Chapter 19: The Twist

There was a flash and Fox felt air rushing against his face. He looked around, but all he saw was blue sky and clouds. He looked under his feet and saw the vast, metallic, white hull of the Great Fox. He swore as he realized where he was: Racing over his planet of Corneria. And that meant there could only be one person here to fight. He spun around just in time to dodge a punch thrown by another Fox in a red flight jacket.

Fox rolled back as the red Fox brought his foot down where Fox's head was seconds before. Fox jumped back and pulled his blaster. He fired several bursts. Red put up his reflector and bounced the blasts back at Fox. Fox jumped and landed on the very nose of the ship. Red did a Fox Illusion and shot at Fox. McCloud Fire Foxed into the air and sailed over Red, landing unharmed in the middle of the ship. He then ran to the other end, jumped off the wing and landed on the thruster engine on the rear of the ship. Red chased after him.

This was going to be trickier. Red knew all of Fox's moves and all of his strategies. There was nothing Fox could do to surprise him. He just had to try and out-muscle him. But that's a hard thing to do when you are fighting yourself. At least he had the Master Hand's energies running through him. That might give him some sort of an advantage. Maybe not. He was already starting to feel a little tired from his first few fights.

Red dropped and kicked at Fox, no doubt coming to the same conclusion. Fox blocked the kick and punched. Red blocked the punch and threw one of his own. What followed was a rapid succession of attacks and blocks. Neither laid a single blow. Then Red hit his reflector, which slammed into Fox. He rolled backwards, nearly falling off the engine.

He recovered quickly and jumped over the next assault, kicking Red in the back. Red stumbled forward and Fox went in for a strike. But Red shot up in a Fire Fox before McLoud could get there. Red retreated back to the top of the ship. Fox followed.

Red ran to the other end of the ship. Fox began to give chase, but stopped and fired his blaster instead. Red wasn't watching and was hit in the back several times. He stumbled forward a step or two then wheeled around and fired his own blaster. Fox hit his reflector and bounced the fire back. Red hit his own reflector and the laser fire bounced back and forth.

Red waited until the fire bounced off his own shield. Then he jumped and shot forward in a Fox Illusion. Fox didn't know what to do. He could either drop his reflector and allow the blaster fire to hit him, or he could deflect that and get hit by Red. He decided on the former.

He dropped his reflector and rolled backwards. Red slammed into the ground at Fox's feet. But he didn't land in time to stop the laser fire. Fox felt it burn into his chest. Then he jumped and kicked Red in the face.

Red went with the kicked and rolled backwards. Then he got to his feet and shot forward with another Fox Illusion. Fox didn't react fast enough and was hit by the illusion. Red took the opportunity to kick Fox in the spine. Fox fell forward and slid across the top of the Great Fox.

But he was on his feet in an instant. He turned to see Red charging him. Fox braced himself and allowed Red to strike his chest. The energy passed through Fox and went into the ship. Then Fox sent the heels of his hands into Red's face. Red did a back flip and landed on his feet.

Then it was as if they were fighting their reflections. Both fighters were performing the exact same moves. Fox punched Red in the side of the head at the same moment Red punched Fox in the side of the head. They punched each other in the gut right before kicking off of each other's knee.

They rushed in and kicked each other in the side with their right legs. Then they caught the leg in their left arms and held them there. Then, balancing on one leg, they began to beat the crap out of the each other with their right hands, trying to make the other let go. Punches, blocks and head butts were delivered exactly the same. Yet neither one showed any sign of releasing the other's leg.

They finally broke up when they both tried to kick with their left leg. Their soles lined up perfectly and they kicked away from each other. They did flips and landed on their backs, quickly jumping to their feet. They hit the same stance and rushed each other in the same way.

The fight proceeded like this for what could have been several minutes or several hours. They weren't able to concentrate on time for too long with out getting punched. All Fox knew was that once they knocked each other far enough away to warrant a few minutes to pause, he was gasping for breath. But he could also see that Red was also struggling to breath. At least he could tire as well.

But far too soon, they were both at each other's throat again. Literally. They had thrown a few punches before grabbing each other in a death grip around the throat. They both squeezed with all their might. But it was a perfectly even match. So they threw their arms out at the same time, hoping to knock the other's hands from his throat. They grabbed each other's hands and head butted each other.

They stumbled back, rubbing their heads. Then they were in again, grabbing each other's flight jacket. They were trying to throw the other one across the arena. When they both had a firm grip on the other and they began to pull, trying to get the other of his feet. They lashed out with their legs, trying to make the other loose their footing. But it was hopeless.

Then Fox had an idea. He let go of the flight jacket and slapped Red under the chin. It was something he would never do and as such, Red wasn't expecting it. He stumbled back, more out of surprise than anything, and held his jaw. Fox grabbed Red by the jacket again and threw him to the ground, pulling out Red's blaster from its holster.

Using both Red's and his own blaster, Fox fired down at Red, pinning him to the ground. Then Fox hit his reflector. It slammed into Red, knocking him across the arena. Fox ran after him, shooting under him with a Fox Illusion. He dropped Red's blaster and spun, connecting his foot with Red's left shoulder blade.

Red rocketed through the air, exploding as he reached the edge of the arena.

Fox was on all fours, breathing hard when the flash came. He was taken away from his home world and was thrown back into the cold space that was Final Destination. He was still on all fours, but he wasn't breathing as hard. He picked himself up on wobbly legs and looked around. Floating above him was Pyra. He had his arms crossed and his tail was flickering wildly.

"I must say I am impressed," he said. "I doubt even Link could have handled himself as well." He began to float down to the runway-like surface of the arena. "That last move you pulled was brilliant. Pure genius."

He took a few steps towards Fox, who took a few steps back. The triumphantly smug grin on his face grew wider still, showing the long fangs set in his jaws.

"What's the matter?" he asked. "Not as eager to face me now that you can barely stand?"

Fox was breathing more steadily now. He wiped his forehead with his sleeve and gulped the saliva in his mouth. Took off his flight jacket threw it one side. His blaster was showing, strapped to his torso.

"You don't have your powers anymore," Fox said. "You let them go."

Pyra laughed. "I don't need them, McLoud. Not anymore. Now I wield the powers of the Hands themselves. And with his power, I shall finally destroy you once and for all."

He shot back up into the air, ready to fight. Fox glared at him as he went up. This was it. There would be no more words. Just blood and defeat. Now it was all or nothing.