Fan fic dot com is eating my coma's in some places. Most of these comas are right before or right after a quotation mark. So if you see this travesty, know it's not my fault! I even tried to add some back in with quick edit and it was being evil! The Punctuation monster that lives here, in Fan fic dot com was especially hungry tonight, singing "C IS FOR COMA, DATS GOOD ENOUGH FOR MEEEE", I saw him with my own eyes!
In this chapter, we see stuff. Sorry about the lack of action, which I'll make up for is Chapter 5. Chapter 5, btw, is already written. I took some time off of playing STARFOX2: Assault (you can rent it at your local blockbuster and hollywood video as of February 1st) which i've been playing constantly for about...oh...the last 9 hours and took about 3 hours to write chapter 5 and proof chapter 4.
Finally, I wanna say that I appreciate my last review a great deal. It rocks my socks to see someone look forward to my next piece and that made me get into the mood to write today, so I finished chapter five and it WILL get posted tomorrow (which means it'll probably be up on this site by tomorrow night or Friday morning! )
If this message doesn't make it in, and my coma's are still all missing, before and after quotation marks, then... fooey. In that case, QuickEdit stinks. As always, I've edited the content of ANY use of the F word, any descriptive sexual activites, other than letting you know Fox junior is a different lover from Fox McCloud, son of James, so you can get a feel for how different these guys are. THanks Ben Itoh for giving us a neat, different Fox McCloud. Yeah, I know, he was a mercenary on Papetoon, yadda yadda, but most people look at that Fox as having been reinstated to the military. He has a flight uniform, he flies off the base, he answers directly to Pepper. In the SNES Game, he flies out of the base, which gives NO hint to any mercenary lifestyle...just a friendly reminder, Fox Junior and Fox, son of James, nicknamed Mac, by the cast here, are different, yet they're both Nintendo Characters. Diane "Snowy" Rosen, Kit Karamak, Nicky McCloud and Annie Hare all belong to their respective peoples, writers of other Fan Fictions that I adore. Snowy and Kit are mine, Nicky belongs to M.L., and Annie belongs to J.G., word to yo mutha.
Now enjoy, read and review, lol! Chapter five will go up tomorrow when I finish proofing it tomorrow. And remember, any missing Comas and all the indentations that I tried to make stick... that's all curtasy fan fic dot com, and remember, QuickEdit Stinks and when you press on the 'down' arrow of the scroll bar, it takes you to the bottom when you're trying to edit something that's... well.. not at the bottom. WE LOVE YOU FAN FICTION DOT COM...ahem.
Take care!
Chapter 4: War Stories and Double Takes.
Does lightning strike twice? Of course, but rarely-to-never in the same place. The fact that this cargo container came from the same pocket of space that Fara and Fox came in was beyond possibility and yet, here it was.
"Slippy, Falco and Peppy...!" The words rolled off Krystal's tongue in a way that she wasn't even sure if she said them or not. It was as if the words were spoken on reflex action alone. Fara and Fox Junior suddenly gasped, racing to either side of the box, trying to search for a way to open the cross-section, to help their aquaintences from the metallic prison.
Slippy was on top of the situation, running to the wall, where a control panel was located. He pressed a few buttons and the group stepped back from the box as a large mechanical arm swung into view, hovering above the box. He didn't need to warn them about standing back, they all had enough common sense to comply.
The arm lowered, until a clawed hand was inches above the metal case. One of the metallic finger attachments revealed some sort of cutting tool. The laser began to sheer off a single layer of metal, not quite cutting all the way through one end of the box. Another pass removed one side of the jettisoned container and three pairs of feet could be seen, motionless. Slippy relinquished control of the electronic arm, letting the device raise back to it's dormant position, tucked into the ceiling.
The group quickly rushed back to the box, where Fox Junior and Fara began pulling the beings from inside by their ankles. It was Slippy, Peppy and Falco from their universe. Of the three, only Falco was still conscious, gasping for fresh air. Fox and Fara knelt to hug their friend and whisper their thanks of his well being. That was about the time that Falco saw... himself... over Fara's shoulder. His eyes went wide and he quickly began to move to his feet, pointing at his twin.
"Who in the hell...?"
The mercenary Falco grinned and said, "Heya', good lookin'." How else does one recieve their twin, for the first time? It was an awkward situation but one that only the likes of Falco could play off with a measure of style and grace. His doppelganger was in shock from being flushed into a gravity hole, and Falco understood the poor guy was probably already in shock as it was. And now all this, the poor sucker probably didn't know whether to make heads or tails of the situation.
Fox Junior shook his head, closing his eyes for only a moment. "It's a long story," he said with a sigh. "When you guys are ready, we'll sit down and tell you the whole crazy thing."
"So there's two of everyone here except for you, Fara and that chick over there?" The alternative Falco asked in disbelief.
"No, there's two of everyone except for Fara and Krystal, over there. I take it Andross threw you guys into the blackhole, too?" Fox smiled weakly. Now there would be no one from his world to protect Lylat from Andross. His heart sank and Krystal could feel it.
"We were handed over in exchange for a few Venom Ace Pilots, but mounted a new attack to try and find you and free you. The Marine contingent who went with us was mowed down," The military uniformed Lombardi muttered. "It was awful. We were the only one's standing. Andross attacked us with a miniature version of his telekinetic amplified face...thing. Next thing I know, we're being stuffed into a tin can with him laughing about having a special, fitting end. He said that, because we've come all that way for Fox and Fara, he said he'd be glad to help us 'find them more quickly'. His words. Half an hour later, after alot of turbulence, our oxygen tank failed. I don't know if it was out or damaged or what. About ten minutes later, we're here with hardly any air left," he explained.
He then frowned, glancing back to his otherself. "Are these guys clones or something?" asked the alien Falco, looking flustered and frustrated.
The Junior vulpine shook his head. "No, the blackhole sent us all into another dimension, where we exist, but everything is different," Fox said. "Life is altered from the way things are in our universe. Some of us have taken different paths in life and even Lylat is slightly different."
"Then where's your twin?" Lombardi from the other side asked, trying not to look as pensive as he was feeling.
"He took off for some reason, but said he'll be back. But now that you guys are here, we're going to get in contact with him, as soon as possible. C'mon, let's get you three to the infirmary," Junior said, eager to make sure his friends were unharmed.
"Where are we?" Falco asked, this time directing his question to his other half.
"GreatFox medium cruiser. Our home," Lombardi to his other half. The way the two were dressed was a complete difference in every way possible. The alternative Falco was wearing combat fatigues, a flight jumpsuit with the Cornerian military insignia and his head feathers gave him a well groomed look, regardless of being the team's bad-boy.
Meanwhile, the Falco from this universe looked more like a rebel. A bandana was wrapped around his forehead, pushing his feathers up into a messy mohawk. Sunshades were over the bandanna, perched above his forehead. His leather jacket and denim pants were worlds apart from his military counterpart.
The unconscious Slippy, on the other hand, looked nothing like Slippy, from this world. In fact, the slumbering toad resembled Beltino more than his indigenous 'brother', who was scrawnier and shorter. The wounded, sleeping frog had broader shoulders, wore a large purple amphiboid multipurpose necklace and the wounded, unconscious Peppy Hare looked stronger and healthier than the equal aged Hare that now knelt down to help pick them up from the ground. Peppy looked down at himself, as if looking in a mirror. He looked damn good, as if he was still only 45 again. It was then that he decided the military must have kept him young, along with the exercise and ... that's when he noticed a wedding band on his counterpart's left paw.
There would be time for questions later, for now, the group made sure to get the Alternative Falco and the rest of Junior's team into the medical bay. That left Krystal and Fox Junior to get back to the bridge and get a hold of Mac. Boy, wouldn't the home-team Fox be surprised that the Visiting-team Fox's entire crew arrived...
-
-
The group in the medical bay had been in fierce discussion, to try and list every difference they could, before trying to figure out all the similarities. Some of these differences were rather small, from the way Fox Junior prefered to dress, normally, wearing his dad's red flight scarf tucked up, underneath of his neck, where Fox, the son of James, never cared for something that silly looking. General Pepper from the alternative Lylat, where Junior and Fara came from, had some measure of sugar-blood disorder, where the sunshade wearing General usually found relaxing solace in the form of a lolly pop.
Slippy from the other side dated a woman named Croakella, who his doppelanger from this side had a crush on in school. Also, the buffer, broader, deeper voiced croaking Slippy had a speech impediment, stuttering and stammering over some words, on occasion. The two were quite different, indeed. More so than the other teamates to their counterparts.
Peppy came to learn that his alternative counterpart was married to the woman he'd always been afraid to ask out, in his youth. Annie Hare had become a published writer and her husband was a fit military man, even at 59 years old. Also, Peppy from the other side, had a name for his race, other than Lapine. The Pandorians had rich ruby irises and were telepathic to a degree. It wasn't as intense as Krystal's abilities, but the two would be able to get acquainted later, as Krystal and Fox Junior had left to try and contact Mac, who was busy diamond shopping with Snowy.
The indigenous Peppy felt slightly ashamed by his superior other half and vowed to himself, that exercise, more medication and taking care of his health was never too late. It was definitely better than working on maps and sleeping all day. His alternative counterpart was more fit, had less of a gut and looked strong and healthy. Who knew, maybe it was from having a wife.
It was determined that Slippy's mom, who died in birthing complications after an automobile accident, was supposed to birth both the stammering, broader shouldered toad and the smaller, squeaky voiced toad. That made them brothers, in one another's eyes. Beltino felt absolutely pleased to be able to embrace the son who was never born from the C-section, so many years ago. The three marveled at the differences between the fraternal twins while the two Falco's recounted stories of growing up, recounting how things were different with Katt Monroe and how the Military life was different from the Mercenary life.
Fara didn't even realize Krystal and Fox Junior had left the room, she was enjoying the company of her friends and her team so very much, that the thought of jealousy never crossed her mind.
-
Up on the bridge, Junior and Krystal were speaking to Fox. From across the Lylat system, Krystal couldn't really get a clear reading on what her mate was up to, but she knew he was doing something secretive. He was with Snowy and now, his nephew Kit. The Indigenous Fox was surprised to learn of a paternal family member on this side, recounting a first cousin on the Reynard side, a nephew of his deceased mother, named Gray Landry. But Gray, here, in this world, never exhisted, because Vixy and her sister both passed away, on this side, from the car bomb accident.
On that side, Vixy had an older sister, who never went to the store with Vixy, when the car bomb 'accident' happened. Over on that side, Gray, who was a bit of a trouble maker in his youth, was sent to boarding school until 16, and hadn't met Fox Junior until a few years later. But the story swapping came to a conclusion when Krystal finally announced, "C'mon. Bring Snowy and Kit if you like, but it's easier if you're here. So we'll be waiting for you."
That would give the Fox McCloud from this universe and his nephew and friend some time to get themselves together before heading back to GreatFox. Krystal slipped into the commanding chair, drawing one foot up on the seat's edge, wrapping one arm around her knee, tucked against her chest. Fox Junior sat down in a nearby chair and smiled slightly.
"I want you to know," Krystal began, "I think you and Fara Phoenix are a wonderful match. How do you think I could earn her respect?"
"I think she respects you, and will respect you more when she sees your piloting abilities. I'd go out on a patrol with her. Then let her spend some time with your Fox McCloud, let her see how different we are. She'll realize then it's just like John Smith. Two people by the same name with incredibly different personalities," replied Junior. "There must be a million John Smiths in the world, and none of them are alike."
"Well, what do you think about your counterpart?" Krystal asked.
"I've not made any opinions yet, that would be premature," Fox Junior said with a knowing smile. Krystal could read that he was honestly that open minded and smiled softly. "Furthermore," McCloud said, "I see he's got quite an arsenal of different vehicles. I can't drive a tank or pilot a submarine, I was never trained to do that kinda stuff. I'm not saying it's beyond my ability, but it's beyond my training."
"Fox is self taught," She said, speaking of her own mate. "He spends time doing practice on his fighters and vehicles, but I understand you go through far more rigorous flight training, boosting through suspended rings and formation flying and whatnot," She said after reading his thoughts.
"Mm, that's right. Very astute," Junior smiled.
The azure vixen of the cardinal-sun tribe tilted her head. "I'm telepathic, sweetheart. That's why I'm able to trust you and look past Fara's dislike for me, because I see who you both truly are. That warms my soul, you're both very pure of heart and spirit," Krystal explained.
"Well I appreciate your kind words," Fox said, trying not to blush. Krystal decided immediately that both McCloud's were easy to embarrass. It was cute, but it was also modest, masculine and an attractive quality about each Fox. Krystal was beginning to understand what Fara spoke of, by adding up the similarities between the two men. It wasn't fair, to some extent, that another woman would get to know the special, intimate qualities of her own Mate.
-
Katt Monroe glanced at her sensor readout. She must have missed the boat. She had parted ways with Slippy Toad so he could go and catch up with his father and never made it back to the rendezvous area, but she knew that her reputation had probably caused Slippy to think nothing of it and leave.
A frown touched the feline's muzzle and she decided to call Falco on the matter, later, and let him know what happened. Really, she just didn't want him to worry, not that he would. Had she paid attention to the time better, she'd not have just disappeared the way she was known for doing.
She piloted her ship back from Corneria, heading straight out, passed Katina. Everytime she was in town, she made sure to at least say hello to Bill, who'd become a trusted friend if nothing else. As she approached the planet, a small green dot appeared on her readout and a computer chirp was heard, drawing her attention to the blip.
Blue was an allied mark, red was a hostile mark, but green was something the computer could not identify. The closer she came to the sensor mark, the more she thought it was a simple glitch. She was nearly ontop of the green dot on her display but saw no ship or fighter. Infact, there wasn't even so much as a television satellite over the planet in this sector of space.
Without warning, a bolt of energy lanced from out of empty space, glancing passed her fighter and striking the ground below. Passing through the planet's atmosphere, the sky beneath her lit up in a bright display of multiple hues, which slowly dissipated into the normal coloration. Curiosity got the better of the feline and she eased down into the stratosphere, descending upon Katina to investigate.
Her fighter was temporarily surrounded by an orange glow from the heat. Beneath her craft, the grays, blacks and tinny colors of the city came into view, through the clouds. The scorch mark was nearly in the center of the downtown area. Another high energy bolt lanced out, crashing into the same impact spot, a second hint that this wasn't simply lightning.
Her flight recorder confirmed what she thought she'd seen. The bolt came from out of nowhere, hundreds of miles above the planet's surface, striking down at some unlucky person who was currently at ground zero. She could only wonder who was probably in that area, when the double bolt slammed into the paved ground, below, leaving a massive crater in it's wake.
Far beneath her fighter, Fox McCloud, indigenous to this universe, was driving, while Kit and Snowy were in the back seat, getting friendly. A massive bolt of energy lanced out from the heavens, striking the ground, searing it with incredible heat. A wave of steamy ripples gushed through the surrounding area when suddenly a second bolt of incredible energy pulverized the downtown area, up ahead.
A tectonic shift began, causing a rip through the downtown area, which caused Mac to swerve the compact coupe away from a parked tractor trailer which began to tip towards them. In his rearview mirror, he could see the massive transport crash down upon it's side, unceremoniously, causing a nearby pickup truck to be catapulted into the air, landing upside-down on the sidewalk.
"What in the hell?" Kit shouted to his Uncle, as if hoping he could explain what was going on. Fox kept quiet, keeping his focus on avoiding a collision. The compact was rear-wheel drive, which was coming back into popularity as of late, causing a long black streak behind them, from where he had floored the accelerator to avoid the tipping 18 wheeler.
The car spun to the left, facing the wrong way now. But control was never lost. Fox had his hand on the shifter, throwing the transmission into reverse, to keep from losing momentum. He then placed his right arm across the backrest of the empty passenger seat, glancing over his shoulder to see where he was going. He didn't have enough room to stop and turn around just yet.
"Snow, you've got insurance, right?" He shouted.
"...Yes!" Her pause was due in part from the surprise of his question, the reality of getting her car crushed not the foremost thought on her mind, so much as not getting killed. The ground continued to shake, causing large boulders from skyscrapers to come screaming down at them, pelting the street in a death hale.
"Good! Hold on!" He shouted, ramming the trunk of the car into two parked cars that were blocking the road up ahead. The compact's trunk collided between the two cars, forcing them to part ways, and only causing Snowy's trunk to crumple just slightly. Fox then brought his right paw back to the wheel, throwing it into a spin as hard as he could. The car arced around at 180 degrees, and his paw wrapped around the wheel, catching and cutting it back.
He dropped the car into drive. Now they were facing the right direction, and he quickly floored the gas peddle. The partially crumpled car screamed back into second gear, the automatic transmission finding it's place once more. The RPM readout climbed to 7,000 before dropping into 3rd gear at 4,500 rotations per minute. The tiny four cylinder gave all it could, trying to deliver the aggressive driver's need for speed.
A telephone pole reached out, threatening to smash in the passenger-side window, causing Snowy to cringe, pushing herself into Kit's arms. The light little vehicle fishtailed, coming to a stop, after colliding with a canopy at a bus-stop on the corner of a street. The car sat lopsided on the curb, the back tire several inches off the ground, spinning free.
Fox punched the peddle, but the rear passenger tire churned without resistance and the car remained stationary. A forlorn expression was plastered on his face as he tried rocking the car back and forth to make it slide off the curb. Fox pounded the dash, trying the maneuver again, only to be startled by the snow leopard's sudden scream.
A large concrete block was plummeting towards the street, high above them. At any moment, it would careen into their car and kill all three of them instantly. Fox pulled on the door handle, as he glanced up through the windshield, leaning over the dashboard, but from the car taking so much impact abuse, the automatic mechanism failed, jamming the doors shut.
"Dammit!" Fox shouted, drawing his elbow back and slamming it into the glass to his left. The tempered driver-side door window only resembled a spider's web, now. His arm hurt, but he didn't have enough room in the driver's seat, to draw his arm back far enough to really put all his weight
behind the strike... and at any moment, they'd be crushed.
A shadow engulfed the car as the boulder was so close that they only had enough time to mutter the first sentence of the Goddess's prayer. But once Fox heard Kit and Snowy reach the second stanza, he had to look out of the windshield and see why they weren't dead yet.
A pink and white trimmed spacecraft was hovering only several meters above them, using the shields to balance the building chunk over it's shiny, feminine paint job. Fox had never felt so lucky to see Katt Monroe's fighter, in his life. He decided then and there, he was going to hug her and buy her dinner, despite how flirty she sometimes got.
The fighter's Z-axis was shifted, causing the pitch to roll forward. The massive corner of skyscraper flopped forward, slamming into the street behind the car, safely, into a nearby parking lot. The fighter lowered, descending over them, protectively. Fox's beating heart belied both worry and newfound relief.
McCloud's wrist communicator fluttered to life and Katt's voice could be heard from the speaker built into his electronic gauntlet, under his sleeve. It was the voice of an angel, delivering them from the hand of evil, to be sure. Mac couldn't be happier. A glance down at the diamond ring he'd just purchased reminded him that maybe it was fated that he married Krystal, before kicking the proverbial bucket.
"You guys okay?" Katt said over the channel.
"We are now. The earthquake's still coming in tremors, but I think the bulk of it is over," Fox explained. "But what the hell was that lightning bolt, I thought they never strike the exact same place, twice," Fox muttered.
"I don't know how true that is," Katt replied, adding, "But that was no lightning bolt. If you could see it from the air, it leveled half a city block with each blast. Looks like it knew right where to hit, too."
"How does she mean?" Kit asked.
Hearing the other voice in the background, Katt replied, "It struck a tectonic plate and caused a shift. I don't know what magnitude but from where I'm at, I can see that Pearl Bay bridge is collapsed, in the distance."
"Good Goddess," Snowy said under her breath. "All right, Kit. Let's call in and make sure the Military doesn't need any fighter pilots, then let's get outta here, for a moment."
"Agreed," Kit muttered, glancing out the window at the devastation that surrounded them on all sides. It made his heart sink, wondering what the death toll would be. More importantly, what caused that big bolt of light to strike twice? He'd never been in the middle of such a wild natural disaster before.
-
Back on GreatFox, just two hours later, Fox stashed the ring in his sock drawer. He'd give it to Krystal and ask her to hold onto it until her birthday, but right now, he wanted to get up on the bridge of his ship. Along with Katt, Kit and his girl, Diane. The Snow Leopard was the first to approach Fara and shake her hand, introducing herself. Fox Junior was no where to be seen, yet.
Falco and Peppy were on the bridge, waiting to break the news to Fox in person. After explaining that Slippy was in the medical bay, Peppy decided to give Fox a chronological report of everything in order and let him sort out the awkward gaps.
"All right, Fox," The aging Hare said, pointing to the commanding seat. Fox sat down and waited to see what Peppy had been so vague about, up to this point. "It's like this, Fox. First of all, that bolt of energy, it's happened on Corneria, Katina, Fortuna and was even reported on Venom. Here's where it gets weird," Peppy added, licking his lips apprehensively. This was going to be interesting to explain. Sure, Krystal and Fox Junior told him to come back to the base but they never really got into the reason why.
"While you were gone," He continued, "First, we had another breach in the wormhole, bit. The rest of Fox Junior's team arrived and they're recuperating in the sick ward. They didn't get the same toxic treatment Fox Junior and Fara Phoenix had received, but either way, we'll go down and see them in a moment."
"All right," Fox said, nodding slowly, trying to digest all of this that was going on at once. "Go on, I can tell there's more," said McCloud, shifting his weight back into his commanding chair.
"Indeed, there is," Peppy sighed, putting his weight back against a nearby console. "We found the probe that we launched into the wormhole originally. It collided with Fox and Fara's packing crate, when they came through, but the collision disrupted the transponder. We had no clue where it had gone, but it was still recording data. Slippy... both of them, tracked it down by tracing it's data stream which is being reported to GreatFox. It's sitting on Fortuna, and we need the black-box recorder disc because it's been inside the wormhole and anything it has to offer might help get our new guests back home."
"That's excellent news! Set a course!" Fox said. Heck, it was the first good news he'd had since picking out the perfect ring for Krystal. That seemed like several days ago, oddly. After nearly getting crushed in an earthquake, time had seemed to stand still in the last few hours, making the morning seem like a distant memory.
"Since the rest of Fox Junior's team showed up, we've been seeing more and more of these electronic interference storms around the system," Peppy said. "Slippy isn't at liberty to assume they're completely related events, just yet, but it's the best I can think of. So if we can figure out how to fix it, maybe we will get paid, after all," Peppy said with a light grin. He knew that would at least sound like a plus to Fox.
"Damn right, we will," McCloud chimed in. "Where's Krystal?"
Fara was the first to reply, this time. "She's down with the rest of my team. We're not exactly on speaking terms right now."
"Erm," Fox was confused. "I wasn't gone that long was I? What happened?"
"We just... don't see eye to eye, Mac. It's a female thing, it's difficult to explain." Fara looked down, embarrassed, as if disappointed in herself, especially being this way in front of her Mate's other half. She offered a lopsided smile, trying not to blush at the fact she was acting like a school girl over the entire situation.
"I'm not sure if it's such a good idea that Fox Junior and I spar now, I don't want you guys getting competitive or anything worse than you guys already are," Fox muttered. Fara tilted her head, not having heard about the sparring offer previous to now. She simply dismissed the comment for the moment and changed the subject to better change the mood.
"So, you got something for Krystal's birthday, according to Falco. What'cha get?" She asked, smiling sheepishly.
"An engagement ring," Fox replied, placing his right paw behind the nape of his neck, knowing it was only going to stir up more crap. Fara's heart sank, but she offered a pitiful, defeated smile, instead of any rebuttal. Truly, Fox McCloud could be happier with another woman even in her world, if things were just slightly different. Her stomach turned to ice and she felt sick.
"Fara," Fox said, closing his eyes with a sigh, "You're a great girl and everything," He paused and then thoughtfully added, "It's like this. There's somebody for everyone. Fox Junior is for you, you're for Fox Junior. Personally, and don't take offense to this, but you're not my type. And Fox Junior doesn't appear to be Krystal's type, just from the little bit I've seen. She's very blunt, very honest. And she doesn't really seem attracted to Fox Junior. Trust me, if she was, I'd be jealous."
"I'm not your type?" She said, tilting her head. Fox nodded in reply, patted her shoulder and walked passed her. She was hot, by all means, she was a knock out, but there was something Krystal had about her that caused his heart to skip a beat every single time he saw her, glanced at her tail, looked into her eyes, put her up against a wall and kissed her... He couldn't even place it.
"Where you headed?" Fara asked as Fox approached the door. He smiled quietly. He was going to talk to Krystal and straighten this out but he really didn't know how to word the fact he was going to play adult, because, lord knows, with all the pizza boxes and soda cans that usually littered the bridge, he was anything but an adult, half the time. "Well?" She persisted with a half-knowing grin.
Mac shrugged, slightly. "To right a few wrongs. You and Krystal are awesome pilots and anyone who's good enough for any Fox McCloud, from any universe, gets my seal of approval. I don't see why you guys aren't buddies, but if you guys wanna duke it out or something, I'm sure we could find enough mud to fill the Rec Room...somewhere."
"Oh, my...Goodness," Fara said, throwing an Arwing model at him. He ducked out into the hallway with a swanky grin, quickly making his way down the corridor. Fara just shook her head, seeing the difference between the two men, now.
Fox stepped into the medical bay, patting Slippy on his shoulder, looking to the three team members from another universe, sitting in his ship's medical ward, engaged in conversation with one another. Beltino stood between a strong, healthier looking Peppy and a very different looking Slippy Toad, while the slightly-more mature Falco was engaged in conversation with Krystal. Fox Junior was here as well, glad his friends were safe.
Mac made his rounds, shaking paws with each new guest, welcoming them to GreatFox. He then stopped, turning to Junior and patted his shoulder, exclaiming, "Well! 'Ello, Guv'na! The band's all here! Jolly good!" Junior raised a brow, not quite getting the humor but smiled politely, regardless. "I'm glad everyone's here and alive. It's crazy out there, all sorts of crazy stuff happening around the galaxy since you guys popped up," The roguish Fox added.
The foreign Slippy cleared his throat, speaking in a deeper, stammering voice to address Mac's concerns. "It's
possible the abnormality is such an anomaly, the abomination is c-c-causing micro tears in the l-l-liniar fabric. B-b-basically, we shot out of one hole, energy is sh-shooting out of other holes, that seem to re-seal themselves right away. I d-d-don't know how sending us back will fix it. Maybe we should t-t-try to fix it before we leave."
"Good idea," Mac said. "Let's solve one problem at a time, in order. Two heads are better than one. Any ideas where to start?"
The foreign Peppy grinned, turning to Fox. "No, but you know something, don't you?" Fox tilted his head, was this guy just really sharp? Peppy addressed his unspoken concern by adding, "I'm about as telepathic as your girlfriend over there. Well, perhaps she's a bit better tuned in than I am, but it's pretty close."
"I...see," Mac said, looking flustered. "Well, all right, to address what you just said? Yeah you're right. I just found out the Probe we used on the first hole, just as Fox Junior and Fara came through, landed on Fortuna. So I've comprised a landing party to retrieve the object," he explained.
"Who's the team?" Junior asked, pushing his paws into his pockets.
Mac fought the urge to say, 'me, myself and I,' so he simply settled on the blunt truth. "Just me. Why? Anyone else wanna volunteer to romping around in the blistering snow?"
"Snow? On Fortuna?" Falco asked, looking confused. On his world, Fortuna was the home to massive animal-like creatures. There was hardly even snow at the polar ice caps, because the way the environment was set up.
"Yeah, it's about 68-to-105 degrees at the equator on that planet. There's one part that's pretty sub-tropic but...well. It's pretty nippy everywhere else. Just be glad the thing didn't land up near the poles. It gets over 120 degrees BELOW zero, there, on a warm day with no wind," Fox muttered.
"So where did it land?" The uniformed Lombardi inquired, running his fingers through his hair. He, like his world's Slippy, had a voice that was just a touch deeper than the Falco that Mac was used to, upstairs. "Cold part or nice part?"
McCloud looked at his Junior Counterpart before looking back to Junior's Lombardi and frowned. "It's not in the coldest region, but it's pretty darn cold, where it landed. I guess we're both lucky and unlucky at the same time," He added, glancing back to Junior. "You should stay here, keep on guard for anything that may happen. I want both Slippy's and Beltino to stay here and get to work on a way home. And Falco? It's in two pieces, one in each, cold and hot part of the planet."
The foreign, telepathic Peppy Hare raised a brow, seeing just where Mac was going with this, in the sense that he was trying to divide the teams up baised on their strengths. He looked over the two McClouds, seeing just how different they were right away. But the thing is, this indigenous McCloud had some sort of idea, using this trip as some measure of Ulterior Motive, he just couldn't play his paw on it. "Who're you taking with you?" He finally asked.
Mac shrugged, giving a wry grin. Krystal picked up on it too, suddenly realizing exactly who he was about to take with him, since no one really volunteered. It caused her to gasp. "No, you'd better not!" She said, gawking at her mate.
"Oh yeah. You and Fara are with me. I need the ace of diamonds and the ace of clubs in the air," Mac added, speaking of Falco and his currently present Doppelganger, who raised his brows, watching the vulpine for a moment, then looking back to his actual team leader before adding his own deep voice into the mix, with a simple, "Interesting."
"I don't know," Junior said, not wanting his team split up and away from him in such a foreign place, at least not so soon. "Do you think it's a good idea, Peppy? Having everyone split up like this?"
"Mind your own business, Fox," Falco muttered, glancing down at the rank on his sleeve before glancing back up to his Wing Commander. "If I can handle taking care of my Squadron Leader, I think I can handle ...myself."
"Cute," Junior said, shuttering to remember the last time his best friend had to fist fight with him, just because he wasn't taking care of himself. It had become a very private message between Fox Junior and Lombardi, not as fast friends, but as best friends. Whenever Fox let his emotions get in the way of his military training, Lombardi would refer to help 'take care' of his Squadron Leader. It helped Fox realize that he was letting his emotions get in the way of being a leader, before things digressed to physical contact again.
"You're right," Junior said, glancing from Lombardi to the other McCloud. "It's best to keep the team in small groups, baised by their strengths. But don't you think we should keep Peppy and Krystal together, to put their abilities together?"
Mac shook his head, "No need for it right now. It's best to have a telepath with the ground team, and a telepath with the science team, to help put things together. Krystal isn't a science guru, she's a field expert, in many ways. I'd rather have her with the away-team, more or less. Have your Peppy help get the Cornerian scientists and the Toad Trio onto the same wavelength, so we can get things done more quickly."
Junior, with his military training had a different idea, but for now, he'd let Mac try things his way. His military training told him that each team knew their own members best, so it was best to keep those teams together, so they could maximize their efficiency. But Mac's way had merit, as well. Plus it would let each group get to know themselves, well.
Having Slippy work with himself, having Falco fly with himself, and having the two Peppy's work with the military team, because one could keep everyone on the same thought page, by making sure no one went without mentioning something important, while the other took a serious hobby with mapping things, to possibly detail a journey back through the wormhole.
Junior finally reached his paw towards Mac, in an offering. "We'll try it your way, bud. Bring back my Fiancé safely," He said. GreatFox's captain reached to take his twin's paw. Fara's own McCloud, who donned a metallic communications headset, lifted his gaze, looking over that white strip of headfur again, which helped distinguish them from one another, then smiled softly. It made him feel unique, in a way. He could trust this guy, and while his judgment and decision making was baised more on emotion than on training and technique, they each had a potent strategic mind but they saw things in different perspectives.
Major Hare wondered to himself, if he could sit them down to a game of Chess, out of 10 games, who would win more than half? Because as different as they were, there would rarely be a stalemate, he was sure. His eyes shifted, looking over to the two, very different Slippy Toads, as they began to discuss how neither knew their mom, but it was neat to know one another. Peppy could feel warmth as the two saw one another as brothers, and it caused him to smile. He then glanced back to Junior and grinned.
"I think it would be wise keeping those two together with their father. They'll get us back through the hole with the help of whomever Mister Phoenix pays to come up here and help us crunch theoretical numbers." Peppy's words were wise, as usual. But they didn't hold the grandfatherly tones that Mac's own Peppy Hare used, due to their differences.
"All right, everyone, let's go get ready. Junior?" Mac's words caused the other Fox to shutter before reciprocating a simple 'yes?' It didn't even bother McCloud that his other half seemed to shun that word. "You tell Fara to meet us on the flight deck. And as far as my cover team and insertion pilot? Hmm, I think, maybe out of pure amusement, and because she's really worth the most in the air, I'm going to have to say that we should put Katt Monroe with both of our Falcon Flyboys. Heh," He paused to snicker. "That should yield some serrious amusement."
"Amusement?" The question was posed by both Falco and McCloud Junior, simultaneously.
"Well, erm," Mac ran his fingers back through that milky strip of headfur. "She's upstairs. She... I owe my tail to her right now, she brought us back safely. But uh, our Falco can't stand her, they used to date. And putting her in flight with two Falco Lombardi's should probably make things rather humorous," he admitted.
The blue feathered First Lieutenant raised a brow. "On my..." He stopped to glance at the rest of his team, then corrected himself, "our side, Katt was an old gang member when I was in my teenage years. We met up two years ago, on my 27th birthday and we've been dating. She doesn't annoy me," He continued, glancing to Junior, who looked like he wanted to offer his own two cents.
"Are you sure you want to add something that could be volatile, in this world, into the mix for your fighter cover?" he asked his mercenary half.
"Katt is one of those women who will go out of her way to help you a few times, and while she's still trying to date my Falco, who doesn't want anything to do with her, she'd be very important to this mission. And yes, it would be damned funny. Infact, I think I'll want the blackbox recordings of the entire flight, because I want to hear my Falco cussing himself for being stuck with her, and a Falco who's not opposed to relationships with a Katt Monroe in some form. Heh heh."
"You're awful," Junior said, shaking his head. "But at least you take the work itself with some measure of seriousness."
"I'm always serious. I'm just not the kinda guy who folds his uniforms at the crease lines, irons his shirts twice and presses his pants. I don't even polish my officer's shoes, because I don't own a pair," said the indigenous McCloud, smirking at the high ranking Colonel McCloud, who just didn't seem to get the joke.
"Well, at least I don't leave pizza boxes on the bridge, or beer cans in the trash bins, Fox," Junior said.
"Oh c'mon. I don't wanna argue with you about how we live our life. Let's just get the mission going. If we find out there's something sinister at foot here, we can put all of our heads together, save Lylat while sending you guys home, and make a quick paycheck in doing so. Now," Mac said, clearing his throat. "Let's get this thing from Fortuna, so I can figure out if I need to send Pepper a retainer fee or not. Don't worry, I'm not as obsessed with money as I sound, I just don't think putting the lives of my friends and teammates in danger is something that should be done for free. Now, let's move out," Mac said, patting his military-self upon the cheek.
-
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Fara sighed. She looked passed her love, across the bridge, to Slippy, his other-self and their father. For a moment, she was distracted. Both Slippy's were incredibly different, and yet both were exceedingly intelligent in their own way, especially when it came to techno gadgets and whatnot.
They stood only ten feet away, talking about some woman named Croakella. Her attention returned to the smooth, well trimmed visage of her true love and she smiled weakly. "I suppose. What about you? Where will you be?"
Junior scritched his fingertips beneath her jaw and smiled brightly at how she was taking the news of having to go on a mission with Mac and Krystal. "I'm actually supposed to fly with Fox's nephew and his girl, collecting information on where these bolts of energy are ripping apart sections of Lylat. So far, all we know is that they've only appeared in places that were heavily populated. Right now," he said, looking back to Beltino and his two sons of the same name, "it's assumed that the largest populated groups are a negative attracting energy source for the positrons to be magnetically attracted to, causing it to strike at densely populated cities."
"There's gonna be a but," Fara said. She always knew her mate brought out information by ending his statements with a conjunction, to bring out point A, followed by point B. It was his way.
"You're right," Fox Junior said, his paw still beneath her jaw. "But the thing is, there were several cases where it didn't strike from space, hitting thee most densely populated areas. It's only struck in the most densely populated military or strategic areas. Almost like attacks... with purpose."
"That sounds bad," Fara said with a sigh. "All right, I'll go with Mac and Krystal. I'll keep my mind on the mission and won't let my personal feelings get in the way. I love you, Fox."
"I love you too," he said, kissing her softly. She then turned back to Slippy 1, Slippy2 and their father. She had to get ready to go, but something about their differences and their unique situation made her currious about them.
"You dated Croakella in college? That's so messed up! I didn't have the nerve to ask her out, and when I finally did, she wasn't overly interested, how did you get her to date you?" Toad asked his otherworldly brother.
The other Slippy's slightly deeper voice bellowed from his 'fryer Tuck -esque' build, with a slight chuckle, as he held the photograph of his ex girlfriend. "Well, you see, I think she l-l-liked the d-d-deep voice and stammering. I've b-b-been working on it, but it was a turn on to her. I think she thought it was c-c-cute. We only d-dated for about t-t-t-t-two years. We got s-s-serious for a while but we lead very d-d-different lives. You know how that goes," He said, still gazing at the photograph of the amphibious female in his webbed palm.
Fara then turned back to Fox and leaned forward to kiss him good-bye, running her tongue gently along the corner of his muzzle, which was the practice for courting vulpines, before their lips meet in one last smooch. "See you when I get back. Good luck with Mac's nephew and the other one. I only met them for a moment but I'm sure I'll get to know them better when I get back," She said.
Walking off the bridge, she passed the most dubious group of all time, in the hallway. Falco Lombardi, Lieutenant Falco Lombardi and the leather-clad pink Feline, Katt Monroe, who dressed much the way Katt Monroe used to dress in her world, years prior. Seeing Katt and the mercenary Falco both wearing black jackets and relaxed attire that shouted "rock and roller", she had to wonder if this Lylat just never grew up.
But Peppy here, was more of a grandfather and old war vet, than her Peppy, who was just the senior aged combat pilot, who was simply kind enough to help a rookie, while making the job look easy. General Pepper, here, didn't wear a pair of sunshades or eat Lolly Pops, and didn't seem the kind who might shave to old rock music. He smiled and joshed with Fox on a personal level but had a very very serious side, unlike her own Pepper who was more charismatic and friendly, even in times of business.
It was a strange universe, that was for sure. She sauntered passed the arguing trio, who sought to sort out their differences before climbing into a cockpit and decide who should be the alpha squad leader in their small squadron. She continued on, trying not to pay them any mind, for the moment. At the end of the hallway, she boarded the elevator to the flight deck, avoiding the lengthy hallway, regardless of the fact that it was designed to be a quick, direct route to the fighters in time of attack.
She approached Krystal, offering her paw in a truce. Krystal smiled, seeing her intentions and shook, before the two turned to McCloud for a quick briefing.
McCloud cleared his throat and said, "Look. I'm doing this for two reasons. One, you're both supposed to be good in the field. Two, I want Junior in the sky, where he belongs. He's a trained pilot, with no formal training on the ground. That's fair enough. I won't put him in danger," He said with a smile. "And of course, I want to teach the future McCloud women how to get along," he added with a smirk.
Krystal blushed, but forced her expression to melt into a grin at being refered to as a 'future McCloud woman.' It was the first time her Fox had ever made mention to wanting to be married to her. There was something else, behind that thought, as if he had some sort of plans hatched up, but it was difficult to read, because he was trying to not think about it, whatever the secret was.
"All right, girls. We're going to be suited in thermal wear, because it's gonna be 40 below, where we are. The probe split apart in the atmosphere, which it's designed to do, to avoid complete capture," Fox said to them. "So one part is in the cold and one part is in the subtropics, where it's about 90 degrees in the winter season. For that, we'll need vests and shorts, with material that breathes. It's going to be miserable in both sections but I'd rather get the cold part out of the way, first."
"No LandMaster tank to get us through the snow?" Krystal asked.
"We're going to be out on a 19 mile block of ice. A two and a half ton battle tank isn't going to get us very far, but I'll have Peppy use the transfer beam to place one on the surface for us, so we can make the 2,300 mile trek down to the tropical region. But," Fox said, pausing for effect. Fara noticed that was one of his similarities to her own mate. "You know how sterling our transfer device is. It could wind up a mile from us, or it could wind up stuck in the ice, so the first part of the mission is on foot. Then we've got to clear a mountain; I'll have the LandMaster beamed into the valley. The Lake is at the foothills, we get our device, we scale the mountain, go down the other side, pick up our LandMaster and thaw out on the ride south, into our next area."
"I've never been mountain climbing before," Krystal mused, before adding, "In the snow. Do we have some measure of anti-avalanche gear?"
Fara answered for her, "Yeah. Luck. Do you expect one to happen?"
"As a matter of fact, on a region rarely touched, the powder slips in sheets, causing hundreds of tons of sticky snow, which takes more snow along with it, to come crashing down over your body, accelerating to over 200 miles an hour in under a minute. Most sports cars can't outrun that. Avalanches are usually caused by people who don't belong on the mountain in those conditions, to begin with," Krystal said, trying her best to keep her tone absolutely pleasant.
"Then I guess we'll have to be careful," Fox butted in, clearing his voice. He hated seeing the two women argue and hoped this mission would bring them a little closer together. Krystal could tell that was his intention and decided to make things easier on her mate by keeping things smooth.
Fara on the other hand, could only hope that this Fox and his plan of action, was going to go as well as he had hoped. She was used to trusting the instinct of her own, to whom she was betrothed. This was going to take some getting used to. This Fox had a different way of thinking, and she wasn't on the same wave length as him. Sure, this Fox was a little less manner-tempered or basically mature, but really, for the first time, she realized just how different the two McClouds could be, regardless of their obvious similarities.
(next)
Chapter -5- Course of action; Price of Freedom.
