Note: Now that March is here, I guess I should be glad that Spring is around the corner. While it is refreshing to have warmer weather than the last two months, we still have to deal with rain and thunderstorms. However, that won't keep me from writing stories and sharing them with all of you. As such, I intend to continue on with the stories that are currently ongoing. Who knows? I might actually complete one or more of them this year.

Before we move on, I have something to say to three reviewers.

Big Bossk Man 92: You really have played the games, haven't you? I guess that by making a few changes doesn't change the story in general. Anyway, I suppose I should have a chapter focusing on Fara during her mission. However, I'm worried about drawing out the story for too long, so it might not happen. I'll think about it, but I can't promise that I'll do it. Trying to add more to a story that originated from a video game isn't easy.

I didn't have Fox use the LandMaster, primarily as a "Take That" to the people who complain about Star Fox being allowed to step out of their ships. Considering how certain space-based franchises feature characters stepping onto planets, I don't see why the Star Fox series would be an exception to this. I hope that Fox fighting those Aparoids on foot doesn't anger those who played the original game.

UltimateCCC: I don't think we need to recap on Pigma. Nowadays, anyone curious about Star Fox can pretty much Google it.

Ron: Well, Fara's still chasing after Pigma, so we can only hope that she kills him or gets the Memory Core back. If not, then things might go south.

Now that I've said that, it's time for chapter nineteen.

Chapter 19: Storming Sargasso

It had been three hours since Pigma escaped Katina with the Memory Core, and Star Fox had yet to hear back from Fara. Along with that, the team had to get General Pepper to look for Sargasso Space Station. While Fox had tried to get in contact with the area before, he was unable to connect to its communications hub. It had been a few years since the end of the Lylat Wars, so there was no doubt that whoever was running Sargasso wanted contact with Star Fox. However, as the team had encountered Pigma, they wanted to find his allies. There might have been a chance that the boar stopped there and got in contact with them.

After managing to find Sargasso, Fox sent a transmission to the place, hoping that someone would respond. Considering how it had been under Venom's control for quite some time, the orange tod figured that a certain team of space pirates would answer the call. They were on Andross' payroll for quite some time, so it would make sense if they were the ones running Sargasso. However, no one from the group had been on the other end of the line. Rather, the person to answer the call was one of the ruffians who resided there.

"Oh great, it's Star Fox." He sarcastically said.

"Don't get excited, we just wanted to speak with your bosses!" Fox said.

"You idiot, this is Venom territory!" The Ruffian said. "What makes you think that you can just waltz through here?"

"Let's just say that my team and I are aware of the risk!" The orange tod said. "Don't be too surprised when you see some of your comrades being killed!"

"Yeah, because we're not leaving until we get some answers!" Falco said.

"About what?" The Ruffian asked.

"You'll see." Krystal said.

"We're coming to Sargasso, so watch your backs!" Slippy said.

"And don't expect us to go easy on any of you!" Peppy stated.

Once the call had ended, Star Fox went down to the docking bay. The team checked to see if Fara had messaged them back. Finding no new messages from her, Peppy sent the fennec a transmission, saying that Star Fox was going to Sargasso Space Station. He secretly hoped that she was on Pigma's tail, trying to shoot him down. If the boar was able to get away from her, then the Lylat System would be in danger. The Memory Core was already in the wrong hands, but there was a chance of ending up in the possession of someone worse. Even if that didn't happen, then the Core was probably infected with the Aparoid's DNA.

"Alright," Fox spoke, relaying his plan for the mission, "here's what we're going to do: I'm going to step into Sargasso and search for clues as to where Pigma could've gone. While I'm doing that, I want the rest of you to keep an eye out for anyone flying near Sargasso."

"You're going alone again, Fox?" Slippy asked.

"I have to, I don't want to risk any of you getting hurt." The orange tod stated.

"Oh, sure, we're a capable team, yet papa Fox doesn't want us to get hurt." Falco said out of sarcasm.

"Falco -!" The vulpine spoke before getting interrupted.

"He has a point, Fox." Krystal said. "We can handle ourselves in battle, but you keep us from helping you out on certain missions. Keep in mind that you were on foot during the last mission, and you were struggling to fight all of the Aparoids that surrounded you."

"At the same time, he has a reason for not wanting us to get hurt on a mission." Peppy said. "Wouldn't any of you want to keep the team from dying?"

"We would, but Fox should take his overprotective nature down a notch." Falco said.

"In other words, let Falco and I accompany you in Sargasso." Krystal said to Fox. "The mission might go faster if there's more than one of us in the station."

"Okay, but I want you to message me through your communicators during the mission." Fox said. "In case you find something interesting, let me know, and I'll meet up with you as quick as I can."

"Got it!" Falco said.

"We'll keep you informed!" Krystal said.

"Star Fox, let's head out!" Fox said.

Exiting the Great Fox, Star Fox flew out into space. In order to find Sargasso, Fox used his Arwing to search for where it was located. General Pepper had sent him the map for the space station, but he wasn't sure if the map was right or not. The map said that it was somewhere Venom, but he didn't trust that it would be as close to that planet. It just felt like Star Fox was closer to Sargasso than the map made it seem, as they were barely away from Katina. No matter where it was, the team wasn't going to stop searching until they found it.

During the search, Star Fox noticed that they were approaching Meteo: the Lylat System's asteroid belt. The team knew that this was going to be difficult, but agreed to be as careful as they could as they flew through it. As they did so, Slippy noticed something floating in the middle of Meteo. It was a massive piece of technology that looked big enough to be an apartment building. He couldn't tell what it was at first, but his tracker told him what that place was: Sargasso Space Station.

"Guys," Slippy said, "I found it!"

"Nice one, Slippy!" Fox said. "Alright, everyone, let's pay our dear friends at Sargasso a visit!"

Following Fox to Sargasso, the team split up. They agreed that while Fox, Falco, and Krystal were inside the station, Peppy and Slippy would scan the perimeter for any incoming threat. With their priorities set, Star Fox decided to carry on with the mission. After landing in the docking bay, Fox hopped out of his Arwing, taking out his blaster. Falco climbed out of his ship, grabbing a few grenades for additional offense. As for Krystal, she jumped out of her Arwing, holding her blaster and her staff.

Now that they were out of their ships, Fox had Falco and Krystal head to different parts of Sargasso in order to look for Pigma. He went forward, thinking that there could be an enemy awaiting him. Falco went left, deciding to begin his search. Krystal was reluctant to go alone, feeling that she would be unable to help her teammates if they got in trouble. Knowing that there was no time to complain, the cobalt vixen went to the right, with her telepathy on in case she would miss something. Even if she didn't find Pigma, she felt that she would be able to squeeze his whereabouts out of a flunky with her powers, assuming that one of them had encountered the swine.


Walking forward, Fox could see that there were ruffians gathered around the table. They were in the middle of a conversation, talking about what they would do when their boss calls them. Even though he always found it rude to interrupt a conversation, Fox felt that he didn't have time to watch these punks chat like there was no tomorrow. Pigma was out there, and the Aparoids could've been attacking at any minute, so waiting was low on the orange tod's list of priorities. He drew out his blaster, firing a round at the ceiling. This got the attention of the ruffians, who were startled by the noise.

"Who the hell are you?!" One of them asked.

"I'm your worst nightmare!" Fox spoke. "Now, I want for all of you to tell me the whereabouts of Pigma Dengar!"

"Pigma?" A ruffian asked.

"You mean the boss' old ally?" Another one spoke. "We haven't seen him anywhere!"

"Well, someone had to!" Fox said. "I'm not leaving until I get an answer!"

"Hate to burst your bubble, but you ain't gettin' an answer out of any of us!" A ruffian snorted. "Face it, you're on a wild goose chase!"

Realizing that each of the ruffians were proving to be unhelpful, Fox decided to leave the room. Before the orange tod could even step out, he heard a blaster being fired. The round missed him by an inch, but it was enough to make him turn around. With the ruffians firing at him, the vulpine responded by firing back, killing two of them. When one ran at him, he took out his knife and slit the throat of his enemy. As that happened, Fox expected the rest of the ruffians to back off, but they kept on shooting, intent on killing him. Knowing that he couldn't waste anymore time, he fired his blaster again, managing to kill the remaining enemies that were in his way.

With the ruffians that were attacking him dead, Fox decided to move on. As he ran out, he fired his blaster at any aggressor that came his way. It was clear to the orange tod that looking for Pigma was going to be harder than he thought. He hoped that Falco and Krystal were doing a much better job than he was. Considering how there could be enemies waiting for both of them, the vulpine was worried about losing them. Deciding to swallow those emotions for the time being, he carried on, fighting off anyone who wanted to kill him while looking for Pigma.


Meanwhile, Falco was walking down the hallway, looking in each room. To his annoyance, there seemed to be no sign of Pigma or the Memory Core. In fact, the pheasant couldn't find anyone who was willing to speak to him. He couldn't help but think that the team was at a dead end, especially from his end. As he took another step down the hallway, the avian could see that he was nearly at the end of it. Frustrated, he let out a growl and punched the wall.

"Well, great." Falco said out of sarcasm. "Not only have I not found Pigma, but I'm out of rooms to search in."

Turning around, Falco decided to leave the area and meet up with Fox. Before he could even walk out of the hallway, he saw a silhouette approaching him. It was big and bulky, looking like it would dwarf him by a foot-and-a-half. Knowing he had a fight on his hands, the pheasant decided to take on whoever was approaching him. Even if he died, then at least he would be able to take his enemy with him. The avian knew that the team would be without a member with his death, but he hoped that they would carry on instead of grieving him until the end of time.

"Well," a voice spoke, "looks like I've got a break after all this time."

Now that he was able to make out who the shadow belonged to, Falco found himself face-to-face with his enemy. This person happened to be a muscular chimpanzee. He was wearing a tight gray shirt, a leather belt, jeans, boots, and a visor. Falco could tell that he wasn't the usual ruffian, given how most of the ones he saw appeared to be scrawny or average with minor muscle. It didn't matter to the pheasant, given how the simian seemed ready to fight. He had his blaster on hand, which he felt would make the battle shorter.

"Are you lost, little birdie?" The Muscular Ruffian taunted. "Do you want to get crushed?"

"Not really." Falco said. "All I want to know is where Pigma Dengar is."

"Well, the Boss' old associate isn't here, pal!" The simian said. "But, if you want to know something, then I'll have you know that you're about to be snapped in-half!"

"Bring it, Monkey Boy!" The pheasant said.

The Muscular Ruffian punched Falco in the face, which caused him to stumble back. Unwilling to go down, the pheasant responded by kicking his enemy in the side. He followed this up with a few punches to the face. While each blow connected, they didn't seem to do much damage to the simian. In fact, he just shrugged off the attacks like he was just being hit with insects that would be squashed on him. Seeing that, Falco knew that he would have to double his efforts.

Kicking his opponent in the side again, Falco hoped that it would work better than the first time. However, the Muscular Ruffian shook it off, returning the favor with an uppercut. This threw Falco off his feet, causing him to fall on his back. As the simian stood above him, the pheasant saw an opportunity for an attack. By the time the Ruffian brought his head down, the avian did a head-butt. While the attack did hurt the ape, he only let out a chuckle.

"C'mon, do you really think those attacks are going to take me down?!" The Muscular Ruffian sneered.

"No, but this will!" Falco shouted defiantly.

Aiming between the Muscular Ruffian's legs, Falco delivered a hard kick. This caused the simian to fall to the floor, recoiling in pain. Not wanting him to get back up, Falco drew out his blaster and opened fire. With a few plasma rounds in his head, the primate fell to the ground, dead. As soon as that happened, Falco was able to get out of the hallway. This allowed him to continue on with the mission, as long as there would be no other criminals standing in his way.

"I should get back to the others!" Falco said to himself.


Krystal was walking through one of the hallways of Sargasso, her telepathy scanning her surroundings for anyone. While she got a few signatures, none of them belonged to Pigma. It seemed like the search for the boar was turning out to be pointless. The cobalt vixen wanted to contact Fox and tell him that the team needed to search the Lylat System, but she knew that he was probably busy. He was probably in the middle of a fight, and she wouldn't feel right if she contacted him during a battle. After all, the orange tod would be killed if the Cerinian called him at the worst time possible.

As she continued to walk through Sargasso, Krystal sensed a few people walking out. These individuals weren't friendly, given how they were outlaws. Even though she wanted to avoid a conflict, the cobalt vixen knew that she would have to take a few lives. It was just inevitable when it came to being a mercenary, especially when these guys were standing between Star Fox and the Aparoids. Outside of the mission, Krystal couldn't help feel a little sorry for the people who were forced into crime out of personal tragedy or were dealt a foul hand. For those who were utterly reprehensible and unable to justify their actions, she felt no sympathy, believing that they would have to suffer the worst punishments that one could think of.

Being surrounded, Krystal could tell that she had a fight awaiting her. The people surrounding her were Ruffians, all of them being men. While the cobalt vixen felt that she could take them, she figured that dealing with them all at once would be difficult. Even with her telepathy and weapons, she knew that this part of the mission would be hard. The Cerinian had occasionally fought on her foot in previous missions, but she was told to use her weapons primarily. She knew hand-to-hand combat, but her telepathy warned that her enemies wouldn't always fight fair.

"Hey, baby, what's a hottie like you doing here?" One Ruffian spoke.

"Why is she blue, though?" Another one asked. "Is she a circus freak or something?"

"No way!" A third Ruffian said. "A circus freak wouldn't be as pretty as her!"

"I appreciate the comments, gentlemen, but I'm just here on a mission." Krystal said.

"A mission?" A Ruffian said. "Don't tell me she's with those Star Fox punks!"

"Of course she is!" Another Ruffian said. "Why else would a dame like her come here?!"

"C'mon, we can take this broad, fellas!" A third one said.

"Hopefully, we can take turns at her!" A fourth Ruffian said.

"Yeah, let's grab this Star Fox bi-!" A fifth Ruffian spoke, before something cut him off.

The group of Ruffians watched in shock as one of their allies fell to the ground. He had a massive hole in his head, being caused by something stronger than a blaster round. Looking at Krystal, the monkeys saw that she had pointed her staff forward, having aimed it at her target. Enraged, the Ruffians pulled out blasters, deciding not to hold anything back. Krystal only smiled at her enemies, not showing any fear against them. As they approached her, the cobalt vixen made sure that her telepathy was on, and that her weapons were ready for battle.

"It's not nice to call people names, boys!" Krystal said. "And it's especially not a good idea to insult someone when they have bigger fish to fry!"

"Well, once we're done with you, you won't have anything better to do!" A Ruffian sneered.

"The moment we take you prisoner, we're gonna enjoy you!" A second one threatened.

"And you wouldn't be able to struggle, because we have ways of dealing with people like you!" A third Ruffian shouted.

"Come on, then!" Krystal snapped. "Show me what you've got!"

The Ruffians ran towards Krystal, firing their blasters wildly. Knowing that she had to dodge, the cobalt vixen rolled out of the way. She fired her blaster at one of the Ruffians, hitting him in the chest. When another one came at her, the Cerinian fired three shots, hitting him two times in the chest and once in the forehead. While the first two shots wouldn't have killed the simian, the last shot was the blow that finished him. For the third Ruffian, Krystal simply fired a beam from her staff, bisecting him.

With four down, Krystal knew that she had one more Ruffian to deal with. Unlike the others, however, he seemed to be level-headed, dodging the blaster rounds fired at him. Seeing that, Krystal made sure to fight him with her staff, intent on switching to hand-to-hand combat when it was necessary. The Ruffian didn't seem to have any other weapons outside of his blaster, but he looked ready to fight. As she wanted to end the battle as quickly as possible, the cobalt vixen hoped that he would be easy to take down. The others were easy to defeat, so there was no way he would be so difficult.

Standing in defiance, the Ruffian threw a punch at Krystal, aiming for her face. The cobalt vixen dodged it, returning the favor by kicking her opponent in the side. While the attack hurt the ape, it failed to bring him down. He threw punches and kicks, wanting to either take down his enemy or kill her. Most of them missed, with the only hit that managed to connect being a punch on the vulpine's arm. Before the Ruffian could attack again, Krystal put her staff in front of her.

"Drop the stick, sweetheart." The Ruffian snorted.

"I won't." Krystal said. "My team and I were looking for Pigma Dengar, but there seems to be no sign of him here. As such, I'll make this quick and contact my friends!"

Firing her staff, Krystal left a huge hole in the Ruffian's chest. Once he was dead, the cobalt vixen got out of the area and decided to look for a safe place to contact her teammates. Her telepathy was scanning Sargasso, checking to see if Fox and Falco were alright. To the Cerinian's relief, they were both still alive, but were far from her. She didn't sense any other hostiles, so she felt that she was safe enough. However, in order to stay out of sight, Krystal hid behind some boxes.

"Fox, Falco, I've been through my route, and there's no sign of Pigma!" Krystal whispered.

"I haven't been having much luck in finding him myself." Falco spoke. "How about you, Fox?"

"Pigma's here somewhere, we just gotta keep looking!" Fox said.

"We should meet up first!" Krystal quietly said. "Splitting up was a bad idea!"

"Very well," the orange tod's voice said, "try to look for me, guys!"


Outside of Sargasso, Peppy and Slippy were flying around, checking the perimeter for any hostiles. Fox, Falco, and Krystal had not messaged them yet, so they couldn't help but feel a little worried. No one in the team had been inside that station before, and there was a chance that their first visit could become their last. It was an outcome that none of them wanted, and Peppy hoped that everyone had trained well-enough to go through a place like Sargasso. Not helping matters was that its inhabitants were renegade soldiers from Venom. Even if the whole team had spoken to them, it was unlikely that the encounter would end peacefully.

"Fox," Peppy spoke into his communicator, "have you found Pigma yet?"

"No, there's no sign of him." Fox said. "I'm still looking, though."

"If he isn't here, then we'll have to check someplace else." Krystal stated.

"C'mon, he had to come here!" Slippy spoke. "Sargasso is home to scumbags, so Pigma could've given the Memory Core to someone!"

"That's the thing, guys, we haven't found it!" Falco said.

"Let's not forget that we haven't heard back from Fara yet." Krystal stated. "Her Arwing isn't even here, same for Pigma's ship."

"So we came here for nothing?!" Slippy cried.

"Definitely." The cobalt vixen said.

"Great," Peppy said, "how could this possibly get worse?"

As Peppy and Slippy had stopped scanning the perimeter, they were unaware of three ships that were approaching Sargasso. These ships were like the Arwings, but they had a much different design. Instead of being colored blue and white, they were colored red and silver. One was flying forward, while the others were flying behind it. The lead ship's pilot sent a transmission to Peppy and Slippy, startling them.

"You two fools!" He spoke. "What are you idiots up to now?"

Upon hearing that voice, both Peppy and Slippy gasped. Turning around, they got a good look at the ships that were approaching them: Wolfens. The hare and the toad could not believe it, as the only pilots that flew those ships were thought to have been killed during the Lylat War. However, the Wolfens looked brand new, as if they had just gotten off an assembly line. By getting a closer look: the two Star Fox members could see who was flying the main ship: Wolf O'Donnell!


Back inside of Sargasso, Fox, Falco, and Krystal had met up. The three were about to go to their Arwings, knowing that the mission had been a waste of time. However, before they could even head to the docking bay, the three saw a Ruffian approach a messaging machine. He was badly injured, so Krystal and Falco were intent on finishing him off. Fox gestured for them to hold back, much to their dismay.

"Boss," the Ruffian rasped out, "have you gotten back yet?"

"Almost there," a familiar voice said, "we just have to take care of two irritants out here!"

Fox then had Falco and Krystal finish off the Ruffian, having recognized the voice that was speaking to him. Hitting a button on the machine, the orange tod spoke into it.

"That you, Wolf?" Fox said.

"Fox McCloud?" The voice of Wolf O'Donnell responded. "I knew that this was too good to be true. You're on my turf now. Watch your step, Fox!"

"You've proven to be a great source of irritation for us in the past!" Leon Powalski's voice spoke. "So, I think I'll torture you for a bit before I cook you!"

"Allow me to introduce myself." A third voice came on, one that Fox didn't recognize. "My name is Panther. All who see my rose meet their death!"

"Cut the crap, guys!" Fox growled. "We just want to know where Pigma is!"

"Pigma?" Wolf spoke. "I don't know anything about Pigma. But I'm owed an apology, and I WILL have it!"

Once the conversation had ended, Fox noticed that Falco and Krystal had already entered their Arwings. They were eager to help Peppy and Slippy, though Falco was more interested in fighting Star Wolf. Getting in his Arwing, Fox joined his teammates outside of Sargasso. Once everyone was outside, they noticed that there were only three members of Star Wolf at the moment. However, they knew that this didn't mean the space pirates weren't lesser threats than before. Star Fox went into battle with direct caution, knowing what would happen if they weren't careful.

"So, Wolf, you've finally come back." Falco spoke.

"And to think, he has a new member in his team!" Peppy stated.

"That's nothing we can't handle!" Slippy said.

"Slippy, don't get cocky." Krystal warned.

"We outnumber you five-to-three, so be ready, Wolf!" Fox said.

"Whatever, let's just settle this, Fox!" Wolf scoffed.

Star Wolf flew at Star Fox, eager to take them down. However, the latter split up, agreeing to focus on one member of the team of space pirates. Krystal and Falco were going to focus on Leon, while Peppy and Slippy would go after Panther. Fox went after Wolf, finding it necessary to take down the lupine himself. If his teammates needed help, then he would blindside his enemy and take down one of the other members of Star Wolf. The orange tod felt that it wouldn't get to that point, as he knew his teammates could fight.

Falco was flying in front of Leon, trying to get him off his tail. The chameleon didn't seem intent on letting up on his enemy, so he wildly fired at the pheasant. Krystal was also firing, but she aimed at Leon. Whenever Falco got in the way, the cobalt vixen would stop firing and fly in the opposite direction of him. The two would occasionally fire together, but Leon was smart enough to avoid each of their attacks. It was going to take something better than single shots to take him down.

"You two irritants," Leon shouted, "bow down before the Great Leon!"

"Sorry, pal, but you're not as great as you think!" Falco said.

"And we're going to prove it!" Krystal said.

This seemed to annoy Leon, so he flew directly at Falco and Krystal. While Krystal was able to fly away, Falco wound up colliding with his reptilian foe. Coming up with a plan, the pheasant attached a Nova Bomb to an asteroid. It exploded in no time, sending molten rocks all over the place. While one hit Leon's Wolfen, he avoided the rest. Krystal did a barrel roll to get away from the shattered asteroid, with one nearly hitting the left wing of her Arwing. The cobalt vixen then flew up to her teammate, madder than a hornet.

"Be careful, Falco!" Krystal said. "Hopefully, you're aware that you might kill us both if you're not careful!"

"Sorry." Falco said. "Fox, I'm not proud of what just happened!"

"Just keep on fighting, guys!" Fox said.

Knowing that Leon was going to attack again, Krystal immediately opened fire. Falco fired a charged shot, hitting the chameleon's Wolfen in its right wing. However, he was unfazed by this, continuing on with his attack. Both Falco and Krystal fired, hoping to do some more damage. Leon dodged a majority of them, with a few hitting his ship's engine. The Venomian nearly crashed, but he was able to keep himself up.

Without any form of hesitation, Krystal launched a Nova Bomb at Leon's Wolfen, managing to attach it to the underside of the ship. The cobalt vixen then signaled for her and Falco to move out of the way. Once they did so, she fired a charged shot at Leon, deciding to increase the blast radius of the Nova Bomb. While the attack did so, it failed to take the chameleon down for good. He flew towards his enemies again, deciding to focus on Krystal.

"It must've taken you a week to come up with that idea!" Leon spoke.

"Trust me," Krystal said, "I have come up with ideas like that one before."

"Trying to act smart, eh?" The chameleon taunted. "Oh, that's the thing with girls like you, you're all boobs and -!"

A charged shot hit Leon head-on, nearly knocking him out of commission. Much to his shock, Krystal was using different strategies to try and take him down. Each one was causing damage to the chameleon's Wolfen, being comprised of strong attacks. Falco was doing them as well, following the cobalt vixen's lead. However, this angered Leon, to the point where he fired back.

"Who do you think I am?!" The Venomian screamed.

Sensing that Fox was flying towards them, Krystal got out of the way, gesturing for Falco to do so as well. After doing that, they saw Fox flying away from Wolf, trying to shake him off. However, this didn't stop the orange tod from firing at Leon. Luckily, the attack was enough to knock the chameleon's Wolfen down. He nearly crashed into a nearby asteroid, almost landing on his wings.

"Me?!" Leon cried. "Me!?!"

Knowing that he would die if he didn't get out of the battlefield as fast as possible, Leon flew towards Sargasso, setting his sights on the docking bay. Krystal and Falco were about to chase after him, but Fox told them not to. Given how they had bigger fish to fry, the cobalt vixen and the pheasant decided to help the rest of the team. There were two members of Star Wolf still flying, so it didn't sound terribly hard for Star Fox. However, given how deadly the space pirates could be, they did not underestimate their enemy. After all, if they got careless during the battle, then they would be shot down, leaving the Lylat System without an additional force to combat the Aparoids.


Peppy and Slippy were having a hard time against Panther, being unable to dodge certain attacks. In fact, the Wolfens Star Wolf were using seemed to be new models, with increased speed and armor. Unwilling to go down, Slippy fought back, doing a somersault and opening fire. He managed to hit the wings of Panther's Wolfen, albeit not doing a whole lot of damage to them. The black jungle cat did a barrel roll, managing to shake off the next few rounds Slippy had fired. He flew downwards, with the toad chasing after him.

"Make me mad, and your life's as good as gone!" Panther warned.

"Same here!" Slippy said, firing some more.

As he continued to fire, Slippy noticed that Panther wasn't trying to fire back. In fact, the feline dodged each of the toad's attacks. This surprised not only Slippy, but also Peppy. Usually, Star Wolf would go all out, exhausting all their manpower to defeat their enemies. Panther was different, as he was far more merciful. He seemed like someone who would be more at home in the CDF or the army of a planet that wasn't on Venom's side. Whatever Star Wolf had gone through to recruit the black jungle cat, it was clearly enough for them to accept him.

"Alright, buddy, you're going down!" Peppy said.

"Correction, my friends." Panther said. "It is the two of you who will be going down."

"What do you mean by that?" Slippy asked.

Before Peppy and Slippy knew it, a bomb detonated, causing an asteroid to split in half. However, a few pieces of it spread, hitting the hare's and the toad's Arwings. The wings received damage, nearly causing them to crash. Realizing that they couldn't do anymore, Peppy and Slippy agreed to fly back to the Great Fox for repairs. Seeing Fox flying by, they decided to message him in hopes of seeing that their decision was okay.

"Fox," Slippy spoke, "Peppy and I are dropping out of the mission!"

"Our ships need repairs!" Peppy stated.

"Go ahead and head to the Great Fox!" Fox said. "I'll deal with the new guy!"

With the order given, Peppy and Slippy flew back to the Great Fox, hoping to have their Arwings fixed in time for the next mission. Rushing up to Panther, Fox fired a charged shot at his Wolfen. As he did so, the orange tod could tell that Star Wolf's newest member had a rose painted onto it. He aimed for the ship's wings, deciding not to waste his effort on its paint job. The attack did damage to Panther's Wolfen, to the point where he couldn't steer it correctly.

"What?" Panther said. "Impossible!"

Moving on, Fox flew back to Wolf, deciding to engage him in battle. The one-eyed lupine fired at the orange tod, wanting to take him down as quickly as possible. Seeing that Falco and Krystal were coming towards them, Fox signaled for them to stay back. While he appreciated their help, he didn't want Wolf to shoot either of them down. Given how Krystal was new, it wasn't hard to imagine the leader of Star Wolf giving her a hard time, regardless of whether or not she was using her telepathy. Falco could probably do a decent amount of damage to the lupine, but it wouldn't be enough to defeat him.

Flying above Wolf, Fox unleashed a Nova Bomb. It detonated, doing a fair amount of damage to the one-eyed lupine. However, the blast failed to take him down, so Fox knew he had to give it his all. Once Wolf was in front of him, the orange tod opened fire, using both regular and charged shots. While doing so, he glared at the space pirate, not letting go of his weapon control system. No matter what happened, the vulpine was going to take down his enemy.

"I can see that you didn't want your teammates to get involved." Wolf spoke. "Whatever the reason, I quite appreciate having an audience around to witness your defeat!"

"That's just what you think, Wolf!" Fox said.

"But enough of this!" The one-eyed lupine said. "Are you ready to dance with the devil, pup?"

"Are you?" The orange tod asked.

Both Fox and Wolf charged up a round on their respective ships. Fox was the first to fire, his Arwing unleashing a green blast. Wolf fired his as well, but his Wolfen was a bit slow when it came to the attack. The one-eyed lupine was hit head-on, causing his ship to receive great damage. While the Wolfen didn't look like it was going to explode, it did receive enough damage to nearly fall out of flight. Fox dodged the charged shot that came his way, noticing how much slower it was compared to his.

"You really have improved since the last time, Fox!" Wolf said. "You aren't your father, after all!"

"That's right!" Fox said.

"Let's continue this talk inside of Sargasso, because this is kinda awkward!" Falco said.


Inside the docking bay of Sargasso, Fox, Falco, and Krystal were speaking to Star Wolf. While Fox and Falco kept a professional expression, Krystal was a bit intimidated by the rival team. Each member looked like the kinds of people you didn't want to meet in a dark alleyway, unless you wanted to join the group. Leon in particular sent a chill down the cobalt vixen's spine, her telepathy reading his dark mind. Wolf and Panther weren't as unsettling as him, but they still made her want to leave. Thankfully, as soon as the conversation ended, Star Fox would be leaving.

"Are you sure Pigma didn't stop here?" Fox asked.

"Look, Fox, Pigma's no longer part of Star Wolf." Wolf said. "If he showed his filthy hide here, my boys would've chased him out."

"Then where could he have gone?" Falco asked.

"Our friend went after him, but we haven't heard back from her." Krystal said.

"Such a beauty." Panther said, looking at the cobalt vixen. "Krystal Bodimead, is it? Panther Caroso, Miss. Words do you no justice."

"Who is this idiot?" Falco asked.

"Quiet, bird." The black jungle cat said.

"What was that?" The pheasant tilted his head.

"Anyway," the feline said, "if you're looking for Pigma, we caught a glimpse of him near Fichina. A black ship was chasing after him, presumably the craft belonging to your friend."

"You talk too much." Wolf scoffed.

"Mr. Wolf, you seem familiar." Krystal said.

"Trust me, kid, there are plenty of men in the Lylat System who look like me." The one-eyed lupine said. "Panther, Leon, let's go!"

Following Wolf, Leon and Panther began to follow him down a hallway. Before they were even out of sight, Wolf turned and spoke to Star Fox.

"Remember this, Fox: Star Wolf will take you down one day." The one-eyed lupine said.

As Star Wolf left, Krystal picked up an odd thought from Wolf.

Could that really be her? If so, why is she with Star Fox?

Putting the thought aside, she climbed into the Arwing and flew back to the Great Fox with Fox and Falco. With new information on where Pigma could've gone, Star Fox agreed to set a course for Fichina. Before they could go there, the team would have to make repairs to their Arwings, even if they didn't receive damage during the mission. However, knowing that Pigma was still running amok, the team wanted to make sure that they were ready for their next objective. ROB was flying the Great Fox, so the mercenaries knew that they would be at Fichina in no time. After all, it wasn't far from their current position.

Looks like Mr. O'Donnell knows me too. Krystal thought to herself. Perhaps I should talk to him after we defeat the Aparoids, depending on whether either of us would be alive. I hope Fox doesn't mind.

Note: As I have said before, this is a prequel to my later stories in my main Star Fox timeline (Lucky Rabbit's Foot, Amnesia, Daddy's Little Vixen, Cornerian Knights, Aliens To Them, Bonding, College Days, The Gloves Are On). Please don't post any spoilers for anything that is revealed in those stories. Other than that, it seems like Pigma is heading for Fichina. Is Fara still chasing after him? Will she meet her teammates on Fichina? Will Pigma still be there by the time they reach the planet?

Until next time, guys, this is Newcomer24, signing off. Peace!