THE FINAL BATTLE
by Arkanis Wolfen 14/January/2003
The Fallen Warrior (part 2)
"I know I must do it, it's our last hope. The problem is…how"-Peppy Hare Star Fox Member-
CORNERIA-
EASTERN SWAMP, NEAR ANDROSS' 8th HIGH SECURITY WORK CAMP
"How's it look?" the oldest one of the group asked.
He looked everywhere for a possible unguarded spot. There were twelve guards on the front entrance, three guards and an anti-infantry light tank on the back door, three guards on each security tower and the search lights were on. There were three cameras as far as he could see, but he knew there had to be more. The workers were having full nighttime work, as punishment for a small unsuccessful uprising that occurred a few days ago, so there was extra security everywhere.
"…completely guarded, like always. I don't think we can do anything tonight. Let's get back caves" The old rabbit took his binoculars off and sighed. He slowly got up and quietly ordered the rest of the group to return to their hideout.
The older one approached him and put his hand over his friend's shoulder.
"Is something bothering you Peppy?" he asked.
The old rabbit was Peppy Hare, former member of Star Fox and the only one to escape the Hunters. The other one was General Pepper, who managed to escape Andross' prison with the help of his few remaining troops, but since they were living as outlaws, they didn't call each other by their ranks no more. Besides, they were both Generals now.
"It's no big deal Pepper, it's just…damn it! It's just not FAIR!" he yelled out loud as he punched a tree. A single tear started to fall down his cheek. The group stopped and looked at him surprised by his yell. Pepper nodded his head ordering them to continue. He looked at his friend and lowered his head.
"With that yell of yours, you could have easily get us all killed, you know?"
"I'm sorry…I guess I just couldn't help it"
"C'mon tell me. What was that for?"
"It's just not fair! Why did the young ones get caught while we escaped! They could have done much more good than we can. We're too old for this" Peppy paused, sighed and continued "I know we have a small group of soldiers with us, but we can't lead them forever, we're just too old. Geez! If somebody had told me back then that I'd end up living in caves…CAVES man!" Peppy said.
"I'm not saying they're the best Peppy, but you know they're just for covering. We have some pretty good facilities in there and thanks to our radar-jammer, they haven't found them"
"…(sigh)…guess you're right" he paused and his face turned into a mix of anger and shame "Oh man, look at me! I'm standing here complaining about them, and they're way better than the work camps Fox and the rest were brought to. Crud! They're nothing more than slaves now…and I feel so guilty about it" the old rabbit sat down and buried his head on his hands.
"How many times have I told you it was not your fault?" Pepper said "Look, it was just plain luck you crashed further than the rest from Andross' base. There's nothing you could have done. Besides, you don't even know if they're still alive. You gotta face it, there's nothing in this world Andross would rather want to see than Fox and his friends dead"
"No…I know Andross, and he wouldn't kill them. He prefers to humiliate his enemies and make their lives miserable until they cursed the day they were born. Andross…you insane bastard, I swear I'll get you one of this days!"
They both waited in silence for a few minutes.
"Are you OK now?" Pepper asked.
"Yes…let's head back to base. They must be worried"
Pepper looked up to the sky and a small smile was drawn on his face.
"It's beautiful…isn't it?"
"Huh?" Peppy said as he looked his friend and lifted an eyebrow.
"Tonight's night sky"
Peppy looked at the dark-bluish sky. The stars were shining brighter than ever. A cold breeze hit his face, and made him feel younger for a few moments as it caressed his furry face. It also reminded him of old friends and the good times aboard the Great Fox. A tear dropped down his furry face.
"What's wrong?" Pepper asked.
"Nothing…" he smiled "…it just remembered me of the good old days. I miss them so badly" he closed his eyes and sighed.
"We all do my friend…" Pepper said as he put a hand over Peppy's shoulder "…we all do"
And so, the twosome walked back home.
SOUTHERN CANYON CAVES-
"Where could they be?" a worried tiger said.
Suddenly, another military dressed tiger walks in, stands still and salutes.
"At ease soldier. What is it?"
"Sir, they have returned" the young soldier said.
"What? Where are they?"
"At the main entrance Sir, they just arrived"
"Good, you may return to your duty"
"Yes Sir" the soldier responded as he saluted again
The two tigers walk out of the tent, taking different directions. As the soldier said, both Generals had arrived. Still worried, the young tiger walked to them.
"Sir, are you alright?"
"Ah Captain Khan, yes we are both alright, don't worry"
"We were starting to believe you'd never come back"
"I know Captain, I know. We are a little late…"
"A little late? Sir, with all due respect, you've been out for all day long"
"OK, OK I get it. Relax Captain, you're taking your job too serious" Peppy said in a joyful tone, as he passed his arm around the Captain's shoulder. "C'mon, I'll get you a drink"
Khan just sighed. Then, Pepper comes closer to Peppy and whispers…
"Seems like you're really OK now, huh?"
Peppy just smiled back.
"Are you coming Pepper?" Peppy asked.
"No thanks. I'm a little tired, I think go to sleep. Goodnight Peppy, goodnight Captain"
"Goodnight" Peppy replied.
"Goodnight Sir" Khan said as he saluted.
"So, let's go for the drinks, shall we?"
"Hmm, yeah, about that Sir, I'm not sure it's a good idea"
"C'mon, I don't wanna make it an order"
"Alright Sir, I'll have a drink with you" Khan sighed.
"Ha! I knew you'd say yes. You're not telling me you're afraid to drink, aren't you Captain?"
"Well, actually…"
And so the night went on peacefully and quietly. The only thing to remark, was Captain Kahn's headache in the morning. He never drinks.
WORK CAMP-
THE NEXT MORNING-
"C'mon you lazy scum! Wake up and get your sorry asses in here now!"
The roof opened and sunlight filled the quarters. Everybody was standing up rubbing their eyes, when the usual "click" sounded, and the cell doors opened.
"Everybody one step forward…NOW!"
Everyone did quickly as he said, except for one who took the step slowly. The guard noticed it and gave the prisoner a bad look.
"OK listen up worms! You know the routine, I'm gonna say your serial number and you say your name"
And so he did. Number after number, name after name, the long list of prisoners or "workers" continued. The number they gave them was completely random, only the number "8" remained in every one of them. It corresponded to the slave camp's number. They used it to identify prisoners that didn't belong there and were held temporally for further transfer. There were many prisoners. Some of them were former Cornerian soldiers, the others were civilians who had caused too much trouble, either by leading groups of "terrorists" against the empire or creating uprisings. Some names stood out from the rest, like…
"35-8!"
"Grey, Bill!"
or…
"75-8!"
"Toad, Slippy!"
…but when it came to certain well-known prisoner…
"113-8!"
…there was no answer. The guard lifted an eyebrow and a vein appeared in his temple.
"I said…113-8!"
"What's wrong? Can't you even remember a name?" the voice replied in a cold tone.
"Well, well, well, looks like we are in a bad mood today…aren't we?"
"(Damn it! Why are you doing this?)" Bill thought as he closed his eyes.
The guard grabbed his rifle and hit the prisoner right in his stomach, throwing him to the floor and leaving him without air. He kneeled down to his level and grabbed the prisoner's shirt.
"So…we are not so tough now, aren't we?…" the guard asked.
The room remained silent. The guard, who was getting a little impatient dragged him closer.
"…aren't we…McCloud?" he repeated.
The prisoner was Fox McCloud indeed. He looked thinner than before, probably by the bad food they gave him, the punishments, the extra hours of hard work, the illnesses, etc…
Fox said nothing, he wasn't going to give him that pleasure. He just raised his head and spited in the guard's face.
"Ahhrg…you stupid fool…" he said cleaning his eye "…You wanna spit! I'll teach you how to spit!"
The guard raised and kicked Fox right in the face throwing him further than before. Both Bill and Slippy couldn't watch it and closed their eyes as they lowered their heads. Fox spited blood, only this time to the floor.
"See? That's how you are supposed to do it…but you are lucky McCloud. I'm feeling benevolent today, so I'll let you live…for now" he said as he turned back.
The guard continued with the rest of the list until he finished.
"Good, now get your lazy asses outside and start working…MOVE IT!"
Once they got out of the quarters, Bill went to where Fox was.
"Hey, what was that for?" Bill asked.
"What do you mean?"
"Your little show in there, that's what I mean"
"Guess I'm just in a bad mood today" Fox said. He was clearly upset
"Well, that bad mood could have get yourself killed…y'know?"
"Who cares anyway?" Fox looked away
"I do, Slippy does, Peppy does. You do have friends…you know?"
"Peppy…he has escaped Andross' clutches twice. Ha! I bet Andross hates him even more than he hates me. Peppy…" Fox lowered his head and Bill sighed "…where are you old buddy?"
"Hey! You two! Start working now!" an angry guard shouted, and so they did.
They worked at the weapons factory level, constructing weapons for Andross' army. Slippy was a different case. Although he was good at constructing things, he was sent to the RD level, where he could design and create new weapons and artifacts for the Emperor.
Suddenly, Fox started to smile. Bill looked at him a little surprised by his friend's change of mood.
"What is it?" he asked.
"Falco" Fox responded.
"What about him?"
"We all thought…poor Falco, he didn't deserve to die in that way…or…why did he have to die?…"
"So?"
"Don't you see it? He was the luckiest of us all" Fox said smiling.
But Bill knew Fox's smile was fake, although he was ironically right. Anything was better than the work camp, death included. Even so, it always hurt him to talk about Falco. Bill knew he was one of Fox's closest and best friends, but Falco wasn't just a partner or a teammate…he was like a brother to him. You could almost say it was the third time Fox had to deal with the death of one of his family members. First, his mother by a devastating illness when he was just a kid, then his father at Andross' hands and then…Falco. Bill didn't know how Fox got over it…if he ever did. But one thing he knew for sure…it wasn't going to do any good arguing with Fox, so he preferred to leave things as they were right now.
"Guess you're right pal" he lied and both went back to work. They didn't speak for the rest of the day.
ANDROSS' PALACE-
"GUARD!" the angry voice yelled.
A small reptile runs in and nervously salutes.
"Y-Yes Sir?" he asked. His legs were shaking and making a little "bony" sound.
"Call my…" the voice stopped and looked at the reptile.
"……"
"You're a new face. Where's my usual guard!"
"He's…"
"Shut up!"
"Yes Sir"
"It doesn't matter. Now, where was I?"
"You where…"
One angry look was all the guard needed to understand he'd better shut up.
"Oh yes, tell my personal guard to come into my presence immediately. GO!"
"As you wish S-Sir" the reptile said as he hurried to leave the room. He rushed to the Emperor's guard's quarters. It took him a few seconds to get there. When he arrived, he stopped in front of the big metal door, cleaned the sweat from his forehead, and knocked.
"Come in"
"Sir, Emperor Andross requests your presence immediately"
"OK" he said, but the guard just stood there. "Well? What are you waiting for? Dismissed"
"Yes Sir" the guard responded. He saluted and leaved the room.
The "Emperor's guard" was the former Star Wolf team. They were named "Emperor's guard" after Lylat's fall 5 years ago. Each one of them was killing time in his own way. Wolf was throwing his knife the table, Leon was reading a book, Andrew was looking at himself in a mirror, and Pigma…well, he was eating. Leon closed his book as a bit of greasy meat fled to his face. He flicked it away and gave Pigma an angry look.
"Don't you have any manners Pigma?" he said with disgust.
"Lve m aln!" Pigma answered with his mouth still full of meat.
"Oh God!" Leon complained as he covered his nose with a handkerchief.
"Enough! Come on, let's get going. We better not make him mad. And Pigma…please throw that…stuff you're eating away" Wolf ordered. He wasn't in his usual mood and his voice sounded a little "lost".
All four of them walked out of the room.
"What's wrong with him?" Pigma mumbled to Andrew.
"I don't know. He's been acting like that for a good few days now"
When they reached Andross' chamber, Wolf was the first to enter. He bowed and the rest followed.
"You called us Sir?" Wolf said.
"Yes. I want a report on the "Hare Situation". And I expect good news, for your safe Wolf and your team's"
Wolf cleaned his throat and spoke.
"Well Sir, he's…still out there Sir"
"…I thought so. I'm giving you one more chance to get him. If you fail, I will have your heads in a very painfully way. For you at least. This is the last chance I'm giving you, so don't screw it up. Understood!"
"Yes Sir" they all said at once.
"Good, now…get out of my sight before I regret my decision and burn you all down right now!"
Hearing this, they stood up, saluted and quickly leaved the room. They were walking silently through the hallway, when Pigma suddenly decided to break that silence.
"That was a close call…huh?" he said.
"Shut up…will ya!" Wolf growled.
The silence continued all the way back to their quarters. This time, they went to their respective rooms. Wolf entered his slamming the door, which called Leon's attention. He was Wolf's only friend, and was the only one Wolf trusted, so he went to Wolf's room and knocked the door.
"What is it?" Wolf asked.
"It's me"
"Come in"
Leon opened the door and entered. He grabbed a chair and sat in front of Wolf.
"What's bothering you, my friend?" he asked.
Wolf, who was lying on his bed, sat down and faced Leon.
"I'm sick of this"
"Of what?"
"Of all this Emperor's Guard thing"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, I want our mercenaries days back. Wouldn't you want it too? Just think about it. None to "protect" or obey. Just the four of us, doing what we do…you know?"
"Mmmh…I can see that's not the only thing that you want…am I wrong?"
"Heh…guess you found it out"
"Not yet. Will you tell me?"
"Star Fox"
"But they're already prisoners" Leon said giving Wolf a funny look.
"I know, but I wanted to kill Fox in a dogfight, not see him rotten in a cell. I wanted to see his face full of fear as he went down on his Arwing. I wanted to…feel his anxiety as his Arwing's controls didn't respond. He's mine Leon, mine. I'm am the only one who can kill him. He's my prey."
"I see. Well, I hate to tell you this my friend, but nothing can be done about it"
"…(sigh)…"
"Well, I think I'll go back to my room"
"OK, and…thanks"
"Don't mention it"
Wolf went lying on his bed again and stood still for a few minutes…thinking.
"(Yeah, nothing can be done)" he thought as he closed his eye.
A few more minutes passed, and another thought came to his mind. This time, he opened his eye and smiled.
"(Except…)"
He quickly got up and went to Leon's room. He entered without knocking.
"Hey, what the…" Leon said but was cut by Wolf.
"Shhh. Listen…I got it" he mumbled.
Not knowing what to do, Leon mumbled too.
"What'd you got?"
"I know how we can have our old days back…and Star Fox along with them"
"Is that true?" Leon mumbled excited with a smile on his face.
"Yes, but this must stay between us. None can know about it. Not even Pigma or Andrew"
"But why?"
"Pigma is completely useless…"
"Tell me about it"
"…and Andrew, well, you know he is in the team just because he's Andross' nephew"
"OK, so what's your plan?" Leon asked.
"Here's what we're gonna do…" Wolf said as an evil grin appeared on his face.
After a couple of minutes-
"What!" Leon asked out loud, surprised by Wolf's plan.
"Shhhhhh!"
"Sorry, but did you say what I think you said?"
"You heard me"
"But that's impossible. We haven't been able to find him all this time and you suddenly think we can just go and pay him a visit? How do you plan to do it?"
"Actually we haven't found him 'cause I haven't allowed it"
"But…why?"
"If we had, we wouldn't had a job right now. And if we aren't needed, do you think Andross would keep us by his side…as friends? He'd have got rid of us right away"
"You got a point there. But why didn't you tell us before?"
"Andross' nephew…hello?" Wolf answered in a sarcastic tone.
"Got it"
SOME OTHER DIMENSION-
The taller figure approaches the older one, who looks very busy working on something.
"Is it ready yet?"
"Patience, my young friend. If I don't do this correctly, who knows where we might end up"
The younger one sighs and looks to the sky.
"I know, but I need to get there as quick as possible"
"That's funny. You haven't been here half the time I have, but you're twice as desperate to leave this place" he said smiling.
"I'm not desperate, it's just that I have a bad feeling, like if…"
"Like what?"
"…I don't know, I just need to get there soon"
The older one gave him a concerned look, and went back to work. "Go have some rest. I'll finish here" he said.
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah. Seems like you could use a good nap"
"OK I'll leave you alone then. See you in a while"
As soon as he leaved the room, the older one stopped for a moment.
"(Hope you're wrong about it kid)" he thought as he continued working.
CORNERIA-
SOUTHERN CANYON CAVES-
"You wanted to see me Sir?"
"Yes Captain. I want you to have your men ready and waiting in the entrance" Peppy said.
"Are we going out tonight Sir?"
"Yes. I'll debrief you in about….20 minutes"
"Yes Sir"
Captain Khan saluted and left the room. Peppy turned around to face Pepper.
"You know? I have a feeling that this is going to be a great night, I really do!"
"You think we'll make it this time?"
"I don't know, but I feel that something good is going to happen tonight. I feel it in my bones"
"Well buddy, let's hope you're right"
Once they finished talking, they both went out to the where the troops were. Captain Khan approached them and saluted.
"Troops ready and waiting Sir"
"Thank you Captain" Pepper saluted.
Peppy looked at his troops, took a breath and spoke to them.
"Gentlemen, we some work to do tonight. Our mission is to rescue some vital prisoners from the work camps. The prisoners are Fox McCloud, Bill Grey and Slippy Toad"
After a couple of minutes of explanations and that kind of stuff, Peppy stopped.
"Are we clear then?"
"Yes Sir" the troops responded at once.
"Any questions?"
The silence spoke for itself.
"Well then, let's go"
And so, the small group of rebels left the safety of their hideout to rescue some of his fallen friends.
ESTERN SWAMP-
"Are you sure he's coming Wolf? I don't see anything" Leon asked.
"I'm telling you, he'll be here. Trust me"
Meanwhile, a few miles away…
"Captain, order your men to stop. We'll rest here"
"Yes Sir"
"Hey Peppy, wouldn't it be a good idea to send someone to scout ahead?"
"Yes, you're right. I'll send someone right away"
And so he did. The trooper advanced a few miles, when he heard some voices and immediately hided. He lifted his head so he could have a better view. He couldn't believe his eyes.
"(The Emperor's Guards! What are they doing here? Oh Man! I must inform the others!)" he thought, as he started to walk away.
Back with the rest of the group…
"What? Are you sure you saw what you saw?"
"Yes Sir, Wolf O'Donnell and Leon Powalski were sitting there"
"Damn it! This makes things a lot more complicated"
"But there was something strange about it"
"What did you say?"
"Yes, they were the only two I saw there. Nor Pigma nor Andrew were there. They didn't even have a single soldier along with them"
"If what you're saying is correct, this could be a great day. If we capture them, we could gain some advantage on the situation"
Peppy turned around to face the troops.
"Everybody up! Rest is over! Let's get going!"
A few miles ahead…
Peppy raised his hand, ordering an immediately halt.
"Captain, come with me" Peppy whispered.
"Yes Sir"
They both silently hided behind some bushes.
"He was right! They're all alone. This is great" Khan whispered.
"Yeah, let's head back"
Back with the group…
"OK, here's the plan…" Peppy talked to the group "…, we'll divide in two groups and surround them. We'll attack at my signal. Let's go!"
Meanwhile, Leon was a little nervous.
"Are you sure this is a good idea Wolf? Coming here with no backup at all?"
"Look, he won't be able to refuse my offer, so don't worry"
"I sure hope you're right"
Once Pepper and the rest surrounded Wolf and Leon, Peppy gave the signal and everybody jumped out taking them both by surprise.
"Well, well, well, if it isn't Wolf O'Donnell and Leon Powalski. See Pepper, I told you this was going to be a good day"
"Damn it Wolf, I told you this was too risky!" Leon said anxiously looking around, realizing they completely surrounded.
"Relax, leave it to me…" he whispered "…Ah! Peppy Hare, I've been waiting for you!"
"Excuse me…?" Peppy asked confused.
"Do you really think I was just wandering around in swamp? You disappoint me"
"What are you talking about?"
"I've come with an offer for you. One I think you'll like"
"But how did you know we were coming?"
"It doesn't matter. Here's my offer…"
But suddenly, a bright light along with very strong winds appeared blinding them all. It made a very loud noise, like continuing small explosions. It looked as if reality was being ripped apart.
"It's a trap! Everybody watch out!" Pepper yelled rubbing his eyes.
"Damn it Wolf, what kind of weapon is this!" Peppy asked. His eyes were starting to recover.
"I don't know! I didn't do anything!" Wolf yelled.
"What!"
Then, two figures walked out of the light. Peppy, surprised by Wolf's answer, looked at the figures, but his vision was still cloudy.
"Who are you!" he asked.
But the only answer he got, was another question. One he never expected. The taller figure walked towards him and asked…
"Peppy…?"
TO BE CONTINUED…
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Well, here's the second part of the story. I know, I know, a little late, but I had a very important exam some days ago, so I hadn't much time (and inspiration) to write. Thanks again to my "reviewer" and buddy Roberto Soto. Hope ya'll liked this one as much as I enjoyed writing it. Well, I'll "see" you on the next one. Till then…TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS!
Any comments, questions, insults? I'll gladly take them all! E-mail me at Star Fox characters are property of Nintendo.