met Fox's eyes and he felt better, although still in pain and short of oxygen.
"Lucky I got here, or else we would've had to visit the afterlife again," she stroked Fox's cheek fur softly as he tried to get up. Krystal pushed him down again, "Save your strength. I know what it's like to get shot, stabbed, and sliced. It still hurts, right?"
"Mmm-hmm," Fox sighed.
"It'll be okay in a few minutes. Can you breathe?"
"Hardly," Fox coughed again, "It's really cold. The snow, I mean."
"Aw, poor Fox," Krystal laughed.
"I get enough of that from Falco," Fox pretended to look hurt as he pushed her playfully. Krystal leaned down and rubbed her cheek against his.
"Stop it!" Fox laughed as he got shocked for the third time in two days.
"A-ha! Caught orange-and-blue-pawed yet again!" Tom put his paws on his hips like a police officer. Fox quickly pushed Krystal away, and her him. The effect was the breakage of the top layer of harder snow from melting and freezing again (the melting and freezing makes the top half- inch a tad harder than the fluffy snow at the bottom, making the top support a maximum of two hundred pounds). Fox got pushed under the snow three feet deep.
"It's not what you think!" Fox's voice called, muffled, from the hole.
"Oh, it's exactly what I-" Tom stumbled as he was hit by a snowball from Fox-in-the-snow-hole.
"Hmm, déjà vu." Fox said from the hole.
**
"That is one cool sword," Tom said as Fox lay the sword and scabbard on the kitchen table.
"This is the third and last weapon, I think," Fox examined the scabbard. It had runes on it, "Hmm? Krystal's what does that say?"
"Erm, Ach Hanna. It's something like Flame of Power. Yeah, I'm pretty sure," Krystal handed the scabbard back to Fox and he sheathed the sword in it. Fox then tied the two strings that were attached to the scabbard on his belt.
"You cut a very dashing figure with that thing," Peppy chuckled.
"I know," Fox posed. Everyone laughed.
"Shouldn't we give that to the museum or something?" Slippy asked.
"Are you nuts?" Falco and Wolf exclaimed together.
"I think that head of yours has gotten a bit more hollowed than the last time I checked," Fox rapped on Slippy's skull, "If we give it to them, they won't give it back!"
"Oh, yeah. I forgot about that part."
"Well, anyway, time to go home. Make sure that General Pepper gives you hazard pay," Falco said as he led Katt out the door. Wolf waved as he went, too.
"Um, Kris, I gave you a bank account when Wolf foxnapped you, so, if anyone asks, your last name is Blue, okay?" Fox asked.
"Krystal Blue. Ugh, that sounds like Thomas' name," Krystal looked at Tom, who pretended to reel back in shock and hurt, "But it's fine."
"Oh, I'm beat. I'm gonna go to bed now," Peppy yawned and walked out. Slippy and Tom followed. Krystal held Fox back for a moment.
"Now, just to make sure; I owe you only two lives now, right?" Krystal asked.
"Yeah, and don't forget it! I have some extra credit that you have to burn off," Fox laughed. Fox thought for a moment and threw off his metal helmet, then hugged Krystal and rubbed cheeks. This time, he didn't get shocked. Krystal, however, was stunned.
"I thought you'd never do that," she smiled.
"I knew it! I KNEW it!" Tom shouted happily from the doorway. Fox and Krystal pushed away quickly again.
"It's not what you think," Fox said.
"Oh, it's exactly what I think," Tom laughed.
"Oh, jeez, this is a vicious cycle," Krystal muttered.
"Does it ever end?" Fox asked.
**
It was just another leisurely day on the Great Fox, with the money flowing in and peace restored. Fox felt a lot better now that Pigma was dead again. It meant that Fox didn't have to deal with that traitor until the next time he got cloned.
It seemed like Wolf was about to get arrested when General Pepper and three of his special guards showed up the other day. Wolf was munching on supper with Fox and Tom when they stormed in. Wolf hid under the table until General Pepper showed him the Medal of Honor that he was supposed to get.
Krystal became a bit louder again, and that was good, since Fox hated when she didn't want to talk. Before, Krystal didn't say a thing except a simple "Uh-huh" or "Uh-uh" to questions that Fox asked. Now, she was all happy again and went into more detailed answers like "Yeah that's great" or "Ugh that's just wrong".
Peppy had his birthday the day after they came back from Fortuna and everyone gave him a more formal party, remembering that Tom went screaming down the corridors when Krystal popped out of the door and shouted "HAPPY BIRTHDAY".
Fox went a few days without getting zapped from Krystal, just because they didn't save each other's lives. Fox thought Krystal owed him enough and decided that he wouldn't save her from utter death unless she really needed help. Fox wondered for a minute about the irony of that promise.
"Hey, McCloud, whatcha thinking?" Wolf sat down on the chair opposite Fox and puffed out his chest. He was wearing the Medal of Honor.
"Can it, O'Donnel. I got about sixty of those," Fox whacked his knife on his toast. Wolf's chest seemed to get smaller for a second.
"And I got about six hundred from Andross."
"Yeah, but that's the evil emperor that wants to kill everyone, right?"
"Good point," Wolf shrugged and stole Fox's toast. Fox growled a bit and got another piece.
"Wolf, do you remember Cathy?" Fox asked.
"Who?" He said through a mouthful of bread and butter.
"Cathy Hearken!"
"Oh, her. Uh yeah, I think. She's that cute beagle we hung out around, er, grade four. Right?" Wolf waved his stolen toast around.
"Yeah. Remember how she died?" Fox looked up. Wolf paused.
"Broken neck. So?"
"Ah, this is gonna sound weird, but how long did it take me to get over her death?"
"Uh, dunno. You were talking about her every day for about a year," Wolf winced as he accidentally jabbed himself with a butter knife.
"Whoa. What's it called when you get that really weird tingling in your stomach when you see a person?"
"Em, a heart attack?"
"I think that's pretty close," Fox said sarcastically.
"Nervousness?"
"Yeah, that's it. And why do you get nervous?"
"Fear? Excitement? Oi, I don't know."
"Guess!"
"Okay, okay. Erm. Love?"
"Hmm." Fox paused for a second, then jumped up and ran away, leaving his second piece of buttered toast on his plate. Wolf shrugged and took that one as well.
"Hey! Fox, Fox! I planted a listening bug on Bill!" Slippy burst in the door; nearly whacking Fox in the head with a thing he was holding as Fox tried to get out. Slippy was obviously very excited because he was squeaking like an old door hinge.
"So?" Wolf asked.
"Bill's with Colonel Alben for breakfast!" Slippy waved a radio around. Fox and Wolf leaped for it. Fox got it first and turned it on. Bill's voice came over and everyone kept quiet.
"Good morning, Alex."
"Mmm, hi, Bill."
"I made toast."
"Oh, you're so sweet when you're nice to me."
"Well, that's you."
After that, there were a few kissing sounds and Slippy fake-retched.
"Another one, please? I haven't loved anyone for a few years."
"Aw, come on, Bill. You still owe me for last night."
"Yeah, I think I fell asleep right after. It was so tiring."
Fox, Slippy, and Wolf stared at the radio as Fox put it on the kitchen table. Fox exchanged glances with Wolf and they both tried to cover their laughter by stuffing paws into snouts.
"Hmm, who knew nailing up drywall was such hard work?"
Slippy turned it off and let out a long 'Oh'.
"Ha! Our Bill! Imagine that."
"Oh, I'd rather not talk about it," Wolf laughed, "I think I'm gonna be sick."
**
"The mechanism is almost complete, sir."
"That's good. Did you perfect the brainwashing process of the chip?"
"Yes, sir, but there would be a few things that he could still remember. Vital things, like talk or walk."
"Of course. Or else what use would he be? If he can't pilot for us, what good is he then?"
"The chip had been made to stay in one place."
"And why is that?"
"That way, the chemical release would be regulated, and therefore our enemy wouldn't forget everything or forget too little."
"What happens if the chip is removed?"
"The chemicals would stop, and the host would slowly regain memories."
"How long until they are all back?"
"That depends. It takes usually from a few minutes to a few hours, depending on the type of person."
"McCloud is a stubborn one. He shouldn't take more than a few seconds. I'll just pray that his friends don't find out."
"They wouldn't expect a thing. They'll just think that Fox went nuts and just wanted some more killing done."
"That's the best case scenario. Nonetheless, Caiman, good job. You know that praise doesn't come easily out of me."
"Thank you, sir," the frog turned and went out the door, hoping that Andross' plan would work out.
**
"Now, Tom, you are going to tell us where your parents are or else I'm gonna slice you to bits," Krystal waved her staff threateningly. Tom just laughed harder.
"Oh, come on, Thomas. It's almost tradition that we would like to see the parents of a new member," Peppy said. Tom, if it was possible, laughed even harder. His face turned scarlet red beneath his fur.
Peppy was right. Every new member of the StarFox team must show the rest of the team who his or her parents are. Katt, on one paw, had dragged everyone to Zoness for a few days the previous week. She stayed quiet all the way, and the reason became apparent. What they ended up in was a small cemetery. Her parents had both been killed. They were killed during the first wave of attacks to Zoness about ten years ago. Katt, age 12, hijacked a Venomian plane after she saw her parents murdered in front of her eyes and turned it into her pink shuttle as it is today.
Wolf's parents were also dead. They were killed when their ship to Fortuna had been shot down accidentally by an ignorant Cornerian pilot who disobeyed orders. Wolf was stuck living with a pair of mice since he was eight years old.
"Aw, shut up!" Fox said, clamping his ears together as Tom howled with laughter.
"My real parents," he managed to gasp out, "Oh. Ha, ha, ha, ha."
"Yes, yes?"
"They're both, well, Arctic foxes. Heh, living under gravestones over five million light years away on a planet that has been totally obliterated!"
"Uh, that's not funny," Slippy said bleakly.
"Nor is it possible! That's too far," Krystal shook Tom's shoulders as he leaned against a wall, shaking with laughter.
"Yes it is, if you've been living on a ship with hyperdrive capabilities since when you were a one year old kit! It's funny because. I though the two crewmen of the ship, both males, were my parents! Ha! For over ten years I thought that!"
"Wow. Do you even know your parents?" Fox asked. Tom stopped laughing quickly.
"My story is a bit like Krystal's. A crazy scientist murdered my parents, and after, the scientist blew up my world. I don't know where it is, and I don't have a star map on my leg."
"I thought your dad gave you your necklace for a birthday present," Fox said.
"Oh, I lied. I stole it from my ship's dead commander when Venomian units attacked it. I stole a shuttle and got out when I was, say, twenty. We happened to pass by the Lylat, so I landed on the bluest planet I could see. I have lived on Corneria since."
"This is messed up." Fox mumbled.
"I know," Tom chuckled.
"We have a lot in common, then," Krystal said seductively as she leaned her shoulder towards Tom.
"Erm, yeah, sure," he said as he backed off. There were some bits of long chuckling across the room.
"Ah, Fox, I see that you're not laughing."
"Shut up, Slippy."
**
"When can we start?"
"We can start tomorrow, sir. I can just inject the chip in Fox with a syringe when he's on the streets. He'll never know what hit him."
"Good, good. You will receive a prize when you get back, Caiman."
"Thank you, sir. You are too kind."
"Oh, to you, maybe, but not to the people of the Lylat once Fox obeys my every command. I can taste the tainted blood of their veins already."
"You are a very evil and sadistic maniac, sir."
"Why, thank you, Caiman!"
"Of course, sir."
"Did I reward you for cloning me again yet?"
"I don't think so, sir."
"Aw, cut the 'sir' crap. I think I like 'your majesty' better."
"Of course, your majesty."
"That's a lot better."
**
"Can you go shopping for food again, Fox? I think Falco cleaned us out yesterday," Peppy sat down on a couch.
"Sure thing, Peppy. I'll be back in a flash," Fox put on his jacket and went outside.
It was a nice day. The warm sun was out with a refreshing breeze. Fox gave a 'eh' nonchalantly and decided to walk instead of taking Wolf's old car. That museum artifact was getting really busted up.
Birds sung (the wandering bards with stereos playing rock music in their wings, anyway) and the streets bustled with activity. There were so many people going this way and that, Fox nearly got trampled.
As he neared the general store, Fox saw a familiar green toad walking by. Shrugging it off, as his memory wasn't working too well, Fox went by without a word. Suddenly, something sharp poked him in the right shoulder. Fox looked back. The green frog was gone.
"Ow," Fox looked at his shoulder. There wasn't anything bleeding, so Fox decided not to worry about it. Entering the general store, he racked his brain for what he had came shopping for. A moment later, he was wondering what his name was. Fox felt himself get dizzy as he was dragged out by a green thing that he thought he had seen just a second ago.
**
"Ugh, I'm starving. Where's that orange-butted, absent-minded fox?" Peppy mumbled after an hour of waiting.
"Wow, you can get pretty cranky when you're hungry, old rabbit," Krystal giggled as she set down a plate of old carrots in front of the graying hare. Peppy picked one up and nibbled a bit. It was a bit dry.
"Mmm? How long has this been sitting on the counter?" Peppy asked. Krystal picked up the can and read it.
"Uh, today's the 16th, so this thing has been on the shelf for. Three months over the expiration date."
"Ack!" Peppy spat the orange pieces out, "Oh, I'm gonna murder Fox for this!"
"Yeesh, talk about delirious of hunger," Tom chuckled. His stomach suddenly gave out a loud rumble, "Hey, where is Fox, anyway?"
"Oh, you two! I'll go to the store and find him," Krystal slid on a cloth jacket and walked out.
"You better hurry! I don't think Peppy's going to like my flies," Slippy called after her after gulping down another spoonful of the insects. Shoving his can towards Peppy, he said, "They're really good with hot sauce."
"Aaargh!"
**
"Mr. McCloud? No, I don't think he came by today. You usually remember those things, so I'm pretty sure," the raccoon storekeeper answered when Krystal asked him where Fox was.
"Oh? Is there another store that he might've gone to?" She asked politely.
"I don't think so. Mr. McCloud really likes my tuna, so I'm pretty certain that he wouldn't go anywhere else," the raccoon, Mr. Spiraltail, grinned. Krystal grinned back warmly.
"Sorry to bother you, then," Krystal waved a good-bye and pushed the door open, "Hmm, I don't think he's that forgetful." Krystal mumbled to herself, thinking about Fox. 'Oh, I'm so stupid! Fox?'
'Uh?'
'Fox, where are you? Peppy wants his carrots, I think! Ha! He called you a orange-butted, absent-minded vulpine.'
'Who is Peppy?'
'Ah, knock it off, Fox.'
'Knock what off?'
'Cut the smart Alec stuff and come back to the hanger.'
'What hanger?'
Krystal growled angrily. 'Come on, Fox!' Silence. Krystal growled again and stormed off into the store again to buy food.
**
"Who am I?" He asked. He was in a large metal-walled lab. There were flasks and monitors on the tables, the counters, the cabinets, and even on the floor. The lighting was a bit of, since there was only one bulb hanging from the ceiling.
He looked at his paw. The paw was a dull orange. He looked at his tail as he grabbed it. It was orange, too. A frog appeared in the doorway opposite where he was sitting. He noticed as well that he was sitting in a small, metal chair.
"Regulate the chemical control now," Caiman heard through his radio. The fox didn't hear.
"Your name is William Robins. Don't you remember me?" Caiman was sure to put on a convincing tone. William shook his head. William examined his clothes. He was wearing a green jumpsuit with a cloth jacket. The jumpsuit looked like it had a tag ripped off of it.
"Who are you?" William asked.
"I'm Caiman, your best friend!" Caiman said, shocked, "You must've had some concussion. It wiped out all your memories!"
"It must've. Where am I?"
"Oh, it looks like I'll have to start all over again," Caiman sighed, "You are in an underground lab on Corneria. Remember that planet?"
"Yeah, it's where I live," William turned his attention to Caiman. He was wearing a black leather jacket with black jeans. He had a red cap on that read 'A'.
"Okay, good. We are soldiers that work for Venom, working on a case to kill the assassins of Emperor Andross."
"Andross," William repeated. That name rang a bell.
"Yeah. We're working undercover. We need to seek out a blue fox, a white fox, an old, gray hare, a pink cat, a blue bird, a gray wolf, and a green frog. Well, not me! We need to kill them all. They are traitors," Caiman said. William looked up suddenly.
"Those animals colors sound familiar."
"They should. They were once our friends, but now, they are our enemies. Anyone who calls you Fox is a traitor. Anyone who calls you McCloud is a traitor. Those were your codenames, remember?"
"Yeah, sort of," William shrugged. Caiman gave him thumbs up.
"Now, grab a gun and let's go find those morons!"
**
Krystal grunted as she tried to carry all five of the bags by herself. It wasn't well going, and the tuna almost spilled.
"I hope Fox got back all right," she mumbled to herself as she saw the hanger door. Walking in, she saw that someone had already opened that hatch, "Oh that was nice of Peppy. I guess he's getting really impatient. Wow, he missed breakfast, and now it's time for lunch." Krystal said as she looked at the watch that Fox gave her a few days ago.
Climbing in carefully, Krystal walked slowly up the steps and into the kitchen. A loud groan made her drop all the bags.
"Krystal," Tom wheezed. He had a laser hole through his chest. Peppy was on the floor, as well as Slippy, unconscious. They were all shot in the torso.
"Who did this?" Krystal shouted as she pressed the Emerald to each of their wounds.
"Fox did!" Tom moaned as the hole cleared up.
"What?" Krystal asked as she attended to Peppy and Slippy. Blood was flowing freely from the wounds, and that meant that they were fresh. Krystal almost slipped on the red liquid when she was rushing to Slippy. Blood was everywhere.
"He went nuts! He came back with a frog, and they shot us! I think they took the sword, too."
"It couldn't have been Fox."
"It was. He had his jacket and jumpsuit. The Ruby was on his chest, too," Tom coughed as he straitened up, "I think it's on the security camera, if you don't believe me."
"Let's see, then," Krystal dragged Tom off into the cockpit.
Tom, still winded, punched in a few buttons and a color movie appeared on the screen. There was Fox, in his helmet and suit, with a green and ugly frog. They quickly shot Tom first, then Slippy, then Peppy after Peppy talked for a while. They didn't make out the words; the movie had no sound.
"No."
"Yeah," Tom looked at the floor. When he looked up again, Krystal had tears in her eyes.
"That is not Fox. It must be a mistake. I know Fox and that. That. That is Fox," Krystal sobbed. Tom put a paw on her shoulder as she cried softly.
**
"Wonderful, William! Three down, five more to go!" Caiman clapped his hand on William's back, "Now didn't it feel good to get rid of the traitors?"
"You know what?" William looked up as Caiman drove the hover car from the murder scene quickly, "As long as they were bad, that felt real good."
"Way to go, way to go," Caiman smiled. Andross was going to be very happy with him.
**
Krystal waited until everyone was asleep on the Great Fox, then she got her staff, clamped on her bracelets, and headed out. It was going to be easy to find that traitor. All she had to do is scan his memories. Tom can't come; he was still hurt. No one must know; they will stop her. The whole idea was beginning to sound impossible for Krystal.
Krystal decided to steal Wolf's car, just because it was a lot quieter than hover cars. Getting the hang of the controls after she banged into a few obstacles like trees or rocks, she sped off to the east, toward Andross' secret lab.
**
"Good job, Caiman," Andross whispered in the control room. The lab itself was divided into three parts: A living space, the lab itself, and a control room. William was currently in the living space. Caiman was with Andross in the control room. The entrance door to the elevator shaft was beside the living space.
"Yes, but I think I detected a fault in my design. I guess I was too hurried, I didn't have time to make the system electric-proof. A shock can electrocute the whole chip."
"No matter. I just need to kill five more of those idiots, and then Fox McCloud will help me rule the Lylat."
"Hmm, a good and simple plan always works best."
"Right you are, Caiman. Your reward will be here shortly. Is ten thousand credits enough to quench your thirst for wealth?"
"More than enough, your majesty."
"Heh, heh, yeah, suck it up, Caiman."
"You are very cruel, your majesty."
"I know. Go get something to eat, then. I think I made a sandwich earlier in the lab."
**
Creeping slowly toward the strange cave, Krystal readied her blaster gun. The cave itself was small and dry, and it ended shortly in an elevator door. Knowing that Fox would know of her presence if she used the elevator, Krystal forced open the door and climbed down the shaft itself.
**
"Mmm, Andross outdid himself on this one. I wonder where he got the pickles." Caiman muttered to himself as he munched happily on the large sandwich. Little did he know that a blue fox crept up behind him and readied a knife.
**
"Ugh, this guy eats like a pig," Krystal murmured as she cleaned off the knife on her shirt. Caiman, as his nametag said, didn't bleed a lot when she slit his throat. The poor moron didn't even have time to look at his killer. Krystal got herself up again and turned around.
"I got ya!" William leaped at her and tackled her to the ground. Jerking her blaster away from her, he pulled her up by the neck and put her in a half nelson.
"Let go," Krystal wheezed, totally helpless at what the orange fox was doing to her. Krystal coughed in a strangled way. William loosened his grip a bit.
"I like it better when my prisoners are alive," he hissed in her ear as he shoved her along to the control room.
"Fox, what are you doing?" Krystal managed to whisper through confined air.
"My name isn't Fox!"
"Yes it is! You're Fox McCloud! Have you gone completely insane?" Krystal wriggled a bit as William loosened his grip a bit more. He was going at a quick pace, his foot catching on her heel as he strode along.
"Are you insane?"
"Let go, Fox. You can't be like this," Krystal felt a tear roll of her cheek.
"Stop calling me that! My name is William!"
"You have gone mad," she said in a low tone. The door to the control room opened and Fox pushed her in. Andross turned in his rotating chair.
"Ah, what a unpleasant surprise! We don't have jail cells, so I guess it would be a Venomian tradition to drink the traitor's blood and burn them alive. But, I'm busy," Andross turned back to his computer, "Too bad Caiman had to go so soon. Oh, William, the torture tools are in the cabinet on the other side of the room. I think I could be able to hear her screams, but insult her louder so I can laugh, okay?"
"Fox. They've brainwashed you," Krystal whispered. Her quiet cries echoed off the dimly lit, metal walls. The light came from the computer only.
"I don't know what you are talking about," William said as he clamped one of Krystal's paws to a handcuff nailed to the overhang of pipes. William unsheathed his sword and Krystal shuddered as she heard the metallic ring of death. Coming up behind her, William touched his cheek on the right side of Krystal's head. The flat edge of the sword was raised beside her left cheek and Krystal felt the cold metal against her fur.
"Fox, you don't know what you are about to do!" Krystal cried, "Let go!"
"I do know what I'm doing: Getting rid of a traitor," William smelled Krystal's fur. She must've taken a shower before; she smelled a bit like rosemary, "It's a shame a beautiful vixen like you should go to waste. I kinda like you."
"I'm not a traitor, Fox," Krystal whimpered as William nicked her neck with the blade.
"They all say that," William's tongue darted out and tasted the drop of blood that came out, his cheek still touching hers.
"Fine, kill me, but make it quick," Krystal whispered, almost silently, in William's ear. She slowly rubbed her cheek against his; "You're not you, I know that." William suddenly felt himself get shocked by the static electricity and flinched. He didn't say a word as he turned back to where Andross was sitting with his back to them. He walked over.
"It's a shame Caiman wasn't here. He would've enjoyed the screams of agony," William said.
"Yeah. I should go and say on how much he's actually missing out. I think I'll clone him."
"No don't. There's only one good way to tell him and one good place to be," William said as he silently raised his sword, "And that is in person and in hell!" Fox screamed as he plunged the sword into Andross' neck and severed his spinal cord. Andross hung limp and his blood stained the chair. Heaving the sword out again, Fox jabbed his shoulder with it and dug a finger in the wound. Surprisingly, he didn't flinch in pain during the whole ordeal, and he flicked out a small, oval shape that was no bigger and a grain of rice from his cut.
"Fox?" Krystal asked from the other side of the chamber.
"Yeah. Too bad I learned to read minds, too," Fox spat on Andross' corpse and sliced Krystal's handcuffs with his broadsword. He placed the small bug in a vial he found in his pocket, "Slippy would want to see this thing."
"He brainwashed you. I told you that!" Krystal jumped up and hugged Fox tight. She held him so hard that he couldn't breathe. She quickly let go, "You are back to being McCloud again, right?"
"Uh, yeah. Read my mind, if you want to make sure," Fox smiled. Krystal hugged him again.
"How did you learn to do that?"
"Um, I don't know. I think you just stretch your mind. It came a bit naturally after all those times you scanned my memories," Fox shrugged. Krystal took off his helmet and threw it away. She rubbed hard on his cheek.
"I don't know what to do. Laugh or cry."
"You can do both at the same time, you know," Fox looked deep into her eyes for a moment. He tried very hard not to crack up.
"Oh, don't think this is the start of a relationship, Fox," Krystal frowned, "Don't think. Know." Suddenly, she pressed her lips against his. She held it there for a second, then let go slowly.
"This isn't the most romantic of places, you know," Fox smiled. Krystal nodded and led him out, one paw on his shoulder and vise versa.
**
"But you still shot me," Slippy whined. The bug explained everything, and everyone forgave Fox for nearly killing them all. The story was long, and for the third time, Fox made everyone sit on the couches and listen quietly.
"That's good, though. Real good," Falco patted Fox in the back, "Who doesn't want Slippy dead?"
"HEY!"
"Sorry for that laser hole in your back, Peppy," Fox grinned.
"Oh, I'm fine. Actually, after Krystal's special medicine, my back pain is gone," Peppy sighed. Krystal lied, of course, to everyone about how she saved Peppy, Tom, and Slippy's lives.
Fox smiled at Krystal, and she smiled back from the other couch. Secrets were kept, always. Even when they block people you trust from vital things, just incase they go nuts on you.
**
A/N: Too bad the romance part didn't come out well. I think I should write another story about Fox and Krystal. I am done and thank you for reading.