Author's Note: Hello again. I hope you all liked Part One of "Prologue: One Starry Night." Here is Part Two.
"A Wolf's Redemption"
"Prologue: One Starry Night"
Fly off into space,
Little pup of blessed fate.
Go, help the heroes.
Part Two:
The explosion of a smart bomb in the atmosphere far beyond the fireworks caught Lyall's attention. A dogfight was happening in the skies above Corneria!
"What are you gawking at?" snapped Lyall's father. "We need to get home."
Lyall ignored the elder wolf's words, instinct and duty taking over. There was some major flak being thrown around up there, and someone needed his help. Dropping the suitcase he was carrying, the young Lupine dashed off towards CMA's hangars.
"Where the hell are you going, Lyall!" his father roared.
By the time his father's outraged question even registered in Lyall's mind, he'd already scaled the locked fence and gotten into the hangars through a carelessly unlocked door. Inside was on old prototype Arwing used for demonstrations when preparing for the Arwing Flight Simulation Exam. Lyall activated the electronic control for the hangar doors, and jumped in the cockpit of the outdated ship.
Only one guard had been left to look after the place since it was Graduation night (because last year there had been trouble with the fireworks that were being set off by the Underclassmen Festivities Committee), and he was slammed with cheap beer. Noticing the doors opening up, he fumbled with the intercom until the microphone switched on, and said, "Who'sh there? Who gave - *hic* - gave you permishun t' launch th' Arwingh?" When there was no response the drunken guard hit a red button and spoke into the microphone again, "All pershonell… shumone'sh tryin' t' shteel th' Arwingh in th' hangar. I repeat - *hic* - shumone'sh tryin' t' shteel th' Arwingh in th' hangar."
Four guard who were nearby on patrol caught the message and started running towards the hangars. From the cockpit, Lyall could see them coming a mile away. "Sorry," he said, flipping switches and pushing buttons to start the ship. "Someone needs help."
The Arwing's starting up sent a signal to a receiver in the control room with the drunken guard, who was frantically (as frantically as a drunk can) searching for the override switch to cancel the launch sequence. When the signal reached the receiver, a second gate outside of the hangar opened up, and a hydraulics system under the tarmac lifted the Arwing into launching position.
Another guard who just happened to be inside of the hangar when the alert was raised busted into the control room pushed his drunken colleague out of the way and grabbed the mic, "Attention pilot. You do not have the proper authorization to launch that aircraft. I repeat, you do not have proper authorization! Abort immediately!"
Lyall turned on the Com-link in the Arwing and replied, "Acknowledged, flight control. Unfortunately the situation calls for immediate action that doesn't have time for authorization."
The surprised guard stood for silent for a moment, and then asked, "What is the situation, pilot?"
Lyall smiled. He couldn't believe that the guards, who were part of the Cornerian military, hadn't noticed the fighting beyond the fireworks. "Stop the fireworks, and alert the rest of the personnel to look up, then you'll see the problem." Finishing the launch preparations, Lyall punched the throttle, activating the G-Diffuser system, and the old Arwing shot forward and up as the ship reached the end of the launch system.
As the Arwing made it up above the academy, Lyall barely noticed the guards watching the Underclassmen Festivities Committee stopping the fireworks and looking up into the sky, some practically having their lower jaws detach and fall to the ground as they caught sight of the explosions going on in the atmosphere above.
Hah! Fuckers! thought Lyall. It pleased him to no end that the people, some of which who used to be those seniors that ridiculed him and Mort his freshman year, had been outdone by a reject. Oh well, no time to bask in glory. The Com-link is still tuned to the Academy's hangars. I need to begin adjusting the frequency to find the channel of whoever is fighting up here. and he began playing with the knob.
Finally Lyall got a signal that was unmistakably riddled with the code and mannerisms of a fight.
"Damn!" came one voice, strong and sure. "They're all over – Gah! I ate that one!"
"Hold on buddy!" another voice jumped in. This one was up beat and lively, almost happy-go-lucky. "I'm on it!"
"Be careful, guys," said a third voice. This one was female, and had a distinct accent to it. Where had he heard it before? "They're launching more drones."
Whatever was going on, they were capable of doing well in any battle. Lyall could tell that by the way they spoke. Each one knew the other quite well, and their teamwork was top-notch. But this battle had them stressing.
"The enemy is preparing to fire their main battery," a robot spoke. "Preparing main ship to perform evasive maneuvers.
"Good job, R.O.B.," spoke the final voice. It was comforting, but inspirational, the voice of a true leader. And they had a R.O.B. unit. Why was that so significant? Lyall mentally beat himself up trying to remember, but forced himself to focus as he grew close to the battle zone, and his eyes grew wide at what he saw.
Author's Note: End of Part Two. The story if finally picking up a bit, no? Again, please feel free to leave a review. I just ask that you refrain from unneeded swearing.
Disclaimer: I do not own Star Fox. All rights and characters (except my own) are reserved to Nintendo and the related companies that helped produce all parts of the game franchise. This work is also non-cannon, but does take place after Star Fox: Command, before Fox and Krystal decide to leave the team and start a new life together. Please support the official release.