I

General Pepper was awakened by a gentle rubbing of his shoulder. He sat up suddenly, rubbing his eyes as if in disbelief of his shameful act. Had he actually fallen asleep at the console?

"How long have I been asleep?" he muttered, looking at the one who had wakened him. It was a lieutenant under his command.

"A few hours," The lieutenant said. "But we have taken control of the situation in here, so there was no need to wake you. However, the situation has taken a turn for the worse, and they asked for me to tell you about it."

Pepper grumbled. No matter how dire the situation was, he was old, and his body couldn't take the endless stress that endured the day and the night.

"Well, what's the report?"

"Two more planets have been taken," the lieutenant said. "Titania and Sauria."

Pepper frowned. "Sauria?"

"Dinosaur Planet."

Pepper nodded. "Was there anyone at either planet before they were taken?"

"None, sir. That is, there were no military units. Aside from the indigenous creatures, the only traces of civilization on either planet were a few outposts, who were able to send a few weak emergency signals before being silenced."

Pepper shook his head. Neither planet was of great strategic value, but the enemy was spreading its influence nevertheless. That couldn't be a good thing. "Are there any planets left that haven't been conquered, besides Corneria?"

The lieutenant glanced at a nearby hologram, and returned with grim news. "Aquas, Zoness and Macbeth," he said. "The navy at Macbeth has been holding off the enemy for nearly a day now, and a small naval force has been protecting Aquas from bombardment, but neither planet can be considered secure. Zoness hasn't been attacked yet, although it remains defenseless."

"And who's defending us? Who's protecting Corneria?"

"A small percentage of the Cornerian Republican Squadron stayed behind when forces were sent to defend Fortuna. There's also a small naval force still here. Aside from that, the only military force protecting Corneria is the Cornerian Army."

Pepper remembered the destruction Andross had caused on Corneria, when there was a force not much smaller than the one at present defending the planet. And, when he thought about how easily the enemy had conquered more than half of Lylat in only a few days, he decided that he didn't like the odds. He stood up.

"Where's Admiral Fox McCloud?" Pepper asked.

"Nobody knows, sir," the lieutenant said. "We lost contact with the transports leaving Katina."

Pepper swore under his breath. He strode quickly over to the naval corner of the War Room and confronted the technician there.

"Bring Commodore Jerry Python up," Pepper ordered.

The technician, startled by Pepper's appearance and frightened by the fierceness in his voice, obeyed without a word. Moments later, a distorted image of Jerry Python's broad green face appeared.

"Hello, General Pepper!" Jerry Python said brightly. "Good news! The navy has managed to fend off the enemy. We're now pursuing them across the planet to…"

"Very good, commodore," Pepper said. "Now, pass along the order for the navy to be withdrawn to Corneria."

Jerry Python looked shocked. After a moment of silence, he protested, "B-but General Pepper, if we abandon Macbeth, the enemy will take it over! And… and… we're winning this battle!"

"And you're about to lose the war!" Pepper roared. "Having the navy all the way out there leaves Corneria open to attack! Return to Corneria immediately!"

Jerry Python was silent. Then, finally, he answered, "Yes, sir," and ended the link.

General Pepper glanced over at a grid of computer screens, each showing a section of space above Corneria. "Now," he muttered, "let's hope that it's not too late."

II

Falco stood motionless on the rocky shore, showing no emotions as he was faced with four armed mercenaries, headed by none other than Leon Powalski. Behind them, Falco saw what he had mistaken earlier for an Arwing. It was the nearest of four new Wolfens belonging to the mercenaries.

"Allow me to introduce you to my team," Leon said with false courtesy. He began with the mercenary to his right, a stout lizard, and worked his way to his left. "This is Johnny Caiman, former lieutenant in Andross's army. He first met you and your team in Area 6 Venom Air Defense Zone, where you destroyed every one of his friends in Andross's service."

Johnny Caiman raised his pistol and tipped it in Falco's direction, as if tipping a hat. "Charmed," he said monotonously.

Leon stepped aside, to reveal a gray fox standing behind him. "Dorian Sly," he said. "Newest member of our team." Lastly, he pointed to the cat standing to his left. "Last but not least, Rita Slax, our team assassin. Whatever job we can't do in the sky, she does on the ground." Rita drew a long, sharp knife and began sharpening it with a stone.

Falco hardly gave a glance in each member's direction. He kept his eyes on Leon.

"This is the new Star Wolf team," Leon said proudly. "I took the liberty of replacing my fallen comrades with the deadliest mercenaries and assassins in Lylat's underground. I see you've performed quite a similar task, only instead you chose amateur fighters who are very close to your friends. What a shame it would be if your team was killed in action."

"Why did you come back?" Falco growled. "Did you feel like avenging your old teammates by getting an unfair advantage over us?"

Leon laughed. "Of course not," he said. "That's the kind of trickery I would expect of you! But no, our actions have been carried through under the command of our latest 'client.'"

"And who might that be?" Falco asked cautiously.

Just then, the collective noises of hundreds of fighters drifted down from the sky. Falco looked up, and saw a squadron of enemy interceptors, fanning out to search the planet. Falco looked down at Leon, only to find him smiling.

"Admiral Reccal Moss of the Karzenian Navy," Leon answered. "He hired us to destroy the Star Fox team." Leon raised a pistol to Falco's forehead. "Beginning with you."

A sudden chorus of laser blasts and explosions broke out, destroyed the continual hum of interceptors flying above. Leon turned sharply to see, while Falco swiped at his extended arm, knocking the blaster out of his hand. Falco quickly turned and struck out his right, connecting it with Leon's jaw. Leon fell, and behind him, three trained mercenaries quickly drew their weapons.

But Falco was quicker. He dropped to the ground, evading three shots to the head, landed on top of Leon, rolled, and stood up, holding Leon up as a shield.

"Shoot and your leader's toast!" Falco yelled.

The three mercenaries lowered their weapons, but kept their eyes locked on Falco.

"You'll never get away," Leon gasped. His face was covered in blood, and Falco's grip on him barely allowed enough oxygen to pass into his lungs for him to stay conscious. "The moment your back is turned, they'll blow your brains out!"

But Falco was prepared for that. With one arm locked around Leon's neck, he reached for his own blaster and pressed it hard against the lizard's temple.

"Drop your weapons," Falco ordered. The mercenaries hesitated. "I said drop your weapons!"

"Do as he says!" Leon cried.

The three reluctantly dropped their weapons, and at a motion of Falco's blaster, walked away from them. Falco pushed Leon away, where he joined his fellow Star Wolf members.

"Now," Falco said, grabbing another blaster from the four that lay on the ground. "Put your hands behind your heads and face that boulder."

The mercenaries did so. With his adversaries disarmed, Falco could finally look up and see what was causing the commotion in the sky. He saw that the enemy fighters, those belonging to the so-called "Karzenian" fleet, were in complete disarray. They were under attack by a fleet of quickly moving ships that he could barely make out.

Soon, a transport landed in the shallow water nearby. The main hatch opened, and a bulldog poked his head out.

"Falco Lombardi, isn't it?" the bulldog said. "We've been ordered to pick you up."

Falco turned and started walking toward the transport, saying, "Ordered by whom, I…"

"Get down!"

Falco ducked and rolled as an eight-inch blade whirled through the air, lodging itself into a seam in the transport's hull. Falco turned, blaster raised, but his four "hostages" had disappeared.

"Never mind them," the bulldog yelled, "and never mind who sent me. Let's get the hell out of here!"

Falco acquiesced, and the transport promptly lifted off.

III

Fox sat alone in the cockpit of the wrecked transport, staring at the swirling, discolored ocean outside, while drumming his fingers on the slick console. He could hear the moans of patients in the back as Brett the pilot and several able-bodied personnel struggled to save their lives.

He sat upright and watched as droplets of water flew past the gaping hole of the front view shield. He leaned over and saw Bobo, swimming without the use of his legs, coming back toward the transport with heavy splashing. Fox stood up and leaned against the console, recovering from what could have been a fall due to the uncomfortable angle of the floor.

"Find anything, scout?" Fox called.

Bobo shook his head. He tried climbing back into the ship, but it proved a difficult task with one leg.

"No, no, don't bother," Fox said, crawling through the window. "I'll just come out to you. After all, being in that ship with the smell of blood and molten metal for who knows how long, I need a breath of fresh air, no matter how fresh Zoness's air may be."

Fox leapt into the water with a splash. He repeated his question, and Bobo went into an explanation.

"There's nothing," he said. "There's hardly even sand on that island. It's just a big, ugly chunk of rock. I don't see why anyone would live here."

"That's why there are few who do." Fox squinted up at the sky, although the reflex was unnecessary. Most of Sol's radiant energy was being blocked by the haze and thick clouds overhead. "Zoness used to be a thriving oceanic planet, much like Aquas. But unlike Aquas, its underwater world was full of thick plant life that almost touched the surface. The landmasses were just as desolate as they are now, but they were sandy and more pleasing to the eye.

"Andross changed all that. When he began his conquest for Lylat, he started with the outer planets first, Zoness included. Because of how much water there was on Zoness, he thought it would serve as an excellent industrial planet, seeing as he wouldn't have to haul the waste and garbage to the dump. He set up multiple factories on Zoness, which were extremely productive, but pumped out tons of harmful wastes into the ocean. The oceans became so polluted that the planet's color viewed from space had changed from a deep blue to a yellowish green. Most of the underwater life died, and what were left was hardy and vicious. The chemicals in the water that surrounded the landmasses changed their sandy beaches into brittle rock. Fortunately, Aquas was spared the dreadful metamorphosis, and instead was used for underwater research facilities designed to create Andross's notorious 'bio-weapons.'

"When we destroyed Andross's headquarters on Venom and liberated Zoness, there was little that could be done. The planet was beyond repair, and the creatures that now lived in the seas wouldn't respond well to unpolluted water. We finally decided to use it the way Andross had used it, as an industrial planet for producing various materials."

Bobo thought for a moment. Then, he said, "If this planet produces things, then, wouldn't those invaders want to take it?"

Fox sighed. "That's why I was so upset with the pilot. We can only hope that…" He trailed off. Fox squinted harder in a portion of the sky to the east. He could see something in the midst of the smog and clouds, but couldn't quite verify his speculation…

"Admiral McCloud! Look! Ships!"

Fox nodded. "I see them," he said, not taking his eyes off the four black specks that slowly soared up through the atmosphere.

"No! Over there! To the north!"

Fox turned, and, much closer than the others he had seen, there was a group of fighters coming their way. Their marks didn't match those of the ones they had encountered on Katina. At the back of the group was a transport; and it was circling around to land.

Fox looked back, but the four black specks were gone. While Bobo and Brett the pilot helped the patients out of the crashed ship and toward the rescue one, Fox pondered his discovery. He was almost certain that what he had seen were four new Wolfens. It was the first time he had seen a Wolfen in over twenty years.

But if his guess was correct, he thought while wading toward the open transport, it probably wouldn't be the last.

IV

Falco sat comfortably in the transport, a towel around his neck. In the seat across from him, the bulldog sat, staring. When the transport lifted off once again, Falco was greeted by Fox and Bobo.

"Hey, you're alive," Fox said with a smile.

"You, too." Falco's eyes scanned Fox's body. "You look like crap."

"Thanks." Fox sat in a nearby seat. Bobo sat down next to him.

"So, you still haven't told us who you guys are," Falco said to the bulldog. "And why you saved our butts."

The bulldog shrugged. "First, let me begin by letting you know who I am," he said. "My name's Rhino Kucanitch. I'm, ironically, the captain of what we most commonly refer to as 'Bulldog Unit.'"

Fox's eyes brightened. "So you mean…"

"That's right, Fox!" crackled a voice over the intercom. "Once again, I have to go out of my way to bail you out of trouble!"

"Bill!" Fox cried. He jumped to his feet, but was knocked down by the rocking motions of the transport breaking through the atmosphere. "Bill Grey!"

"That's Colonel Bill Grey to you, Fox," Bill said with a laugh. "And you really owe us some thanks! Those invading reptiles had just reached Zoness and were preparing to take it over!"

Fox was startled. "So, you're not staying to defend it?"

"Nope," Bill said quickly. "Me and my squadron aren't exactly government funded any more. We're a mercenary squadron now, in a sense. And Pepper hired us to pick you guys up and bring you back to base. Besides, we're needed more at Corneria."

"Why?" Fox asked, although he feared the answer.

"I'll tell you later," Bill said. "We're just about to make the jump to lightspeed. Once we're in hyperspace, I'll go back there and explain it all." The intercom shut off with a click.

"Did you guys pick up the others yet?" Fox said to Rhino, suddenly worried.

Rhino nodded. "I already explained it to Falco here," he said. "But your friends were picked up by another transport. They took a while longer, since your friends' landing sites were so scattered. But, thanks to the emergency beacon that automatically goes off when these new Arwings are shot down, we were able to get out of there before enemy reinforcements arrived."

Fox turned and looked out the nearby view port. He could see most of the yellow-green sphere in the black backdrop, as the squadron was getting far enough so that it would be safe enough to make the jump to lightspeed. Fox could almost see the enemy swarming the smog-filled skies above Zoness, and wondered how many other planets had already succumbed to the invading force. But when he thought about the reasoning behind not defending Zoness, a key industrial planet and therefore a key tactical point for any invader, the reasoning became clear.

They were losing the war.

V

"So, all the prisoners are being held in the grand interrogation room, correct?"

Admiral Moss walked swiftly and impatiently down one of many corridors in the Harbinger, asking questions of the officer, Sarian Trenton, walking near him. They reached an elevator, and Trenton, punching the correct floor in the keypad, breathed a response.

"Yes, sir. Even the immobile ones are there, in hospital beds."

"And they've been sorted out according to their ranks?"

"Yes, sir. It took a bit of time, since their insignias and uniforms are vastly different from our own, but…"

"I'm not interested in the details. When I ask for reports, I want the ends, not the means." The elevator stopped with a cheerful chime, and Moss walked quickly out into the new hallway. The officer hurried after him. "Now, then," Moss said, not looking behind him to see if the officer had caught up. "The prisoners' transports have been shipped to the production-class capital ship, the Silent Conqueror?"

"Yes, sir." The officer hesitated. "But, they asked me to remind you that scrapping the captured transports to be made into new ships is almost unnecessary, as we still have a sufficient number of ships to win this…"

"I like to keep my numbers high in my battles," Moss interrupted. "The Karzen system is too far away to call for reinforcements, and the industrial planets we've captured will take a while to be fitted to our needs, so if for any reason we need more ships, we should be able to construct them on the spot."

They reached the entrance to the grand interrogation room, a soundproofed door with no window. Moss took a deep breath. Interrogation rooms never smelled pleasant.

"Let me do the talking," Moss said. "You will only speak if I tell you to speak, as always."

"Yes, sir," Trenton said. The door slid open.

The room was much larger than standard interrogation rooms, although the ceiling was still quite low, to provide a feeling of entrapment. The walls were made of impure metals, mostly flat black and gray. On both sides of the room were torture devices that the prisoners had never seen before, and at which they shot nervous glances. The prisoners stood (or lay, if they were the immobile hospital patients) in the center of the room, surrounded by guards wearing faceless masks. Moss stopped in front of them, feet shoulder-width apart, hands behind his back, and stared. The prisoners met Admiral Moss's stare, although they couldn't help but steal glances at the torture devices that stood mere feet away. They were clearly terrified.

"You needn't worry," Moss said gently. "You all surrendered graciously; a wise tactic in the face of unbeatable opposition. I am no monster, and because you made such an intelligent decision (unlike that other transport, which was promptly destroyed) I will do no harm to you as long as you follow my commands."

The prisoners showed no signs of understanding, although most of them seemed to relax. Admiral Moss turned toward the guard to his far right. "Bring the prisoner of highest rank to me."

The guards grabbed a uniformed dog standing at the front and dragged him closer to Moss. The dog grimaced and tensed his muscles, glaring at the arms that held him.

"So," Moss said, standing tall and staring down at the miserable dog. "You're Captain 'Tank' Reynolds."

"That's Captain Brutus Reynolds to you," Tank growled.

Admiral Moss smiled. "As you very well know, Brutus," he began, "the Karzenian Navy… that's us, if you didn't know by now… is in the middle of a conquest that you cannot win. Already, we've conquered all but one planet. That planet, if my contacts are correct, is the heart of the system in every possible way. That planet is Corneria. We know that the planet is strong and well defended. That's where you come in.

"We are on the verge of a large-scale attack on Corneria. We've left a minimal force to occupy the captured planets, and have drawn the rest towards this ship. Even so, we know the battle won't be easy. There will be many casualties on each side. But you can prevent this unnecessary tragedy if you follow this order."

Tank glared at Moss, his eyes fixed on the cold, unfeeling pupils in the admiral's reptilian eyes. "And what's that?" he asked.

Moss showed him a sheet of paper. "You will read this statement," he said, "on a transmission to the military base on Corneria, requesting their surrender."

"I will do no such thing!" Tank declared.

Moss sighed. "You're aware, then, that I'm under no obligation to spare your life, if you do not follow my order?"

Tank spat at him, the spittle landing on Moss's left cheek. The admiral cried out in disgust and wiped the tainted spot clean.

"I've tried being fair with you barbarians," Moss growled. "Rather than put you defenseless creatures to death, I gave you the chance to spare your world a devastating and humiliating final defeat. Even giving your world the chance to surrender was a gracious act that I could have done without. Then what? You reject my offer with a spray of your filthy bodily fluid like the wild beast you are! Guards! Show him no mercy!"

The guards dragged Tank shouting and kicking to the nearest torture device. As they strapped him in, Moss brought forth the next in command: the timid pilot of the first transport.

"And you are… Captain Duncan," Moss said.

The pilot looked down at the ground. The torture machine near him had come to life, and Tank was now crying out in pain.

"You understand my conditions?" Moss asked quietly, waving the sheet of paper in Captain Duncan's face. "You read this to the leaders on Corneria, and you will all be spared, regardless of their reaction. If not, I will have to resort to this…" He waved a hand in Tank's direction. Drops of blood were flying from the writhing captain's body. "…and I will continue down the ranks, down to the last, bedridden civilian. Understood?"

Tank was now screaming wildly. Captain Duncan kept his eyes down, and muttered, "Yes."

Admiral Moss handed him the sheet of paper. "Will you read this during a transmission to Corneria?" he said.

Captain Duncan skimmed the lines. His eyes widened. "You'll kill us if they don't surrender?" he cried.

"No," Moss said, raising his voice so he could be heard over the tortured screams of Tank Reynolds. "That's a little white lie I threw in there to sweeten the pot. Will you read it?"

"How do I know you aren't lying to us?" the pilot retorted.

Moss shrugged and looked away. "If you won't read it, then I guess I have no choice. Guards…"

"Wait!" Captain Duncan looked down again. The side of his left shoe and the left side of his pants were sprinkled with red blood. "I… I'll read it," he said gloomily.

Moss smiled. "Good," he said. He turned to the guards to his left. "Take him to the communications room and tell the technicians to prepare a link with Corneria."

The guards whisked Captain Duncan away. Moss took one last look at Tank, whose screams were getting weaker. He turned and left the room.

VI

When the transport came out of hyperspace, and the milky blue planet of Corneria appeared in his view port, Fox let out a sigh of relief and relaxed his muscles. He was home.

Bill stood up and walked toward the cockpit. "Excuse me, guys," he said with a wry grin. "I gotta practice my diplomatic skills with this orbit security."

Bill walked into the cockpit and sat down in the pilot's seat. Almost immediately, the comm. link crackled, and a hoarse voice said, "Unidentified squadron! You are entering Cornerian Air Space! Identify yourselves or we will not hesitate to open fire!"

Bill held up his hands. "Chill out, dude," he said. "This is Bill Grey of the Dogfighters Rogue Squadron. We're coming back from a mission on direct orders from General Pepper."

The link was silent for a moment. Then, "We will see to confirming your story. Do not proceed without our consent, or we will destroy your squadron." The link switched off.

Falco entered the cockpit. He stood behind Bill with his arms folded across his chest. "These Karzenian creeps have got Corneria all edgy."

Bill looked at him. "Car-who-now?" he said, raising an eyebrow.

"Yep. That's what they're called. I learned it on my 'vacation' on Zoness," Falco said with a nod. "Our 'friends' finally have a name."

Bill stared off into space. "Karzen… that name sounds familiar somehow." He shrugged. "I dunno. When you spend time in Lylat's underground, you hear a lot of names, and you get a lot of names mixed up. But I'm pretty sure I've heard that name before."

Falco opened his mouth, about to tell him about his encounter with Star Wolf, but the comm. link came to life again.

"Permission to enter granted," the voice said. "We will open the force field long enough for all ships present to enter. All existing stragglers will have to acquire access permission individually. Proceed."

"Thanks a bunch," Bill said quickly. Through the main view port, they could see a hole open in the shimmering blue layer around the planet. Bill gently applied thrust to the ship's engines.

When the squadron came into the atmosphere and broke through the cloud layer, they leveled out and flew along the rolling green hills of one of Corneria's many countrysides. When at last the cityscape of Corneria City appeared, Fox could tell that things had changed since he left. Civilian traffic had gone down considerably, and military personnel from every branch hurried frantically along the streets and through buildings, bringing equipment and vehicles to places where they were needed.

The two transports touched down on a large landing pad attached to the Army Headquarters, while the rest of the squadron circled around in the sky. When the bottom hatch opened and Fox stepped out, he took a deep breath of true Cornerian air, and looked around, surveying the city. Soon, he heard a cry of joy from the other transport. He turned, and saw his wife, Krystal, running in for a tearful hug.

Fox opened his arms and embraced his wife. Krystal leapt into his arms and squeezed him tightly, teardrops running down her face and soaking the insignia on the right shoulder of Fox's tattered uniform.

"You made it, Fox," Krystal whispered with a smile, her voice trembling. "I was so worried that… oh, God, I was so worried."

"It's all right," Fox said, patting Krystal on the back. "I'm here. I'm alive."

Soon, Alec Falan appeared from the transport, followed by Tiger Dreggar, then Alyssa Darien, Slippy Toad, then, finally, Thomas McCloud.

Tom walked ahead of the group, and started laughing. Fox turned around, and saw, standing behind him, Bobo Simons, with the sawed-off pole of a broom attached to the stump on his left leg.

"You never got the robotic leg attached, I see," Tom said, still laughing.

Bobo stuck his chest out. "For your information," he said, "I've just been through a test of survival in the ocean on Zoness!"

"Likewise," Tom said. "After I bailed out of my Arwing, I spent my entire time on Zoness hanging for dear life on a rock spire in the middle of the ocean, while carnivorous creatures circled me, hungrily."

Fox smiled. "I'm glad to see you all made it, Tom," he said.

Behind him, Falco was descending the steps down to the concrete platform. Krystal watched him with a smile, but her smile disappeared when she saw the worried grimace on Falco's face.

"What is it?" Krystal asked quietly, getting close to him.

Falco only had time to look at her, when, suddenly, sirens began to wail all over the city. They looked around fearfully, but they knew only too well what was happening.

"Get inside!" Bill shouted. "I'll get the rest of these passengers to the hospital. Go, now!"

Fox nodded, and the entire group rushed into the Army Headquarters. Bill looked up; enemy bombers had already broken through the Cornerian Orbit Defense, and were now descending onto the city. He climbed into the transport, and, ordering the Dogfighters Squadron to come to his defense, took off.