-Changes-
All along the Lylat System, the conclusion of the great interplanetary war had made a mark on every planet touched by the conflict. On the planet once known as the Venomian Empire of Andross, chaos consumed the streets of Blight, Dromoda, Acheron and several other settlements as rioters tore down the effigies and symbols of the government that had promised them greatness and delivered only madness. With the collapse and surrender of the Venomian Imperial Government, the descent from law and order into anarchy was only hastened by the political mobs, with looters emerging forth from the shadows to pilfer whatever the evacuating remains of the Venomian Army left behind. Most of the people of Venom, however, cowered in their homes with their loved ones and prayed that the doors would somehow protect from the turmoil outside. All the while, the might of the Cornerian Commonwealth Fleet remained in orbit over the clouds of Venom, their guns trained on the major population centers as soldiers and politicians decided what to do with their vanquished enemies.
Almost a hundred million kilometers away on the neighboring planet of Macbeth, the capital city of Wayland was somber and quiet in the full moon night. Stretching from InGen Plaza to the Yutani Memorial Bridge and along the banks of the River Tyrell, the otherwise dim streets were filled with light as Fay Donahue led a candlelight vigil of over two million people through the street. With the rumbling echoes of hundreds of thousands humming the Lylatian hymn "Your Graceful Mercy", Fay closed her eyes and set her candle afloat in the waters of the Tyrell, an act which was slowly repeated by every other person in the crowd. Soon, the River Tyrell was a mass of lights floating in darkness brighter than the starry skies above, in memory of the countless billions of lives lost in the past year and eleven months of war. From the upper floors of a damaged, abandoned skyscraper, former Sergeant Lance Cody stared down at the vigil with a look of regret in his golden eyes and a heavy feeling of shame weighing on his heart.
Across the Lylat System, the fertile world of Corneria was consumed with celebration, and in no place were the festivities more extravagant than in the polished super-metropolis of Corneria City. Even from a hundred meters above the tops of the pale skyscrapers, the pilots of the dozens of heavy-lift hovercraft dropping confetti on the city could hear the raucous cries of celebration as crowds blocked the streets below and the drivers of skycars opened their windows and shouted out cries of jubilation from the air-lanes. From various points above the city, numerous squadrons of Cornerian J-4 Comet fighters streaked over the buildings trailing green, silver and blue smoke from canisters on their tails as the Ajax fired its pulse lasers from orbit across the Cornerian sky in celebration.
At the epicenter of the revelry was Inari Square, normally a jam-packed intersection for air-lanes, streets and pedestrian traffic saturated with stores and holographic advertisements, now a sea of people of all races, soldier and civilian alike, so dense that it was practically impossible to traverse even by foot. As the holographic advertisements displayed images from the war to the tune of the Cornerian planetary anthem, hundreds of people crowded into the cantinas and restaurants around Inari Square, in many places overwhelming the ability of the establishment staff to serve any customers at all. A particularly large crowd was formed around the outside of the world-famous Lionheart Tavern, where a holoprojector displayed the message, "Veterans and Families ONLY!" with a much smaller message below advertising, "Free Lager for Vets!!"
The first message had ensured that only veterans of the Cornerian Armed Forces got into the Lionheart, however the second message meant that the tavern was soon filled to the bursting point with soldiers. The owner of the Lionheart soon had to take down the second message from the holo-display, for fear of the cantina's glass doors being broken down by more soldiers from outside that didn't care about the establishment's occupant capacity.
Inside the dimness of the Lionheart's wooden interior and antique décor that recalled the glory days of the Cornerian Empire, officer mingled with foot soldier as waitresses and server droids lugged massive pitchers full of Jack London Cornerian Lager and Luath Draft beer through the crowds of patrons. The vast majority of people in the Lionheart were forced to stand with their drinks; the relatively lucky few that were able to get tables were those that either simply got there first or those that got a seat out of respect for their service record. It was because of this that one of the Lionheart's largest and most prominent tables was host to a group of mostly young pilots that had all played a vital part in the Battle of Venom and in the Lylat War itself.
At the circular table sat Major Bill Grey, a white moustache of froth on his muzzle after taking a drink of Luath Draft from the pewter stein in his gray-furred paw. As he set his beer mug down, he answered the call of Lieutenant Kylie "Zippa" Rayes and pushed the large pitcher of Luath Draft across the table to her seat, where she sat in between Flight Officer Russel "Rev" Parks and Lieutenant Adam "Junkie" Thrace. Bill then continued talking with Peppy Hare, seated to his left. On Bill's right, Falco Lombardi sat closely next to Katt Monroe, leering flirtingly at her and brushing her left heel with his right ankle as she put a feline hand on his knee. Though both Falco and Katt had a stein of Luath Draft in front of them, Katt was currently in the process of slurping a strawberry-flavored daiquiri through a straw while Falco held a Wall-Slammer in his blue-feathered hands (Wall-Slammer: A cocktail of Cooper Ambrosia, Redwall Rum, Baskerville Vodka, Hobbes Gin, a dash of Stoker Absinthe and a generous helping of Slusho Cola to mask the taste. So named for the hangover that normally follows). Both of them were clearly trying to get drunk. Across the table from them was a single empty seat, next to which sat Slippy Toad, who was chatting with Rev whilst nursing his own stein of Luath Draft and a glass of Slusho.
"Come on, Peppy, just come out with it; how much Liat did Pepper actually pay you guys? I'm only a little curious," Bill coaxed loudly over the noise of the room.
"I think they found it hard to put a price on all of our 'Services Rendered to The Commonwealth', as they put it," Peppy shrugged, "Plus I'm sure there were some arguments between how much Pepper wanted to pay us and what Parlaiment was willing to authorize. But let's just say we won't have to worry about anything major for a while."
"Hell yeah, we're fuckin' made," Falco laughed, and Katt joined in, leaning on his shoulder, at which point Falco looked at her and said "I think we got plenty a' time to, uh, relax…"
With that, the both of them laughed a bit more, and Bill shook his head.
"Hey, if you don't want to tell me, don't tell me," Bill shrugged, turning back to Peppy, "Just trying to make conversation."
Peppy smirked, then picked his stein up off of the table and took a swig of beer. He swallowed and put it down, wiping the froth off of his whiskers, then reached to a paper napkin dispenser near the center of the table. Grabbing a single napkin, Peppy set it down in front of him, pulled out a stylus from inside his long white coat, and wrote down a number on the napkin. As he passed it to Bill, the canine's brown eyes swelled with shock.
"Holy shit…" Bill gasped, "I've never seen that many zeroes…"
Peppy took the napkin back and put it into his coat, then said, "Don't get too excited. Between the overhauls and repairs to all of the Arwings, the overdue upkeep for the Great Fox, paying off debts, and re-supplying everything, we'll be lucky to have a fourth of that left. Still, it's a start."
"I heard Pepper tried to offer you guys a lot more than Liat," Bill mentioned.
"He tried to offer us a permanent commission in the Cornerian Army," Peppy nodded slowly, "Parlaiment probably wanted it more than him; if we were part of the military it would be easier to justify that much of a payout as part of the budget. Fox wasn't interested."
"Why not?" Bill inquired.
"There was a reason that James founded StarFox as an independent force," Peppy explained, "Yeah, he was a rich boy wanting to have fun, but underneath he wanted something else. He didn't want StarFox to do what a general or a politician said. He wanted StarFox to do what was right, and help anyone that needed it, not just the people of one particular planet or another. We had to do it for a price so that we could survive as a company, but it was James' full wish to be able to take and refuse contracts based on whether it was something good or bad, and maybe even help people that couldn't afford to pay us. Fox wanted to preserve that, and I'm proud of him for that. It's sort of the same reason that he refused the other thing that Parlaiment offered him."
Bill finished taking a swig of beer before setting his stein down with a metallic bang and giving off a soft belch.
"What was the other thing?" Bill asked.
"They wanted to award him the honor of Knight Bachelor," Peppy answered flatly.
Bill's mouth dropped, his brow furrowing in disbelief.
"Parliament wanted to knight him?" Bill asked, flabbergasted, "They haven't done that for…what, centuries?"
"Not since the days of the old Empire," Peppy informed.
"Where is the Commonwealth headed?" Bill mused, then suddenly demanded with some outrage, "And Fox refused it?!"
"Sort of," Peppy answered vaguely, his head looking towards the other end of the room, "Check this out."
Bill followed Peppy's gaze to the stage at the end of the room.
Through the din, up on the Lionheart's stage, a male Airedale terrier sat on a stool in dark clothes with an old acoustic guitar in his lap, strumming as he sang into a microphone clipped to his collar. For some reason, the entire room had grown quiet, all eyes on the brown and black-furred canine and all ears on his light, reedy voice.
"Come gather 'round, people, wherever you roam," the Airedale sang, "And admit that the wa-ters around you have grown; And accept it that soon, you'll be drenched to the bone! And if your time to you is worth savin'…Then you better start swimmin' or you'll sink like a stone! For the times, they are a-changin'!"
A male blond tabby cat in a blue suit leaned back from his seat and suddenly yelled, "Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes!"
Immediately after, almost everyone in the entire bar joined in and sang, "Turn and face the strain! Ch-ch-changes!"
"Oh, look out, you rock 'n rollers!" continued the Airedale, joining in.
"Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes! Turn and face the strain! Ch-ch-changes!" The rest of the tavern sang back.
"Just gonna have to be a different man!" the tabby sang.
Then the entire bar joined together with, "Time may change me! But I can't trace time! I said that time may change me!! But I can't change time!!"
At that point, everyone began laughing and applauding at both the tabby and the Airedale, producing an ear-numbing cacophony of claps and cheers. Both songs, the one that the Airedale had begun with and the one that the tabby had interjected with for the entire bar to sing along, were incredibly old Cornerian folk songs. Few people knew the lyrics to them except for the chorus, and no one really remembered where they came from or who the writers of either song were.
As the merriment and applause were toned down to a dull roar, Slippy leaned toward Bill and Peppy, calling to them, "Hey, guys! Did you hear what the Labour Party's running on next election? They want to pass a civil rights amendment and form a full-on alliance with Macbeth! What do you think?"
"I think they've got my vote," Katt spoke up.
"You don't vote!" Falco teased her condescendingly.
Katt began to giggle fiercely, then said in a tone that was barely audible to everyone else, "But I am good at doing a lot of other things…"
Under the table, Falco's free hand began to drift up Katt's leg.
"Changes, indeed," Bill nodded, "Huh, Peppy?"
Just as Peppy was about to reply, a yell came up from the front of the Lionheart Tavern, and everyone at the table looked in the direction of the sound.
Through the gaggle of bar patrons, a lanky twenty one year-old female leporid with cream-colored fur and reading glasses on her face emerged. She wore a short red shirt and dark blue pants, which were barely visible as she rushed over the table with a joyous yell of "Dad!"
"Luce!" Peppy laughed, getting up from his chair as his daughter, Lucy Hare leapt across the floor and threw her hands around her father.
"I can't believe you're home!" Lucy said joyously, "I'm so glad you're safe!"
"It's great to see you, Luce," Peppy beamed, separating from her.
"Mom wishes she could've come, but they kept her for observation at the medcenter," Lucy explained, "I tried to get you on your comlink, but I couldn't get any service. The whole damned planet is talking to each other right now."
Peppy nodded, his smile lessening, and Lucy's glance drifted over to Bill.
"Ohmigod, BILL!!" Lucy yelled ecstatically, "I haven't seen you in years!"
Bill grinned at Lucy Hare, remembering all the years growing up with Fox and Slippy before entering the Academy, and how the three of them always used to torment Lucy. Bill liked to think that it was because she bossed them around, but he was willing to admit it had a lot to do with the fact that she was a girl and she was older. One of Bill's most significant memories of her was when he poured beef broth into her shampoo, and Lucy ended up smelling like beef stew for one of her first dates.
Bill had probably caused Lucy more grief than Fox and Slippy put together. But that was years ago.
"Get up and hug me, you asshole!" Lucy demanded in a gigglish tone. She obviously hadn't forgotten.
Bill got to his feet and embraced her, and she promptly remarked, "You've grown up so well, Bill! You must be really proud of everything. It's so nice you're here!"
Before Bill could give Lucy a compliment about how well she had grown up, how well she had filled out, she separated from him and looked back at Peppy.
As Bill found himself running his eyes down Lucy's figure (and feeling REALLY wierd about it) Lucy called over to her father, "Hey, where's Fox? He isn't here yet?"
"He's still…" Peppy trailed off, then said, "Fox will be joining us later."
Lucy nodded, then her gaze drifted along the rim of the table and her eyes lit up.
"Slippy!" She cried, running over and throwing her arms around his neck without even waiting for him to get up.
As Bill looked at Lucy, so happy to see them, at Slippy and Peppy, both proud and content, at Falco and Katt and at his own wing mates from the Battle of Venom, he felt a certain contentedness as well. He was among friends and comrades, celebrating the fact that they would live to see where the future took them and that, today, they were all heroes in their own right. For the first time in a long time, Bill was truly free of any feeling of envy for Fox. Instead, he was proud of him, as well as proud of himself.
With a calm smile, Bill promptly banged his fist on the table, getting everyone's attention as he picked up his beer stein and raised it over the table.
"A toast," Bill announced.
"To victory!" Rev shouted.
"To the right thing!" Peppy barked.
"Ta' gettin' more than what ya' hoped for," Falco declared.
"To things changing for the better!" Slippy chirped.
"To all of those things and to all of us. But most of all, to Fox McCloud, for giving us that last push we needed to get what we all worked for: " Bill announced, "A happy ending. So, I guess, to a happy ending."
"To a happy ending!!" they declared in unison, clacking their steins together.
As everyone put their mugs to their lips, Bill paused and murmured, "And everything that comes after it…"
Then Bill drank, and went back to celebrating peace with the rest of his planet.
The bridge of the Lone Wolf was cold and quiet. Sitting in the captain's chair, gazing out at the stars through the panoramic transparisteel viewport, Wolf O'Donnell felt hollow. The past week or so since the events of the Battle of Venom had been a blur for him, in which Wolf had put up a constant effort to execute his plan to take all the assets of Team StarWolf under his control and to keep from personally falling apart at the same time. In the rush to get off of Venom, the Lone Wolf had run into a Cornerian patrol consisting of an Acropolis-class ship with fighter escort and several Aries-class patrol cruisers. The ship had taken a considerable amount of damage, and Leon came within millimeters of death when his Wolfen took concentrated fire from the patrol cruisers. Still, StarWolf prevailed and managed to execute a warp-jump to Titania, rather than the Venomian rendezvous point over Eladard. Andrew, who seemed only slightly torn up about the death of his uncle, flew into a rage at the idea that StarWolf was deserting the Venomian Army and called Wolf both a loser and a coward.
Wolf broke Andrew's nose with a single punch and knocked out two of his teeth with another, and would've done much more if Pigma and IG-N 96 hadn't stopped him. Rather than throwing him out the airlock like Wolf desired, they chose instead to lock Andrew in his quarters until he accepted the fact that Wolf was now the ultimate authority and no one else. Andrew was, of course, free to leave as he chose, however only if he could figure out a way off the ship without using his Wolfen, which Wolf had claimed as his property.
Pigma seemed to be causing trouble on his own, not in as perceptible a way as Andrew, however it troubled Wolf nonetheless. Pigma had suggested that they retreat to Eladard to repair the ship and possibly get additional supplies. He reasoned that they could still find some way to desert the Venomian Army remnants after repairing the ship, however Wolf refused. The best way to disappear was to do so now, before the Cornerian Fleet began tracking and attempting to intercept all of the retreated Venomian ships over Eladard. Frequently citing the damage to the ship and their lack of supplies as a "very bad start to a half-baked idea", Pigma had quickly become uncooperative in the extreme, already causing Wolf to speculate how long it would take for Pigma to betray them for his own benefit.
Wolf's only allies remained Leon, who kept his only surviving Wolfen II to strip for parts to use in the regular Wolfens and remained committed to Wolf as always, and fortunately, IG-N 96. With the death of Andross, IG's loyalty had passed to Wolf, helping him in his efforts to control Pigma and Andrew and also operating the Lone Wolf.
These small blessings seemed insignificant in comparison to what he was facing. He had two team members that he couldn't trust, he was living in a damaged capital ship that would doubtless draw attention wherever it went in the foreseeable future, and he was wanted by the Cornerian Commonwealth as a war criminal and a traitor. He had no allies, and little idea of how to initiate contact within the criminal underworld or with any other entity that might pay for StarWolf's services.
Most of all, though, Wolf had been beaten.
He had been philosophically and literally bested by the one person he thought himself destined to defeat.
Slouched in his chair, looking out at the stars, Wolf was oblivious to IG-N 96 as the robot worked silently at his station. The droid seemed to understand Wolf's situation, and had wisely refrained from any sarcastic comments. With an approaching tap of footsteps along the grey metal of the floor, Wolf could hear Leon approach from behind him, however he showed no sign that he noticed. He could think of nothing that Leon could say to affect him. Nothing compared to how McCloud's words had affected him.
Wolf kept expecting Leon to say something, but there was no sound from behind him.
Fine. He could play that game, too.
Wolf remained motionless in his chair, his eye looking out at the stars.
"I don't know any constellations of the Kragg Sub-System, but I still think I can find Solar and maybe Triton from here," Leon said quietly, "Do you think so?"
"Fuck if I know. Or care," Wolf murmured, his growling voice a mere whisper. He still didn't look at Leon, even though the chameleon had moved to stand at the left of Wolf's chair.
Leon was silent for a few moments. Wolf heard him shift his position, and he suspected that Leon was going to try putting a hand on his shoulder. That would NOT be a good idea on Leon's part. Leon seemed to understand this, and Wolf felt no hand on his shoulder.
"This is more than just McCloud, isn't it?" Leon inquired softly, "You haven't been the same since you got picked up from Venom. Something happened up there, didn't it?"
"Figure it out," Wolf brooded, his eye locked on the stars, "You're tha' head-case. Use your imagination."
Leon breathed, a noise that Wolf could only barely perceive.
"You're not making any plans. Not giving any orders. Not plotting your next move," Leon mused, "Despite our defeats and our setbacks, here we stand on our own ship, with our own fighters and our own team, with no one but ourselves to guide it. Yet we haven't moved from this spot since we left Venom. We have we wanted, and yet you wont give an order for where we go from here."
"Where do we go from here?" Wolf breathed, blinking once.
"Something that happened with McCloud is making you confused. Making you doubt your ability to continue on," Leon concluded quietly, "Maybe you should just think about it in the grand scheme of things, whatever it is. Do you remember the story about the Zen master and the--"
Wolf grabbed Leon's neck with one hand and glared him dead in the eye as he snarled, "YES! For tha' final goddamned time, I remember your fuckin' story! Things just happen an' nothin' matters in this big-ass nowhere, so don't worry about it 'cause it's not gonna last. Is that right?! Well maybe it helps when you're fucked in the head an' ya' can't feel anythin', but it don't mean shit ta' me!!"
Leon's natural instinct was to reach for one of the knives in his belt and slice open Wolf's throat. Had it been anyone else, Leon would've done precisely that and more with sheer ecstasy. The only thing that stopped him was his own self control, reminding himself about how Wolf made him feel. Leon kept his gaze indifferent and vacant as Wolf's lavender eye glared into him, controlling his breathing as Wolf's hand remained tight around his trachea. He let Wolf vent, trying to enjoy the pain that his only friend inflicted on him.
"Ya' told me it was fine!" Wolf snapped, "That I could kill him an' all that stuff I thought was wrong didn't matter. You were wrong. He shot us down. Now he's Corneria's golden-boy, and we're just barely survivin' out here with nowhere ta' go!"
Leon croaked something hoarsely.
"What?" Wolf demanded, leaning his face closer. Suddenly, Leon's hand shot to Wolf's wrist, gracefully but firmly prying Wolf's hand off of his neck.
"I said, 'we'll see'," Leon retorted coldly, his gaze narrowing.
Wolf tore his hand away from Leon's grip, scoffing as he returned his eye to the stars.
"I don't think you understood my point, Wolf," Leon continued, "I didn't say that all of your concerns didn't matter, I said that you couldn't change them so you shouldn't needlessly worry about them. I didn't say that you would kill McCloud, I said that it wouldn't matter if you didn't, and that whatever happened would just happen. You're alive, Wolf. So is he. You've got a ship, a loyal robot, a docking bay full of fighters and one wing mate that would kill for you and die for you. Yes, the ship is damaged. We're low on supplies. We've got two team mates that we know we can't trust, and we don't know where to go. But that's right now, Wolf, those are things we can fix. Those are our problems right now. But tomorrow? We'll see about that."
Wolf looked back at Leon quietly. He had never heard Leon speak this way before, never sound remotely encouraging as he did now. It reminded him of the reason he first became friends with Leon so long ago: Because he was the only person that could consistently surprise Wolf. For the most part, the only thing predictable about Leon was the fact that Leon was unpredictable.
"We've just lived through the first war to take place in two hundred years. Nothing is going to be the same," Leon continued, "The whole Lylat System is going to change, Wolf. There is an opportunity and there is a place for StarWolf if we are willing to change with it and do whatever it takes. And if you are the Wolf O'Donnell that I grew up with, then you live your life by doing whatever it takes to get what you desire."
"What about McCloud?" Wolf growled.
"What about him?" Leon demanded, "No one knows where we are, and no one knows what our next move will be. McCloud? He's famous. He's a war hero. He's high-profile, and most of all, he doesn't have the protection of the Cornerian Fleet anymore. It's just you and him. In short, he's a bigger target than ever. And he's not going anywhere. So don't worry about McCloud. Take your time, build your strength, wait for the right moment and engage him on your terms. Then we'll see how things turn out."
Wolf looked down, thinking. Suddenly, McCloud's words didn't inspire as much doubt as they had before. His defeat seemed less final, more like a fresh start.
"Lord O'Donnell, if I might make a suggestion, there are some possible places that we might be able to go in order to re-supply," IG-N 96 suddenly enunciated, "Namely, Sectors X, Y and Z. Sector X used to be the location of a Venomian research facility, until it was destroyed by StarFox, and Sectors Y and Z are both locations of large space battles in relatively recent times. The chances of finding something to salvage amongst the wreckage at these sites are reasonable. We could use what we find to help repair and re-supply. These locations would also be good places to hide, provided we do not venture too close into the nebula fields. Additionally, there is a small chance that we could encounter pirates, smugglers or salvage crews at these sites. As most of these individuals are less-than reputable, it stands to reason that we could learn from them how to get in contact with criminals and other figures that might enjoy our services."
Wolf frowned.
"We've gone from tha' most feared pilots in Lylat ta' garbage scavengers," he grunted.
"Everyone's got to start somewhere, Wolf," Leon shrugged.
Wolf thought for a moment, his eye staring downwards before he rumbled, "How long's it gonna take ta' get ta' Sector X?"
"It is the closest one to our location. I would estimate less than an hour at the mildest warp speed," IG-N 96 informed.
"Then set a course for Sector X. Get Andrew an' Pigma on the intercom an' tell 'em they can either search the area in their Wolfens or they can just step out the airlock, pressure suit or not. Either way, we need two people ta' go salvage an' I ain't leavin' 'em alone on my ship," Wolf commanded.
"Very good, my Lord," IG complied, going to work at his computer console and adding, "It's good to see that your balls have grown back."
"There's plenty a' fuckin' room out that airlock for you too, so ya' better shut your fuckin' tin," Wolf hissed, "I'm still not in tha' mood for that."
"Of course, my Lord," IG responded in a muted tone.
A few moments later, IG had plotted the course.
"Attention all hands, attention all hands," IG-N 96's voice echoed throughout the Lone Wolf's intercom system, "Lone Wolf commencing jump to warp, factor 1.5 on a secure course. ETA is approximately forty-six minutes. Jump in T-minus five…four..."
"Are you going to be okay, Wolf?" Leon inquired.
As IG counted down, Wolf thought back to what McCloud had said to him, about how he would be there to protect Lylat from people like him.
How Wolf would always lose.
Wolf O'Donnell growled, "We'll see."
The Lone Wolf jumped into the unknown future.
Back in the celebration-filled Corneria City, the echoes of cheering voices sounded like nothing more than a far-away wind from where Fox stood. The Elysium Memorial Garden was located on the roof of one of Corneria City's skyscrapers, like many of its public parks. It was a cemetery designed to be an appealing and relaxing place for the living as much as the dead. Laid out in attractive ferroconcrete walkways and immaculately-maintained landscapes of healthy green grass and weeping willow trees, the stone markers and statues commemorating the deceased looked more like a tribute to a person's life than merely their final resting place.
Fox McCloud stood in front of two large markers sitting side by side.
The shorter one was made of pink granite, a little less than knee-high and covered by more than a decades worth of dust and grime by the right of mere exposure. Chiseled into the marker was:
Vixiene Renard-McCloud
1085-1116 A.C.E.
Loving Wife and Mother
"An Angel Too Good for This World"
Fox could barely remember his mother, except for the occasional feeling of déjà vu when he saw her picture or when he heard her voice on one of the old holovids his father had made of her. The memory that most stood out most was of a flaming skyvan falling to the ground after a horrific accident and knowing that it was his mother inside. The memory stayed with him for years, ingraining a fear of flying into Fox that was only broken by Peppy's constant training.
The marker next to it was nearly waist high, a large slab of brown stone. On the top of the marker was the silver-colored figure of a star fighter, and on the stone itself near the top was both the olive wreath and wings around the letter C of the Cornerian Army and the winged canine head of the Cornerian Flight Academy. Below these two symbols was a bronze plaque that read:
Cmdr. James McCloud
1089-1128 A.C.E.
Soldier, Adventurer, and Devoted Father
"Oh Lord, Thy universe is so big and my ship is so small"
The casket in the ground underneath each memorial was empty of a body, and was instead filled with either flowers or other tributes to the people that his parents were. The remains of Vixy Renard-McCloud were disfigured in the crash to the point that her remains were cremated and an urn full of her ashes was placed inside the casket along with the other respects to his mother, whilst James McCloud's body was never recovered from Venom.
For both of his parents, Fox had been denied the luxury of a final, tear-filled goodbye at a funeral, instead he saw both of them leave, expecting them to come back alive and well only to be told that he could never see his parents again. In some ways, it was good, almost as if his parents were still both watching him, from a distance instead of being gone forever. It made it easier to talk to them both.
"Hey, Mom," Fox said quietly, then pausing for a moment as he looked at the other stone, "Dad."
He kneeled down to his feet, so that he was practically level with both memorials.
"A lot of things have happened since I left home," Fox said with a smile, "I haven't been back here since we put you here and I left the Academy, Dad. The first time I even came back to Corneria City was to defend it from the Venomian surprise attack, after I'd trained with Peppy. In between and after all that, I conquered my fear of flying, made friends that are going to be with me for my whole life, and fought for what I thought was right. And somewhere in between all that, I think I managed to grow up, too."
He read the names on both stones continuously as he spoke, as if they could hear him better if he did so.
"I'm a hero, now," Fox declared quietly, looking distantly into every groove of each tablet, "That's what they call me, at least. It's funny, though. I was only trying to be like you, Dad. And maybe you, too, Mom. I only did what you told me. I did the right thing. I trusted myself, and I never gave up. And just for that, I'm a hero. Does that mean I'm a better person than the people who just couldn't do what I did? How many more people did the same thing I did, and nobody called them heroes? What makes me so special?"
There was no answer for his questions. Fox unclipped the Cornerian Flight Academy badge attached to the collar of his jacket. His father had wanted Fox to have it. He looked at it for a few moments as it glinted in the afternoon sun, then gave a slight sigh and pinned it back onto his jacket.
"I only felt like I deserved to wear that pin in the past week or so," Fox added, flashing a smile. He then reached into his jacket and pulled out a folded-up piece of paper, with the parliamentary seal of the Cornerian Commonwealth weighing heavily on the bottom right corner.
"You know, they wanted to award me the title of Knight Bachelor, for 'Outstanding Bravery and Valor in Service of Corneria and its Commonwealth', they said," Fox explained, looking down at the sheet of paper, "They said I would be the first person to be knighted in over two hundred and thirty years. And…it was tough, but I couldn't accept it. Because I wouldn't have gotten anywhere without you or Peppy being there for me and guiding me, in one way or another. Peppy trained me, and you gave me something to aspire to, just for being who you were. So I asked if they could instead give the honor to someone else more deserving. Peppy refused it when I offered it to him. He thought someone else deserved it more, and I agree with him now. That someone was you, Dad. At least you can't say no."
Fox smiled, and wiped something away from his eyes, then slowly withdrew his blaster pistol.
"Okay, Mom," Fox smirked, "Listen and make sure I get it right."
He breathed in and out, then straightened his back and raised his pistol, lowering it onto the right side of the top of his father's marker.
"Commander James McCloud. By the right of the Sovereign; by the will of the People," Fox began, then raising the blaster up and over, touching it to the left side of the stone, "Dub thee I do, Sir James McCloud, Knight of the Realm. Rise, Sir Knight… and go with God."
Fox breathed again, putting his blaster back into the holster. Once more, Fox had to wipe something away from his eyes.
"Posthumous or not, a knighthood's a knighthood," Fox breathed, "I'll have to get that plaque changed."
Fox got up from his knees, looking out over the vast Cornerian cityscape. In the distance, the mighty Great Fox stood in the support scaffold of a planetary cosmodrome, the winged red fox on its tail just barely visible. He looked back at the markers, putting his hands on his father's stone.
"Everyone's saying that things are going to be different now. That for better or worse, it's all going to change," Fox mused softly, "They always say that the heroes get to live happily ever after. What happens after the end? Are we ready for it? Am I?"
He felt a warm breeze caress his fur. As it drifted by, it sounded almost like someone was whispering something to him.
Fox looked down intently at the marker, then promised, "No matter what happens, I'll try to do what's right for everyone. I'll trust myself. I'll never give up. And I will always be there, just like you always were and always are. Because we're the good guys. Because we're the heroes. Because we're StarFox."
Fox McCloud smiled at the memorials of both of his parents. Then he bid them goodbye and walked back towards the entrance of the park. In a matter of moments, he was flying high over the land that he had sworn to protect, taking in the peace that he and so many others had fought for.
THE END. Cue "All Along the Watchtower", either the Jimi Hendrix version or the Bear McCreary version for Battlestar Galactica. Either one really fits the story, in both tone and in the actual meaning of the lyrics. Listen to them and think about the story, and you'll start to see the similarities. Also, for those music lovers out there, yes, you are right: The two "Cornerian folk songs" were Bob Dylan's "The Times They Are A-Changin'" and David Bowie's "Changes". I thought them very cool, very appropriate and I didn't think it spoiled any of the realism if no one in Lylat "remembers who wrote them or where they came from". And its not like it's Green Day or something. Go ahead and have a little giggle at my two additions to the soundtrack.
Anyway, I'd like to thank you all for a half year-long wild ride. This was an incredibly fun experience writing for all of you on this thing. Rather than talk about the story's themes and my interest in the story right here, I'll save that for next page, for those of you that want some bonus material and actually care. As for the rest of you, I will see you later, however probably much later. I'm gonna take some time to gather my thoughts and do my own thing, but next time I promise I'll be back with an interesting sequel to "A Great Day to Die", in which all the 'changes' that the Lylat System has gone through become apparent. Later, guys! Please review, and thanks so much for reading!-TU