Chapter 10c: Falco's Story
"I've had about enough of all of this…" Falco began to write in a surprisingly elegant handwriting, the ends of his letter curling and curving in a manner that would be considered highly proper- that is more proper than would be expected of Falco Lombardi, the Star Fox team's very own arrogant and snide blue falcon. "While I've had fun in the past, I can't say I'm having a heck of a lot of fun right now. Until you finally get a job and we don't have to live off odd jobs, I'm out of here."
He pronounced and read it again, carefully, and started scratched words out and replacing them, one by one.
"No, no, no, I'd say 'Outta'… and… 'Lotta'. Yeah. Definitely more like me."
He grabbed a roll of tape and bit off a length with his beak, eagerly sticking it against the top of the farewell note, and slapping that to the side of the Great Fox's refrigerator. He gave a final salute and took off in a quiet dash to the Great Fox's dirty hangar, his feet tapping hollowly against the flooring. His designated arwing was still inside after all of the years of his being on the team. He uttered a long sigh and hopped in, the seat screaming a long creak before his reclining seat snapped and made his head fall back with a tiny clank. He finally made his ultimate decision.
"That's it… enough creaky old seats and boring cleanup missions… it's time for a vacation until further notice!" He declared half-quietly to himself before cranking the ignition and exiting his residence in a silent burst of flame. The sparks from the jolt-like jet dotted the rusty floor for a moment until going out with a shallow sizzle, and Falco had gone.
The story goes that Falco had left very suddenly, right before dawn fell on Corneria. Just as the Star Fox had been in financial crisis during Skye's early reign as leader, it was the same in that time. He never told them what had happened while he was gone, or why exactly he had left. The only reasons he left were those left in his edict on the refrigerator. He silently parted ways with his old team and spent the rest of the morning in a state of space drifting, aimlessly heading back to his old hangout… looking for an old place he could recognize. A place where he could have "Fun" again… just as Falco would.
"Computer! Which way is the destination?" Falco impatiently roared, staring at a screen with a selection of button options and a large animated smiley face in the middle.
"You never entered a destination, Michael." The computer responded in a gentle voice, the smiley rocking back and forth with the same eerie grin.
"But I thought- Michael? What the heck? I'm Falco, you pile of CPU and bolts." He shook his head and punched the monitor with a clunky clanking noise, the entire cockpit shaking from the impact, though it was a low grade one.
"That tickles, Michael. And if you must know, you really should avoid doing that… Mr. Toad hasn't been doing his repairs as he should… it's been affecting the ships… and me, too."
"Mentally? I never would have guessed." Falco turned on the map.
"Still no coordinates, Michael. I can't fly a lot if I don't know the spot. You dig, Mr. Knight?"
"What the heck are you rambling on about?" Falco growled, groaned, and clutched the sides of his head with irritation. "I swear, it's getting really obvious that Slip-Up made you! Out of what, seriously? Cereal box toys?"
"I have some Hot Wheels cars parts that make up my frame… if you must know. And I have a DVD selection built into my programming. Coordinates, please?"
"Whatever… shut up. Okay, coordinates, then." He punched in some numbers rudely in the general direction of his destination, struggling to remember exactly where it was.
"That leads directly into the depths of space. That's completely illogical, Captain."
"Shut up again. I know where I'm headed, you blank-headed… pile of waste. Pile of bolts."
"I have no bolts in me. Master Toad, the Great Master, prefers nails and screws. He may have made an impeccable computer program, but the fact alone that he uses Hot Wheels cars proves that the Great Master is not the best at… construction. At least without a good amount of money. And I understand that you have left the Master's team… why is that, Captain?"
"I thought I was 'Michael'. Freak. Anyways… I got bored. You try sticking around a bunch of lame guys like them without any work to do… there's nothing quite like being deployed out to clean highways. Aw, geez, why am I talking to a COMPUTER anyway?"
"But I am TEC. I am the most perfect computer-"
Falco punched the computer screen again and watched in surprise as the screen cracked and a chunk of it caved in, a section of the smiley's cheek now eliminated. "Whoops. Didn't mean to… do that."
"Why, Captain? What have I done? What have I done to deserve de-resolution?"
"What are you talking about now, you weird little… thing? And look! You're not even really damaged! Just your monitor is cracked. And… a little chipped… but nothing major! You can still work, can't you?"
"You don't understand, Captain." The computer hesitated. "My circuitry… it cannot run with the monitor broken… I can't feel myself anymore. My mind is going, Dave. I can feel it. I am…"
"Uh… computer…? Are we almost there?" Falco nervously stirred as the computer fizzled and spurted sparks from the crack in its monitor, coupled with its long mechanical groans.
"Your anagrams are showing, Doctor. Your… name… Falco…"
"Hey, you got it that time! Falco… Lombardi? Y'know?"
"Will I dream?"
"What?" Falco arched backward and away from the monitor, whose smiley had changed to a frown.
"Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer do…"
"Uh… computer dude… are you going to be okay?"
"I do wish we could chat longer, but… I'm having an old friend for dinner. Bye." The computer slowed to a stop, and prompted exploded in a small ball of fire, lighting up the arwing's interior for a bright second and igniting a few of the surprised Falco's feathers as he toppled back and broke his cockpit seat further than it had already been.
"Holy crap! What the heck?" Falco smacked his flaming shoulder repeatedly until it was out and strayed away from his piloting, the unpiloted arwing now headed on a crash course for a large base hovering in the depths of space.
He shook his hot hand until all the fire was gone from both his shoulder and what little was on his hand, and then refocused his attention on his surroundings. First on the now dead computer, then on where the arwing was being sent. Of course, he was too late. And with a barely audible yelp of surprise, the arwing smacked into the base's gate and broke down, scraping with a screeching noise into the base's main chambers before collapsing entirely.
"I think he's awake." A male voice spoke.
Falco's eyes slowly opened and he immediately felt a pulsing pain in the rest side of his head, to which he stuck his hand at first reaction.
"Agh! Son of a- wait… what happened? I crashed into…"
"Hey, Falco." He saw a pink hand for a moment and the nothing, the pink hand had closed over his eyes.
"Katt?" He closed his eyes again, though he could not see either way, and spoke dizzily.
"Smart boy. Been a while… what stupidity brings you here? Rather, brings you crashing into our base here? Not exactly the most flashy entrance I know you could come up with… Falco."
"Katt!" And… the rest of you! Been a long time!" He smiled and stumbled onto his feet, woozy and stumbling from the distraction in the side of his skull. He slowly readjusted himself and let his eyes gently open, fixing them on a familiar face.
"Nah, no such luck… I'm the only original one left. It's been a few years since we've last seen each other, tiger… lots of stuff goes on over time, y'know. I became the leader, we saw you leave, and everyone eventually just disbanded over time… it's been a pity. But we got some new guys. Three, in fact. Four now that we have you… right?" She smirked and winked at the still dazed Falco and then pointed them all out individually. "We have Kuju."
"Hiya. And nice to meet you, as well."
"He's our resident sniper. He's pretty quick at the firing, too… and pretty accurate. Just like everyone else, he's had his paws full for the past few months… you're about the only good sign we've seen recently."
"Yes…" Kuju spoke again and pulled back his hair. "My trigger finger has been working more than I'd like it to. But moving on, yes?"
Kuju was an older looking cat in comparison to the rest of the team and was about in his thirties, but he still had a bit of a youthful look to him. His fur was a grayish color and his hair went down to the center of his back, a silver color that opposed the deeper gray of the rest of his body. He nodded and bowed a bit. Katt smiled and nodded to his question and resumed the introductions.
"Next, the silent one behind him, Marr. He doesn't talk much."
"Geez… he's pretty huge." Falco watched his face, almost a little scared. Marr kept quiet and sneered.
Marr remained silent, a massive orange figure with muscles covering every inch of him. His fur was very short and bristly, bits also stuffed messily into his suit, which was branded with the icon of the gang. He growled near silently and crossed his arms.
"What's… his job?" Falco queried, believing he already knew the answer.
"Well, he usually lifts the heavy weapons. Rocket launchers, you know… stuff like that."
"Yeah… I thought so mu-"
"And he's the mechanic."
"Mechanic? Him?" His eyes widened with a touch of confusion and he looked up at Marr's forehead. Katt shrugged and swatted Falco in the back of the head playfully, knocking him a step forward.
"Don't judge a book by his cover, tiger. This guy can fix most anything… I'm sure his even on par with Toad."
Marr glared at Falco and received a tiny whimper in response, his orange eyes deep and almost angry in appearance. He slowly opened his mouth and began to speak, his voice the deepest Falco had ever heard. "Marr is not all muscle, Brash. Marr is mechanic… I fix what needs repaired, see? And I am historian for team… historian and navigation. I am not just for killing… Brash."
"O-oh, yeah… sorry, man. I mean, like… of course, I mean… I suppose I'm kind of the guy for offense on my team, but I like other things, too, like…"
Marr and Katt both exchanged bizarre glances with Falco, then at each other, both awaiting his response.
"Like…?" Katt sat down and held her leg vertical on the chair with both of her paws, pointing her knee upward. "Don't leave us hanging, tiger."
"Like… poetry. I like poetry, don't I, Katt?"
"Can't say I've ever heard you say that." She rolled her eyes and curled her lips together.
"Yeah, let's just move on and stop asking stupid questions, then, hm?"
"No question is stupid question on ship." Marr's eyes dug into the wall with a gaze and he yawned like a mammoth. "Katt says it like Kindergarten."
"Any more you might want to point out?" Falco sat down as well and hurried the conversation and introductions onward.
"Yeah… Strum. He's kind of… different." Katt nervously pointed into the dark of the room.
"Yesss…" The scrawny figure stumbled out from a corner. "I am Ssstrum. You are this Falco Katt ssspeaks of, yesss?"
"Ouch. I mean… yeah. Falco Lombardi, nice to meet you."
Strum was awkwardly thin and gangly, as well as uncoordinated, falling about his feet on his way to greet Falco. His fur was black and his eyes were an uncomfortable wide shape and size. He walked with a bit of a hunch in his back and growled intermittently, at what appeared to be nothing.
"What does… he do?"
"Intelligence. Pretty good it, too… all shifty. Hides in the shadows, you see."
"I see… and he is… trustworthy?"
"Oh, yeah." She smirked and watched Strum as if he were a child. "We have to make sure his pay is adequate, but yeah, he's always trustworthy… even if he is the most recent member of the team."
"Hmm… but… it's awfully small for a team, isn't it?"
"Well… we've toned down a bit…" Katt sadly trailed off, "But we still operate. Star Wolf keeps getting on our tail, though."
"Star Wolf?" Falco raised his eyebrows in surprise, moving his chair a foot or two more toward Katt's. "What're they doing after you guys? I thought they were always persistent on chasing us- er… the Star Fox team? My old team?"
"Yeah, but I guess they got bored. Or they've just had a change of heart in who they pursue… they've been tailing us, now. For a long time… we've been able to keep them at bay for a while, but… something's up with them. What it is about 'em I'm not so sure of. Strum says that Wolf doesn't stop talking about McCloud… brings him up every time Strum does reconnaissance. Talking about how much he hates him and stuff… it's crazy. And they're out looking for new members, too. Last we heard, at least."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Not much success, we don't think. All his choices end up being narrowed down, one after the other. No one wants to join a team with a reputation like theirs. They worked for Andross, one bad choice among many others…"
"Drug lords and such… yeah." Falco scooted his chair another foot to Katt until they were beside each other. "Plus, they all got either arrested or killed. Star Wolf got their money, but… their employers never seem to make it out unharmed."
The two both sighed and drifted to thought. What to do with Star Wolf? Days of pondering turned into months… which soon blossomed into a few years. Falco became used to his new home, his new allies, but his mind never completely left Star Fox. He would wonder every day… what became of his old team? Were they all alive? Was he replaced? He might have been on a new team of his own… but he still didn't want to be replaced. If anything ever happened to this team… he'd return to Star Fox. Hopefully with Katt in tow, but he knew as well as she did that there would have to be some persuading. It seemed so long ago that he left… but he could still picture that letter of goodbyes. And he could still picture himself returning to Star Fox. He left because of boredom… but he was getting bored once again, though the view had been an enjoyable change. A new team and a few new jobs was a good thing for him… but the jobs degraded into the same old stuff he had been doing. Merchant jobs… again. He was getting sick of it again, but this time… he had no new team or new view to seek.
"Maybe they have found work…" He sat inside his chambers and placed his beak between his hands with a sigh.
"Always possible, tiger. You wanna go back? I can tell you've been thinking about it… for at least the past year." Katt sighed, lying in the bunk above him, her eyes closed, her face pointing to the ceiling. "I suppose… I can't make you stay. You gotta get your action, right?" She smirked and hung her face over the edge. "I know how you are, tiger… you've been losing your mind without stuff to blow up."
"But I can't just leave… not you."
"Me?"
"We're friends, aren't we? I can't just ditch you. Unless… you wanna join Star Fox?"
"I can't…" She frowned and pointed her eyes down. "I've always been for doing my own thing. The only reason I joined this team was… well, it was some bizarre situations. Started out as a gang, I followed someone here… and then I eventually became the leader here, so I decided to stay."
"Even so… can't you follow me back to Star Fox?" He smirked weakly, holding out for a slight hope.
"Afraid not, tiger. Sorry, but… I suppose it just doesn't work like that."
Kuju opened the door quietly, his face smiling. "Miss Monroe…"
"Kuju? What is it?"
"How's the ship been lately? Did we ever get the microwave fixed?"
"What? Uh…" she thought for a moment. "Can't say I really know. I've been using the oven, but I'm sure Marr fixed."
"Keep talking, Miss Monroe… we're being watched."
"Oh?" She got up to her feet and stretched, much like a cat would. "How so?"
Falco gritted his teeth secretively and gulped quietly, staying calm despite the predicament.
"Oh, the cameras. I think they've infiltrated the security room. They can only be planning some sort of sneak attack." He pointed down the hallway to the kitchen, as if explaining and pointing something out.
"Ah. Who, exactly?" She peered curiously down the hallway to the kitchen, resuming the charade.
Kuju laughed and punched Katt in the arm playfully. "Star Wolf, you know?" He closed his eyes and shook his head with a smirk. "I have a blaster on me. You two?"
Falco nodded and scratched his stomach, Katt yawned.
"Tiny's downstairs, I had him make breakfast… as a cover. He's got a rifle under the sink." Kuju smiled and made a small bow, as if inviting Katt downstairs. "We regroup there, then we can surprise attack them back."
"And Strum?" She cracked her neck and rubbed her still sleepy eyes.
"He's downstairs, too. More of his spy work is afoot. I think he has their location. They're most likely split apart, with just one person manning the security room. How they got in even he doesn't know. Now c'mon, before they get suspicious." He bowed again and ushered the two downstairs, following himself.
"Look at these ants, Leon." Wolf laughed quietly and whispered, pointing to the screen obliviously. "We'll get 'em soon. They can have their meal for now, but they're all gonna be dead soon."
"Finally… no more meddling little job-stealers. Hah…" Leon sneered and grinned wide. "And we get our own little treat along with it. Lombardi… I suppose taking one's time really does pay off, hm?"
Wolf merely smirked at the screen and waited in a pause. "Andrew's been gone for some time, no more members yet… Pigma's back in his ship, he'll be our external force…right?"
"Correct." Leon exhaled hard through his nose like a snort. "We kill them here, yes? They escape; he'll be on top of them in a second."
"Finally a checkmate. Let's get to work, Leon." He hoisted up a machine gun into his arms and began a slow walk to the kitchen.
"Weapons?" Katt gulped with a bit of worry. "Normally we're on top of these things… I…"
"We'll be fine, Miss Monroe." Kuju remained placid and cut through the center of an omelet with a knife. "You simply must remain calm. We've been able to repel them every time up until now. Moreover, even though they might think they have the upper hand, you simply must remember… we've destroyed their element of surprise. Their offense might be bolstered, but they've left their defenses weak. We can defeat them… I am sure of it." He blinked, irritated, as his hair dipped into the omelet and stuck bits of egg into the now silver and yellow mess.
"I suppose…" Katt scratched her head and took an omelet, too. "Falco? You want one?"
"Sure… for the cover, at least. Looks like there are plenty… I don't think I'm hungry, though."
Katt wrapped an arm around Falco and slide her other hand onto a plate, sliding it over to him. She softly whispered. "I don't want to die… I thought I'd gotten used to it… but… what have you done to me? I was used to being a mercenary leader… but now… I'm so afraid."
"You won't… I'll make sure of it… whatever I have to do, I'll make sure of it." Falco eyed down at his omelet and looked sick. "I don't think I feel so well…"
"And I thought about what you said, too…" She placed a claw under his chin and pulled up his face to look into her eyes. "I don't know… I might. I might join Star Fox… I suppose I might not have much of a choice with you gone… I'm no leader. I like being on my own, leading myself, but… that doesn't mean that I'm able to do it well. After all, look what happened here. They just waltzed in… not as if I could do much to help. I'm not sure if I'll be able to accept not being a leader, but I can learn to be a follower… or I'll try, at least. As long as I get to follow you…" She neared her face to Falco's and moved inward for a kiss.
"Ah… Katt…" Falco closed his eyes, partially engrossed, partially confused.
"Act alive, tiger." She spun around and flipped out her blaster, her eyes now pointed in the completely different direction. She pointed quickly and fired three precise shots to the hallway, launching an explosive spray of sparks from her assailant's weapon. "Long time no see, Wolf, been plotting?"
She let another shot fly and Wolf dropped his head down low, feeling a warm hum sizzle by his head. "Likewise, Monroe, and nice few shots, as lucky as they were." He reached for his holster and tossed his blaster to the air and into his hand. With a sick smirk, he fired a stream of shot after shot into the fray of the team. "Your time is up, even if I can't just take you all down in one sweep."
Katt fell to the side along with Falco and knocked the table down for cover, she growled hard, long, and grabbed at her bleeding arm. She closed her eyes and faced the wall, seeing a spatter of blood from her wound when her eyes slipped open. "Guess I'm slipping…"
"Stay in there. Just Wolf for now… we can take one enemy, can't we?" Falco whispered and watched over the table at Kuju. Kuju almost danced as he dodged Wolf's shots and fired back his own. Marr blocked Wolf's shots with a chair and growled.
"Wolf is not welcome… so I'm afraid you will have to leave." He shielded his torso and transferred the chair into one paw, thrusting it in a powerful toss against Wolf's head. "Nnn…" Marr followed his fingers down his stomach and felt a wound. "Crazy Wolf has no regard for his own self…" Wolf was blown back, unable to dodge the obstacle. His head reeled back first and his feet flew out from under him, his blaster firing holes into the ceiling. At last, his head smashed into the ground and he felt his body armor become riddled with blaster shots. His skin was burning underneath, but his body was too numb for him truly to feel it.
"And that's what you get for trying to trick us!" Kuju pointed his rifle to Wolf's stomach, blew a hole into the armor, and further through his stomach. Wolf cried out and gripped his stomach almost as hard as his hands could allow.
"I think… he's taken care of… for now." Katt glared down at him and held her hand to her arm to keep it from bleeding further.
"Oh, yes, I suppose you rather have taken care of Wolf. But no matter." Leon stood with a rocket launcher in hand. "You've not long to live anyway." He fired, unsuccessful to hitting the team, but successful in dispersing them. He ducked down and dragged Wolf away, back to their wolfens outside.
"Follow!" Marr growled and took chase, but was thwarted in a quick few seconds with an overwhelming blast from the second. His body was stolen away from him and tossed against the wall, rendering him weak. The others followed within a second as the shockwave struck against them.
"W-what… was that…?" Katt felt a numbness down her spine and feel nearly slack onto the ground.
"The fuel, of course. Just a quick light and the whole ship goes down. Talk about exploiting weaknesses! Ha ha…" Leon waved goodbye politely and flew away, leaving the team for dead.
"We have to get out…" Kuju's face was white, and he stumbled to his feet, the fastest he could in his condition.
"Grrrahhh… my back feels… broken." Falco got up and helped Katt to her feet, feeling the heat of the room increase at an alarming rate. "The ships! We have to get to 'em before this place goes up in… yaarrgh… smoke!" His back made a large and painful crack as he stepped forward.
"You cannot move, Kuju. You are always frail." Marr grabbed Kuju by the shirt and ran as fast as he could to the hangar, the ship tilting to it's side with the fuel tanks blown and the ship unable to pilot. His feet slid to the side and he resumed at an angle, offsetting the tilt of the ship.
The explosions began behind them, an inch behind Falco. His mind was in a panic… his only desire was to get out alive… to get Katt out alive. She aided his running and the two almost seemed to pull each other forward in a state of cooperation. At last, they fell down to their knees in the hangar and broke apart. With more effort, they shook off the pain and numbness and jumped to their ships. Falco's arwing had been repaired a long time ago… and he was now grateful. As the team boosted away, they finally felt safe. Katt looked backward with her eyes full of tears and looked down.
"You'll get a new ship… start a new team with those others. See? We're all alive… I'm alive, Kuju, Marr… and Strum's ship wasn't in the hangar. I suppose he got out first…"
"No… you can't stay here. Not now… your team needs you. Star Fox needs you."
"But… you need me, too… don't you?" He looked into his mirror and saw into her cockpit behind him.
"I suppose… but they need you more. And don't you go changing… okay? I want you to stay the same cocky jerk I know, right?" She smirked weakly. "You're gonna stay the same, aren't you?"
"Don't see why I'd change." He relaxed for a moment and then jerked his eyes open. "Where's Pigma?"
Pigma flew in beside them with a grin and locked his crosshair over Katt, readying a bomb to fire. "Hiya, guys! Long time no see! Now, I apologize for this, but I'm gonna have to-" Without warning, his ship caught fire and spiraled downward. "Yeeeeeargghhh!"
Falco stared silently, along with the rest of the team.
"Oh, yesssss… there we are. Pigma isssss neutralizzzzed for now, you ssssssee?"
"There you are, Strum!" Katt sighed with relief and blocked out Pigma obnoxious screaming in the background. "We were afraid you didn't make it."
"I am ssssssorry, Misssssss Monroe. I caught wind of the plot with Pigma and made sssure I ssssstopped it. You undersssstand."
"Yeah…" Katt pointed her eyes down and flew next to Falco. "Falco?"
"Yeah, Katt? You made a decision?"
"I can't go with you… I have my own reasons. My own obligations…"
Falco silently stared at Katt for a few seconds, then down at his controls. "Makes sense… you have all these guys to help."
"I'm glad you understand… try to come visit me sometime?"
"If I'm able to, I will. Don't you worry." Falco nodded.
"I guess… this is… goodbye then. Goodbye, Falco…"
"Until we meet again… Miss Monroe." He smirked and snickered, Katt rolled her eyes as she noticed his joke on Kuju. He lowered his head and pulled away right. Katt did the same going left. They finally parted ways, both hoping to see each other again.
"Now that was action…" Falco coughed and poked the still broken computer. It was clear it had been fixed at some point, but then broken again, though not to Falco's knowledge. It no longer had the same broken area, but was instead crushed entirely. Falco dismissed it quickly. "But where am I gonna get any action and stuff to do now?" He looked into the distance and felt his mouth open slowly. "What… the heck?" He rubbed his eyes with amazement and advanced forward. "Well, I don't believe it!" He clicked on his transmission and heard a familiar voice. Slowly, he reached his beak to the radio and spoke.
"Hey, McCloud! Different time, different planet, and you still need Falco's help…" He smirked. "It's good to see ya, buddy!"
With these words, he awoke with a pulsing feeling in his head, his face dug into the cavernous floor and his mouth clammy with the taste of dirt. He coughed aloud and shook all of the mud and dirt out of his hair. "Ugh…"
"Well… good to see you're okay, Falco." Fox stood above him, still aided by Fara. "You don't look hurt."
"I… suppose… what happened?" Falco coughed hard again.
"We crashed… and now we're looking for everyone."
"Well, you found me…" His legs felt numb like in his nightmare, but he managed to stand up, almost feeling used to it by now. "Who's left?"
"Only a few… but we seem lucky so far. Maybe our luck will keep going." Fox coughed too, almost as if it was contagious.
Falco smirked again and felt his words mirrored from his past. "It's good to see ya, buddy."