Chapter Six: He-Said-He-Said
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You know I see right through you
When you act like you don't know me
You lie, you cheat. You steal, you lose
Wouldn't wanna be in your shoes
Always lookin over your shoulder
For the ones you stick
You sick little prick
It looks like your times runnin out
Creepin up your back
So whatcha all about?
Limp Bizkit - "Trust?"
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Within the next hour, the Star Fox team would be arriving at their hangar located on the outskirts of Corneria City. While Fox and Peppy stood at the bridge, everyone else was still congregating in the lounge. The two of them hoped the others would be coming up soon, but they didn't count on it. While Fox and Peppy enjoyed a little R&R, they knew they had gotten that in Zoness and kept themselves concentrated on their approach.
"Man, Corneria. This place never does get old…" Peppy sighed. The hare had recently turned 51, but seemed to still have some sort of fight in him. It was nice to see an old timer like him see every version of Star Fox that had been introduced so far. However it pained him to know that he had watched one of them die, helped kill another, and the other to die by his own leader. While the latter wasn't exactly the vulpine's fault, Fox always felt he could have stopped it. But it was all in the past, and he wouldn't let it get in his way.
"Yeah. Never has, never will." He reclined in his chair as he looked out toward the big blue planet, now becoming larger with each minute that past. "It just has that certain something to it, I cant really put a finger on what though."
"Maybe it's our memories on it…"
Fox usually hated when he was reminded of the horrible things that had happened on the soils of Corneria, but when Peppy spoke of them, he felt happy. He didn't think of Krystal dying, or Ordo tormenting him. He thought of hitting the arwings with Wolf and Falco, getting back with Krystal, and the times he spent with his father. They were far more powerful than the sad times, and every time Peppy spoke of the days of the original Star Fox team, he couldn't help but be reminded of his old days that contained a more care-free atmosphere.
"No Peppy, it is our memories."
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Falco, Wolf, Slippy, and Panther were playing blackjack to pass the time. While nobody seemed to have an edge, the black furred feline seemed to be having the most luck. He would go on these bad luck streaks but after them, he would end up getting twenty-one five times in a row. Everyone swore he was cheating, he just passed the accusations off and kept playing. Besides, they were only playing for fun, no money involved.
"So Panther, what ended up happening with those chicks you met?" Wolf asked as he dealt the cards out.
"Well, if you really want to know." He put on a slick smile. "They were into the freaky shit." Everyone let out a simultaneous "Oooooh!" followed by some snickers.
"Figures, you always seem to get those types." Slippy smirked.
"What can I say, I'm a guy who likes something…" He thought for a moment. "Different."
Wolf felt at ease now, he missed the small talk with his pals. They always seemed to find a way to make him laugh, even now.
"Too bad it all had to be spoiled with Fox and Wolf." Falco nonchalantly stated, causing the lupine to flinch.
He just has to bring this up?
"Umm, Falco. I didn't spoil anything." He retorted, trying not to show any frustration. "I'm not sure about Fox, but I don't see what you're getting at."
"Oh please, you've been a total buzz kill since we left Zoness." He stood up and pointed at Wolf, as if he was putting him on trial. " Just because you fucked some broad doesn't mean that you have to make us feel bad about you. Besides, you brought it on yourself." The other two could sense that this was about to get ugly and immediately ran out toward the bridge.
"I brought it on MYSELF?! Who the fuck gave me that strong ass drink!?" The lupine was now standing tall, his eye dilated. "You brought this on me!"
"Really?! Well did I make you screw that chick?!"
"You gave me something that greatly impaired my ability to comprehend anything, so technically yes!" They looked each other square in the eye, not moving a centimeter. It was almost like two gunslingers, waiting for the other to draw. Wolf bore his teeth and clenched his fist tightly, waiting for another word to slip out of the avian's beak.
"What the fuck you gonna do Wolf?!" He screamed, causing the lupine to grate his teeth loudly, followed by a sigh.
"You can't keep your mouth shut, can you…"
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Wolf ran at Falco with a burning rage that consumed his entire being, the bird had no time to react and was tackled to the ground, smashing the back of his head on the metallic wall. He was then being pummeled with punches, Wolf was relentless in his assault. He fought through the fatigue after a minute of smacking down his fellow pilot and didn't let up. It reached a point that Falco tried to shield himself from the punches, however with the time between the blows, it was impossible to stop him. He hoped that he would stop, knowing now that he messed with the wrong person.
The barrage of attacks began to slow up as the pain in his arms made it unfeasible for him to keep up a pace, somehow Falco was still conscious and took this chance to shove him off of him. Although he was blinded by the crimson blood now covering his entire face, he was able to land a few hits on Wolf, snapping the strap that held his eye patch on his face. Both of them were now extremely disoriented, and attempting to get on their feet. Falco was able to get up first, but he ended up stumbling right into the table they were sitting at minutes before. Cards flew across the room as it was knocked over on its side.
"Get…back…here…" Wolf murmured, he got up and supported his weight on the couch that stood by him. He saw Falco attempting to head for the door, however he was stopped in the hallway by the lupine's blitz-like clutch. However, the blue bird was able to roll over and take off again. He didn't care about the blood or the pain anymore, he just needed to get away from that madman.
Panic struck the avian, the realization that Wolf might kill him floated into his brain. He knew that he would in this kind of situation if he felt like it. There was a killer deep down inside Wolf, although it was put away years ago, Falco was certain that one day it would come back up with full force. The Wolf that he knew back in Star Wolf was coming to life again.
As the falcon rounded the corner toward the bridge, he ran straight into Fox, who too had been running. Falco was knocked down, leaving Fox vulnerable to Wolf, who was coming his way at full speed. By the time he reached the corner, there was no stopping him. He smashed the vulpine down onto the floor, and causing Wolf to do a head-first roll before landing violently on the ground.
The others arrived at the scene, seeing the others groaning in pain. Fox got up and dusted off his white flight suit and stared at Falco and Wolf. He showed no sympathy on his face for either of them. Far too much had been done for him to have anything positive to say about the situation. He just stood there silently, looking back and forth at the two. Everyone else seemed dumbfounded, waiting to see what happened next.
"Go to your quarters and clean up…" He sighed. "I'll speak with you two later…"