Disclaimer: See the Prologue
Chapter 18 – Reinforced
The Great Fox continued to slowly fall towards the surface of the planet, bullet holes decorating the hull as the Orks kept up with their hail of gunfire. The Orks laughed as if they were socialising at a pub.
Which is how they really behaved most of the time.
"Dis' is takin' too long!" a Nob cried, loading up another clip into his machine-gun.
"Too right, boyz!" Gorgutz cried, relaxing his arm with held his chaingun cannon, "Fire ya rokkit lanchers! BRING DEM DOWN!"
On board the Great Fox, everyone had managed to get out of the bridge and was running for the hangar. Fox's heart pounded against his chest, realising they were slowly plummeting towards the ground.
"This ship won't last much longer," Fox cried, "We've got to get off and destroy that tractor beam generator."
They stepped onto the hangar, where instantly they faced a very dire situation.
"Only 3 Arwings," Krystal pointed out, "And six of us. So 3 of us will have to wing ride then."
She turned to Peppy.
"You can fly mine," she said, "I doubt you'd last very long clinging onto a wing."
Peppy nodded, "Thanks, Krystal."
An explosion rocked the ship, causing Falco to snap.
"CAN WE GO NOW?" he exclaimed.
Fox nodded, where he, Peppy and Slippy climbed into their Arwings. Krystal, not fancying riding on a wing, ran towards Fox's ship and climbed in as well, sitting all over Fox' lap.
"Kr…Kry?" Fox begun, surprised at having the girl of his dreams sitting on his lap.
Krystal smiled, "You mind?"
Fox smiled back nervously, blushing deeply, "Not at all."
"C'mon Jacques," Falco cried, turning to the Space Marine, "Grab a wing and hold on."
Jacques nodded and ran to Fox's Arwing, where he sat atop of the left wing. Falco grabbed Slippy's right.
"Ok," Fox begun, "Open the hangar, Slip."
Slippy did so, pushing buttons on his dashboard. The hangar opened painfully and slowly.
"HOLD ON!" Fox cried, gripping his controls.
Krystal arms were around the vulpine's neck as the Arwing flew out of the hangar, where they instantly (and carefully) dodge the incoming tracer fire from the ground.
"Take out that tractor beam!" Fox ordered, "And any greenie that happens to be your flight path."
"My thoughts exactly," Peppy replied as they flew straight for the encampment.
Peppy shook his head slightly as he focused on what laid ahead before him. It's been a long time since he last climbed into the cockpit, so it was understandable that this was a bit harrowing.
'Come on, old timer,' he thought to himself as he piloted the ship he used to fly before Krystal came onto the scene, 'Breath steady. Prove you're not completely useless.'
Gorgutz saw the Arwings in the air.
"BLAS' DEM!" the Warboss ordered, "OR I'LL SKIN DA LOT OF YA'!"
The Orcs begun firing up at the Arwings, who swerved left and right and to dodge the leaded death. Fox and Slippy dared not barrel-rolling, or they would send their clinging passengers plummeting to their deaths.
"Alright," Fox cried, "Load your bombs and get ready to fire. There is no way we're gonna let the Great Fox be destroyed a second time.
Got it! Slippy replied.
The Arwings flew straight towards the large gun, which was still aimed at the Great Fox. All this time, Jacques and Falco held tightly to the wings of their rides. Jacques gritted his teeth, realising the fact that he was not wearing his helmet.
Just hold on, Jacques, Fox said to him through his earpiece.
"I am doing just that," Jacques replied.
The Orks continued to fire up at the Arwings, where Gorgutz noticed what they were going after…
"Dem furries going after out tractiv' gun," he cried, "STOP DEM!"
"RIGHT, BOSS!" the armoured-Nob cried.
Fox smiled, his finger hovering above the bomb trigger, and the fact he had Krystal bundled up on his lap.
"Take THIS!" he exclaimed, which almost startled Krystal.
Fox, Slippy and Peppy fired their bombs at the tractor beam generator, the resulting explosions causing the casing under it to weaken, effectively causing it to collapse on itself, the force of it landing on the ground and sending dozens of Orks flying.
"Dem furry gitz!" a Nob cried, "Dat red-arse ain't gonna be happy!"
"I see dat, ya gretchen-lovin' nob-head!" Gorgutz exclaimed, clipping the Nob's ears…literally, "Who car's bout' dat red-arsed ape? Dat boyz want's da Marine-boy'z blood, he'll git it!"
The Great Fox stopped itself from ploughing itself into the ground, where it was just floating above the surface.
"Yes!" Slippy squealed with joy, "The auto-pilot's taking over. The ship's saved!"
"That's good to hear," Peppy remarked, trying his hardest to focus on piloting.
Jacques smiled, before frowing and pointing out, "I do not think me and Falco can hold on for much longer. You should set us down somewhere."
Fox nodded from within the cockpit, "Good idea."
Fox an and Slippy flew some distance away from the encampment towards a hill, where they slowed their speed and dropped altitude, where Jacques and Falco leaped off and landed on the grey dirt. Falco sighed and brushed his feathers.
"Wing-riding doesn't get better than that," he chuckled.
He then suddenly felt a weight land in his arms.
"What the hey…?"
He found he was holding Jacque's boltgun, where the Marine himself held his Power Sword firmly in his hands.
"Er…Jacques?" Falco begun, "What the hell is this?"
"We are going in," Jacques could only reply as he looked over the horde of Orks entrenched some distance away.
"I'm sorry?" Falco said, "I didn't quite get a good look at your sanity."
"We have to give Fox, Peppy and Slippy ground support," Jacques explained, "Otherwise they will not last under their barrage of bullets and rockets."
"Just the TWO of us!" Falco exclaimed.
Suddenly, the both of them heard the roar of engines in the distance.
"We got company!" Falco cried.
2 Wartraks rode towards them, their greenskinned drivers bearing their teeth in vicious smiles as they beared down on them.
"WE'ZE COMIN' FER YA!" one of them cried, "YA HUMIE AND YA BIRDY!"
"Birdy?" Falco queried, eyes widened.
Jacques watched as Falco glared and raised the heavy gun.
"I resent that!"
He then begun firing at one of the traks, who also begun firing it's cannon. Falco dodged each of it's rounds as he focused on the skull of the incoming Ork. He then fired off a bolt, which tore through the skull of the Ork, causing him to fly off, his trak slowing down and coming to a stop.
Jacques charged towards the other trak, sword in hand. The Ork driving continued to fire at the Marine, who had his other arm shielding his face as the bullet bounced off his armour.
Just as he felt a round go through his shoulder, Jacques cried out and thrusted his sword forward, skewering the Ork on the other end, lifting him off his trak as it continued to move.
"F#$#! F#$#! F#$#!" the Ork cursed in pain, feeling the blade through his large gut.
Jacques pulled his sword out, allowing the Ork to fall onto the floor. He then stood over it and drove his blade into it's skull.
"Foul greenskin!" Jacques exclaimed, pulling his sword out and watching the blood trickle down his sword.
Another roar of the engine startled Jacques as he spun around, sword ready. He was relieved to find it was Falco, manning the other Wartrak.
"You gonna stand there posing," Falco begun, smiling, "Or are you gonna grab those other wheels?"
Jacques nodded and returned the smile, "Doing just that, avian."
Meanwhile the Arwings flew away from the encampment, amidst the gun and rocket fire.
"We have to protect the Great Fox," Krystal said, "Just until those reinforcements arrive."
"For how long, though?" Fox queried, looking down at the vixen sitting on his lap.
Krystal sighed, "Just until they get here."
Fox nodded, "You heard all that, guys?"
Sure, Slippy answered.
Clearly, Peppy added.
Jacques and Falco drove on towards the Great Fox, which was still floating in mid-air just above the surface. Their foots were practically crushing the pedals as they sped towards the ship, very eager to get there.
"They're heading back to the Great Fox!" Falco exclaimed, "And I can only why."
"To protect it against the Ork, just until the reinforcements arrive?" Jacques answered.
"Yep," Falco replied cynically, "That'll do it."
Gorgutz eyed the Great Fox in the distance, where the Arwing circled around it and two Wartraks driven by a bird and a human heading straight for it.
"COME ON, BOYZ!" Gorgutz cried, "AT' EM!"
The Orks all cried out as they plodded towards Star Fox.
"Here they come!" Fox cried in his Arwing's cockpit.
Jacques looked over the dashboard of his wartrak.
'Mortar…mortar,' he thought, 'This model has to have a…yes!'
His eyes fixated on the mortar launcher trigger. He steered his trak towards the Ork hordes and lobbed 4 projectiles at the mass, sending Orks, weapons and several body-parts flying.
"How'd you do that?" Falco asked hastily.
"Check your dashboard!" Jacques cried.
Falco did so and found…
"Rokkit lancher?" Falco queried, "Jeez, they're as illiterate as they're…they're…"
He rolled his eyes around his head.
"Come to think of it…"
"Falco?" Jacques cried, "Launch your mortars."
Falco was brought out of his train of though and pulled the trigger, firing rockets at the horde, sending Orks flying back.
'Coooooooool!' Falco thought, impressed as hell.
Eh…guys? Slippy begun, They're getting closer.
"I know that," Fox said, glaring, "Get ready to…"
Just as the Orks were about to converge on the defensive Great Fox, massive blasts of energy descended upon them, vaporising dozens of them.
"WHAT DA HELL?" a Nob cried.
"DEM CORNERIAN BOYZ AR' ERE'!" Gorgutz cried.
His point was proven when Cornerian-produced aircraft descended out of the clouds and begun showering death, involving missiles and bombs, and sending Orks flying.
Jacques was practically dumbfounded, upon seeing Cornerian fighters appear out of nowhere and without warning.
"I must say that was with haste," he said, scratching the back of his head.
"I'll say," Falco agreed, knowing he should have just said 'That was quick!'
A large Cornerian dreadnought-class star cruiser slowly made it's descent from the clouds, displaying all of it's might and glory, including it's large side cannons, prepped for action. It appeared to be one of the oldest battlecruisers still in action, having survived the first Lylat War.
This is the 'Monolith' to any Cornerian forces remaining down there, Fox intercepted a transmission, Does anyone copy, over?
"Star Fox here," Fox begun, smirking, "Bout' time you showed up."
The other line chuckled, before replying, We do our best.
Dozens of other fighters appeared and begun to lay waste to the greenskins. Gorgutz should fear for his life…
But instead…
'Tim' fer Plan B!' he thought.
Just as a bomb sailed towards him, he quickly pressed a red button on his left claw and he begun to fade away, much to the surprise of the Orks around him.
"Boss?" the mega-armoured Nob begun, "Wher' are ya…ARGHHHH!"
They were then engulfed in flames, where they begun screaming at the top of their lungs, which in turn were also in flames as the fire slowly consumed them.
"Now that's what I call a barbeque!" Peppy couldn't help but chuckle.
The Cornerian fighters flew close to the Arwing, where Fox could see one of the pilot's saluting him through the canopy.
This is Raven Unit, the Cornerian fighter pilot said to Star Fox over the coms, We'll take it from it.
"How typical of them," Slippy groaned, "We fight the majority of them and they come along and take all the credit."
Live with it, Slip, Peppy hushed him.
2 minutes later the Ork forces were reduced to nothing but ash and soot, the victorious Cornerian fighters circling around the scorched ground, their radio transmission being heard on Star Fox's coms…
Wasted!
That got em'!
F#$#ing greenskins.
The Arwing were docked inside the cruiser's hangar, where the hangar crewmembers were surprised to see both a vulpine and a vixen climb out of the same Arwing.
"Fox McCloud," a canine officer greeted him, saluting.
Fox nodded, "Lieutenant."
The officer then turned to Krystal, "Ma'am."
She smiled, "Hello."
"It's a good thing we got here as quickly as we could, eh?" the officer asked.
Fox chuckled, "Yeah."
Slippy and Peppy climbed out of their Arwings, Peppy albeit are bit slowly, and dizzying. Slippy looked around the hangar, noticing how it appeared to be kind of aged.
'What a ride,' Peppy thought, 'And after so long.'
Slippy noticed he was about to topple over, so he ran over and helped him down.
"Easy, Pep'," Slippy begun, holding him by the arm.
They walked over and joined Fox and Krystal.
"Colonel Liebowitz is waiting for you," the officer said, "If you'll just follow…"
"Hold on," Fox interrupted him, "Where's Falco and…"
They all then saw a transport ship fly into the hangar, where Fox and co. were instantly relieved. But when the door ramp lowered, and out stepped Falco and…
"Hostile!"
…Jacques, all guns were aimed at the avian and the human, Jacques in question rubbing the side of his neck. The officer drew his blaster and aimed, panicked at the Ultramarine.
"Lieutenant!" Fox said, rolling his eyes at this predictable scenario, "The Space Marine's with us."
Krystal noticed that Jacques was rubbing his neck as if it was irritated.
"What happened?" she asked aloud, walking towards him.
"They tried to use some sort of animal…" Jacques begun, only to black out and collapse forward on the deck, emitting a loud clank as he hit metal.
Krystal's internal alarms screamed at her as she ran forward panicked.
"Oh God," she cried, "Jacques!"
Fox, Slippy, the officer and about a dozen soldiers ran towards the collapsed form of Jacques, and Falco, who was just standing next to him, looking down at Jacques.
"What happened?" Fox asked alarmed, and rubbing his head fur in frustration.
Falco sighed, "When they came down for us, they fired some kinda animal tranquilliser at him. He passed out; I tried telling them he was with us, he woke up and…"
He nudged towards the transport.
"…floored the whole squad just before we landed here."
A soldier took a peek into the transport, where inside laid 7 unconscious and heavily armed Cornerian Marines. He put his hand over his mouth just to not gasp in panic.
Fox turned angrily to the officer, his hand on Jacque's soldier.
"What did Pepper tell you people about the Space Marine?"
"Pardon?" the officer asked, slightly shaken at the sight of a human.
"Answer me!" Fox yelled.
As Fox laid shit on the officer, Krystal's hand caressed the human's forehead. Her face was that of sadness as she downcast her eyes.
'I'm sorry, Jacques,' she thought sadly, eyes full of emotion, 'If only they knew what you stand for.'