And once again we get to yet another long chapter. I couldn't exactly find a way to split them apart, so in the end you just get a lot more reading. Towards the end, you'll notice I've changed my formatting around slightly - instead of the global 3rd person view I've been using, I'm going to switch to a single person 3rd person view. I've realized that with my upcoming chapters, it'll make things a lot easier.

That and I should've been writing this way since I started this fic. Oh well.

Celestrio - pretty much the only part I took from the comics in the last chapter was how the team is flying off to Fortuna for their final destination. I needed a planet to throw them on, and this one worked well for the reasons given. And no, you don't talk/write too much. I do.


Chapter 46: Fortuna

There's nothing I hate more than assaulting a base with insufficient information as far as their defenses go. Or in this instance, an entire planet. – Fox

Some days I'm glad that I don't lead the team. The thoughts and worries that must go through Fox's mind have to be tremendous. – Peppy

Nobody steals one of my teammates and gets away with it. Even that annoying toad. And if I have to kick some prehistoric lizard ass to get him back, so much the better. – Falco

I'm scared. I'm really scared. I really don't want Fox here. If something happens to him, I don't know what I'll do. – Fara

A loud and grating buzz snapped Fox out of his restful sleep. The straps that held him into his pilot seat dug into his fur as he jerked forward from the noise. Wincing in pain, he sank back to his seat and quickly noticed the green planet that occupied a good chunk of his forward view.

Reaching forward, he acknowledged the alarm and ended the assault upon his ears. As he did so, the last wisps of the dream he'd been having vanished from his mind. He tried to remember what it was, as he knew it was about Fara, but it was like trying to grab smoke – an impossible task.

Sighing, he brought his attention back to the present. A flashing timer informed him that the Arwings were just a few minutes away from their destination. Flicking on the binocular setting on his headset, he began to look over the planet as he said, "Rise and shine, Starfox team. Everybody awake in there?"

"Yeah."

"Wide awake, Fox."

"No."

Fox laughed at Falco's response. "No?"

"No. I'm at home right now, dreaming this all up. There's no way I'm back in an Arwing this soon after saving the galaxy."

A touch of a button brought Fox's vision back to normal. He glanced over to where Falco was as he said, "I'd agree with you there, but we are most definitely flying right now."

"Do you want me to shoot him, Fox?" asked Fara jokingly.

"Fara, no," he replied. "You're not helping."

"I guess I am awake," said Falco suddenly. "I'd recognize that cynical voice anywhere."

"Funny."

"I try."

Fox shook his head in silence over the bickering between the two pilots. The last thing he wanted to deal with was Fara and Falco constantly breathing down each others' neck, like Falco did with Slippy in times past. Especially now. "Look, you two, let's keep things civil, okay? I don't want to deal with this."

"Fine."

"Whatever."

That wasn't a satisfactory response from either one of them as far as he was concerned, but he didn't have the time to think about it as his craft slightly lurched as the retros fired up. As the autopilot shut of, his computer screen changed to what looked like Pepper's recommended approach vector, one that would minimize the chance of somebody spotting them. "I take it that you all see the information on your monitors?"

Affirmatives reached his ears from the rest of the team. "Good. Brace yourselves, as it's a steep descent."

Boosters glowing brightly behind them, the four Arwings shot towards the surface of Fortuna.


"I think that'll do it."

Fox stepped back and admired his handiwork. His Arwing lay partially covered by palm fronds and other available flora, blending it in somewhat with the environment. It wouldn't hold up with a close inspection, but from a distance it shouldn't be noticed. He looked around and took note of how his teammates were doing.

The sudden sound of a snapping tree limb swiftly brought his attention elsewhere. A sizeable branch dropped to the grassy floor as he turned around, sending leaves and other debris flying. "Fara!" he yelled as he tried to spot her among the tree.

The vixen held on for dear life far above, having only just grabbed the branch above her as the one she'd been standing on broke off. Refusing to look down, she made sure of her hold before going paw-over-paw towards the center of the tree. Upon reaching her goal, she dug her feet into the grooves on the trunk and used it to support her weight. Only then did she try to calm her racing heart as she yelled down a response. "I'm fine!"

"Maybe you should come down!"

Fara shook her head as she looked for a way to continue upwards. Climbing trees was something she'd been doing since she was a kit, and no simple mishap like this was going to deter her. Before making her move, she flicked on her headset, preferring not to continue screaming to hold a conversation. "I'm almost to the top, Fox. You wanted a survey as well as the branches to cover the Arwings, right?"

"Yeah. But not at the cost of your life. We're finished with the Arwings by the way."

"Good." Her paws dug into the rough wood as she crawled up the tree. "I really don't want to cut anything down from up here anyway."

"Just be careful."

"You don't need to remind me." The area around her slowly lightened as she continued upwards. To her this was a good sign, as it meant that she was breaking through the top layer of the jungle around her. Noticing a branch nearby, she gave it a few good tugs to ensure it would hold before grabbing on to it, allowing her to look around.

She smiled as she saw the afternoon sky, the sun beating down its warmth to those who were able to find it through the treetops. From her vantage point, she could see for miles in every direction. This is why she loved to climb trees, and why she loved being a pilot – the amazing vistas once one got high enough into the sky. "I'm through."

"Good. See anything?"

"Give me a minute," she replied breathlessly, still stunned by her surroundings. She finally ripped her eyes away from the view and dug into her shirt with one paw, pulling out a compass and watch combo which hung by her neck. Finding their intended travel direction, she scouted best she could for the base, but could see little short of trees. She couldn't even find the stream they intended to cross. "I see nothing but trees where we're going. I can't spot the base either."

"Any signs of civilization?"

She brought her gaze around, starting eastward. She scrunched her eyes in confusion, wondering why the average tree level dropped suddenly not too far east of their position. Looking further, she saw the trees themselves change to another type, signifying the swamp in her mind. She continued, reporting what she'd seen so far. "The trees seem to get shorter for some reason not too far east of here. Can't explain why."

"Strange. Keep going."

Fara grabbed hold of the trunk itself again as she continued looking, peering around the wood on both sides. "I see smoke rising into the sky to the southwest. Looks too small and organized to be a forest fire."

She heard Fox's gasp of shock clearly over her headset. "How far?"

"About ten to fifteen miles, give or take. I see another…whoa!" Her right foot slipped, the tiny crack in the tree she'd wedged it into breaking apart from her weight.

"Fara!"

"I…I'm fine." She held on with her paws as she searched for another foothold, her compass bouncing against her chest from the sudden movement. Her wandering foot finally connected with a small outcropping after a few seconds, relieving her of the strain of grabbing onto the tree. She continued with her report, knowing that she needed to come down before she had any further incidents. "I see another column of smoke to the northwest, a bit farther away than the other."

"Okay. Come on down, Fara."

"One second." She looked north and spotted nothing, and then looked over to where she started. Finding nothing further, she began searching for the best route down. "Nothing else I can see. Coming down."

"Good."

Fara smiled over the concern he was giving her. Then again, she couldn't blame him. She was quite far up. Despite how many times she crawled around in the trees back home though, and at the base, she'd never fallen once. She also intended to take no chances either coming back down, even with the jetpack boots upon her feet.

Fox continued to look straight up the tree in an attempt to spot Fara. He could hear her labored breathing through his headset as she'd never turned hers off. He concentrated upon her breaths, hoping it wouldn't suddenly stop, as that would signify another mishap on her part.

The vulpine's attention was drawn back to the Arwings as he heard Falco call out his name. He reached up and turned off the send portion of his headset, making sure that he wouldn't interfere with Fara's descent. "I'm over here, guys."

Falco and Peppy walked over, the hare carrying Fara's backpack, moving his shoulders around to try to find a better balance point for his. "How's Fara doing?" asked Peppy.

"She's coming down now. She's spotted possible hostiles however."

"I knew this wouldn't be easy," muttered Falco.

Fox shook his head. "There's two camps she's spotted – both some ten to fifteen miles away. Neither are in our travel path though."

"Thank goodness for little favors."

"Yeah. Hopefully we'll have a quiet—" A sudden noise of something dropping to the ground behind him caused him to jump and spin in place, drawing his blaster in the process.

Fara looked up from where she was brushing her paws off, staring at Fox's weapon. "Aren't you a little jumpy today," she commented with a smirk.

The vulpine sighed as he put his blaster away, not wanting to meet her gaze. "Sorry."

She wiped her paws on her pants one last time before standing up. "Don't worry about it. Nice reaction time by the way."

"Yeah."

Satisfied with how she looked, Fara walked over to Peppy to get her backpack, looking at Fox as she walked by. She could tell that he was embarrassed by his actions, as honest of mistake as it was. As it was partly her fault, she decided to quickly change the subject. "So, how's the Arwings look?"

Noticing the silence from Fox, Peppy took the answer as they walked over to the craft. "As you told us to do, Fara, they're mostly covered. Are you sure they're going to launch though?"

She nodded as she looked over their handiwork. "I'm sure of it. The sensors know that the craft aren't fully encased in something, so it'll just launch as usual and do a few barrel rolls to clear off the debris."

"They better," said Falco. "I don't want to hike back here again."

"Neither do I, Falco. Don't worry."

Fox stood some distance away from the others and stared into the jungle around him. He wished that the foliage wasn't so encompassing, as he could've sworn that he saw something earlier. His paranoia overruled his assumptions of them being alone as he hissed, "Peppy."

The hare turned around. "Yes, Fox?"

"What do think about our traveling weather?" he asked while he scratched behind both ears with his paws.

Peppy looked at his teammate in confusion for only a moment before nodding slowly, recognizing the signal his teammate was sending him. He glanced Falco's way and could tell based on his look that he'd understood the strange gesture as well. Concentrating on every little noise in the jungle around him, he tried to pick out anything that shouldn't belong as he answered. "Looked like clear skies as we came in all around. Shouldn't be an issue."

"Will the temperature be a factor for us at all?"

He closed his eyes and focused best he could on what he heard. He picked out the chattering of the unevolved birds above, of the many trees rustling in the slight breeze, and a snake slithering on the ground somewhere nearby. He could hear the buzz of the insects around him and the breathing of his companions. But as far as he could tell, nothing sounded out of the ordinary. "Feels like mid-80s or so," he said with a shake of his head. "We'll be uncomfortable with the humidity, but we've been through worse."

"Okay," he said, giving Peppy a nod as he opened his eyes. He was pleased that his teammates remembered the signals he'd taught them during their time on Papetoon. The hare's response relieved him, knowing that there wasn't a threat for the moment behind every tree and bush. "Team, let's move out, weapons drawn. Falco, you have the rear."

"Got it."

The pilots picked up their belongings and walked off, everyone short of Fara now understanding a bit of Fox's concern and worry over their situation. Fara on the other hand waited until they had left the clearing before trying to figure out what she'd missed by Fox's odd question. "Peppy, what was Fox really asking you?"

The hare smiled as he looked back to her, pleased that she'd learned their mannerisms quickly. Either that, or she was quite observant. "He wanted to know if I heard anything in the area. And before you ask, no, I didn't."

"Good." She continued walking, pushing away a branch that was in her path. "How? Was it Fox's question or his gestures?"

"His gestures. What he asked is entirely there as a cover incase somebody is watching."

"Cool." She wondered what other little strategies and plans the rest of the team had devised from their time on Papetoon as they marched onward.


Fara looked around at the jungle foliage as the team continued onward, a smile plastered on her face. Even though she was deep within enemy territory, she was simply enjoying herself too much with nature itself all around her.

As a kit, she always loved wandering through Corneria's forests. Despite the planet's extremely low tolerance for pollution, the air always smelled purer with the trees and vegetation all around her.

But best of all were the trees themselves. Oh, how she loved the trees. Her favorite pastime was to find the tallest oak tree in the area and simply climb straight up. Not only was it exhilarating exercise, but the best reward was when she reached the very top. The view itself was stunning, as she could look around for miles and miles, seeing nothing but the treetops.

Even if she wasn't climbing trees, she still loved the forest itself. She loved just sitting back and watching the miniature ecosystem progress all around her. Every plant and animal had their part in keeping the area alive and thriving. No matter how large or small, every one of them was important. And she had such fun watching them all.

Despite how excited she was to be wandering among an unexplored jungle, she was still cautious. As per Fox's orders, her blaster was in one paw, ready to fire at the first signs of danger. She had no idea what dangers lurked within the brush, and she had no intention on being a liability in this mission.

The pilots had been moving at a hurried walk for about the last half hour, a pace that she could keep up with without even thinking. As she pushed herself past some thick, damp undergrowth, the sound of something rumbling far off in the distance reached her ears. She came to a halt to focus upon the noise and almost had Falco bump into her from behind. "What'cha stop for?" he grumbled.

She ignored him and tried to figure out where the sound was coming from. "I thought I—"

"—heard something," completed Peppy. "So have I, Fara."

Fox turned back towards the rest of his team. Now that somebody had mentioned it, he realized he'd heard something too. "What is it then?"

"I think its water."

"About time we found that stream," said Falco.

"That's the whole problem," said Peppy, concentrating on the noise now that he was standing still. "It's too loud to be a simple stream."

"Come on, crew," said Fox, not wanting to stand around in hostile territory. "We won't find out what's going on if we stand here. Keep watch incase it isn't water, though." Without another word, they continued their travels, slowly growing worried in their choice of travel routes.


"Aw, fuck."

"Agreed, Falco."

The team had just passed into a thinner section of jungle, one only dotted with trees instead of ones constantly obstructing their path. Now with a clear line of sight, they now knew exactly what was causing the noise.

The so called stream was anything but. Instead, it was a fast moving river more than thirty feet across.

Fara moved forward to inspect the river more closely while the other pilots stayed back to discuss their options. Falco leaned against a nearby tree and pushed away one of the many vines which hung from the branches above as he asked, "Now what are we going to do? Looks like Pepper fucked up yet again."

Fox looked towards the river and kept an eye on Fara as he responded. "I don't know yet. Peppy, you think that river is natural? Or did it flood upstream recently?"

The hare ducked down and felt the nearby damp grass and other foliage before craning his neck upstream. "Looks like a combination of both, actually. It feels like it has recently rained here. Look at how the grass more or less disappears closer to the river, the ground itself turning to mud. That's one sign that this river overflows its banks often."

"Think that we could ford that without breaking our necks?"

"Debatable." Peppy looked among the rocks poking out of the water and tried to judge if any of them could make it across without getting wet before responding. "Fara might be able to find a path across to set up a rope or something. As for actually fording it though, I'd ask her. I can't tell how fast it's moving from up here."

Fara grimaced as her boots squelched through the shallow mud. It wasn't the mud itself she hated, as she'd somewhat accepted that part of nature thanks to her time in the forests. She just didn't know how it would react with her jetpack boots. Finding a large tuft of grass sticking up above the mud, she moved towards it, wanting to find a more solid surface before she looked at the river closely. Fay had said something about—

Fox's voice drifted over to her suddenly, barely audible over the roar of the river. "Fara, how fast is that water moving? Think we could cross it?"

Cross it? Was he mad? She didn't even need to look to realize that trying to swim across this river unaided was next to impossible. She reached up and turned on her headset as she responded, continuing to look at the rushing water. "I'm a good swimmer, Fox, but there's no way you're getting me into this water. Maybe if one of us got across somehow they could set up a rope or two, but…"

"Peppy said that there might be a path across via some rocks to your left." His reply came over the headset as well.

She looked over and found the rocks in question. It was a possibility in her mind, but if any of them slipped on the wet surfaces as they crossed… She continued looking for other avenues across and blocked that thought out of her mind. "It's a possibility. I'd like to avoid…hold on."

"Yes?"

"I think I found another…crap."

"Fara?"

"Aw, fuck."

His voice quickly grew anxious. "Fara, what's wrong?"

She quietly cursed Pepper's name, satellite problems or not, as she stared at the water. A large branch swiftly passed by and headed down a bend in the river that was out of sight of the pilots above. From her vantage point however, she knew exactly why the water was moving so quickly. She also knew why the trees some distance away that followed the water were so much lower.

Some 200 feet away, the branch vanished for good as it dropped straight down a roaring waterfall.

"Fox, this river promptly ends not too far from here."

"Ends? What, a waterfall?"

"Yup."

Fara heard some muted cursing from Falco through her headset. She smiled at the avian's vocabulary and wondered where he learned the drivel he was spouting. "Hold on, Fara," said Fox as he ended the communication.

Left in relative silence, she pondered over how to get across this obstacle. She looked at the nearest trees on the other side and debated if they had enough rope to attach a line to it from here. Her thoughts drifted downwards as she remembered what she was wearing on her feet.

"Fox, I think—"

"Fara, run!"

The combination of Fox's panicked voice and blaster fire made her swivel in place to find out what was going on. What she saw back up the hill came as a total shock to the vixen.

The vines that were hanging off the tree branches had somehow come alive, reaching out to entangle the pilots. Falco was already wrapped up tight, his muscles bulging in a futile attempt to break free. The other two were firing their blasters as fast as they could, severing the snaking vines with every successful hit.

Fara pulled out her own weapon, refusing to leave the rest of the team behind. She almost fell as she went to move closer to the others however, her feet simply not responding to her commands.

She tugged harder as she looked down, worried that she'd stepped into some softer mud. Instead, she found out that her situation was much worse.

The very grass she was standing on had somehow coiled around her muddy boots, rooting her in place. Her struggles to pull free were wasted, as her feet felt like they were encased in iron bands instead of simple foliage.

Disturbed by this finding, she tried once more before she gave up and raised her blaster into a firing position. She had teammates to save. Her own problems could wait.

Her first shot lanced though a vine that was getting ready to coil around Fox's legs, allowing him to continue moving backwards. A second freed Peppy's weaponless arm from a vine that had wrapped around it. She continued firing, finding shots that the others would've simply missed due to their position.

The vines began to attack faster, as if whatever was controlling them was tired of losing. Her own blaster was firing so quickly now that she could feel the weapon begin to heat up from overuse. It was not meant for the abuse she was putting it through, and she had a feeling that the others were experiencing the same issues.

She didn't have the time to worry any further as a vine attacked her from her right side and wrapped around her waist. The grass at her feet released their hold as the vine yanked on her, sending her crashing onto the soft ground. She fought to get to her feet again, but her options were limited as her blaster was now pinned underneath her.

As if sensing she was down, another vine shot out and grabbed her right arm, quickly looping around to bind her weapon arm to her chest. A second vine restrained her kicking legs, while a third caught her remaining arm. She grunted as she strained to break loose, but she simply didn't have the strength to regain her freedom.

Panic welled up inside the vixen as she lost the mobility of all her limbs. Despite her best efforts, all she could imagine were the regeneration tanks and how helpless she felt while inside them. As the vines tightened their grip, her willpower crumbled. With no other options available to her, she yelled out to the one person she hoped could somehow free her. "Fox! Help me!"


The vulpine knew that Fara was assisting him instead of running off, simply based by the additional firepower she provided. As much as he wanted her to leave, he knew that her support was the only thing that had kept him and Peppy free for as long as they had been. As soon as she stopped firing, the vines redoubled their assault and captured the hare almost instantly.

He jumped backwards and risked a quick glance over his shoulder at where Fara was. At the same time, her panicked scream for help reached his ears. He felt his heart freeze as he saw her utterly helpless on the ground. His worst fears were coming true – he was failing to protect his team, to protect Fara.

Knowing that Fara would have the best chance of escaping, he turned, ran towards her, and ignored his own defense. His blaster fired and ripped into the vines that held her with deadly accuracy. He was going to free her, no matter his own personal cost.

He had pulled the trigger only four times, enough to vaporize the vines wrapped around her legs, when he was attacked. He fell to the ground stomach first as a vine latched on to one of his feet. Gasping for air, he rolled onto his back and fired wildly at anything that approached him.

Despite his best efforts, in the end he didn't have a chance as the attacking foliage simply overwhelmed him. Within seconds, he was as restrained as the rest of his team.

He thought about fighting against his bonds, but quickly remembered that Falco had been doing that ever since he was captured. He decided to conserve his strength incase an opportunity presented itself. Instead, he readjusted his hold upon his blaster and made sure it was secure in his paw. While it was relatively useless in this position, he wanted to be able to use it in a moment's notice if he somehow regained his mobility.

Fox let out a quick gasp of surprise as the vines gave a tug and lifted him into the air. Based on the audible reactions from the rest of his team, he guessed that the same thing was happening to them. He came to a stop a few seconds later, facing the rushing river. From his vantage point, he watched as the vines wrapped Fara back up once more and carried her over to him. She bucked and struggled for all she was worth, but it was quickly apparent from her lack of success that he made the right move in not resisting.

"What the hell are these things?" asked Falco from somewhere behind him. His voice was strained, signifying that he was still fighting. Fox tried to look at him, but the vines holding him aloft were in his way.

"I'd like to say these are simply part of the native flora and fauna," replied Peppy from Fox's other side, "but these attacks were simply too well coordinated to be part of nature."

"Too well coordinated, indeed," mocked a sinister voice from somewhere behind them.

It was a very familiar voice to the vulpine. It was a voice that he'd never forget as long as he lived. It was a voice he never expected to hear again.

It was Andross.

"Show yourself!" ordered Fox, the only one who wasn't too shocked at the sudden reemergence of the ape to say something about it.

A black cube about the size of Peppy's head drifted into view from behind one of the larger trees. It floated about two feet off the ground, almost soundless except for the occasional shot of thrust which propelled it in its intended direction. Its most striking feature however was how each of the four main faces held a photo of the dictator's face, each grinning contently.

As it grew closer, Fox realized that the images weren't static at all. Instead, they looked to be a live video feed of wherever Andross was. He could see the face move around, as if he was watching multiple displays at once. The cube slowly approached, looking more like it was taking its time, instead of being a slow moving object, and came to a standstill right in front of him.

"The great Fox McCloud," said Andross as he stared at the vulpine. "If I knew it was this pathetically easy to capture you five, I would've planned this from the beginning. Did you seriously think you could just land on my planet and get away with it?"

Fox was suddenly filled with such rage over the smug attitude of the ape that he let out a roar of frustration and strained against his bonds. "If I ever get my paws on you…"

"What, you'll kill me? I don't think you have it in you. And besides, you're a little…tied up right now."

The vulpine calmed down, no closer to freedom than before. "Rot in hell."

Andross smiled, waving a finger in a mocking gesture. "I wouldn't do that if I were you." He concentrated and caused the vines to constrict tighter around Fox. The vulpine cringed in pain, his whole body screaming from the strain.

"Leave him alone!" yelled Fara, controlling her fears long enough to defend her teammate.

The cube slid sideways away from Fox, Andross simply focusing upon another face to call its front. As he left, the vines released their death grip and allowed Fox to breathe again. In seconds, Andross was hovering in front of Fara's face, looking deep within her eyes, within her soul. "An impressive showing, my dear, considering how much I know you despise the situation you're in right now."

"Go away," she said meekly, now very scared as to her fate.

"No, I don't think I will." He paused as he delved into her surface thoughts and looked for other useful information. To his momentary surprise, her mind was blank, as if she had some kind of natural protection around her. This might explain how she resisted his powers earlier, he thought. But he could break any barrier given time. "So, what information do you have inside that little head of yours?"

"What?" She looked even more frightened than she was before.

"Your amphibian teammate was a treasure trove of information as to some of the inner workings of the Arwing fighter. Especially once I broke into his mind. So much knowledge, so much—"

The pilots were obviously outraged at this information, but Falco was the first to yell something audible, despite the overwhelming power of their captor. "Why you hairy fucking son of—"

Andross' response was swift and effective. Vines shot out from the mass that was holding the avian and wrapped around his beak, silencing him instantly. Without a word or reason, he did the same to Peppy. He left the others unbound however. "You don't seem to realize that I'm in total control right now, do you?"

"What do you want with us, Andross?" asked Fox calmly, still catching his breath from the last attack. While he didn't understand exactly how the ape was holding his teammates captive, he hoped he had a limit as to his strength. Most of all, he had to get Andross away from Fara.

"What do I want?" The cube floated back over to the vulpine. "Considering that you're the supposed leader of this team, you're amazingly stupid. I want power. I want knowledge. Most of all, I want your deaths."

Fox's eyes darted around as he tugged again at his bonds, remaining silent at the response. There had to be a way out of here. There just had to be.

"And you four are just loaded with information, information that I'll use to regain all my lost conquests. Especially with you all out of my way." He was in the process of flying back to Fara when he came to a stop, the images suddenly disappearing on the outside of the cube.


Back inside his control room, Andross winced in pain. Despite the sudden onset of a headache, he kept his focus upon the monitors above, making sure he didn't look away from the Starfox team for an extended length of time. He cursed as he felt the limitations of his mental powers come upon him. Back at his base in Venom, this would've never happened thanks to his Telekinetic Amplifier.

But now that was destroyed. And these pilots were at fault.

A quick glance at another monitor indicated that he didn't have any of his troops or natives in the area. And even if he had some of the planet's natives around, he wouldn't be able to do much with them short of turning the pilots into a quick meal without his telepathic powers.

He looked over the four teammates, occasionally struggling in a futile gesture to free themselves. He cursed again at his weakness, realizing that he'd need to remove at least one of the pilots out of the picture, and quickly. The initial battle to capture them went far longer than he expected. He burned too much of his reserves fighting them.

With a smile, he turned the camera feed back on again. He'd remove a few of them from the picture now and extract the information he wanted from the survivors. And he knew exactly how he'd shock the rest of team into submission in the process.


Fara tried her best to figure out where her blaster was currently pointing, keeping watch on the still floating cube. She thought it was aimed towards her feet, but she had no way of knowing for sure without firing. The sequence of events that led to her capture left her no time to make any logical plans.

And she wasn't ready to fire a shot into her boots, armored or not, to find out for sure. Or worse, shoot one of her limbs.

The images on the floating device suddenly reappeared and showed Andross' hated face once more. He grinned as he continued his previous heading, coming to a stop right in front of her again. "Fara Phoenix," he said slowly, as if savoring each word. "My dear, little, vixen. My spies knew you were up to something or another so long ago. That's why I tipped my paw a little and tried to capture you aboard that transport."

What was he doing? Was he gloating, or was he trying to pry into her mind again? Or was he just taunting her somehow? She refused let him have the satisfaction of getting under her fur, even though he seemed to have won. She ignored her current situation best she could and hissed, "The first of your many failures."

"Quite a smart mouth on you as well. While I'd love to sit and pick your brain for a day, I've grown tired of your continued interference. Especially because of your work on the Arwings themselves. Come with me."

Her eyes widened in surprise as the tangle of vines moved and passed her from tree to tree. Where was he taking her? What was he going to do with her? Her fears intruded back into her conscious and threatened to take control once again.

"Where are you taking her?" demanded Fox. "Bring her back!"

"I'll take her wherever I want, McCloud. And there's nothing you can do about it."

Fara's eyes locked on Fox's and pleaded with him to do something. Being near him was the only thing that kept her fears away and she was quickly losing that. She struggled for her freedom and desperately yelled out to the vulpine. "Fox!"

"Put her down!"

"You know, I think I'll do exactly that."

The coldness of Andross' statement snapped her back to reality. Hearing what she thought was the sound of rushing water, she looked around and tried to figure out where she was. If she was above the river—

With no warning, the vines released their grip.

An instant passed in which she was felt completely weightless, as if the world itself had paused around her. She could see Fox's terrified face, clearly visible despite the distance. She saw Andross' cube, the face inside one of exquisite happiness. She also saw the raging water directly beneath her and heard the roaring waterfall not too far away.

And then the world simply restarted. Gravity took hold upon her body and dropped her ten feet into the river. She barely had enough time to inhale before the cool water surrounded her in its liquid depths.

Her mind cleared due to the shock of the impact, she surfaced with a gasp and desperately began swimming to the nearest shore. Within seconds she realized that despite her skill, she was simply carrying too much weight to make it to dry land before she ran out of river.

She was going to go over the waterfall.

From one of her nature books, she knew she had exactly one chance to slightly increase her odds of survival, however poor they were right now. Gathering her wits, she turned towards where the water ended and dodged past a few small rocks that wouldn't hold her weight if she tried. She kicked forward and gained momentum as she swam with the current. She had to swim fast enough to shoot out past the water's edge, to clear any rocks which might lie in wait at the bottom of the waterfall.

She just had to hope that the fall didn't kill her outright.

She watched as the final few feet of water flew up towards her. Her last thoughts were on Fox as she took a final breath and launched out into the afternoon sky.


"FARA!"

Fox looked desperately towards the water and hoped to see some sign of the vixen as she vanished beneath the frothy surface. Not finding one, he watched Andross, looking for a sign that she somehow escaped the river's wrath.

Some twenty seconds after he dropped her, allowing the vines to simply fall next to the river, he slowly flew back, a sign of pure contentment upon his face. "Oops," he said with a smirk.

Fara was gone. She really was gone. And he still had no idea how he truly felt towards her. He closed his eyes in an attempt to keep the tears from streaming out as he hissed, "I swear by whoever is listening that I will get my revenge."

"Your threats are meaningless, McCloud. I think…wait a moment…" Fox heard the quiet hiss of the cube coming closer. "Are those tears I see? So, you really did care for that wench."

Fox's eyes shot open and stared face to face with Andross. Without warning, he lunged forward against his bonds and snapped at the cube. His jaws grabbed nothing but air as the ape hastily dodged out of the way.

"You're quite the feisty one. Then again, I can almost see your selfish reasons. Love is such a fickle thing, something so easily squashed by somebody else."

Fox growled as he tried to reach out and crush the mocking head, but gave up seconds later as the vines dug into his fur. He slumped back, no longer caring what happened to him. All he knew was that Fara was gone. "Do your worst. I don't care."

"We'll see about that." Fox watched as Andross seemed to look around, as if he was deciding his next move. If he was, it didn't take long before he came to a decision. "Come with me."

The vulpine felt the vines constrict around him and pull him into the air. He happened to catch a glimpse of his teammates as he turned around. While Falco's face was one of unbridled fury, they both showed fear. Who was going to be next? Which one was the unfortunate one who was going to see everyone else die first? Or was Andross going to do something even worse to them?

Andross' voice jerked Fox out of his thoughts. "Fox McCloud, leader of the Starfox team. How did it feel to see one of your teammates die right before your very eyes? How does it feel to know that your remaining friends are going to suffer a fate worse than death as I dig for every last scrap of knowledge that their minds contain?"

"Why them?" he asked in an attempt to think of a way to at least get his teammates out of the situation they were in. Those that were still alive anyway. "Let them go, and I'll tell you anything and everything you need to know. Willingly."

Andross laughed. "Do you honestly think that I'm that stupid? As it is, I'd rather have you alive than that simple-minded avian, but you're simply too dangerous. Between you and that wench, you're both equally to blame for all my problems. With you both out of my fur, the Lylat System won't stand a chance."

He winced as Andross brought up Fara again, albeit in a derogatory way, but kept talking. "The citizens will fight back. They'll rebel. You'll never gain complete control over the system."

"You're joking, right? Do you realize how easily the system crumbled before my assault the first time through? Do you seriously believe these peace-loving fools will think twice before submitting to my might again? They have no true defenses. They have no military. The very thought of war sends them scurrying back to their homes. I'll have won before I've even started."

Fox sighed, knowing that Andross was right. Short of the pockets of resistance on Papetoon and possibly a few other planets, the average citizen was simply too unwilling to put up a fight to defend their homeland for reasons he never figured out. He hoped that it would change because of what they'd been through, but it was only a hope, nothing more.

"Now if you'll excuse me," said Andross, "it's time for you to depart the world of the living. Somehow, it seems fitting – with your death, the entire McCloud line has died by my paws. Enjoy the last few seconds of your life."

Fox already knew exactly what to expect next, as he'd heard the river's roar coming closer. He looked down into the rushing waters with a look of determination on his face. He knew he was facing his death, but even now his mind was working. He just needed his arms—

The vines chose that moment to release him.

As Fara did before, Fox dropped straight into the water. The cool water soaked into his fur and weighed him down while adrenaline flowed through his body from the temperature shock. His limbs automatically pumped through a swimming motion as soon as he surfaced in an attempt to find safe ground. It took him no more than a few seconds to realize that he wasn't going to get out of the water.

Feeling lopsided as he was trying to swim, he remembered that he still had a death grip around the blaster in his right paw. Assuming it was still functional after getting soaked in the river, he now had a plan. It wouldn't save his furred hide, but it might just save his remaining teammates.

Still paddling opposite of the current so he wouldn't gain too much momentum, he glanced behind him and looked for a rock to grab on to. As luck would have it, there was one poking up above the rushing water not too far away. It was also only one of a few that he could see before he simply ran out of river.

Fighting a leaden feeling from his limbs as his whole body became waterlogged, he swam towards his goal with all his might. His whole body began to complain from the strain but he ignored it, knowing that he'd only have this one chance. Beyond that, it didn't matter what happened to him.

As the rock passed by on his left, Fox lunged and grabbed hold, his fingers scraping on the rough surface as they fought for a purchase. He let out a gasp as his arms were almost wrenched out of their sockets as his paws finally dug in, rapidly bringing him to a halt.

Ignoring the fact that the river simply ended not more than a dozen feet away from his trailing legs, he made sure of his hold before bringing his blaster into an aiming position. He rapidly fired, hoping that the ape would lose control over his mental powers if he was no longer actively watching his target.

The first shot went wide, but the second and third were dead on. The cube exploded into a shower of sparks and scrap metal, showering the river below with debris.

He never got to see the aftermath as the rock that Fox was using as his support broke loose from the river bottom and sent the vulpine tumbling over the waterfall.