The three pilots make their way back to the other side of Cryton to head to the site of the ambush, with James using the ship's cloaking device to land undetected. They don't have time to bring Jody back to the Wyvern, so she'll have to stay behind on the transport ship, and keep a low profile until they get back. Jody is a bit peeved by that, but figures that it's the best way to keep out of sight, especially once they flip the cloaking device back on.
James and Jack walk out onto the planet's surface together to meet Guster and his men. James walks to the meet-up site with a bit of confidence but is still examining his surroundings, trying to get a sense of the terrain around him. Jack is trying to act like he's been there before and is mimicking the motions of James, looking around the landscape, but internally, he's so in over his head. He can't believe rescuing Katey's come to this. His heart is pounding out of his chest, but he's trying to keep a brave face.
Suddenly, from around the corner, a figure pops out from behind a boulder. He's a younger looking man who looks like he's trying to keep his identity hidden. He motions for the two to follow him and he leads them into a little cave, nestled into the dusty canyons of this side of the planet. Once they get inside, the seemingly small opening turns into a huge tunnel that looks like it could go on forever. The cave is strung up with a series of dim lights that lead away from the surface of the planet. He keeps making a few turns down certain passages of the cave system without saying a word to the men, until finally, he pulls up a sheet that blends in perfectly with the rock wall, and would otherwise be totally missed in the darkness of the tunnel.
James and Jack head inside this hidden cave within the cave, and there's a table with a few men huddled around it, with a couple dozen more milling about, eager to crack some skulls. In the center of this group is their man, Goroh's former right-hand man and current sworn enemy, Antonio Guster. He's wearing a long, white trench coat, and dirt brown pants that blend into the terrain they're fighting on. He isn't wearing the pilot's helmet that James and Jack are used to seeing him in, and are a little surprised to see that he actually has a mohawk underneath it. However, his small hippie glasses are still on, which thankfully cover up these bleak black eyes he probably still has.
Antonio comes around the table and introduces himself to his fellow racers. "Morning, men. Genie told me you two would be tagging along, names Antonio. You guys have been in a gunfight before, right?"
"This guy hasn't, but we've trained him well, you won't have to worry about him", James says before Jack can out himself as such a novice.
"Hey, Antonio. Don't you… recognize us?", Jack asks, sheepishly.
Guster gets right up in Jack's face, examining him as closely as he can. He lifts up his glasses, meaning those beady black eyes are staring directly into Jack's soul. Jack recoils a little, but tries not to show it, so as not to offend the famed bodyguard. "Can't say I do. Hope I didn't rob you before. If so, it's nothing personal", he says as he looks over to James. "Although, I think I know you. You're one of those Starfox guys, right?"
James takes a deep breath, and tries not to blow a fuse in front of these armed men. "You're thinking of someone else…", he says in a low tone.
"Eh, you're probably right. I'm not great with names", he says as he heads back to the table. "Come on over, guys. We don't have a lot of time", Guster says, beckoning them over. "This cave is part of a huge network of tunnels that runs underneath a good chunk of the entire planet. That's actually why Genie lives here, if he needs a quick escape or to hide something, he knows the entire layout here and can go anywhere he wants. Anyway, this spot right here is where the Sabaku No Ei were last spotted. There's a tunnel that leads right out to where they were that they probably have no idea is even there. All we've gotta do is show up, guns blazing, and either send them packing or finish them off."
"How likely is it that we'll be able to send them packing as opposed to…", Jack asks a bit shyly.
"This guy must be really new, huh?", Guster says with a hearty laugh.
James reassures him, "Don't worry, Jack. These guys deserve whatever they're getting. Goroh's men have warrants across half the galactic cluster."
"Yea, anyone associated with Goroh deserves nothing but the worst", Guster tells Jack with a hard pat on his back that knocks the wind out of him. "Trust me, I've seen firsthand what his men are capable of and…", Guster says while thinking back on all the horrible things they'd done together. "Let's just say, it's stuff I'm not proud of", he says with a look of regret on his face.
Guster recovers from his momentary guilt and rallies the troops. "Alright men, we've got one job for the day, and that's to wipe out these scumbags, and make sure Genie never has to worry about the Sabaku No Ei. We gotta make 'em never wanna mess with him again. So let's give 'em hell, and light 'em up!", he shouts as the rest of his men raise their guns and machetes in the air. Jack looks around and lifts his laser pistol up as well, so as to fit in, though James shakes his head at him, as he doesn't need to join in with them like that.
The men file out of the hideout, ready to kick ass and take names. A little way ahead, there's a collection of hovercrafts, lined up and ready to head to Goroh's gang's campsite. Everyone packs into the collection of vehicles, with James and Jack squeezed into a seat, with two men to their left, and four more in front of them. James pulls up a map of this cave system on his tablet, and examines where they're going and if Goroh's men could at all pull a fast one on them. Guster seems to be sure that they can't, but he's been in enough missions gone wrong to know to plan for the worst case scenario.
Jack makes a few passing glances at James's map, but is otherwise just trying to stay quiet. "Hey, you're Jack Levin, aren't you?", one of the men in front of him asks.
Jack picks his head up and notices the younger man in front of him with a puzzled look on his face, wondering why a pop singer turned racer is on this mission with him. "Uhhhh, yea. We're doing a favor for Don Genie."
"Wow, that's wild. I'm actually a fan of your work", he says which gets a few chuckles out of the grizzled men alongside him. "Never thought I'd see you in a place like this. This your first time out in the field like this?"
"Yea, um, hey James, am I allowed to talk about what we're doing here?"
"Uhhhh, yea, I guess?", he says while barely paying attention to him.
"Ok, so we're trying to save a bunch of the other F-Zero racers from Black Shadow, and if we do this, Genie'll let Guster come back with us."
"Aw man, Guster's leaving after this? I love working with that guy. I was hoping Mr. Genie would hire him full-time after this was all over."
"Mmmm, I wonder if Guster will come back here after we un-hypnotize him?", Jack asks James.
"Well, if I know anything about Antonio, which admittedly isn't a lot, he's like me in that he goes where the money is, and Don's got a lot of it, so he might come back."
Jack replies, "Yea, but he also seems to regret his old life with Goroh, so maybe the guy wants to turn his life around."
"I'm Morley, by the way", the young man says as he extends his hand to Jack.
Jack reaches out and shakes it back, "Pleasure to meet you, I'm Jack."
"Yea, I already know that", Morley says with a little chuckle, which makes Jack shake his head in embarrassment, but he laughs it off. Jack and Morley get to talking on the drive over, and it seems to lighten the mood, at least for those two. Everyone else on the vehicle is either asleep, looking at James's map, or are just keeping to themselves.
"So, you know the big rule about missions like this, right?" Morley asks Jack, to which he shakes his head no. "Find whoever's been on the most missions like this, and stick to them like glue. They've survived plenty of missions up 'til now, so just do what they do, and everything should work out fine. That's what I'm planning on doing with Tucker over here", he says as he points to one of the men next to him, a jacked man with a gray beard and an eyepatch, who snorts in his sleep, seemingly acknowledging his role as elder statesman while passed out.
Jack turns to James, wondering if that was going to be his role to Jack. "Yea, obviously", James says before Jack can even ask anything. "It'd be supremely messed up if I were to drag you all the way out here, and then pawn you off on Tucker the first chance I got."
"Get ready everyone, we're almost to the location!", Guster says over the vehicles' radio. Tucker lets out another snort and then groggily picks up his gun, ready for war.
"Showtime guys. Best of luck out there", Morley says to Jack.
He nods to the young henchman and takes a deep breath, taking the safety off his blaster and watching up ahead, past the vehicles for what's coming. They get to the edge of the cave, but suddenly the front vehicle with Guster stops just before it hits the outside sunlight. Everyone wonders what's going on, but they quickly get their answer on the vehicle's radio.
"There's no one there, the campsite's abandoned!", Guster says in confusion.
Some of the crew asks each other if someone might've tipped off the Sabaku No Ei. James, though, has a worried look on his face, he's trailing his finger along another path of the cave system. Suddenly, he turns towards where they came from, and can hear something in the distance. It's a faint sound, but one he'd recognize anywhere. It's the sound of laser blasters charging up.
"DRIVE! DRIVE! THEY'RE BEHIND US!"
