Disclaimer: I don't own anything you read about, pretty much anywhere. Feel free to use/copy it however you please, and remember; I'm allergic to lawsuits.

Okay, I should put this out as a warning: This chapter is likely going to be my last, of this story. Basically, I'm tired of it, a few others are, too, and as far as I know, nobody would care if it just disappeared. So, unless I am notified that a few people still want me to write more, I won't. This isn't just some ploy for more reviews; you can send me a PM instead. But I won't waste time writing this story when I could do so much more.

Chapter 29

I'm dead.

The thought wasn't profound, or even true. But with my mind still clouded by the ether, it seemed appropriate. The thought passed through my head again and again, forgotten the instant it passed from my mind. After an interminable time of the confused thoughts cycling through my sleep-muddled mind, I faded from consciousness again.

"...n't bel...ve what...into now..." I heard faintly, stirring my mind from its fog. "...s is...r fault..." A sigh stirred in the air, before the voice picked up again. "Do you...ear me?!" it shouted, before a small impact made me roll over. My mind finally registered panic, which forced me to take in my surroundings.

A cold, hard floor sat underneath me, which explained the sudden ache in my back. With my eyelids feeling like lead, I couldn't see how big of an area I was in, but I didn't feel wind behind the cold air. I tried pushing myself up onto all fours, but my arms gave out before I could even point my elbows up. I decided to just lie still, breathing deeply until more strength returned.

"It doesn't matter now... But...you should've told me...something," the voice said.

That's Relics, I thought, allowing myself to relax. I'm safe. I managed to get his attention by sharply taking in a breath, but he didn't do what I expected.

"It's about time," he muttered, moving around the room. "Get up," he said in an angry tone, nudging me with unnecessary force with his foot.

"What –" I began as my mind grew rapidly more alert. My eyes flashed open, and I pushed up onto my knees slowly.

"Let me ask you something," he began angrily, staring at me intently. "Where are you from?"

"What?" I asked again. "I'm from Earth, man, I thought –"

"Really?" he asked. His expression softened only slightly, and he paused for a moment. "Really?"

"Yeah," I said as convincingly as I could, crawling to my feet.

"Then these psychopaths who kidnapped Krystal lied to me when they claimed that you were from another universe?"

My blood went cold. "Wh-what?" I asked. "That's...crazy."

His fist clenched tightly, but he managed to control himself before anything was damaged. Even so, I took a step back.

"Ditto...you're not a good liar," he said darkly.

"But Relics, I –"

"Save it! I know Sharp and Miranda aren't the best people out there, but they wouldn't make this up. I had to nearly beg them not to kill you, because they're convinced you're doing something that'll doom us all. Now, you're going to tell me the truth, and then we're going to see what they want."

"Krystal," I muttered as something registered in my mind. "Is Krystal okay?"

"For now," he said with a nod.

"Good," I whispered. I looked up at him again, and saw that much of the anger had faded from his expression. I didn't think I really had a choice, so I took a deep breath and began to tell him everything. From the previous journeys, to this universe's oddities, to every time Krystal was taken. I left nothing out, making sure I told him everything that I could. And every word I said was met with a stony expression from Relics, giving me no clues as to whether he believed me, or was merely preparing to punch me in the face. More than once, he shook his head and cursed, but he was otherwise silent.

Before I finished talking, I made sure to mention how many others knew. Jake and Joanne didn't even register on his face. Krystal, he apparently had assumed. But Falco seemed to surprise him; he must not have told anyone else, but I wondered whether it was only a matter of time. He reacted neutrally when I mentioned Fox, and even Miyu, but bristled when I said James had found out.

"James?" he asked. "James McCloud? The crazy Cornerian with military connections? How much did you tell him?"

"Wait a second you actually believe me?" I asked.

"No. I believe Sharp. Now, how much did you tell James?"

"Everything," I replied. "He knows about the 'human spies'."

"You what?! Ditto, what the –" he began, turning away.

"It was while you were in the simulator with Bill and Falco. Besides, I didn't even tell him; Krystal did."

"Ditto...if they were caught..."

"I know. It'd be a war. But would it be any better if they had found out on their own?"

"They wouldn't have found them...would they?"

"Maybe," I said with a smirk. "But that doesn't matter anymore. We have to get –"

"Krystal," he finished. "But trust me – we need to listen to Sharp, or he could get rid of both of you."

"Alright. But...what does he want?"

"I don't know," Relics admitted. "But I don't think you'll like it."

I let out a deep sigh. "Relics, whatever happens...make sure Krystal is okay."

"Of course," he said with a nod. "Are...are you ready?"

"...as I'll ever be," I said, and followed him out of the small room. I had to wonder the whole time why it felt like I was an animal being led to the slaughter.

"This is weird," I remarked as we walked through the building's halls.

"What?"

"These hallways look familiar. That night me and Krystal took that arwing..."

"No, Ditto. This isn't the same base. It might not even be a base. They just look similar."

"Yeah," I said slowly, reaching a hand toward the wall.

"Ditto, this isn't the time to be depressed. We'll get her back."

"I know," I agreed, but my melancholy mood hovered, like a dark storm cloud just before a terrible storm. Something was going to go wrong, I could feel it.

"It's about time," a male voice said as Relics stepped into a room near the middle of the hall. I slowed, trying to steel myself against whatever might be inside.

"We had to talk," Relics explained to the unseen voice. I took a deep breath and followed.

The room wasn't very large, but it was plenty big enough to house a pair of arwings comfortably. A dark glass window separated me from a second room, accessible through a huge metal door, which sat closed and seemingly unmovable. Cane stood in that smaller room, behind a tied up Krystal. In the main room stood Miranda, Sharp, Relics, and an enormous machine, which alone dominated most of the room. The only feature of the machine which caught my attention was a bluish-green glass cylinder, large enough to contain a large man comfortably.

"You did bring him," Cane said with a nod, his voice scratching through a speaker. "I almost thought you'd let him go."

"Krystal," I said with relief, stepping toward the window. A firm hand on my chest stopped me, and I looked at Relics questioningly. He didn't withdraw his arm, but his look alone was enough to make me step back; there was no mirth in his eyes any more. It was only made worse when I shot the same look at Krystal, but she didn't say a word. She just looked back with the pain of shame in her eyes.

"Aww, you look like you're about to cry," Miranda mocked. I shot a glare at her, but it only made her laugh in triumph.

"That's enough," Sharp warned her. "Ditto, we need to talk."

"We 'need to talk'?" I asked in disbelief. "You kidnapped her just so we could talk?!"

"Calm down," Cane said.

""Calm d- how can you tell me to calm down?! You kidnapped both of us! I didn't even know if she would die, or –"

"Nobody's in danger," Cane continued. "If you listen."

"Yes," Sharp said, ignoring Cane. "I had to have a bargaining chip."

"I'll keep her safe," Relics offered.

"Oh, no, 'six-four'. How can we trust you anymore?" Miranda asked. "And even if we did, Ditto here does, too. How about we just save you the choice, and keep her under close watch?"

"Close watch," Cane murmured with a smirk. Sharp took notice, and shook his head.

"Miranda, please relieve Agent Cane of his duty. He can stand out here, with the rest of us."

"What...?" I began, looking at him closely. He matched my stare with a disarming look, but I still didn't know if he was trustworthy. Even so, I almost thanked him for getting Cane out of that room.

"I told you," Sharp said. "We need to talk."

"About what?" I asked slowly, taking his bait.

"You. And, of course, what you're doing here."

"Didn't we already do this?" I asked. "You agreed to leave me and my friends alone?"

"We kinda are," Cane said with a smirk. "I mean, we haven't hurt any Cornerians, have we?"

"What? What do you mean, you have Krys–" I began.

"She isn't Cornerian, though," Cane put in, "is she?"

"Okay," I said with a nod. "What do you know?"

"Wrong question," Sharp said. "The question is, 'What should we know?' Now, those eggheads back home can worry about the details, but we already know you aren't from this dimension."

"Dimension? I thought it was a completely different universe."

Sharp shrugged. "Petty details. We also know about most of what you've done here, and...how to get you home."

"Huh?" I asked, standing up straighter. I looked toward the strange machine again, and felt a glimmer of hope. I glanced at Krystal again as she knelt, staring at the floor, and I felt a pulling in my chest as the two desires conflicted.

"Of course," Sharp said, "we had to make sure you had enough of a reason to leave."

"So..." I said as it clicked, "you couldn't use anyone else."

"Close enough," Cane said.

"You still can't force me," I said defiantly.

"What?" Cane said, slightly taken by surprise. "What makes you think that?"

"How many Cornerian citizens start to disappear before the authorities figure out what's happening? You can't just kill whoever you want."

"We can, actually. We can also beat, torture, r–"

"Thank you, Cane," Sharp said, cutting him off purposefully. "However, there is another reason we used her."

"Why? Because she's not technically Cornerian?"

"Close," Sharp said. His mischievous glare, though, made me rethink myself. "You two," he continued, "are linked. Connected. Somehow."

"What do you mean?" Relics asked.

"Ditto said that he's crossed between dimensions before," Miranda said. "Which means his mind can do what this machine was made to do."

"So hang on," I said, careful not to get lost in what would probably be a complicated explanation. "You took her because I can dream my way into videogames? And you built that thing to do the same? To put yourselves into videogames?"

"No, idiot," Cane said. "It's a weapon. Not some little toy."

"The machine, which has not been named by those eggheads yet, was made to grant us the power you hold. I believe you call them 'sins'?"

I felt my eyes widen slowly as his words' meaning struck me. If they had actually managed to get this machine up and running, there would be no war; it would be a slaughter. It would be infinitely worse than when atomic weapons were first created; the humans would be able to create armies from nothing, or merely obliterate their enemies, no matter where they hid. Corneria would be destroyed if General Pepper resisted, and no one would be safe.

"How?" I asked quietly, stunned by the very idea.

"Good question," Sharp said slowly. "I don't know how well you're following, so I'll try to make it easy for you. Your mind lets you cross the boundaries between dimensions. During a dimensional step, which is what we call your 'sin', you stand inside this boundary. Neither dimension seems completely real, and yet, neither one is really fake. You can mold them both, like you were merely daydreaming.

"When this machine was being designed, we didn't know if such a thing was even possible. It was only an idea, but the potential was too much for some to pass up. The first tests...failed spectacularly. And the first test subjects...well, some mistakes were clean, and others were...quite messy. But the last test was...about two weeks ago."

"That's when you showed up," Miranda said. "Just so you don't have to trouble your brain on that little detail."

"Yes," Sharp said. "When you showed up...and when she did," he added, gesturing to Krystal.

"Okay," Relics said. "So, this machine gets working, and it brings Ditto here? Why?"

"His dreams, of course," Sharp said. "He was about to show up in a completely different dimension, as far as we know. But we...caught him...with the machine, and he was brought here. Technology is amazing."

"But your dimensional step thing doesn't explain these," I said, rolling up my sleeve. The three marks sat dull and lifeless, which only added to the confusion.

"You said that those were a part of every one of your journeys into 'videogames'. How should I know that?"

"And Krystal...?" I asked, looking her way again. Her ears twitched at the mention of her name, but she remained otherwise motionless.

"Oh, I'm getting there," he said with a smirk. "Your mind and the machine were both trying to bring you here. Your mind would have you replacing someone from the target dimension, while the machine would have you appearing as yourself. But one of the two got you here, leaving the other...how can I say...without a target? It was still going to bring something or someone here, but it couldn't do it to you again. So, it likely reached into your mind and made a single figment of your imagination...real."

"But how does that have to do with..." I began, before stopping short. I looked at Krystal wide-eyed, who returned the look, before I glared at Sharp once again. "No. No, no, no! You can't prove that!"

"You think we would say this stuff without checking it out?" Cane asked. "We've looked. The real Krystal is still living on her own planet. She may not even know what a human is."

"But you can't know that," I said in disbelief.

"Maybe we can, maybe we can't," Cane said with a shrug. "It makes less sense to say she teleported here, unless you also did that on purpose."

"It makes no sense!" I shouted. "I can't date a figment of my imagination! Relics, you see her, right?"

"She is real," Sharp said. "At least, she is now. But she can change the future, just like you can."

"Ditto..." Relics said, putting a hand on my shoulder. I shrugged it off and turned my glare upon him. The stern look had left him, though, and he managed to get me to calm down a bit.

"Now, for the real reason you're here," Sharp said. I looked up at him, fighting the slight headache I suddenly had. "You need to go home."

"What?" Relics asked. "Why?"

"You don't know?" Miranda asked. "Huh."

"You aren't supposed to be here," Sharp said. "Every time you make something happen in a way it wasn't supposed to, you tear the fabric of reality a little. I'm surprised you haven't noticed the holes already in the sky; they look like black stars by now."

"What are you saying?" I asked.

"If you stay here, you'll break the universe," Cane said. "It'll probably kill everyone. And that includes your girlfriend over there. Or should I say 'ex-girlfriend'?"

"No!" Krystal shouted, finally speaking. She was quickly and forcefully silenced by Miranda.

"Okay, so she still likes you," Cane admitted, "but this is probably the last time you two will be seeing each other."

"Wait, you can't just get rid of Ditto," Relics said.

"You, six-four, will stand down," Sharp commanded. "If we don't get him out of here, we're all in trouble. If you'll recall, we aren't supposed to be here yet, anyway. He's already got the furry hounds on our trail, and all we need is one more of his slip-ups before our mission is failed."

"Yeah, not to mention the whole 'universe breaking' thing," Miranda put in.

"But what about what's already changed?" I asked. "I've done things that can't be undone. I can't just leave, or it'll get worse."

"That, or it all goes back to normal," Sharp said. "Maybe it'll take some time, but one day, you and your mistakes will be forgotten."

"And Krystal?" I asked. "I can't leave her behind like that."

"She'll be better off without you," Miranda said. Krystal caught my eye and shook her head fiercely, but I was more inclined to believe Miranda.

"She's right," I said, even though the words tasted vile and brought tears to her eyes. "You'll be safer. Nobody will kidnap you, or threaten you."

"Ditto, what are you –" Relics began.

"She's right, though. If it wasn't for me, Krystal wouldn't be in so much danger."

"Ditto, if they're telling the truth, she wouldn't even exist if not for you. And we don't even know if they are telling the truth. I've never heard of that machine; it could just as likely kill you as take you home."

"You don't hear about a lot of things," Cane said.

"Ditto," Sharp said. "It's time to go."

"Hang on," Relics sad, stepping in front of me.

"Six-four," Sharp said slowly. "Stand...down."

I heard Relics take a short breath and hold it, but I knew as well as he did that he couldn't easily outmatch Sharp, let alone all three.

"It's fine," I said, stepping around him. "But I just want a few minutes. With Krystal."

"No," Cane said.

"Not likely," Miranda added. "I mean, you don't expect us to let you try to escape, do you?"

"How?" Relics asked. "You're putting him in an interrogation room; who could escape from there?"

"You saw those marks on his arm," Cane said. "If they start to glow again, he could take the girl and disappear to Earth, if he wanted."

"But, feel free to say your goodbyes here," Sharp said. "I'd recommend saying something like an apology. After all, she'll likely disappear when you do."

"W...what?" I asked.

"She might not, but considering how closely you two are linked, we can't be certain."

"Ditto, I'll be fine," Krystal said, standing. Her hands were still bound behind her, but she didn't look like she'd been harmed.

"She can come with me," I said, looking at Relics.

"To your dimension?" Sharp asked. "There are no Cornerians there. She'll be alone, even with you by her side. Would you be so cruel?"

"I can't just leave her," I said again.

"Well, will you be moved to leave if I do this?" Miranda asked, pulling out a blaster and holding it in the air. She leaned on one hip and fired a bright red beam into the ceiling, before aiming the gun toward Krystal.

"Okay, okay!" I shouted. "Don't hurt her!"

"Good," she said, putting the weapon away. "We don't want to hurt anyone, you know. But if you're going to continue threatening our universe, we will use force."

"True," Sharp said. "Relics is not meant to be here. Every minute he stays is tearing a hole wider. So, you need to go."

"Alright," I said with a slow nod. I pointed at Krystal and added, "Just tell me she'll be okay."

"She'll be fine," Relics said.

"Promise me," I said sternly.

"I'll get Miyu to be her personal bodyguard, if it makes you feel better," he said with a chuckle.

"Is that good enough?" Cane asked. "Your 'saying goodbye' takes forever."

"I'm ready," I lied, taking a slow step forward.

"You know," Sharp said as I continued, "this really is the right thing to do. We're not the bad guys. We're protecting the people of Corneria right now. We should get an award."

"So, what, I'm the bad guy?" I asked, stopping in front of the machine and turning toward him.

"You would only be the bad guy if you stayed and destroyed the universe."

I stared at him for a few seconds, clenching my hands and trying frantically to find a way out of this situation. But even if I found a way, I didn't actually think the three of them would lie about something as major as the universe falling apart. A really big part of me just wanted to stay with Krystal, even if she wasn't the "real" Krystal. But they'd taken that option away from me. I looked at Relics, but he only gave me a nod.

There has to be something, I thought, hoping that Krystal was listening. But I didn't hear a response before Cane got upset.

"Just get in the machine already! We'll handle the rest, and then we can all get on with our lives."

I turned back around, but I knew that there was no going back. If I got in, everything would be undone. Melissa would still hate Lana. Michael would still hate humans. And Relics would still have to go through everything, both good and bad.

"You seem to think you have a choice," Sharp said from right behind me, before a strong arm pushed me forward. I didn't fight it, though, and the class lowered around me smoothly.

"Finally," Cane said. "Now, we can tell you the truth."

"Cane," Sharp warned.

"Truth?" Relics asked. "What's the truth?"

"We can't just let Krystal go. We aren't that stupid; I mean, she can still change the future and break the universe," Cane explained.

"What are you saying?" I asked angrily.

"Nothing," Miranda said. "Not to you."

"Hang on," Relics said, "You said she would get out of here alright."

"I said she'd 'be okay'," Sharp corrected. "But...things change."

"No," I said, hitting the glass with a dull thud.

"I think it's just as dangerous to let her go as it would be to let you stay," he continued as if I hadn't spoken.

"Relics!" I shouted as a bright light flicked on above my head. "Do something!"

"He won't," Cane said, brandishing a blaster. "Even he isn't that stupid."

"You can't hurt her!" I shouted, beating against the glass.

"Actually, I believe that I can. She's here on Corneria, she's fraternizing with the enemy...and she isn't human."

"You're a monster!" I shouted. The light above my head seemed to solidify, forming faint ribbons that spun around me slowly.

"Maybe," Sharp said, "but she's only here because of you."

I shook my head slowly, seething at his words; I didn't care if they were true, I just wanted to help her. But as the light thickened, it didn't look like I'd be able to.

"I'm sorry," I whispered as the light coalesced into a curtain, nearly blocking everything out. I saw a white flash from behind the window, before the ground dropped away, and I had the feeling of floating weightlessly. An instant later, the light around me dimmed to blackness, and I became unaware of anything.

A/N: That's a terrible cliffhanger for a final chapter, I guess. But, that's just how the cookie crumbles. Like I said, I don't really expect anyone to make me care about this story again. As such, I want to do another Starfox story. Ideas for it are forming already, but it could be a long time coming.

Oh, and that was a lot of a cliffhanger, and it left a lot of questions unanswered. So, here's an epilogue that only raises more questions!

I shot up from a prone position, looking around frantically. The room I lay in, half-covered by bed sheets, was my own. My bed, my desk, my door. The realization sunk in slowly as my breathing calmed and my heart slowed. I was home. The machine had worked, but I didn't feel any happiness. I laid my head in my hands, struck by how suddenly everything had disappeared.

"Dang it," I told myself, shaking my head. I felt like I'd somehow messed everything up, and didn't even get a chance to fix it. By now, even if I went back, I would only meet the original, unchanged universe. And if Sharp had told the truth, Krystal would no longer exist. I looked down at my bare arm, clean of any traces of the Sins, and touched the skin tentatively. If there had been any doubts about being home, they were gone now. I sighed and tossed the covers aside, and my hand bumped into something solid.

"What the –" I began, when the lump moved. A vulpine head slowly raised itself and stared at me in confusion, before opening its mouth.

"Ditto?"