Chapter 29: Fighting with Wolves

"In sports news, the Papetoon Paladins claim another victory against the Aquas Sharks this week. The Paladins blitzed ahead with three homeruns during the final inning. Unfortunately for the Sharks, star pitcher, Condor Willis, sprained a wrist mid-game, leading to a steep decline in the team's performance on the field. Sharks Captain, Rod McCormack, said that the loss was regrettable, but that the team's focus was on Willis's swift recovery."

Falco grumbled as he half-listened to the radio. That was the fifth game in a row that the Paladins won. He had nothing against the team per se, but Fox would always bet money on them. The guy showed more love for his favourite sports team than any planet he ever fought for. Now, in his absence, Falco rooted for the Paladins' opponents every match. Keeping the rivalry alive eased the pangs he felt from glancing at the empty couch seat on game nights.

Outside of his Arwing, an endless sea of space rocks floated around Falco. He steered around another few and huffed upon finding only more rocks. Scavenging parts for their satellite was the last thing that Falco wanted to do on a weekend. Yet here he was picking through the Meteo Asteroid Field for junk metal. The area was so treacherous to navigate though, Falco kind of wished they'd just go to Sectors X or Y instead. Sadly, the nebulae suffered a distinct lack of disused satellites. Meteo was a more popular dumping ground for decommissioned space tech.

At least, that was what Slippy attested. There wasn't nearly enough of anything to convince Falco that this place was popular by any means. "I've got nothing over on my side. What about you guys?"

"Nothing I can see either," Katt answered.

"Negative," reported Peppy.

Falco clicked his tongue. "Remind me again why Slippy isn't out here helping us? I wouldn't even know if I found whatever we're looking for."

"I'll say it slowly for you," Peppy sassed him. "As part of our contract with Space Dynamics, Slippy needs to give them monthly performance reports. In person. If we don't do that, you can say goodbye to that fancy Arwing II you're sitting in."

"But do they really have to do that today? I mean, who seriously works an office job on a Saturday?"

"It's Tuesday where their office is."

Falco groaned. "I bloody hate every planet having its own calendar sometimes! Can't we all just use the same one?!"

"Find a way to make all the planets spin at the same speed and we'll talk," Katt replied with a grin on her display.

The only good response to a smartass was a smartass reply. "You know what? Let's do that. I'll give Dash a ring and have him check if good, old Grandpa ever built a gearstick for planets."

"Ooh! Do you think he also has a machine that can turn people into other animals and make water into wine?"

"Can it, you two," Peppy scolded. "I'm having enough trouble flying around these meteors without listening to your prattle."

"She started it," Falco said indignantly.

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"That's it! I'm going radio silent," Peppy barked. "ROB, contact me if either of those brats have something intelligent to tell me."

"Oh, come on, Pep!" Falco protested. Alas, Peppy's face disappeared from his comm screen. "Great! Nice going, Katt."

"Don't pin this on me! You're the one whining about being out here."

Falco held his hand over his beak. "Kkkkh! What's that – kkh – Katt? You're – kkh – breaking up. Kkkkkhhh!"

"Falco, I swear to God! You cut that shit out right now or you can sleep in your own room for the next month."

A part of him wanted to wind Katt up a little more, but Falco decided it wasn't worth calling her bluff. So, he resigned to the boring task of resuming their search. This sector would be a lot quicker to screen if they had a full crew on hand. It was too bad that Dash was on Fortuna, and Vixy wasn't experienced enough of a pilot for Meteo's conditions.

They flew in silence for another half an hour before ROB suddenly called. "Alert! I have detected four incoming vessels over radar!"

Falco clawed out of his bored stupor. His every nerve became alive and ready. "Friendly or hostile?"

"No response from the vessels. I am unable to identify without visual sight."

"Let's assume the latter. ROB, call Peppy and tell him we've got company."

If those starships were indeed hostile, Falco knew they couldn't wait around in such a cramped position. Peppy restored contact to his Arwing. "Fall back to the Great Fox," Falco ordered. "We should have plenty of space around there if this turns into a dogfight."

"Copy that," Peppy answered. He and Katt fell behind Falco as they turned their ships around.

Falco didn't appreciate just how many asteroids there were surrounding them until they were trying to fly through at speed. As much as he wanted to check his radar for the bogies, he didn't dare take his eyes off what was in front of him. A moment's distraction could plough him straight into a rock. So far, Falco wasn't hearing any alarms or attempts to contact his team. A question burned in his mind. Who could possibly be all the way out here? And why?

The Great Fox drifted on the outer rim of the Meteo field. There, the distance between asteroids became significantly wider. Falco slowed near the carrier. He and the others turned about to face the direction they came from. At that moment, four starfighters broke from the debris. Similar to the Arwing in design, their hulls were painted blood-red. Wolfens.

"Star Wolf," Falco growled.

A call rang over an open channel. Answering it brought the green, sneering face of a chameleon onto Falco's monitor. "Well, well. Look at the little insects buzzing in our web," he cackled in a raspy voice.

"And over there, I can see some cockroaches crawling out from under the rocks, Leon," Falco sneered back.

"That you, Lombardi?" another voice spoke; deeper and gravelly. The display switched to Wolf O'Donnell's scarred, grey face. "Well now. Long time, no see. How does it feel winning your squad's top spot by default?"

Falco's knuckles whitened through his feathers. "You trying to start something, Wolf?! What are you even doing out here?"

"That's our business. And yours isn't welcome around these parts," Wolf replied coolly. His one eye narrowed. "Funny. I thought Star Fox had more pilots than I'm counting."

"We've got more than enough to take you goons down, fleabag," Falco snarled.

"Careful, Falco," Peppy cautioned. "Watch your temper."

"Yeah, Falco! Don't go making any stupid moves." A simpering pig suddenly replaced Wolf's image. "Otherwise, you'll end up just like poor, little Fox."

"You shut your damned mouth, Pigma!" Peppy bellowed, forgetting his own advice in an instant.

Pigma Dengar, the turn-cloak swine, laughed. "Like father like son, eh Peppy? I feel bad that we didn't get to see poor Foxy go down. That would've been a good show."

Peppy roared over the radio. His fury yearned for blood. Falco was in full agreement for it. He lifted his thumb to fire a laser. However…

"Peppy, calm down!" Katt warned. "Falco, you too! You both know they're just goading you!" Reluctantly, Falco stayed his hand. Peppy's ship remained where it drifted. Falco could only imagine Peppy seething in his cockpit; his whole body shaking with barely contained rage.

Leon clicked his tongue. "Aww. That was disappointing. Way to ruin the fun, girly."

"Such a lovely voice, though." Falco almost forgot his boiling blood when he heard a man's deep, unfamiliar purr. Onscreen appeared a dark-furred jungle cat with a long scar along his cheek. "My, how it befits a maiden as enchanting in visage as you, dear rose."

There passed a moment in which neither side spoke a word. Wolf's growl carried over the line loud and aggravated. "God damn it, Panther. Can you stay professional for five fucking seconds whenever a woman is around?"

The rogue pilot named Panther sighed, as though equally bothered with his associate. "I apologise, Wolf," he said. "Professionally speaking, I feel I must introduce myself to our guests. I am Panther Caroso. A pleasure to make your acquaintance."

The name sounded vaguely familiar. However, Falco didn't care to put any effort into remembering. Knowing Star Wolf, there was a good chance this Caroso character was bad news just like his teammates.

"I have heard of Misters Lombardi and Hare from reputation," Panther continued. "Alas, I regret that I do not know our fine lady's name. Might I trouble you for it, Miss…?

Falco's lower beak hung agape. "Is this guy seriously flirting in the middle of a standoff?!"

"Took the words out of my fucking mouth!" Wolf growled. "Let's just cut to the chase, Lombardi. Take your crew and piss off, or we'll add your starships to the local junk collection. You've got 30 seconds."

Katt made an anxious noise. "Guys, I know you've taken Star Wolf on in the past, but we're outnumbered right now. We didn't come here for a fight, so let's just back off while we have the chance."

Logically, she made a good case. Falco became reminded of Zoness. He now knew that he didn't need to fight every battle that appeared before him, especially one with the odds stacked against them. However, this wasn't like hunting down some opportunistic scammer. This was Star Wolf they were dealing with here. A band of wanted criminals. Leon and Pigma each had $10,000 bounties on their heads. Murder and piracy were among the many high-profile crimes against their names. Wolf's was at least triple that amount at last count. Nobody was going to cry foul if Star Fox took them down here. The law was on Falco's side this time.

Falco also knew that walking away simply wasn't an option. Their two squads held a rivalry born back when James McCloud still breathed, one that endured as Fox took the mantle and led their team against Star Wolf during the Lylat Wars. If Falco turned away now without a fight, he'd be handing Star Wolf an easy win. It wasn't just his pride at stake. It was the whole of Star Fox's as well.

"Time's up, Falco," Wolf said. His jagged tone revealed that he was ready to shoot at any second.

So, Falco shot first. His initial couple of lasers sank into Wolf's shields. Wolf veered out the firing line. His teammates rained returning shots upon Falco and the others. They evaded like Wolf, speeding around their foes to regroup in temporary safety.

"I'll deal with Wolf and Leon," Falco told Katt and Peppy. "You two handle the other guys."

"Are you serious?!"

"Pigma's mine," Peppy growled. He flew off before Katt could protest further.

"I have the best chance of keeping pace with both of them at the same time," Falco responded to her. "But I need you and Peppy to even the numbers quickly and back me up."

Katt groaned exasperatedly. "You've really thrown us into the pile this time, Falco."

Leon flew behind Falco. He rolled to dodge the incoming lasers. "I know. I'm sorry, Katt. But this needs to be done."

"Stay still, birdbrain," Leon interrupted. "This will be more fun that way."

"Like I'm going to just sit around and let some cross-eyed crook take me out."

Apparently, the cross-eye remark tipped that psycho chameleon over the edge. "Just DIE already!" Leon launched a nova bomb. Falco accelerated and rolled to escape the blast. His shields took a slight hit. Nothing he couldn't come back from.

Falco searched for Wolf's fighter. He found it pursuing Peppy, who was tailing Pigma. A verbal battle waged between them over the comms. Falco tracked Wolf's flight and fired a charged laser round. His Wolfen's sensors alerted him with enough time to somersault over Falco's shot. Falco got what he wanted though. Wolf now turned his attention onto him.

"You're going to regret the day you hatched, boy," Wolf growled.

"You know, you used to call Fox 'pup' all the time. But that 'boy' thing just doesn't have the same ring to it," Falco quipped. He turned sharply to keep Leon's trackers off his tail. "What do you think, Leon?"

"I think you're dead meat!" A series of lasers peppered Falco's Arwing. Some chewed away at his shields. He rolled away to escape the rest. Falco shook his head and tutted.

"This is why we never talk," he sighed aloud.

With Leon hounding him, Falco failed to keep the pressure on Wolf. The mangy mutt manoeuvred behind Falco. Double the incoming fire meant double the effort needed to stay alive. Spotting some nearby asteroids that he could use to break their lines of sight, Falco hoped that Katt and Peppy would be able to take care of their business soon and help him.

Katt was annoyed. Out of all the emotions she was experiencing in that moment, annoyance was what stood out the most. She was annoyed at Star Wolf for showing up and picking a fight with them. She was annoyed with Falco for accepting their challenge. And she was annoyed with the universe because there really wasn't any other way that this situation could have played out.

If she were honest, Katt couldn't fault Falco or Peppy for jumping into this fight. Personal issues aside, Star Wolf were a problem that they couldn't simply ignore. O'Donnell and his team were Star Fox's opposite in many regards. They sold their services to the highest bidder in Lylat's underworld. It didn't seem to matter how dirty the work was. Groups like Star Wolf had a price for any scummy deed imaginable. Taking them out wasn't just some score for Falco to settle. Star Fox had a responsibility to bring O'Donnell's lot to justice. Katt only wished they had one more pilot to even up the odds. That would make all this much easier.

A Wolfen flying up to Katt's side brought her face-to-face with another annoyance. Her gut told her it belonged to Panther Caroso before she even looked his way. Katt could see into his cockpit. The dark jungle cat had the build of a soldier: tall, lithely muscled, and exuding a predator's air. Combined with his suave tongue, Katt might have considered him quite dashing. Too bad he was a lowlife outlaw.

Caroso caught her gaze with sharp, golden eyes. "Ah! You are just as beautiful up close. Truly, you are a rose among Star Fox's weeds."

"Thank you," Katt answered flatly. "But this really isn't the time for chit chat. Don't you think?"

"We need not fight," Caroso persuaded. "Why don't you and I slip away while the rivals enjoy their contest? We could then get to know each other a little better."

Falco must have been listening, because Katt heard his bewildered muttering over the radio. "What the fuck…?"

Katt's skin crawled at the thought of getting any closer to one of O'Donnell's goons. "Sorry, pal. I prefer white meat; if you catch my drift,"

Falling behind Caroso, Katt trained a missile lock onto him without hesitation. Caroso steered to break loose. Though sudden, his movements were smooth and precise. Katt believed she recognised his style. This guy might have once flown with the military. It wasn't clear whether it was Corneria's or some other. She'd have to check the bounty lists later to find out for sure.

Time disappeared as Katt fought tooth and nail to keep Caroso in her sights. A few times he managed to get behind her, but she didn't let him stay there for long. Katt thought it odd that she wasn't having a harder time evading. At first, she believed it was just the way her Arwing II handled better than her old Catspaw. However, Katt noticed a change in Caroso's flying when he was shooting at her. He only struck a few glancing blows before Katt escaped him.

The more she thought about it, the more it irked her. Surely, O'Donnell would have hired a more capable pilot after letting Andrew Oikonny go. Katt then frowned when she suspected that Caroso might be going easy on her. He was going to regret that quickly.

In between trading blows, Katt stole glances to check on her teammates. Peppy and Dengar were duelling in the open space. Neither one appeared to be gaining an edge over the other. Searching for Falco, Katt caught a glimpse of him weaving through the asteroid field. O'Donnell and Leon Powalski were right behind him. Twin streams of lasers showered over Falco. His Arwing shook as some struck his shielded wings.

Katt's heart leapt into her throat. Falco had told her to deal with Caroso quickly so she could then help him. However, Caroso was being a pain in the ass, and Falco needed help now! She turned sharply towards him. Charging her laser, Katt lined her Arwing with the two Wolfens. She fired without aiming properly. Katt expected to miss, but luck fancied her. The bolt struck Powalski's right side, taking out his shields and half of the wing with it.

Powalski screamed in rage. "Who did that?!" Falco used his distraction to turn sharply around the chameleon. Katt fired more bursts to keep O'Donnell from following him.

"I thought your kind could see in all directions, lizard boy," Falco taunted. "Nice shot, Katt."

Katt smiled. "Just doing my part."

"Katt? So, that is your name." Katt rolled her eyes, now tragically reminded of Caroso's existence. "It is unfortunate that you chose to decline my offer. Now I am forced to support my comrades. And I shall start by doing this."

This? Katt searched quickly for Caroso to work out what he was on about. She spotted his Wolfen in the same instant that he opened fire on Peppy. Green lasers struck the Arwing's nose. The blast knocked Peppy off course. It spun him sidelong into an asteroid, shattering his wing and slamming the body into hard rock.

"Peppy!" Katt and Falco both screamed.

Dengar laughed loudly. "Nice work, Panther! Did you mean to do that?"

"Lady Luck and I were simply of the same mind," Caroso answered, as though what he did was something to be smug about.

Falco launched a nova bomb to chase O'Donnell and Powalski off quickly. "Peppy! Talk to me! Are you alright?!"

No response. Bristling from head to tail, Katt turned around and gunned it straight for Caroso. "You bastard!"

At least three of her shots hit his Wolfen, though none inflicted major damage. Katt didn't chase Caroso as he flew away. Instead, she went to check on Peppy. His Arwing was crumpled on its left side. But aside from surface cracks on the canopy, his cockpit still looked intact. Peppy slumped to one side. He moved sluggishly. Katt breathed a sigh of relieve that Peppy was conscious enough to slip his space helmet over his bleeding head. If his canopy broke through, he wouldn't die immediately from exposure.

Unfortunately, now that Peppy was out of commission, Dengar and Caroso focused their efforts onto her. Katt drew them away to keep Peppy safe. She then pushed her Arwing to its limits to avoid being shot down herself. Falco tried to help where he could, but the other two thugs were on him again. This was starting to look bleak. But then something surprised Katt.

"Pigma! Leon! Panther! Fall back," Wolf suddenly commanded.

"Have you lost your mind?!" Leon protested. "This is the best part!"

"Just got word from base. They intercepted a distress call from Star Fox's carrier. A Cornerian Army patrol is on its way over."

"We can handle a few extra ships," Caroso argued evenly.

"Not worth the hassle. Head back to base now. That's an order. If the military catches up to you, don't count on any help bailing you out."

Powalski clicked his tongue angrily. "You and your friends got lucky today, Falco. We'll pick this up next time." His Wolfen became the first to disappear into the asteroids.

"Great seeing ya, Peppy," Dengar chortled as he followed. "We should do this again sometime."

Katt gripped her yolk tightly as Caroso had the nerve to pass close to her. "You have been a remarkable dance partner, Miss Katt. Your talents are wasted with the likes of Star Fox," he said. "If you ever wish to join a real mercenary team, I sincerely hope that you will consider ours."

He left before Katt could respond. She gritted her teeth after him. Like hell she'd ever give that bastard the time of day after what he did to her friend. Katt then turned her attention to Peppy. As she latched a towing line to pull his Arwing back to the Great Fox, she prayed that he would be okay.

Falco reeled over the sudden turn of events. Katt came to his aid to give him an edge over Wolf and Leon. Peppy got shot down. Then when everything went further downhill, Wolf pulled his team back over a distress call that Falco knew nothing about. Now he watched as Wolf's cronies took off one after another.

"You know, Lombardi," Wolf spoke. "I'm pretty disappointed by all this. You have my respect as a pilot, but as a squad leader?" He scoffed. "Imagine calling for help the second things turn bad for you. Guess the glory days for Star Fox are over. Just isn't the same without McCloud around."

Falco couldn't speak. Every word from Wolf hit like a punch to the gut. A cold, numbing sensation filled him. It made Falco feel small; weak; worthless. He should have been able to carry the team and lead them to victory.

But he blew it. All over again.

"Okay. Easy, Old Timer. One step at a time."

Peppy always loathed Falco and Fox calling him old, or when they acted like he couldn't move on his own without breaking a hip. But damn it if he didn't need a little help climbing out of his Arwing right now. Falco and Katt stood beneath him. Their arms reached out to catch him in case he fell. He was just as thankful as they were that he wasn't severely hurt. A bump to the noggin and a possible arm fracture was all he seemed to have suffered. They'd find out more once he got to the med bay.

"There you go," Falco cheered as Peppy's boots touched the hangar floor.

Katt held onto Peppy's shoulder. "Are you alright to walk?" she asked worriedly.

Peppy waved with his good arm. "I'll manage," he said, smiling through the pain. "Thank you. Both of you."

Unappeased, Katt frowned at the arm he nursed. "We should count ourselves lucky that there was an army patrol nearby."

"It's not how I wanted things to play out, but it can't be helped," Falco sighed. "Did either of you call for them?"

Katt shook her head. "No. I thought you or Peppy would have done that."

"Wasn't me either," Peppy replied.

"It was me."

All three turned to find Vixy walking towards them. She quickly locked eyes with Peppy. "Are you alright?" Her voice weighed with concern.

"Better now that we're back on the Fox," he consoled her.

Falco lifted a brow at Vixy. "What do you mean you called that patrol?"

Vixy crossed her arms in front of her. "When I saw that you were challenging Star Wolf three-to-four, I asked ROB to calculate your odds of winning. The estimates kept getting lower, so I called the nearest military ship for help."

"We had the situation under control," Falco narrowed his eyes. "That wasn't your call to make."

"Under control?" Vixy fumed. "Does this look like you had everything under control?!" She gestured to Peppy's Arwing and the crater smashed into its hull. Slippy was going to have a heart attack when he saw it.

Falco buckled. "Well… I…"

"This was a simple salvaging mission. You weren't supposed to get into a fight with Star Wolf of all people! What would you have done if Peppy had been killed out there?"

Her anger struck Falco into silence. Peppy saddened as he had heard this conversation at least once before. He stepped in and touched Vixy's arm. "Vixy, that's enough," he said gently. "These things happen. What's important is that everyone's come back alive. Thank you for sending that distress call when you did."

Peppy then glanced to Falco with a warning for him not to argue further. He didn't, and the lack of rebellion in his expression worried Peppy deeply. He would have to address it later. Right now, Peppy's injuries were killing him.

Vixy sighed. "Let's get ROB to look at you." Taking his good arm, she led Peppy out of the hangar. He offered Falco and Katt a parting look that he hoped carried the reassurance he wanted to give them.

Vixy didn't release him until they arrived at the med bay. ROB wasn't there yet, so Vixy pointed Peppy to one of the beds. "Sit."

He obeyed. "Please don't be so hard on Falco, Vixy. Everyone tried their best out there."

"That's all well and good," she frowned. "But there was no need for any of you to take on Star Wolf. You were not out there to hunt them down, nor were you prepared to. You should have come back to the ship when O'Donnell gave you the chance. Falco should have known better."

"If he's at fault then so am I," Peppy responded sternly. He released a tired sigh. "When Pigma said those things about Fox and James… all I could see was red. I wanted to kill him. I wanted to make him pay for everything he's done to us."

Vixy softened. She took his hands into hers and stroked them. "And you will. But not by putting yourself and the others in reckless danger. Because of Pigma, I lost James. And two years ago, I lost Fox as well." She paused to push down tears. "I cannot lose anyone else I love, Peppy. I just can't do it. I need you and the team to be more careful with your lives. Please."

Peppy sighed, squeezing her hands gently. "It's hard to promise that when you live as a mercenary. Danger is part of the job."

"Yet you've always maintained a balance of what risks are worth taking. That balance was not struck today." Vixy faltered again. This time she struggled to keep her voice from shaking. "I genuinely thought we were going to lose you."

"I'm sorry, Vixy. I was careless." Peppy clutched his hurting arm. "Not as sharp as I used to be either."

"Maybe it's time to think about retiring," Vixy suggested gently.

Peppy frowned. "I'm not saying I can't still fly."

"I'm not saying that either. You've been an amazing pilot to live this long, and you've done a tremendous amount of good over the years. All I'm saying is that it might not be worth taking the risk anymore. You should be able to spend the rest of your life in peace while you have the chance."

Deep down, Peppy knew that Vixy was right. He had been fighting for his star system for over 30 years now. Most mercenaries didn't survive nearly half that long. After spending so much time fretting over the welfare of his youngers, perhaps he should pay a little more mind about his own.

"I'll think about it," Peppy offered. "But it's not time for me to let go just yet." There was so much more that he felt he needed to do.

Vixy nodded, dissatisfied but understanding. "Just be more careful in the meantime."

"I will."

Braving the pain, Peppy hugged her. Vixy's arms tightened around his chest almost enough to hurt. It pained him less than the reminder that he was all she had left in this world. Until Peppy could give Fox back to Vixy, he needed to stay alive for her sake. He had to keep fighting until he and his best living friend could both finally find peace.

"We'll continue searching the area for Star Wolf. If they're holed up somewhere in Meteo, we'll find it."

Falco sighed softly in front of the communicator in the Great Fox's bridge. "Thanks for that, Sergeant," he replied to the patrol leader. "Sorry to drop this all on you."

"No problem, Captain. It's what we're here for. Do you require an escort back to port?"

"No, thank you. We can manage on our own."

"Very good. I'll contact the Cornerian City base and let them know to expect you."

Might as well tell the whole Lylat System that they were limping home with their tails between their legs. "Appreciate that. Great Fox, out." Falco ended the call and sighed again more forcefully. "God damn it. What a shit day," he mumbled.

Katt came up to hug Falco from behind. "It'll be okay," she assured him.

Falco clasped one hand over hers. "ROB? How's Peppy doing?"

"His injuries are minor and unlikely to deteriorate," ROB replied over the intercom. "I am returning to the bridge now."

"Good. Set a course for Corneria City when you get here."

"Acknowledged."

Katt squeezed Falco gently. "Are you okay?"

Falco stroked a thumb across her knuckles. "I'm fine."

She turned him around to face her. "Falco. Honest answer please. Are you okay?"

It became hard to meet Katt's concern and repeat himself. Falco gave in. "I made a mess of things today, didn't I?"

"I don't think anything that just happened can be blamed solely on you." Katt stroked his back. "We weren't at our best today. And it was our bad luck that Star Wolf showed up when they did."

Falco vented a strained breath. "We should have been able to take them. We beat them before. Why did we get our asses kicked this time?"

"Like I said: it was bad luck. They also had a slight numbers advantage. It didn't leave us with the best start to the fight."

"What were they even doing out here anyway?" Falco fumed.

Katt shrugged. "I don't know. But it seemed like O'Donnell was more interested in chasing us off than thrashing us. They probably have a hideout close by that he didn't want us finding."

"You think so?"

"My woman's intuition says so. That's all I've got."

There might be something to that. Unfortunately, there was nothing they could do about it now. And tracking Star Wolf down wasn't what currently occupied Falco's mind the most.

"Wolf said some stuff just before he left," he told Katt. "It's got me thinking again that I'm not cut out to lead the team. We never had problems like this when Fox was around."

Katt squeezed again. This time it was to grab Falco's attention. "I heard what he said and it's bullshit. We just had a bad day is all. The only difference that Fox would've made was giving us one more ship to flog O'Donnell with. You did everything just as well as Fox would've."

Falco eyed her incredulously. "Would he have taken Star Wolf on when we were down a few ships?"

Katt shrugged. "You know him better. You tell me."

"Yeah. He probably would have," Falco decided. He knew the gloves would have been off the second that Pigma talked shit about Fox's old man.

Smiling, Katt cupped Falco's beak. "You need to stop comparing yourself to Fox. He has his way of doing things and you have yours. That doesn't mean that either of you is a better captain than the other. It's just what works best for you."

Falco relaxed a little. "If you say so."

"I do say so. And you're not leaving this room until you say so too."

Falco laughed. God, Katt was something else. "Alright, fine. I'm just as good of a captain as Fox is. Happy?"

Katt smiled and nodded. "Very."

Now that they had that out of the way, something else bothered Falco. "What the hell was up with that Panther guy? Freaking weirdo acted like he wanted to whisk you off on a date."

"Jealous, Falco?"

"More disturbed, actually. Kind of creepy if you ask me."

Katt sighed. "Yeah. You've got that right. Who even was he anyway?"

"Searching for 'Panther Caroso.'" ROB announced.

"Mother Ducker!" Falco clutched his heart. He and Katt spun to find the robot standing at the ship's controls. When he had snuck in, Falco had no idea. Slippy needed to stick some bells on that bucket of bolts. ROB took no notice of their reaction.

"Search complete. Name: Panther Caroso. Species: Felidae. Age: unknown. Home world: unknown. The Cornerian Army first became aware of his engagement with Star Wolf upon uncovering a smuggling operation on Corneria one year ago. There is no official information known about Caroso prior to then. The Cornerian Army has issued a bounty worth $20,000 for Caroso's arrest."

Falco whistled. "Do we know anything unofficially about him?"

ROB dug a little deeper for a moment. "Unconfirmed sources indicate that Caroso migrated from a foreign star system. There are claims that he previously worked as a bounty hunter, though there are no records of him on any official registers."

"Could have been a freelancer who operated outside the law," Katt considered. "I've come across a few mercs like that. They mostly work around places like Venom and MacBeth. I think he had some military experience though. He's a scumbag, but he flies like a pro."

"Definitely someone who Wolf's gang would get along with," Falco muttered. "Katt, if we ever break up, please promise me you'll never get together with that guy. I could accept anyone else except him."

Katt rolled her eyes. "Don't worry. He's not my type in the slightest."

Falco raised his brows. "Really? Not a bit?"

"Nope."

"Not even with him being another cat?"

"Especially with him being another cat."

Falco became more bewildered. "Really? Why's that?"

Katt glanced at ROB and lowered her voice. "Have you ever seen a cat's dick before?"

"Can't say I've ever wanted to."

Katt sighed. "Well, I can safely say that you aren't missing out on much. Guys in my genus have little barbs all over their junk."

Falco's beak hung. "That can't be pleasant."

"It isn't." Katt shook her head. "Don't like it. Don't like it at all. Other girls do, but I don't."

"Jeez."

"It's pretty much the reason why my last relationship ended. Do you remember Kool?" Falco nodded, recalling the blue cat he met through Katt a few years ago. "We got together for a few months before I figured out it wasn't going to work in the bedroom. I've sworn off dating inside my species ever since."

"That sort of explains why you were so chill when I showed you my… junk." Trying to joke about it, Falco's throat constricted as he pushed the last word out. He glanced at ROB before whispering. "So… how do I compare to male cats?"

Katt smirked humorously. "You're a lot smoother going in and out. Though my memory is a little hazy right now. I might need to try it again to make a better assessment."

Falco swallowed. His feathers stood on end. "Like now?"

"We could." Placing one palm against Falco's chest, Katt stepped closer to nuzzle his neck.

Despite himself, Falco moaned softly. "You do remember that Peppy got hurt 15 minutes ago, right?"

"Oh, he's fine. There's no need to worry about him. I was worse off after that Sector X job."

"You know, if you're trying to get me into the mood, you're doing a lousy job of it."

"Then maybe we should try a change of scenery?" Katt smiled with a devious hunger. "Your room. Five minutes."

She then pulled away, leaving Falco lonely and painfully aroused. As Katt exited the bridge, she swayed her hips a little bit and flicked her tail. God, she knew how to press his buttons. Following a few steps, Falco turned to ROB.

"Hey, ROB. You've got the ship for a little while. Don't call me unless it's an emergency, okay?"

"Acknowledged." ROB tapped away at the ship's consoles without looking at Falco. When he spoke again, his voice suddenly became smooth and baritone. "Alright, Captain Lombardi. Head on over and enjoy making sweet, sweet love to your sexy feline while ROB-64 cruises this Great Fox to cloud nine. Go get that fine, grade-A booty, tiger. You are the man."

Falco stopped and stared. Horror and shock killed every other thought and mood running through his fried-out brain. He quickly left the hanger, shrieking in newfound fury.

"GOD DAMN IT, SLIPPY!"