As loose blood mixed with the rainfall into the cracks of the concrete, a barrage of laser fire singed the rain as it fell, creating a thin mist in the dark alleyway only lit up with the colors of charged plasma. In amongst the frantic calls for backup, a young vixen tightened the hood covering her head as she used the chaos of the battle as a veil to escape; a plume of hot mist swirling out in her wake. Terror in her lungs, she slipped free of the battle in hopes that distancing herself from the commotion could win her secrecy.

Fur and clothes soaked, she ducked amongst buildings spaced out just enough for her to sneak between, desperately trying to escape. The sound of death and agony began to mesh with the city nightlife until neither one was distinguishable. She couldn't tell if that was better or worse. She eventually stumbled out onto the main city streets, the eruption of neon lights clashing heavily with the dark of night and ongoing deluge. Not only was she nearly blinded with the cavalcade of light, she was also taken aback at how the populated city streets seemingly didn't budge at the commotion happening just a half block away. Still, she weaved through the troves of people enjoying the night life, pushing and shoving her way down the street. As the heavy rain fell, she could only hear her panicked breaths and the sound of her own brain telling her to simply survive.

In an instant, however, the bustling city stopped. The night crowd still so oblivious and mindlessly going about their nights came to a grinding halt. Even the heavy downpour stopped dead in its tracks. The vixen fleeing for her life dragged her boots into the ground to slide to a stop. Like a deer in headlights, her eyes stared forward at a mosaic of suspended rain droplets melting with the avalanche of color exploding from the surrounding city advertisements. Her damp fur stood on end.

She continued forward with a desperation shove through the mess of frozen people, nearly tripping over herself in amongst the labyrinth of statues. Still, the farther she ran, the worse her feeling of impending doom became. In fact, she became so unsure of herself that she spun around and tried going in a different direction, away from the sidewalks and towards the other row of buildings on the other end of the street.

As she stepped onto the street and snuck between the immobile cars, she froze again. The other end of the street looked exactly like where she has just come from. In fact, the center lines of the street she was perched on seemed to be markers for a perfect mirror of the city street. As her frantic eyes scanned her surroundings, she could only see the same end of the street; the mosaic of colors she saw slowly morphing into a kaleidoscope of shining urban lights—lights that seemed to fold over themselves.

The raining heavens began to be swallowed up by towering skyscrapers and neon colors. Buildings began to bend into each other as the twisting sky disappeared into itself. The vixen panicked and fled the street, aiming for the city plaza just down the street. That seemed to be the only place not experiencing a phenomenon of fantastic visuals. Upon reaching the plaza, the rain began to fall again as the city returned to normal. Out of breath, the vixen fell to her backside and pushed her hood off, letting the rain soak through her pelt and the soft tuft of fur atop her head.

She retrieved her phone from her pocket and made a distress call to the first number she could find. Her heart sunk when he didn't answer. He always did. The fact that he didn't meant something was going horribly wrong. It then hit her what was occurring, and why. Worse, she knew now who was after her.

That was when her fur stood on end again. She looked up and saw a distinct path down her line of vision where the rain had stopped again. As if parting the seas, the rainfall split down the center and created two distinct walls of water, from her all the way down to the cloaked figure at the end. The imposing shadow of a figure merely held a battle staff just as tall as she was, violet power radiating from the adorning crystal like heatwaves off of scalding hot metal.

The vixen snarled and drew a blade from her pocket. The steel craftsmanship glinted off of the rainfall as the sky above them became angrier. Quick flashes of lightning snapped between the billowing black clouds above as thunder rippled and reverberated between the concrete and glass towers. The figure did not react, so she charged after it as sparks flew from her feet.

As she drew closer, however, the figure stepped forward dramatically. He outstretched the staff he held, allowing the lightning a place to discharge as the irate sky ripped a white-hot bolt down to the weapon; the violence of the discharge shattering glass all over the city block. The bolt coursed through the figure's staff on either end, creating a functioning circuit that billowed out a dangerous jolt of electricity like a tesla coil. Just as fast as the vixen approached with blade poised to strike, the figure took his staff and impaled the ground, ripping the cement and brick walkways apart. She was ejected backwards as the electrified blade she wielded was cast aside just as easy as she was. As thunder deafened the area and left a stillness about the frozen downtown, she couldn't bring herself to move as the figure left his staff upright and approached. The rain began to fall on the plaza again.

"You and the others have been hiding for too long," the assailant growled. "You deserters should have died on Cerinia. You should have taken the coward's way out like the rest of them. But now we have you."

The vixen spat on the ground, angry with herself that she let herself get caught. "Shirinui wouldn't let us die," she argued, shaking in fear. "She wouldn't let you win that easy."

"What makes you think Shirinui would save any of you traitors?" the man spat back. "You are a disgrace. I should have killed you and your friends when I had you at my mercy."

The vixen spat and sputtered in the rainwater, trying to force herself upright.

"Stay down, Raiko," snapped the assailant. "Unless you want me to make an example of your friends."

She froze in her tracks. "You found them too?" she spoke under her breath, watching rainwater drip from her face onto the pavement.

"Now I have your attention," he cooed devilishly; beady red eyes glowing out from his cloaked head. "I suggest you heed my words, otherwise I will have no choice but to make you watch their slaughter."

Raiko hissed and leapt to her feet. "Don't you dare!" she yelped, only to run into the assailant's grasp. He wrapped a strong paw around her neck and clamped down, lifting her from the ground in an outward display of total dominance. The vixen only squeaked, completely drowned out by the rain.

"I could kill you right now," he growled through clenched canine teeth, tightening his death grip. "I could save the Alphas the trouble of dealing with yet another unruly subject that thinks she knows better than everyone else. The last one who defied the Alphas met a similar fate, and I assure you they make no exceptions."

His claws dug into her throat. She could only feebly grasp for breath.

"Defying the Alphas is why Cerinia fell," he growled, anger closing his grasp ever so slightly. Tears of pain mixed with the rainwater on Raiko's face. The figure's eyes flashed a bright crimson as he finished, "Defying the Alphas was why Shirinui abandoned us!"

With a roar, the assailant threw Raiko to the ground as she coughed and sputtered for breath.

"You are coming with us," he said, retrieving his staff. "Fight us again, and we will have no choice but to let you and your friends perish with the rest of Lylat. This time, Shirinui will not save you."

He grasped Raiko's hood and twisted it around his wrist, ensuring she wouldn't escape.

"She will not save anyone," he finished, harshly yanking Raiko's limp frame from the concrete.

: : : : :

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: : : : :

STAR FOX: THE GOD OF FIRE

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"So, what was that message you got?"

"From HQ. Signed with Peppy's name. Said it was urgent."

"Urgent? We haven't gotten one of those since…"

"Since the Aparoids, I know."

"That was close to four years ago now."

"Closer to five. That was our last big mission."

"Do you think this could be a big mission too?"

"Krys, we haven't been needed ever since the Aparoids."

"I know, but you just said we haven't gotten a big mission since."

"Knowing Peppy, he's probably got something packed up his sleeve to surprise us. It's been months since we last set out. He probably just wants us to come back."

"He doesn't seem like one to exaggerate a message. Did it say anything? Any details?"

"Just said it was urgent."

"That's odd."

"You're telling me. I have no idea what he wants."

"Are you all done?"

"Yeah, you?"

"I'm ready too."

The jet streams of scalding water shut off with a resounding thump and subsequent whine. In amongst the hazy steam clouding the bathroom and fogging up the mirrors and glass shower doors, one Fox McCloud—auburn pelt holding fifteen pounds of water weight—stepped out and trudged over to the open drying stall. Moments later, Krystal did the same and stepped into the one beside him. After a loud handful of minutes with hot, dry air billowing up from the floor beneath them, the water weight was gone and out stepped two extremely fluffy foxes. Krystal always laughed.

They wandered over to the foggy mirror and started to brush their pelts down. "I don't think anything is wrong," Fox began, starting with brushing back his mohawk he had been growing out since the Aparoid mission concluded. "I figured we would have been the first to know if anything started happening in the system."

"I'm not sure either," Krystal answered, mimicking Fox's motions to brush out her similarly grown-out hair. Her hair resembled more of a mullet with her shallow bangs, but she always kept it presentable and stylish. "I don't sense any big disturbances… But, then again, I've never been too reliable on that."

"I'm sure Peppy will fill us in when we get there," said Fox. "I hope it's nothing too crazy."

Krystal giggled. "I don't think I could handle anything too crazy again."

"You're telling me," Fox laughed back. He brushed all of his long mohawk fur backwards and bound the excess into a ponytail, then started working on brushing the rest of his fur. "I'm hoping whatever this is isn't as urgent as what Peppy says it is. I'm tempted not to take it, if I'm honest."

"You're not going to take his mission?"

"If he has one," clarified Fox. "I'm just not sure we really need another mission."

Krystal's ears fell. "You have been saying that a lot recently."

Fox shrugged. "I've been doing this for a long time. I've had my fill of the spotlight, and I've done everything I can to help keep this system safe. You should know as well as I do; I don't want to ever stop being me. But I also know there's a life beyond the Arwing that I'm missing. I'm still thinking about it, but I really am considering… you know…"

"Retiring?" Krystal finished for him.

"To put it mildly," he shined a smile. "Makes me sound old though."

"I prefer experienced," she said with an overt purr to her otherwise calm and sweet voice.

"Sure, we'll go with that," Fox snickered, continuing to brush his fur.

The years following the Aparoid assault for Star Fox were… uneventful, to put it mildly. Any debts the team had before then had since been paid off in full, and then some. Fox especially was very well off in terms of finances and personal fulfillment, yet couldn't bring himself to step away from the team. He had built the team back up in memory of his late father, and seeing it end after a long and prosperous run seemed bittersweet. Still, with Lylat at peace and with no reason to keep a mercenary outfit so active, even Fox had to admit his days as the Hero of Lylat was limited. He often looked forward to a nice retirement, although he wondered how long that would stay interesting before he'd have the urge to climb back into the cockpit again.

Krystal often thought the same. Despite being much younger than Fox, she had already seen her big mission and essentially paid her dues to Star Fox after being saved all those years ago. While Star Fox was her life in no unspoken terms, she still had that same curiosity and desire to see what life was like outside of the cockpit. While it was mesmerizing to think about, it also introduced a few anxieties of learning how to live outside of mercenary life. But, having Fox by her side sure helped with that.

"Fox, you're staring again."

Fox blinked, expression unwavering. "And?"

Krystal chuckled and draped a towel over his muzzle. "You're weird."

"You said yes," Fox shouted to tease as Krystal left the bathroom, mindfully keeping his eyes on her until she disappeared behind the doorway. He finished up brushing out his fur and checked on his look one last time before kicking the lights off. He then poked his head through the doorway to see Krystal throwing on her under-suit. "I wanna know what you think," said Fox. Krystal fanned her hair out of her compression suit before looking over her shoulder at him.

"About what?" she asked back, watching Fox's swishing tail step over to his closet.

"About taking another mission," Fox clarified. "Whether we should or not."

Krystal took some time to think as Fox started getting his clothes on. "You already know what I'm going to say," she cooed, holding up her ringed paw for emphasis. Fox nodded his head knowingly.

"I know what I said earlier… But I think we should hear Peppy out, at the least," Fox commented. "I mean, if he has something for us, that's one more mission."

"One more mission," Krystal echoed, unable to keep a straight face. "Fox, you've been saying that for a long time."

"I know," his nose pointed to the floor. "I can't help it."

"I understand this means a lot to you," Krystal wandered over to console him. She took his paws in her own and held them comfortably. "But I need you to understand this. You know as well as I do that the missions we've received ever since the Aparoids have been… disappointing. Scouting mission here, escort mission there; all things that we really don't need to be doing. You've said it yourself; we've made our money. We've done what we need to do. The system is safe."

Krystal lifted her ringed paw once more. "You asked me to marry you over a year ago. And you said it yourself, you don't want to get married until—"

"Until we retire from Star Fox, I know," Fox finished for her, still unable to muster the strength to look her in the eyes. "Trust me, I know. I want to get married; I really do. But living a life away from Star Fox is… it's something I don't know about just yet."

"I don't know either," Krystal said, silky voice calming his nerves. "But I do know this. We have each other. We can figure things out together… because we're a team."

Fox smiled and finally looked into her eyes. "We are a team."

She took his paws again and guided them over her chest. "I want to settle down. Sooner, rather than later. But no matter what you decide to do, I'll be here with you. I'll wait forever if it means you and I will be together." She snuck in a quick kiss before pulling back and swishing her tail at him. "Well, maybe not forever. Some things can't wait that long."

Fox chuckled. "I'll keep that in mind." A gentle alarm then resounded throughout the halls of the Great Fox, severing them from the moment. "Looks like we're about to enter atmosphere," he commented, retrieving his flight suit from the closet. "Let's rock and roll."

: : : : :

ARC I

[The Unraveling]

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Chapter 1

"Alive and Unwell"

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The Great Fox eased into her designated docking platform, thrusters kicking up seafoam sprays from the bay below. The automated clamps latched on and allowed the warship to settle as whining machinery strained to keep the overbearing dreadnaught from plunging into the bay. While the mechanic crew stationed at the docking platform started to make their rounds, the main hangar bay for the warship opened. Fox stepped out first with Krystal flanking. Falco, still a bit groggy, sulked after them with body language that spoke volumes about the early afternoon hours he was forced to be conscious in.

A technician saluted as the team stepped onto the docking platform. "Commander McCloud!" the canine spoke firmly. "Any service requests while you're docked, sir?"

"Not sure yet," Fox answered. "But, just give us the routine while we're here. Refuel, resupply, standard maintenance checkup, and a cabin cleaning wouldn't hurt either." Fox then snickered and looked over his shoulder. "Might need a hazmat team for Falco's room."

Falco's sleepy expression suddenly hardened. "Ey! Whatever you send inta my room better be goin' in your quarters too! I ain't the married one!"

The vulpine shrugged him off and turned back to the technician. "Standard fill, full sweep, diagnostic check. Take your time with it; we might be here a while."

"Yes, sir," he replied as the Star Fox team continued on.

Falco was quick to intervene as they started making their way away from the shipyard. "I get'cha tryin' to be funny an' all, but that was just mean," he commented.

Fox laughed aloud. "Dude, I'm speaking the truth! Whatever died in your cabin needs to get cleaned out."

"And I s'ppose you and the missus sneakin' off every night ain't worth a deep clean?"

"One: not every night," Fox clarified, carefully avoiding Krystal's judgmental glare. "Two: at least we leave our cabin every now and again. And three: you do realize the Great Fox's network isn't user private?"

Falco's face blanched. "What's that s'pposed to mean?"

"I don't think less of you as a teammate, but as a friend… come on," Fox shuddered ever so slightly. "Some of the stuff you're looking up is really—"

"Look, we ain't doin' anythin'!" Falco interrupted before he could finish. "Lookin' up stuff ain't the same thing as actually doin' it! I dunno what I'm s'pposed t'do!"

"It's called not being a degenerate," Fox deadpanned. Krystal giggled at Falco's embarrassment, but Fox quickly turned to her. "And you're not innocent either."

Krystal held up her paws. "I claim innocence out of curiosity. There's only so many cheesy television shows and documentaries I can fill my time with while on dull missions."

"Can I side with her too?" Falco raised his wing.

"Krys I can understand," Fox said, rolling his eyes at the bird. "You? I can't—"

"Hold on—how come you even know this stuff in the first place?" Krystal interjected.

"I just said the network isn't private," Fox explained.

"But wait—she's right! You gotta go outta your wat to see it!" Falco fumed. "You're spyin' on our browsin' history! Yer the degenerate here!"

"Hey, I gotta stop the weird phishing links from tapping into our bank accounts somehow," Fox argued. "It is my ship after all. And you shouldn't be blaming me since it's you two that are looking up really weird—"

"Nope, I claimed innocence," reminded Krystal, only for Fox to give her an exasperated look.

"If you're claiming innocence, then you need to call one of your girlfriends and tell them to meet us tonight because you're curious."

Krystal scoffed. "You'd like that too much."

"I never said I wouldn't."

The vixen just laughed in response. "Boys will be boys."

"Can I watch?" Falco quickly asked.

Fox just turned back with narrow, disappointed eyes. "Don't you think you've done enough of that already?"

Falco's excitement deflated as his beak pointed at the cement. "I have a problem," he muttered.

The Star Fox trio made their way through the elevated docking platform and entered the monorail car at the end of the line. The car then took the team through the scenic route overlooking the Bay of Corneria with the Cornerian Defense Headquarters resting behind them. After a quick ride, the car dumped them out at the base of the hefty concrete and steel fortification. They've been here too many times to get caught up by the looks of the base, although it did feel imposing at the surface.

Fox flashed his access card and entered the base. There, a tall husky receptionist with a Plinian eruption of hair greeted them enthusiastically.

"Star Fox is back!" she yipped, vaulting the front desk in a plume of scattered paperwork to greet the lead vulpine with a crushing hug.

"Sheila, my lungs," Fox wheezed, just in time for the husky to finally back off.

"It's great to see you all again!" Sheila beamed, though her expression saddened in an instant. "I'm sorry, I don't think we have any more recon missions you can take."

"We're not here for that," Fox clarified. "Peppy sent us a message and wanted to see us for something. I'm not sure what for."

"Ooh, sounds important," Sheila's tail wagged at Mach 3 as she wound her desk and started slapping her keyboard. "I'm working reception this week. My squadron hasn't seen any action in a while now, so I started taking a few extra jobs to make some more money. Do you guys know how much I spend on hair products a month? I tell you what; it's enough to make me want to shave my head."

"I know, and that would ruin your character for sure," said Fox.

"I know!" the husky nearly shouted again. "Okay, so Peppy reserved a briefing room for you guys to use. It's on the fourth floor, halfway down the left hallway. You can't miss it."

"Thanks, She," Fox smiled.

"I'd ask you to tell me how it all goes, but there's top security clearance assigned to this," Sheila cocked her head. "Do you know what's up?"

"I'm just as clueless as you," Fox admitted.

"People keep saying that to me about everything," Sheila whined.

"I meant that about the mission briefing," Fox clarified, then couldn't help but look away momentarily. "But… I guess that applies elsewhere too."

Sheila crossed her arms and pouted in her seat for exactly two and a quarter seconds before her tail started wagging again. "Well, have fun in your super-secret mission thingy," she smiled wider than her face could handle. "I'm gonna keep putting long numbers and funny names into a big sheet of paper. I'll let Peppy know you're all here too!"

"Thanks, She," Fox smiled back. "I'll see you later."

Fox and the team found the nearest elevator and slipped inside. As soon as the chrome doors closed, Falco blurted out, "You could make a livin' bottlin' up her energy and sellin' it."

"Don't I know it," Fox sighed and started at his reflection. Soon, his eyes wandered from his suit to Krystal's. She expressed her liking for Fox and Falco's iconic flight-suits in the past, so a few years back Fox pulled some strings to get her one of her own. The violet flight-suit paired with their white uniform jacket and traditional red scarf suited her exceptionally well. While Fox and Falco's were full body, Krystal opted to have her suit and jacket be sleeveless out of personal preference. She also wore those fingerless gloves like Fox did to help with grip, except hers were a clean off-white. She just looked so much more like she belonged in the team in comparison to her previous uniforms, and he couldn't help but smile whenever she wore the iconic Star Fox style.

He kept looking down the line to Falco. This was the best he looked in months. The lack of missions wasn't treating the bird well, as he was a bit out of shape, but Fox didn't dare tell him for fear of getting his ears yelled off. Yet, he was still as skilled as ever. The blue flight suit and jacket he hadn't worn since the last time he was in an Arwing was probably the only pair of clothes that wasn't stained to hell. He did look visibly tired and burnt out, but Falco at less than 100% was still better than any other option. He was glad he stuck around.

Then he defaulted back to himself. As much as he kept contemplating retiring while not having a worthwhile mission to keep his spirits up in years, he still looked like he was at the top of his game. Professional, presentable, and just as handsome as before, he was still the Fox McCloud the system fell in love with.

Krystal leaned over and started pawing at his bound ponytail. "You okay, big guy?"

"Just thinking," Fox answered.

"Thinkin' 'bout cuttin' that damn tail off?" Falco teased.

"Hey, I've done my time," Fox smirked, flaunting his hair with a subtle head shake. "I'm letting my hair grow out. No different than Krys."

"I think she looks great with long hair," Falco shrugged. "You look like you just started yer own business growin' the devil's lettuce."

As the elevator stopped and the doors peeled outward, Fox jokingly responded, "Implying I haven't already."

The two foxes exited the elevator giggling to themselves as Falco just stared wide-eyed. He chased after them just before the doors shut, stammering, "Can… can I be a product tester?"

"I was joking," Fox laughed back, shooting down Falco's enthusiasm once more.

The halls they wandered were strangely empty. Fox was a bit put off by how still the base seemed despite Peppy's urgent message. He assumed having an urgent affair would imply having a busy and bustling base, but that was the exact opposite the team saw.

Fox arrived at the doorway first and peered inside. Peppy appeared to be the only one inside, his back towards the doorway and the hexagonal stainless briefing table centered in the inset floor. The old hare simply stared out of the huge floor-to-ceiling windows with his wrists locked behind his back, either deeply in thought or patiently awaiting his appointment. As Krystal and Falco lined up behind him, he stepped into the threshold and knocked against the wall. Peppy's ears perked.

The old General's crimson uniform and golden buttons glimmered as he turned around. "Welcome back," he smiled, but only briefly. "Please, come in. All of you."

Fox stepped back and allowed Krystal and Falco to walk into the briefing room. Peppy nodded his head. "Please, close the door behind you." As Fox did so, Peppy sighed and touched a button on the side of the table. In an instant, the windows darkened.

As Falco sat down at the table, he slouched and folded his wings behind his head. "So, what's the situation today?" He flinched as Fox walked behind him and smacked the back of his head, instantly straightening him out.

Fox kept on a serious expression as he wound the table to sit beside Krystal. "You said this message was urgent," Fox took over, leaning his elbows on the table. "You've never tagged a mission like this before. Is something up?"

Peppy sighed, showing his age more than he had ever done before. "I won't mince any words… this is going to be the toughest thing I've ever had to tell you. And, believe me, I've had to tell you some terrible things in the past."

Fox's ears flattened. "Peppy, I don't see how anything can be worse than—"

"There's a reason I said it will be tough," Peppy interrupted. "With your father, I told you as soon as I could, because that was something you ought to know. What I'm about to tell you know was withheld from you and the team for years… in hindsight this was a major mistake we waited much too long to reveal. Please, allow me to explain…"

Peppy took a heavy breath and hardened his expression. "There exists a classified division within the Cornerian Defense Force umbrella reserved for high-importance protection. Only a handful of people even know this division exists. Even I was not made aware of this division until I assumed General status. In short, this division is dedicated for intensive protection of subjects who are not safe alone in the general public. Whistleblowers, former mercenaries or bounty hunters rubbing elbows with the wrong folk, governmental figures working against criminal organizations, etcetera, etcetera. There are a lot of dangerous people in Lylat looking for blood against people they don't like. This agency within the CDF provides protection and resources for these protectorates."

He began to pace back and forth ever so slightly. "There's a reason why not very many people know of this division. In fact, most of our agents offering protection to these people don't even know exactly who they're protecting. We try to keep these people under wraps so long as their life is in danger. But… sometimes it's just not that easy."

Peppy cleared his throat. "In this instance, we were harboring a few individuals in exchange for information on a perceived threat against the whole of Lylat. According to these individuals, the group pursuing them are immensely dangerous and unpredictable. We kept them safeguarded in exchange for as much information as we could get towards this threat. That is, until one of them disappeared a week ago."

The hare shook his head, almost looking defeated. "We did what we could and conducted a full search to see what went wrong. This person simply vanished. And while searching for more information, a second individual involved in the same case vanished as well; just a few days later. We sent your team the urgent message when the third was abducted, as that was when we realized this could not have been a mere coincidence. It's much too suspicious that all three of these people were taken so suddenly. It's suspicious because nobody else would see these individuals' importance... …Only aside from the people they're hiding from. I'm afraid something very dangerous is brewing, and we're in need of your help."

Fox took a moment to think the information over. "What do you need us for, Peppy?"

"I know Star Fox does not take rescue missions," Peppy began. "At least, not a hostage situation rescue mission. I know this fact well. But, we're running out of options. We lost a major amount of this division's agents trying to protect them, and we have no leads as to where they could be. I need to pull a huge favor from you and your team, Fox."

"A rescue mission," Fox echoed under his breath. He slowly began to shake his head. "I'm not so sure about this. You said it yourself; we're not built for rescue missions."

"The situation is much too dire to question specifics," said the hare. "This isn't a mere hostage situation. These three individuals we're asking you to retrieve are of imperative importance to the CDF's intelligence agency. We're suspecting a major threat according to their word and losing them—especially to who we suspect are the cause of the problem in the first place—is a major loss we can't afford to lose. You must understand this."

"I'm still not convinced," Fox shook his head more emphatically this time. "We haven't ever taken a rescue mission. Star Fox has never taken a rescue mission. You of all people should know this better than me. Now, all of a sudden, after never taking a mission like this before, we're tasked with rescuing three people you haven't even told us the names of?"

"I know it sounds strange, but you must trust me," Peppy insisted.

"Who are these people, anyway?" Fox asked.

Peppy's head fell. "This is what I was dreading to tell you. Fox, I must ask you and your team for forgiveness. I was not made aware of this information until I was informed of this division, and I promise that I would have told you as soon as I found out if I was able to."

Fox's head tilted. "What do you mean?"

The hare took a dramatic moment to collect himself. "Those three people are Cerinians, Fox."

Naturally, the attention in the room immediately turned to Krystal, who sat there in stunned silence with her mouth agape. She couldn't believe what she just heard. Sensing his spouse's loss for words, Fox immediately repeated, "Cerinians?"

"I wanted to tell you sooner," Peppy's tall ears fell. "But this information is incredibly sensitive. Not very many people even know of their existence, for fear of their assailants capturing them. They are deeply protected by the CDF."

"How long have you known?" asked Fox.

"Me? Since the first one disappeared. Supposedly the CDF has been protecting them for a little over five years ago."

"That was when we found Krystal," Fox sighed, glancing over that the vixen. "But the CDF knew about her. Why didn't they tell her? Better yet, why didn't they ask to keep her protected?"

"They wanted to keep them separate," Peppy explained. "They figured Krystal was fine under your team's protection." Sensing how upset Fox and Krystal seemed to get, the hare quickly explained, "The threat posed against these Cerinians is far greater than anything we've ever experienced, Fox. The others we were protecting warned us of total system annihilation if we didn't safeguard them as best we could. This is why the situation we've found ourselves in is so dire. They need to be rescued."

Krystal broke out of her trance and pulled on Fox's sleeve. "A moment outside, please?" she barely squeaked out.

Fox shined a false smile to the table. "Excuse us for a moment," he said, directing Krystal out of the room. As they wound the threshold and put a full wall between them and the others, Fox whispered, "Krystal, believe me, I had no idea that there were—"

"We need to take this mission," the vixen interrupted. Now it was Fox's turn to be stunned.

"You think we should?" Fox asked to clarify, both out of confusion and out of exasperation.

"We need to," Krystal emphasized.

"But you were the one who—"

"I know I said to be picky with missions," she folded her paws over her chest. "But you have to listen to me. I thought I was the last of my race for five years. Five years, Fox! I thought I was never going to understand who I was or where I came from. But now… now I know there's more… and they're in danger. I know I said to take this briefing with a different outlook, but this is something bigger than us."

"We're not fit for rescue missions, Krys," Fox tried to reason.

"We can make an exception this one time," Krystal pleaded. "Fox, please; we have to do something for them. This could be the only opportunity I have to meet someone of my own race and actually understand them."

"This isn't about you," he reminded. "Peppy said this is something far greater than anything we've ever seen before. There's something bigger than just rescuing a few Cerinians. We need to hear what he has to say before we get involved."

"I just want to save them, Fox," Krystal's expression hardened. "They need to know I'm there for them. I'll accept the consequences later. But right now, they're in danger, and I won't be able to live with myself if we sit and do nothing about it."

Fox sighed. "You told me you hated when I said one more mission."

"This is an exception," Krystal then took his paws in her own. "Fox, please, we need to do something for them."

"Okay," Fox nodded his head. "Okay, I'll tell Peppy. But we need to know what we're getting ourselves into first." With that, he led Krystal back into the briefing room. "Peppy, do we know any information about who is after these Cerinians?"

Peppy exhaled. "More Cerinians, supposedly."

Both Fox and Krystal stopped in their tracks. The vixen simply balked, "More?"

"We do not know how many more," Peppy elaborated. "Our information is slim in regard to what we're up against. We're basing what we know off of what we've been told."

Krystal's heart seemingly broke as she took a few meek steps towards her seat. "I don't understand," she breathed. "They're going after their own?"

"Do we know why?" Fox asked.

Peppy tentatively nodded. "It's not clear, but according to the Cerinians we're protecting, supposedly their leadership turned. They insist the leaders of Cerinia were watchful protectors one day, then changed when something went wrong. Probably right around the time where Cerinia started to fall. They don't want to tell us specifics, they're just giving us information as to how to prepare."

Krystal blinked and finally found the wherewithal to sit down.

"Although, they often refer to a name when talking about this," Peppy added. "Someone by the name of Shirinui. I don't know who it is or what the name refers to, but all three of them have referred to this name in the past."

"And they won't say?" asked Fox.

"They keep quiet on this information," answered Peppy. "They claim it's sensitive and important to them, but don't want to say why."

She looked up at her soon-to-be husband. "Fox, we need to do something about this. Anything."

"I understand," Fox consoled her before turning attention to the hare general. "Peppy, I know this is something we're not used to doing, but I'll accept your favor. Count us in for now. We'll go out and find those Cerinians, but you're gonna have to pull some strings to meet us halfway."

Peppy seemed to breathe a sigh of relief at Fox's acceptance. "Of course. Anything you need, we will do what we can to help."

"Do you have any information on where they are?" asked Krystal.

"Sadly, they're totally off the radar," Peppy shook his head. "They did not want us to have trackers with them all the time; they thought it was uncomfortable and a breach of privacy. We tentatively complied, but now we have no leads as to where they could have gone."

"Figures," grumbled Fox. "Alright then; we'll figure something out," he said, shifting his attention to sharply kick the back of the seat Falco sat in, jarring the bird awake. "Give us anything you can get as soon as possible. We'll report back with anything we find."

"Thank you, Fox," Peppy shined a weak smile. "I wish your team the best of luck."

Fox led his team out of the briefing room and back down the hallway, towards the elevator they came up in. With a yawn, Falco nudged his way up to Fox and asked, "So, Fox, s'on the docket today?" Fox stopped in his tracks and slowly turned his head in wide-eyed exasperation.

"You fell asleep in the briefing."

"No need to point out the obvious," Falco shrugged. "Do you really expect me to stay awake in somethin' so borin'?"

Fox blinked. "As my second in command, yes; as a matter of fact, I do."

Falco waved a wing at him. "Alright; just gimme the run-down. I'm sure I ain't the only one who needs it."

Fox rolled his eyes. "Fine. Peppy says there's a division of the CDF that protects asylum seekers. Three of them are Cerinians, and they just got abducted; probably by other, less friendly Cerinians. We're tasked with finding the good ones and rescuing them. Oh, and these bad Cerinians probably have ideas of system annihilation."

Falco smirked. "Sick. What're we startin' out with?"

"A whole load of nothing," Fox huffed. "No info on where they went or where they might be. We're in the dark."

Falco scoffed. "Well that don't help much."

"Not right away, but I have an idea," Fox started, metaphorical lightbulb peering out of his skull. "If my small sample size of exactly one is anything to go by; Cerinians are weird—no offense, hon."

Krystal stayed silent.

Concerned that he misspoke, Fox gently nudged her, "Krys?"

"Oh, yeah?" she snapped back into the present with a harsh neck jerk, tossing her braided hair tails around.

"You okay?" asked Fox.

"I'm… okay," she answered unconvincingly. "Just… I just cannot believe there are more… more than just me."

"You and me both," Fox sympathized. "But listen, you said it yourself. We need to do something for them, and we need to do it quickly. No wasted time."

"That would be ideal," sighed Krystal.

Falco butted in, "Right, so, you were sayin' that these Cerinians are weird."

Krystal turned her head to give an offended look.

Falco held up his wings. "He said it, not me."

"Anyway," Fox interrupted. "So… if these Cerinians are going after their own, chances are they're all gonna end up in the same place, right? That many Cerinians in the same place might be noticeable. You think we might be able to find them that way?"

Krystal pursed her lips, but tilted her head in a gesture of 'why not?' "I think we could," she agreed, but her ears fell afterward. "But I don't know what to look for."

"Neither do I," Fox looked up at the ceiling. The idea lightbulb flicked on one more time. "But… I know someone who does."

: : : : :

A/N: Hi all. Yes, Attack on Memory is being rewritten. I wasn't happy nor satisfied with the direction that story was going, and I admit I tried to do too much for that story in hindsight. So, what is this? Think of it as the soft reboot for the AoM timeline. I'm planning on scrapping aspects of the original that didn't work or was too much, and amplifying aspects that were enjoyed. The core idea remains the same, but a lot has changed, and a lot will change. So, I hope you all will enjoy this rewritten tale. I welcome comments, questions, and the like. I also hope I can continue the momentum going forward. Hopefully following updates aren't too far away. :)

-Sheppard