By Gray Lancer
Authorís notes: Andross is long gone. But the Lylat system is on the
brink of a very large
and very violent civil war. At first the war appears to be the result
of old tensions and
resentment building up... but upon closer inspection, a deeper and
far more sinister cause
is found. Something is awakening in Lylat, and it must be stopped...
or esle the end may
really be coming.
-The Broadsword, in low orbit around Venom
Sergeant Mark Selster, a
ferret with combat-weary eyes, ran down the line of MG 5 Devastation
battle suits and checked to make sure that all the pilots were secure
in their crash restraints. He saw a lot
of unfamiliar faces... he never knew anyone in the unit these days.
It had been about a half
a year ago when he realized he didnít care anymore. He used to know all
of the squadron members personally. Now he didnít give a damn who
they
were. He just did his job.
Mark stopped at the end
of the launch area and hit a button on a small console. The drop alert
sounded. He had used to shout out to signal the drop... and that had
impressed the recruits... but that too
had gone with time.
Why did it matter anyway?
The war with Andross was over. The worst these kids were likely to
encounter would be a bunch of pirates. An MG 5 could defeat most of
the pirates today without the pilot
doing anything.
The MG 5 cockpits closed
and sealed. The lighting in the drop room went red and the drop tubes
closed.
Mark heard the sounds of
a dozen MG 5 battle suits being launched out down to the surface of
Venom. The lights returned to their normal color.
He sighed and leaned
against
the wall heavily. Captain Meris was taking them out herself today.
That meant he could do something he actually enjoyed.
But the truth was, he
didnít
really enjoy much of anything anymore.
Mark turned around and
walked
out the door, leaving the large drop room for the relatively
cramped main hallway.
What had gone wrong? It
seemed as if the war against Andross hadnít been won at all, but had
been lost. Everyone seemed to have less energy, less motivation.
Mark had remembered his
old drill sergeant saying something about victory not being victory if
your heart wasnít in it... he had never known what that had meant
before
now.
He turned a corner and
walked
up to the main elevator. He pressed the call button and waited.
The doors opened and Mark stepped inside. He pressed the button for
the crew level. Sleep sounded pretty
good right about now.
-Venom surface
ìBy the book, people. Keep
in formation and donít go wandering off on your own.î
Captain Alison Meris did
not sound enthusiastic. She sounded like this was the absolute last
thing she wanted to be doing.
It was true. She hated
these
stupid training session. She muttered quietly to herself,
ìThey stopped getting good
recruits after the war with Andross was over.î
She didnít like thinking
that way, it depressed her. But it was the only thing that seemed true.
The new recruits didnít have the energy of commitment they used to.
They just did what they were told
because they were told to. They wanted the ëvaluable job experienceí
that the recruiters promised without
having to make a real commitment.
It was times like these
that Alison felt really stupid for not taking the offer from the
Mercenariesí
Guild to go and help them with training. But even they seemed to be
on hard times. The Guild hadnít
gained any new members recently. Their list of ëinactive membersí was
growing steadily.
Alison checked her threat
display and looked for the target drone signals. Today they would be
simulating an ambush. At least that would be slightly interesting.
She toggled the thermal
sensors on and scanned the terrain. No visible heat spikes... the ground
was too warm to get a good reading off of it. Alison turned the
thermals
off and opened a com channel to
her squad,
ìFollow my lead into the
pass. Donít fall too far behind.î
She switched the com
channel
off again and pushed the throttle forward. Her MG 5 accelerated.
She turned it to face the pass and engaged autopilot. The suit
continued
walking towards the pass under
the guidance of the navigation computer.
Alison shook her head
slowly
inside the cockpit and lowered her muzzle. She was a pretty fox
who had been in the Cornerian Army ever since she had graduated from
high school. She had made her
way into the armored corps out of fascination with the MG line of
battle
suits. She had started with the
MG 4 and switched to the MG 5 when it had come out. She had always
been with the 89th Attack Squad,
the Knifeís Edge. It was only recently that the unit had been
transferred
to the Broadsword for training
operations.
Alison opened a channel
to her squadron,
ìWeíre entering the pass
soon. Keep your eyes on your threat display and watch for enemy
units.î
She almost laughed out
loud
at her own instructions. This was ridiculous. Of course she knew
exactly what was going to happen, half the rookies probably did too.
Little details like what was going to
happen on the mission tended to be passed around the squadron. By the
time they actually went on the
training assignment, half the new kids knew exactly where and when
the enemy would attack and what
tactics they would be using.
Alison would try to stop
that sort of thing if she cared. But the truth was that she didnít care.
This kind of practice was valuable back when there was a real war on.
Now it didnít matter if they
understood tactics and strategy. It just mattered if they could point
a gun and pull the trigger.
She looked down at the
threat
display and checked on her own troops. They were moving in
formation as the book described it. No initiative and no real
dedication.
They were in this for the short
term boost. They wanted something impressive on their resumes.
Alison shook her head and
muttered to herself again,
ìGod... and this is some
of the best... Iím glad Iím not an infantry instructor.î
The threat display showed
an unknown blip. One of the rookies called Alison on the com,
ìCaptain Meris, Iím
picking
up enemy units.î
She sighed to herself and
switch the com unit to squadron frequency. She spoke without any real
enthusiasm behind her voice,
ìBreak and attack.î
She wouldnít be part of
the mock engagement... they were going to simulate failure of command
and see how the new kids reacted. Here it came.
Alison shut her suitís
power
down and a blanket of silence rested on her. She breathed deeply
and sat back. She wouldnít be doing anything for the rest of the
exercise.
She could think a little.
Her thoughts lingered on
the past. The war... it had been long and it had been hard...
But it had brought
everyone
together and made them unite against a common foe. Everyone knew
what side they were on and knew exactly what they were fighting for.
Now it was all over. There
wasnít any evil they had to unite against. The military was left with a
bloated force that it didnít need. That meant lots of pointless
missions
on far-off worlds that consisted
primarily of dust. That meant recruits who didnít give a damn about
the old Cornerian ideals...
And where had all the
heroes
gone? Star Fox... that was a name you didnít hear anymore.
Children had looked up to Star Fox during the war. Fox McCloud and
Falco Lombardi had been idols for
countless boys... Katt Monroe and Fara Phoenix for at least as many
girls. The odd kid had looked up to
Peppy Hare, Slippy Toad, Bill Grey, or some other famous or
not-so-famous
person they had heard about
in one way or another.
That had given them a set
of ideals to follow. That meant that the kids who grew up in the war
werenít so bad...
But then that had
disappeared.
It was an illusion. Star Fox had officially disbanded. The great
military commanders had all retired... those who hadnít been killed,
anyway.
Alison leaned back in her
seat and groaned,
ìI need a frigginí drink.î
-Mercenariesí Guild HQ, Corneria
Brett MacDonald, the cat
in charge of the Mercenariesí Guild, sat back in his chair and held up
a
throwing knife. He took careful aim with the knife and flung it at
the opposite wall. It stuck in point-first.
Brettís wife and exec,
Kelly
MacDonald, looked up and smiled,
ìNice toss.î
ìYeah, just making sure
Iíve still got it. We havenít seen action in months!î
ìMmm?î
ìYah! Look at this... we
havenít even pulled an intervention op recently. Not even a lousy escort
run. Not a bloody thing!î
Kelly shrugged and shook
her head,
ìGuess youíve got a point
there. It had been a little slow.î
ìDammit, letís get out the
list again.î
Kelly frowned. The list
was a piece of paper on which they listed the Guild core staff. They only
took it out when there were changes in membership or in the status
of members.
She reached into her
jacket
and produced the piece of paper. She set it down on the desk in front
of Brett and took a seat on her husbandís lap. He smiled and held her
in his arms. She looked at him and
frowned again,
ìWhy?î
ìBecause thereís some
changes
to be made...î
Brett pulled out a pen and
looked at the piece of paper. He shook his head and crossed out some
writing,
ìGray and Mira Lancer are
both inactive. Technically theyíre Guild members... but they havenít
even come to a meeting in months.î
Kelly punched Brett
lightly
on the shoulder and smiled,
ìThatís cause theyíve got
a daughter, stupid. Remember, Fenica Lancer? The little kit? You saw
her a few days after she was born.î
Brett grinned and spoke
in a joking tone,
ìOh, Iíd completely
forgotten
about that.î
He reached down again and
crossed a name out completely,
ìOur procurement head
Allais
has said that she will not continue on with the Guild for personal
reasons. She came to me yesterday in tears.î
ìWhat?î
ìAndross killed her entire
family. I think that now that heís gone... she doesnít have anything
left to hate... nothing to keep her going... no prospects of revenge.
Sheís only got grief and a life torn to
shreds by the war. Sheís leaving and I wonít try to stop her.î
He crossed another name
out. Kelly looked down,
ìNeefa Sarahis? Why her?î
ìRemember that her fiancee
Lark Seervis was killed a few months ago in a fire fight with those
pirates?î
ìYeah... she was pretty
broken up about that... they were always so close...î
Brett nodded and looked
down. He did not look happy,
ìMore broken up than youíd
think. She shot herself last night. One shot, modified Cornerian
Military laser pistol. Mustíve been instant.î
ìOh god... why?î
ìI donít know. Maybe it
shouldnít have ever ended.î
ìWhat?î
ìThe war, you know that.
Here we are, over a half a decade after the war against Andross and the
whole system is going straight down the hole. Dammit, look at the
statistics...
look at our guild!î
He pointed at the list and
continued,
ìWe lost one member to
suicide,
two left to raise their family, one broke down and quit outright...
Iíd give her another month before she wastes herself... hereís some
more interesting reading.î
He reached into a desk
drawer
and pulled out a thick file folder. He placed in front of Kelly. She
squinted at the folder,
ìWhat is it?î
ìThese are the bios of
every
Guild member and Cornerian Military staff member lost to suicide.
Neefaís name is right on top.î
Kelly stared at the
folder.
Brett shook his head sadly,
ìItís no good. The overall
suicide rate for Lylat has skyrocketed. Morale of the everyday citizen
has dropped through the floor. Nobody wants to live in Lylat, so
theyíre
giving death a try.î
Tears began to well up in
Kellyís eyes,
ìI... knew... Neefa...
since
junior high... we were really... good friends...î
Kelly began crying,
ìH...h...how c...could
th...this
h...h...happen?î
Brett didnít answer.
Instead,
he just held on to his wife.
-The Broadsword, in orbit around Venom
Mark Selster sat by himself
at one of the tables in the Broadswordís small observation deck and
bar. He had a drink that he had barely touched sitting in front of
him
He heard the voice of
Alison
Meris above him,
ìMind if I join you?î
Mark looked up and managed
a small smile,
ìNo. Sit down.î
Alison pulled up a chair
and sat across from Mark. She shook her head,
ìYouíre losing your edge.î
He almost laughed,
ìYeah right, I lost my
edge
a long time ago. I hate taking these new kids out. Theyíre all so...
so...î
ìSpiritless?î
The ferret nodded,
ìThatís exactly what I
mean.
They donít seem to give a damn about what theyíre supposed to be
fighting for.î
ìFighting? None of them
are fighting for anything. As much as we hate to admit it... the war is
over... it has been for a long time.î
ìI know... I know...î
He raised his glass to his
lips and took a slow sip. Alison lowered her head and sighed wearily,
ìJust taking the little
freaks out is so much work now.î
Mark raised an eyebrow,
ìFreaks? Since when did
they become freaks?î
ìSince the last one with
any enthusiasm got killed or went on to a new position.î
ìGood point... itís
getting
so damn bad recently.î
ìYou know what, I heard
the whole system is like this.î
Mark put his glass down.
He crossed his arms and sat back,
ìYeah right.î
ìNo kidding. They say the
suicide rate is over triple that of one year ago.î
ìHoly crap. Is it that bad
out there?î
ìThatís the whole thing!
Itís not bad at all... in fact, the standard of living has never been
higher... but... I donít know what it is... everyone seems drained.
Itís like we won over Andross but we
really lost.î
Mark nodded slowly. He
felt
the same way every single morning when he woke up.
A recruit walked up to
their
table and smiled. Neither of the two returned the smile. The recruit
looked at Mark and spoke,
ìSir, I heard that you
were
in the battle of Yahnaís Peak, can you tell me about it.î
A fire burned in Sergeant
Mark Selsterís eyes. He slid his glass away and slowly pushed his chair
out. The smile vanished from the recruitís face. Mark walked up to
him and looked straight in his eyes.
the kid was quivering with terror by now. Make spoke in a low growl,
ìHow many really good
friends
do you have, son?î
ìS...sir?î
ìAnswer the question.î
ìUh...uh... maybe... uh...
ten really good ones, sir?î
ìCan you imagine losing
all of them in under an hour?î
ìS...s...sir?î
ìSon. You are going to
come
with me and see something. Captain Meris, I would like you to
accompany us.î
Alison nodded,
ìSure thing. Where we
going?î
ìTo visit Darus.î
Alisonís eyes opened wide
and she stared at Mark,
ìTh...the broken one?î
Mark nodded and glared at
the recruit,
ìSon, youíre going to see
what war can do.î
Alison nodded slowly,
ìIíll arrange it.î
-Crew Section 12B, the Broadsword
Hardly anyone ever ventured
into Crew Section 12B, deep inside the Broadsword. Certainly no
one stayed for any longer than they absolutely had to.
Because inside Crew
Section
12B was the darkest secret of the 89th Attack Squad.
The door to the section
slid open and the three visitors stepped inside. Mark led the way,
followed by Alison and the recruit. The inside of the crew section
was almost completely dark. The recruit
looked around nervously. Mark called into the darkness,
ìDarus, itís Mark.
Remember
me?î
A strange-sounding voice
came out of the darkness. It was harsh and had a mechanical ring to it,
ìWhy do you disturb me...
who is with you?î
ìA friend and someone who
needs to be shown the truth about war.î
ìWhy... must you?î
Mark nodded his head,
thought
the gesture was almost invisible,
ìYes, I must.î
ìOf course.î
The lights in the room
gradually
went up. They stopped at a level that was dim but bright enough
to see around. The recruit looked around the room frantically.
His eyes settled on the
most disturbing sight in the whole room.
In the center, on a metal
chair, sat what used to be a handsome male fox. The left side of his head
was covered in metal, as was much of his body. His right eye remained
but showed little of the fire it had
obviously once held. His left ear was missing. His arms and legs,
which
remained motionless, were made
of metal. Wires and cables connected the fox to various consoles and
jacks around the room. The fox
raised his head and groaned.
The recruit stared at the
fox in horror. Mark smiled grimly,
ìThis is Darus... the
broken
one. He is one of the survivors of the old 43rd Guard. He is the only
survivor. The only reason he lives now is because the military needs
his knowledge of certain systems. As
a ëfavorí they are keeping him alive indefinitely.î
Darus groaned,
ì...and they call this
living
hell a life...î
He went silent and dropped
his head. He looked like he was in constant pain. Mark walked over
to the recruit and grabbed his collar,
ìLook at that! Look very
closely and remember everything you see there! That is what war was!
THAT! There are some things that should not be talked about. Do you
understand?î
The recruit nodded. He
looked
utterly terrified. He looked at Darus and the fox raised his head.
The recruit saw the expression of the fox and saw why he had earned
the nickname ëthe broken one.í
Mark grabbed the recruit
and pushed him towards the door. The recruit stumbled out. Mark went
after him, followed by Alison. He shut the lights back down and
closed
the door. He looked directly at the
recruit,
ìGo back upstairs and
never
ask me about any of that stuff again.î
The recruit nodded
frantically
and ran to the ladder leading back up. Alison shuddered,
ìI hate it every time I
see Darus. But this time, didnít he strike you as seeming a little...
different
than normal.î
Mark nodded,
ìYes. You could see
something
different in his eyes.î
ìHe knows something.î
ìWhat?î
ìHe knows something. Iíve
always heard about premonitions and telepathy and all that stuff.
Well... I think that Darus knows something that he doesnít want us
to know... and I think it scares him a
whole lot.î
ìScares Darus? Nothing
scares
Darus... he doesnít really feel emotions.î
Alison frowned and shook
her head,
ìNo... thatís what it was
that was odd in his eyes... heís afraid of something. Very afraid.
Deathly
afraid. And did you see his eye right before we shut off the light?î
ìNot really.î
ìHe looked downright
terrified.
As if he was afraid of being left in the dark...î
ìDarus? Afraid of the
dark?
You wouldnít think heíd care.î
ìI donít think heís afraid
of the dark... I think heís afraid of whatís hidden by the dark.î
-Tyrenís Isle, Aquas
Gray Lancer leaned back in
the lounge chair he was sitting in and groaned. It had been a long
day. A very long day. Now it was finally all over. A chance to sit
back and relax... or so he thought.
He could hear his daughter
Fenica... who was only two, wandering around inside the hotel suite
that they were staying in. Grayís wife, Mira, was inside trying to
keep the kit out of harmís way.
It was no easy task.
Fenica
seemed to have acquired her parentsí ability to get into the oddest of
situations and places. Gray heard something fall to the floor inside
and heard Fenica giggle. Mira groaned
loudly and shouted out to Gray,
ìDear... get inside and
help me control our daughter before she destroys this place!î
Gray smiled to himself and
got up slowly. Having a room on the top of the hotel was nice because
of the view... but it also meant that Gray and Mira had to stop
Fenica
from falling over the edge.
Gray walked slid the
screen
door dividing the porch of the hotel room from the room itself. He
stepped inside and closed the door behind him. Fenica looked up and
spoke ,
ìDaddy! You back!î
She ran up to her father
and grabbed on to his leg. Mira smirked at Gray as he tried to pry his
daughter off of his leg,
ìSheís been looking around
the hotel room.î
Gray nodded
understandingly,
ìWhat fell over?î
ìOh, that was one of the
books the hotel is kind enough to supply. No harm done.î
Fenica looked up at Gray
and grinned broadly. He smiled and patted her head as he continued to
pull her off his leg. Mira walked over to chair and sat down heavily.
She sighed,
ìTaking a two-year-old to
see the age-appropriate sights is a little more difficult than it first
sounds.î
Gray finally finished
getting
Fenica off his leg. He nodded and sat down as well. Fenica dashed
off. Gray looked at Mira,
ìYou think we should go
catch her?î
ìNah, sheíll be fine. As
long as she doesnít go onto the porch thereís not much chance she can
kill herself.î
Gray laughed,
ìYeah. So, do you think
it was a good idea to come here?î
ìYes. We need the
vacation.
Corneria City is getting downright depressing.î
ìWhyís that?î
ìI donít really know. It
all seems so hostile now. Nobody cares about what we fought for in the
war against Andross. Itís just that the ëkill or be killedí attitude
isnít great for a kit.î
ìNo kidding. Speaking of
which... where has Fenica got to?î
They heard the sound of
a toilet flushing. Both looked at each other and said the same thing,
ìThe bathroom.î
They got up and walked
down
to the small bathroom. Inside Fenica was looking down into the
toilet with her paw on the handle. Mira walked up to her and picked
her up. Fenica giggled and pointed at
the toilet,
ìI made it go down!î
Mira glanced at Gray,
ìWhatís she talking
about?î
Gray looked around the
bathroom
and finally spoke,
ìI canít find the soap.î
They both looked at the
toilet. Fenica grinned. Gray shook his head and looked down at his
watch,
ìItís bedtime. Fenica, you
should know better than to flush the soap down the toilet.î
Fenica answered earnestly,
ìI was jusí seeing whaí
would happen.î
Mira smiled and held
Fenica
in her arms,
ìYes, well now itís time
for you to see what happens when you fall asleep.î
Fenica shook her head,
ìNo, ëm not sleepy.î
Gray smiled. The little
vixen had been all over the city today thanks to the miracle of
inter-city
transit systems. There were two bedrooms in the suite... one which
doubled as the main room. That was
the one that Gray and Mira slept in. Fenica slept in the other room,
within easy shouting distance if she
needed her parents for any reason.
By the time they had
entered
the room, Fenica was already asleep in Miraís arms. Gray pulled
back the covers on the bed and Mira set Fenica down on it. They
pulled
the covers back and tucked their
daughter in. She twitched slightly but didnít wake up. Gray and Mira
kissed their daughter good-night
and went out of the room, turning off the lights and closing the door
softly.
The went back into the
main
room and sat down. Mira reached out and held Grayís paw,
ìWe didnít know what we
were getting into when we had a kit.î
Gray nodded, smiled, and
leaned back.
They heard a knock at the
door to their room. Gray quickly stood up and walked to the door. He
opened it and saw no one on the other side. He was about to turn
around
and head back inside when he
saw something on the ground in front of the door.
It was a thick file folder
filled with papers. On it was a hand-written note:
Gray and Mira... what do
you think we should do about this?
&nb
sp;
-Brett MacDonald
Gray picked up the folder
and closed the door. He walked back to his chair and sat down. Mira
saw the file folder,
ìWhatís that?î
Gray had been flipping
through
the folder,
ìSomething very
depressing...î
ìWhat?î
ìItís a list of everyone
in the Cornerian Military or the Mercenariesí Guild who has killed
themselves... in the past couple years...î
ìWho sent it?î
ìBrett MacDonald. I think
itís time we had a little chat with him.î
-Southview cafe, Tyrenís Isle, Aquas
Gray and Mira Lancer sat
together at the table they had agreed to meet Brett at. Fenica was
sitting still for once and looking at the people passing outside. She
seemed occupied but both her parents
kept an eye on her just in case.
Mira looked towards the
entrance of the cafe. She saw Brett MacDonald and his wife Kelly
entering. She leaned over and tapped Grayís shoulder,
ìHere they are.î
Gray nodded. Brett came
up to their table and nodded to the two foxes and their daughter,
ìHi. Havenít seen you guys
in a while. Man, your daughter was only just born the last time I saw
her...î
He knelt down next to
Fenica
and smiled,
ìHow you doing?î
Fenica giggled and poked
Brett in the nose,
ìPoke.î
She giggled again. Brett
put on a look of injured dignity and stood up again. He smiled and sat
down. Kelly pulled up another chair and sat next to him. Gray looked
at Brett and spoke,
ìWhy did you send me
that?î
Brettís smile vanished and
he instantly turned serious,
ìGray, the Lylat system
is in the crapper.î
ìWhat?î
ìCome on, even you two...
with your daughter to keep you busy... know it. The Lylat system is in
its worse shape ever. Civilian and military morale is gone. Nobody
seems to know why they keep on
living. I donít know what it is... a loss of purpose, maybe?î
ìBut why? People have gone
thousands upon thousands of years in mundane and peaceful
existence. Why does it matter now?î
Brett threw up his arms,
ìThatís exactly why itís
so unusual! Theyíve got no particular reason to feel this way... well,
the
military kind of does... but thatís about it.î
ìSo why am I here talking
to you?î
ìWell... I want you and
Mira to help me out.î
Gray pointed at Fenica,
who was playing with a straw. Brett winced,
ìYeah, I know, I know. The
thing is... I really need your help on this one. Is it possible for me
and Kelly to take care of your daughter?î
Gray smiled,
ìYes. She likes you well
enough. But I warn you, she can be a pawful.î
ìI figured as much. Weíll
do our best.î
Gray nodded and remained
silent. Mira spoke,
ìWhat are we actually
going
to be doing?î
ìYou are going to blend
in. You are going to go everywhere and find out why the hell the system
is in such bad shape. I donít expect you to do anything to fix it...
I just want to know why.î
Mira stared at Brett,
ìYou just asked us to do
one of the more impossible things in existence.î
ìI know that. Itís just...
well... Iíve got some weird feelings about this whole thing.î
Gray shook his head,
ìWeird feelings now? Well,
alright. Weíll do it. Just give us one day to pack and get Fenica ready
to stay... where the hell is she going to be staying?î
ìKelly and I have a place
in the Cornerian countryside. Itíll be good for her to get away from the
city for a while.î
ìOk. Did you hear that,
Fenica? Your gonna be staying with uncle Brett and aunt Kelly for a
while.î
Fenica smiled,
ìYer funny, ëncle Brett.î
Brett cocked his head,
ìUh... thanks, I guess.î
They all got to their
footpaws.
Mira took Fenicaís hand and they began walking out. Brett hung
back and motioned to Gray to come. Gray walked over. Brett spoke very
softly to Gray,
ìIím warning you that this
whole thing feels very wrong.î
ìWhat do you mean?î
ìGray, remember your damn
special forces gut instinct. Stop ignoring your hunches! You can
feel it too... something is wrong when the morale of an entire system
collectively drops through the floor.
When youíre looking into this, I want you to check for any possible
patterns or trends... ANY. I donít care
how obscure they may seem... something is going on and I want to know
what.î
Gray nodded and turned
around
and walked up to his wife. Together they left the cafe and
walked onto the sunny streets of Tyrenís Isle. Brett shook his head
and muttered to himself,
ìI donít like this any
more
than you do, Gray. Believe me... I donít like it one bit more.î
-Corneria City
Fenica had been left with
Brett and Kelly and had already begun to find the most effective way to
destroy their house.
That left Gray and Mira
to carry out their rather unusual assignment. They would begin on
Corneria and do a little poking around. That meant they could stay
the night at their apartment and begin
the next morning.
The apartment was located
far above the streets of Corneria City, in one of the new buildings. It
was a big apartment, but all on one level.
Mira stood on the porch
outside with her nightgown on. Gray walked outside and hugged his
wife,
ìWhat are thinking about.î
ìActually... I was just
wondering where all the survivors of the war got to.î
ìWhazzat?î
ìWell... the last time we
saw Fox McCloud and Fara Phoenix-McCloud... or even heard about
them... was back when we fought Sevantra. We havenít heard any news
about any of the others... which
means that they havenít died either.î
ìGood point. Very good
point.
Maybe Brett was right.î
Mira looked up at Gray,
ìAbout what?î
ìOh... I forgot that he
hasnít told you. Well I will... he talked to me when we were leaving
yesterday. He said that it feels like something really big is
happening.
He told me to check for any patterns
of anything like that.î
ìWeíll worry about it
tomorrow.
Letís go to bed.î
ìGood idea.î
They kissed and stepped
back inside the apartment.
-The Far-Runner, in transit from Katina to Papetoon
Fox McCloud twitched in his
sleep. He was dreaming. He had been through a strange day.
Earlier someone had come up to him and tapped him on the shoulder and
said something. It had just been
four words... ëyou donít even know.í But Fox couldnít get them out
of his head. They seemed terribly
important for some reason.
His dreams werenít
completely
formed. Brief flashes of images from his past... from his present...
and those that seemed to have no connection to any of his memories
but did seem connected to him. The
future?
He saw Fara, his wife.
No...
not Fara... but it did look like her... almost. The vixen he saw in his
dreams was a little different. She had silver hair and brown fur...
and she was wearing a dark tan robe.
She had a large sword strapped to her back.
She looked impressive...
but sad.
The image resolved itself
into a remarkable clarity. The vixen was standing on a broad green
field. She was crying and hanging her head. The view shifted to show
a different angle. Fox saw that the
vixen was standing above a field that was covered with the dead and
dying. The remains of some horrible
battle?
Someone else approached
the scene. It was a fox dressed in similar robe to the vixen and also had
a sword on. He put his arms around the vixenís shoulders and spoke
softly,
ìWill it happen again?î
She sniffled and nodded,
ìIt will. Someday.î
The dream faded and Fox
woke with a start. He looked next to him in the small bed and saw
Fara, peacefully sleeping. Fox breathed deeply.
It was just a dream.
Nothing
more than that.
Or was it? So vivid... so
real.
He and Fara were going to
Papetoon for a short visit. Fox had lived on Papetoon at the very
beginning of the war with Andross. He felt like returning for a short
visit.
After the war, Fox had
been
a Cornerian hero. They had turned his old den into a blasted
museum! Then, a couple years ago, the museum had gone completely
under
and Foxís den was
abandoned. He hadnít been back yet and intended to see it again.
The Far-Runner, a fairly
large passenger ship, had its own day and night cycle, which was
sometimes adhered to be its passengers. Fox and Fara had decided
theyíd
rather get a little sleep than
socialize with some of the most depressing and boring people theyíd
ever met.
Fox stared up at the
ceiling
and kept thinking. This was no way to get back to sleep. Oh well.
He got the unshakable
feeling
that the dream meant something. Something undeniably important.
Fox looked at the ceiling and spoke as if expecting an answer,
ìWhy does it always have
to be me?î
No answer came, which
actually
surprised Fox. Heíd been through some pretty weird stuff in the
past five years... a ceiling talking to him would seem downright
normal.
Fara rolled over in her
sleep and bumped into Fox. He put his arms around her and she smiled,
still asleep. Fox spoke to her softly, trying not to wake her,
ìAt least youíre having
good dreams.î
-The Broadsword, in orbit around Venom
ìSergeant, do you know
whatís
wrong with Darus?î
Commander Akarisí question
surprised Mark Selster a little. Akaris was a no-nonsense fisher
with a black mechanical right arm. He had lost his original arm in
the war against Andross, in a power
suit fight. He was a veteran who had trained in the old MG 3 and had
won more medals than most
thought possible.
ìSergeant? Are you
listening?
I asked you a question.î
ìSorry, sir.î
ìSo what is wrong with
Darus?î
ìSir?î
ìHe refuses to give his
usual technical and tactical advice. More than that, he wonít shut up.
Look at this, itís a transcript of some of what heís been saying.î
Commander Akaris handed
Mark several sheets of paper. Mark glanced at one of the sheets:
Do you see them?
No? You donít? Canít you
see them?
Theyíre here, you see.
Here
inside... and outside...
Theyíre not quite through
yet, but they will be soon.
Canít you see them?
Theyíre not like us...
theyíre
different... better...
Mark looked up,
ìThis is pretty much all
the same. What the hell is Darus talking about?î
ìThatís what Iíd like you
to answer.î
ìWell... I donít really
know.î
ìCome on, I know you went
down to visit him yesterday. Did anything about him seem a little
unusual?î
ìDarus always seems
unusual.
But if you mean not like Darus is normally, the no. He seemed
about the same as he always was.î
ìRight. Well, thanks
anyway.
Youíre dismissed.î
Mark saluted and walked
away from the commander. Something was seriously wrong with Darus
and he needed to know what. Did this have something to do with the
look on Darusí face the other day...
that look of sheer terror at being left alone in the dark.
He knew that heíd better
have a talk with Captain Meris. He knew exactly where she would be.
Alison Meris was standing
on the observation deck and staring out at the stars. She heard
someone coming up behind her and looked at the reflection in the
window,
ìHi Mark. I love how you
can see the planet below and the stars above. It gives you such a nice
feeling of detachment.î
Mark stood next to her.
He also looked out at the stars and spoke to Alison without turning his
head,
ìWe need to talk about
Darus.î
ìWhy? We showed the
recruit
and thatís the end of it, right?î
ìNo. Darus is acting
really
weird.î
ìDarus isnít exactly a
model
of normality and sanity.î
ìWeird for him. Heís
ranting
on about how ëtheyí are coming through. He keeps going on about
that without giving any of his normal advice. He hasnít even asked
the command staff to kill him. Not
even once, and he usually does that once or twice when theyíre
consulting
him just to check.
ìWhat the hell is he
talking
about?î
ìI donít know. But
remember
his face. He was really afraid of something. Maybe that something
is the mysterious ëthey.íî
Alison nodded,
ìI wouldnít rule it out.
So heís taken to illogical and irrational fears now?î
ìMaybe... but Darus always
seemed pretty realistic. Heís completely shattered, fear included.
What does someone who wants us to kill him have to be afraid of?î
Alison seemed about to
reply
but stopped to think. Her expression changed. She looked genuinely
worried now,
ìThatís a pretty good
question.
Maybe we should talk to Darus again.î
ìNot a bad idea. But I
think
that theyíll have people guarding him now that heís starting those
damn messages.î
ìTheyíll take the guards
out for dead time and we can slip in.î
Dead time was when
non-critical
systems were shut down for system checks. In a status of peace,
which they were at, dead time lasted twenty minutes. During dead
time,
all crew who werenít running
checks were supposed to be in quarters. The only exception was when
there were actual prisoners. If
someone was in the brig, guards would remain and the brig would
remain
under full power.
But Darus wasnít
considered
a prisoner. The guards would be pulled for dead time. Mark smiled,
ìClever. Letís give it a
shot. We can probably slip away without anyone noticing. The recruits
donít like to associate with us and we donít have a shift until
tomorrow
afternoon.î
-Office of Public Relations, Corneria City
Tim Banaway looked down at
a series of charts and graphs that one of his field agents had placed
in front of him. This was not good. The Office of Public Relations
was a busy place, they needed to make
sure that the people of Lylat stayed happy. Their job was keeping
everyone
loyal to the government of
Lylat.
Tim looked up at the agent
and grimaced.
ìThis is perfectly
accurate
info, isnít it.î
The agent only nodded. Tim
winced,
ìGood lord. This is the
worst public approval and general morale rating Iíve ever seen. People
were happier with Andross up their butts.î
ìShould I file this?î
ìNo, good lord, keep the
thing out here. Hey, you...î
He motioned to a member
of the staff who was floating around nearby. The staff member walked
up and nodded. Tim pointed at the charts,
ìGet copies of these made,
get them on every computer in this damn building.î
The staff member nodded
and walked off. The agent gaped,
ìSir, what the hell are
you doing? Itís just a PAGMR report!î
ìListen, son, do you know
what our job is?î
ìUh... to observe the
views
and status of the Cornerian people and... um... protect their rights?î
ìAND we have another duty
to the Cornerian government... to PREVENT CIVIL WAR! Look at
your own damn charts, the Cornerian people are NOT happy! If this
continues,
weíre looking at people
versus the government. That would be a very messy fight.î
ìWell, what do we do about
it?î
ìIím giving you a team.
I want you to run another survey... find out WHY the morale of our
people is so low, and find out how to bring it back up before they
turn on their government.î
ìYes, sir.î
The agent was gone,
leaving
the charts and graphs. Tim leaned over and flicked his tail. It was
going to be a very very long week.
-Crew Section 12B, the Broadsword
The lights flicked on
inside
the room that held Darus. His one remaining eye went wide with
fear.
Mark narrowed his eyes and
looked straight at Darus,
ìWhy are you giving
command
all that crap over the com channels?î
ìBecause it is true.î
ìYou lie.î
Mark walked up to Darus.
The fox ripped his arm away from the cables attached to it and
grabbed Markís shirt with his metallic arm,
ìI canít lie, remember.î
ìYou canít lie knowingly.
I think that youíre mistaken.î
Darus made a strange
sound.
Alison and Mark realized it was laugher. Darus let go of Markís
shirt and grabbed his arm. The grip was uncomfortably strong. Darus
glared at Mark,
ìI know I am not mistaken.
I speak the truth, you would be unwise to ignore it.î
Mark shook his head,
ìAnd how do you know that
this ëtheyí is coming through. Through what, anyway?î
Darus looked around
nervously
and spoke in a quiet voice to Mark,
ìNot so loud. They may
hear
us. They are coming through to this world.î
ìFrom where.î
ìQuiet! From their own
world.
Iíve said enough. We shouldnít risk them hearing us.î
Alison walked up and
tapped
Mark on the shoulder,
ìWe should get going,
weíve
got to get back to our quarters before dead time is over.î
Mark nodded. Darus
released
his grip. The ferret and vixen turned around and left the room,
turning off the lights and closing the door behind them. Mark turned
to Alison,
ìThis is getting way too
weird.î
ìNo kidding. Letís get
back
to quarters before someone catches us out during dead time.î
-The Far-Runner, in orbit around Papetoon
Fox McCloud and Fara
Phoenix-McCloud
stood waiting for the shuttle which would take them to
the planet below. The Far-Runner wasnít landing on Papetoon so they
had shuttles running down.
Fox and Fara held their
small amount of luggage. They tried to travel light. Fara smiled at Fox,
ìIt we had taken our
Arwings,
we wouldnít have to wait.î
ìIf we had taken our
Arwings,
we would have to sit inside tiny little cockpits and do all the work
ourselves.î
ìGood point. Maybe we
should
invest in a larger ship. An H-Class Repulsor or something.î
ìNah, I like the Arwings.î
ìItís kind of funny.î
ìWhat?î
ìThe Arwing isnít really
top technology anymore. Ours are modified, which puts them above the
rest, but the ship itself is getting pretty old. The new F-103s and
AR-39s are the top level fighters now.î
Fox nodded. A loudspeaker
announced that the shuttle down to the Papetoon spaceport was here.
Fox and Fara walked towards the airlock which lead to the shuttle.
Fox looked over at Fara and spoke as if
suddenly remembering something,
ìI had our Arwings
transferred
to the spaceport.î
Fara giggled,
ìI had a feeling youíd do
something like that. Thanks!î
She hugged Fox and kissed
him on the cheek. He smiled and returned the hug. They boarded the
shuttle and found seats.
The captain went through
the standard safety precautions, which Fox and Fara did not listen to.
They had both been through a lot of combat and certainly knew the
safety
precautions for a small local
shuttle. They fastened their crash restraints and sat back as the
shuttle
pulled out of the dock on the Far-
Runner and into space. Fara looked out the window to the planet
below,
ìHavenít been here in a
long time.î
Fox nodded,
ìYeah. I donít think Iíve
been inside my old den since the beginning of the war.î
ìSame here.î
Fara giggled. That den was
probably the first place where the realized how much they really
meant to each other. Fox smiled at her,
ìWell, I hope itís not
caved
in or anything. I wonder if those museum people left anything.î
Fara shrugged and
continued
looking out the window. The planet was growing closer.
Something caught her eye
coming up to the ship. She looked closer and saw a small ship flying
into formation with the shuttle. She poked Fox and he turned. She
pointed
at the ship,
ìWhat do you think that
thing is?î
ìI donít know... but I
donít
think this is a good thing.î
The captainís voice came
over the intercom to the shuttleís cabin,
ìPlease remain seated,
there
is a small problem with local spaceways authorities that needs to be
worked out. Please remain calm, this wonít take long.î
Fox looked over at Fara
and nodded. They undid their crash restraints and got up. They made
their way to the pilotís area. They entered and the co-pilot looked
up at them,
ìHey, you canít come in
here.î
Fox snarled,
ìShut up. Weíve both got
lots of combat hours and are veterans of the war.î
ìWhich war?î
Fox growled,
ìI can tell you werenít
in it.î
The war against Andross
was the only war to anyone who had ever been a part of it. Referring to
ëthe warí to a veteran inevitably told them what you were talking
about.
The co-pilot spoke again,
ìJust go back to your
seats.î
The pilot, who had been
talking on the com unit, turned away briefly and spoke,
ìLieutenant Robertson, go
back into the cabin and find a seat. These two are staying, youíre not.î
The co-pilot frowned but
finally nodded. He stood up and left the cabin. The pilot motioned for
the two foxes to take seats. Fox sat in the co-pilotís seat, Fara
took
the empty seat used by the systems
officer. The pilot looked at the two foxes and smiled,
ìCaptain Paul Karnov, 92nd
Interception, based on Katina. Who are you two... wait a minute...
youíre Fox McCloud arenít you?î
Fox nodded. The captain
smiled,
ìThen this must be Fara
Phoenix.î
Fara corrected him,
ìPhoenix-McCloud.î
The captain smiled again,
ìGo figure. Pleased to
meet
you both in person. Sorry about my co-pilot. He didnít even go
through the military academy.î
Fox nodded,
ìWhatís the problem?î
ìOh, sorry. Well... the
Papetoon Independent Defense Force is hovering around this ship.î
Fara stared at the
captain,
ìThe PIDF? They havenít
existed since Andross held Papetoon!î
ìYeah, well theyíre
apparently
back. There are six PIDF I-31s flying around us.î
Fox groaned,
ìUgh... does this thing
have a threat display?î
The captain laughed,
ìSorry, youíve got it
confused
with a good ship. The best I can do is a pretty bad tracking radar.î
ìItíll have to do. Letís
see.î
The captain pushed a few
buttons and the radar appeared in the corner of the main screen.
Several blips were moving around the shuttle. Fara nodded,
ìThose must be the PIDF
ships. Do you have communication with them.î
ìYeah, Iíll put the leader
on.î
He hit a button and the
com unit crackled. Fox spoke into the com,
ìHello, is this the PIDF
forces.î
ìYes. This is Archangel
lead. Who the hell is speaking?î
ìThis is Fox McCloud.î
The PIDF pilot was silent
for a moment. Then he spoke,
ìAre you going to
Papetoon?î
ìYes. My wife, Fara, and
I are headed there. Weíve got our ships planetside.î
ìIíll let this ship go if
you agree to meet with us at a location of our choosing.î
ìFine. Where?î
ìThe castle of the hero.î
ìWhat? Oh... I see. Right,
when?î
ìHeroís light begins to
shine.î
ìHuh... oh yeah...
gotcha.î
ìThat is all.î
The com shut down. The
blips
on the radar moved quickly away from the shuttle. The pilot
sighed with relief,
ìThank god thatís over
with.
Do you actually know what this guyís talking about?î
ìYes.î
The pilot nodded and
turned
to shuttle back on to its course. Fox and Fara made their way back
into the cabin and sat down again. Fox leaned over and whispered to
Fara,
ìI think that the PIDF
pilot
knows me pretty well. Whoever he is, weíre meeting him at my old
den tomorrow afternoon.î
Fara giggled. Fox glared
at her,
ìWhatís so funny?î
ìYou keep calling the
pilot
a ëhe.íî
ìSo?î
ìDidnít you listen to the
voice?î
ìKind of... I was more
interested
in what they were saying than how the voice sounded.î
Fara giggled again,
ìI was listening to the
voice. I think itís a ëshe.í She sounded female anyhow.î
Fox nodded,
ìYouíre probably right
about
that. Ok, weíre meeting HER at my den tomorrow afternoon. I
wonder what she wants.î
Fara shrugged,
ìWeíll find out tomorrow
afternoon.î
-The Point of Impact, Corneria City
Gray and Mira Lancer
entered
the Point of Impact, a veteransí bar deep in the bad parts of
Corneria City, and it brought memories rushing back to them. They had
both been in their share of these
places, together, on business. They knew how to handle themselves.
But this was going to be
a little bit trickier than usual. They needed to get information.
Information that was of a very different kind than the usual.
Gray leaned over to Mira
and spoke in a whisper,
ìWhat are you carrying?î
She whispered back,
ìA heavy Cornerian Special
Forces plasma pistol and a CSF combat knife, you?î
ìA .45 semi-auto kinetic
loaded with hollow points, a modified CSF laser pistol, and two CSF
combat knives.î
ìCrap! What are you
expecting,
a war?î
ìThatís not far from
wrong.î
They walked up to a table
of veterans sitting around and talking and sat down. One of the
veterans, a large tiger with a an eyepatch, growled at them,
ìHey, you freakiní civies,
get the hell out.î
Gray narrowed his eyes,
ìWho said we were civies,
idiot.î
He pulled back his sleeve
to reveal a tattoo showing a combat knife with barbed wire coiled
around it,
ì17th Cornerian Army
special
ops!î
Gray smiled,
ì12th Commandos, Cornerian
Special Forces. Worked the rest of the war as a merc. You army
wusses have nothing on us.î
The tiger snarled and
leapt
at Gray. Gray pushed back in his chair and fell back. The tiger went
over his head and Gray jumped to his footpaws. He jumped over to the
tiger and planet his footpaw
squarely on the tigerís windpipe. He pressed down hard,
ìListen, crap hole. Iíve
got more training and probably more field experience than you... I know
you think youíre all tough cause you lost an eye, but there are more
painful, less disabling things that can
happen. Like me half-crushing your windpipe. Youíll live and be
fine...
but itíll hurt to breath, swallow,
talk, or move for about two months. Want any?î
The tiger choked out his
response,
ìN...n...no.î
ìGood.î
Gray took his footpaw off
the tigerís windpipe. The tiger got up and scrambled out the door. Gray
took his seat again. A pitbull wearing a Cornerian Air Force drop
trooper
beret smiled and spoke,
ìSorry about me friend,
chap. ëeís a little bit on the rough side, wot, eh?î
ìNo kidding. Hmmm...
youíre
with the drop troops?î
ìAh, ëtis the literal and
correct truth. Was with the 33rd Light Attack. The Storm Riders, ever
heard of ëem?î
ìYeah. Were you on The
Plateau
of Blood?î
The pitbull nodded,
ìAye, so I was. Bloody
battle,
eh?î
ìLiterally.î
ìWere you there? I donít
remember the 12th beiní at it.î
ìI was, but I was out of
the 12th by then. I was one of the mercs on air cover.î
ìAye, thatís right. Those
bloody three year terms of CSF service, eh?î
ìUh-huh. Exactly.î
The pitbull motioned at
Mira,
ìMissy, what unit were ya
in, eh?î
Mira smiled,
ìNone. Iím a merc vet.î
ìEh? The whole war?î
Mira nodded. The pitbull
looked back at Gray,
ìYou, how long into the
war before ya became a merc, anyhow?î
ìI left service in the
first
few months of the war. Became a merc near the beginning. How about
you?î
ìAh, never been much oí
a merc. Stayed in the drop troops til me olí injury put me out.î
ìWhat injury?î
The pitbull pointed down
at his right leg,
ìMe olí leg ëtwas blasted
out from under me, so ëtwas! Got meself a new mechanical job, but
ëtisnít much to keep a drop trooper goiní. They stuck me in a desk
job until the end oí the war, aye so they
did.î
Gray nodded. The pitbull
squinted at him,
ìEh, do you have any
missing
limbs or such? The CSF got a lot of that.î
Gray grinned,
ìNot exactly. Iíve almost
been blown away several times... got shot up a whole bunch. Never
actually lost anything, but I got something almost as bad...î
Gray stood up and pushed
his jacket aside. He lifted his shirt slightly. Underneath, on the right
side of his body, was a large scar that tore down the right side of
his body. It ran from about halfway up
his chest down to the bottom of his stomach. The pitbull stared at
the scar,
ìAye, ëtis a grand olí
wound!
What manner of weapon caused such an injury?î
Gray let his shirt back
and pushed his jacket back into place.
ìA ceremonial knife. Itís
a long story. Actually, the wound isnít really related to war. But it
sure
hurt a lot.î
The pitbull grinned,
ìAhíll say. Man, makes olí
Geradís eye look tiny, eh. Oh, Geradís that olí tiger ya beat up. ëeís
all talk and brag but no real fight. Thinks the Cornerian Army spec
ops was the best unit in the whole
damn war, eh.î
ìYeah.î
ìRight-ho. Ahíll say that
ya should both be included in our conversation. Allow me to present my
friends. There names arenít important, ya kin jusí call ëem ëhey youí
or such.î
The other two people at
the table nodded. One was a big snowy owl with a deadpan expression,
the other was a female skunk wearing a Cornerian Space Navy uniform.
Gray and Mira nodded at them.
The pitbull continued,
ìAnyhow, we were talkiní
ëbout how all the Cornerian gov ainít doiní ta keep us all happy. I
think that our owl friend, ëis nameís Jarkin, was about ta say
some-what.î
The owl blinked and
nodded,
ìYes... er, ahem... well,
I was just about to say that the Cornerian government owes us! We
served them and won their damn war for them. Now they just kick us
aside. They should offer a better
pension plan and some government-funded housing instead of just
kicking
us out on the street.î
The skunk spoke up,
ìYeah! Weíve given a lot
to them! Hell, half the joints in my damn body are mechanical cause of
their blasted war! We deserve better than weíre getting. I mean, they
just frikkiní forgot about us combat
vets after the war.î
The owl nodded,
ìExactly! Man... someday
theyíre gonna regret turning us aside. Someday weíre gonna rise up!
Then theyíll be sorry that they did this to us.î
Gray spoke,
ìIím sorry, but my wife
and I have to be going. Got some stuff to do. Nice talking to you guys.
The pitbull smiled,
ìAye, seeya mateys later,
eh?î
ìSure.î
Gray and Mira walked out
of the bar and onto the street. They began walking out of the slum
section and back to the normal part of Corneria City. Mira looked at
Gray,
ìIs the treatment really
that bad?î
ìThereís only one way to
find out.î
ìWhatís that?î
ìVisit the most detached
combat vet I know... Tagaio Misada. Heís a panda who lives way out in
the Telderon hills. Itís a really nice place. He runs a dojo out
there.
Specializes in hand-to-hand combat.
Nice guy... havenít seen him for a while.î
ìSo weíre going there?î
ìOf course.î
-The Broadsword, in orbit around Venom
ìSir, we need your help on
something.î
Mark Selster turned his
head when he heard the security officer, a corporal, calling,
ìWhat is it?î
ìYouíd better see for
yourself.î
ìWhere?î
ìDown in the brig.î
Mark nodded and got up
from
where he was sitting. They walked into the corridor and to the
main elevator. The guard pressed the call button and they waited for
the elevator to arrive. The guard
shook his head,
ìYou just have to see it
for yourself. Itís freakiní nuts... uh... sir.î
ìYes, and if youíre not
going to give me details, kindly shut up about it.î
ìSorry sir.î
The elevator arrived and
they stepped inside. The guard pressed the button for the brig level. The
elevator slid down and quickly arrived at the brig level. The doors
opened again and the two stepped out.
The guard led the way.
They finally arrived at
one of the interrogation rooms. Mark entered the control booth and the
guard went off to do other things.
Inside the control booth,
they had a clear view into the interrogation room itself through a one-
way mirror. The people inside couldnít see anyone in the booth, but
the people in the booth could see the
interrogation room.
Mark looked inside and saw
a hedgehog wearing a ragged uniform devoid of any insignia or
identifying marks. Mark shot a questioning glance at the
interrogation
officer. The officer looked at the
hedgehog inside and shrugged,
ìWe picked him up
planetside.
An infantry exercise. He actually had the guts to attack them.
Tough guy, and no doubt about it!î
Mark nodded,
ìIíll see what I can do.î
He left the control booth
and entered the interrogation room itself. The hedgehog looked up,
defiance in his eyes,
ìAh, ënother traitor
military
soldier ta see me aní ask me some questions.î
Mark narrowed his eyes and
looked straight at the hedgehog,
ìName, rank, and unit.î
The hedgehog returned the
gaze evenly,
ìGareth Verdent, sergeant,
5th Attack Squad. With the armored boys meself. You?î
ìMark Selster, squadron
sergeant, 89th Attack Squad. The resident armored unit.î
Gareth saluted,
ìYa just outranks me by
a little bit, doncha? Well, ya donít seem like such a butthole as ëalf
of
these jerks! I mean, come on. Why ya still with the military after
the war?î
ìNothing better to do, I
suppose. Kind of got attached to it.î
ìPuh-lease! I mean, look
around you. Thereís nothing but these damn new recruits and a few
cynical command staff members. You got any real friends here?î
ìYes, one. A captain named
Alison Meris.î
ìAh, yer only real friend
on this damn rust bucket. Why donít ye join the movement?î
Mark squinted at the
hedgehog,
ìWhat the hell are you
talking
about?î
The hedgehog smiled,
ìThe movement. Weíre gonna
move against the Cornerian oppressors soon! Canít tell ya how or
where... but I can tell ya why... cause theyíve been pushiní the
people
around for too long! Not just us war
vets either, weíve got civies with us... local militia and such. The
kind that can fight!î
The hedgehog shut up and
sat back. He crossed his arms over his chest and did not speak
anymore. Mark sighed and walked back into the control booth. The
interrogation
officer looked up at him,
ìHeís not gonna talk, is
he?î
ìNo. Just hold him in the
brig for another day or two and then dump him back where you found
him. What he said is all heís gonna say.î
Mark walked out of the
interrogation
booth and back into the main corridor. He needed to talk to
Alison.
-Fox McCloudís old den, Papetoon
Fox and Fara walked from
where they had landed their Arwings to Foxís old den. They looked
around for the people they were supposed to be meeting. Fox called
out,
ìHello? Is anyone home?î
The heard a voice near
their
footpaws,
ìHey, not so loud. Come
in, sheís expecting you both.î
They looked down and saw
a muskrat hidden in the bushes. He was perfectly camouflaged. He
grinned and waddled inside. Fox and Fara followed after him. The
muskrat
casually chatted as they
walked,
ìSorry about the surprise,
helps to be disguised. Never know what kind of vagabonds and rogues
will be hovering around, you know.î
Fox and Fara only nodded.
They were led into the area that had formerly been Foxís makeshift
livingroom.
A female red wolf sat on
a crate. She got up and smiled. Fox and Fara both noticed that she had
both arms covered in long gloves which reached all the way up to her
elbows. She wore a black suit that
was half combat armor and half jumpsuit. She extended a paw to Fox.
He grabbed it and shook. Her grip
seemed unnaturally strong and very hard. She then shook paws with
Fara
and both foxes sat down on
crates. The red wolf spoke,
ìMy name is Minita
DelVariot.
Iím the leader of the Papetoon Independent Defense Force... or
PIDF as most call it.î
Fara couldnít help
herself,
ìWhy are you wearing those
gloves?î
Minita smiled,
ìMost would just assume
I wear them because I like the look... but thatís not entirely true.
There
is another reason. I have something I sometimes have good reason to
hide.î
She quickly removed both
gloves. Both the lower parts of her arms were colored black. Fox and
Fara looked closer and saw that both lower arms were mechanical.
Minita
grinned,
ìMy little secret.î
Fox managed to get out a
word,
ìHow?î
ìThe right one I lost in
a fight with Wolf OíDonnell. Heís one strong farginí fighter. Stomped
down on my right arm with a combat boot, shattered all the bones.
Injury
was so messy they couldnít fix
it. Had to amputate. I decided a mechanical arm with ten times my
normal
strength might be useful.î
ìWhat about the left arm?î
ìAh, thatís a little
different.
Got the wrist and paw blown clean off by a 10mm railgun.î
Fox nodded and stared.
Minita
replaced the gloves,
ìThatís not all.î
Fox looked at her. She
shook
her head,
ìNo. My right knee is
prosthetic,
got skimmed in the kneecap by a 9mm handgun. It was a .45
and took off a good portion of the knee. They decided itíd be easier
just to replace it that have me crippled
for life.î
Fox nodded,
ìThat all?î
ìYeah, pretty much. But
thatís not what weíre here to talk about.î
Fox nodded again,
ìThen what is?î
ìA revolution.î
Fox and Fara both stared
incredulously at the red wolf. She nodded,
ìA revolution. The PIDF
is going to strike back at the Cornerian government for all that itís
done.î
Fara spoke,
ìYouíre not kidding, are
you?î
Minita shook her head and
her expression turned grave,
ìNot by any means. We are
fully prepared and ready to launch the revolution. You can help if
you really want to, but itís a little late for that. We mostly want
you to witness what you see here and tell
others like you... the downcast heroes. We need you for the new
order.î
Fara spoke again,
ìWhat kind of forces do
you have?î
ìLots of combat veterans.
Many are missing parts of themselves, like myself. The Cornerian
government did this to us... made us lose part of who we are, and
then
kicked us aside like trash. Weíre
going to hit them back and theyíll regret not having treated us
better.
Youíll stay with us for a few days
and observe. Then you can tell others about it.î
Fox and Fara both nodded.
Minita smiled at last,
ìGood. Tefin, show them
to their room.î
The muskrat who had shown
them in nodded and motioned,
ìThis way please. Youíll
be staying in the room which you, Mr. McCloud, used to inhabit
yourself. I trust you know your way around well enough to get there?î
Fox nodded. The muskrat
smiled,
ìExcellent. If you need
anything, donít hesitate to give me a shout, Iíll be out where I was when
you came.î
The muskrat, still in his
camouflage, ran off to take his post again. Fox and Fara walked to their
room.
They entered the room and
Fara closed the door. She and Fox looked around. Fox finally spoke,
ìAmazing, theyíve left it
exactly the same as it always was.î
Fara nodded and flopped
out on the bed. Fox sat down next to her. She looked up at him,
ìTheyíre starting a civil
war.î
ìNo kidding. I wonder
why.î
ìBecause the Cornerian
government
treats them like crap.î
ìThatís what they say...
but I have a feeling that itís not entirely true.î
Foxís vision went white.
He gasped. The vision of the vixen looking out over the field of death
came into his mind. He heard her voice, louder and more insistent
than
before,
ìIt will. Someday.î
Fox gasped again and fell
back on the bed. His vision returned to see Fara leaning over him. She
frowned,
ìFox?! Are you Ok?î
He nodded weakly. She lay
down next to him,
ìOk Fox, out with it. What
happened? Donít lie to me.î
Fox groaned,
ìI had a flashback... of
a dream.î
ìThis is new.î
ìKind of. Back on the
Far-Runner,
I had a dream about a vixen who looked a lot like you only
with silver hair...î
ìThat sounds like my
ancestor
Mariel.î
ìWho?î
ìMariel Phoenix is an
ancient
ancestor of mine. Iíve heard lots of legends about her.î
ìWell then, I had a dream
about her standing and looking over a field. The field was filled with
the dead and dying. It looked like the remains of some huge battle.
Mariel was crying... someone asked if
it... I think they meant the battle... would happen again. She said
it would someday.î
ìWhat about just a minute
ago?î
ìI saw her standing over
the field again. This time I just heard her say that it would happen
again. Both times the dream was as clear as reality... and my memory
of them is perfect.î
Fara frowned and put her
arms around Fox,
ìThatís not normal, Fox.
You ever had any dreams like that before?î
ìNo! I almost never dream!
When I do, itís never that clear and vivid.î
ìFox, at the beginning of
the war, I would have said it was just a funny dream... but Iíve been
through a lot of really weird stuff in the past six or seven years.
I think that thereís more to it than that.î
ìHowís that?î
ìWell, thereís the civil
war starting, the morale of the citizens of Lylat going down the tubes,
and
that weird dream about some battle that will happen again.î
Fox frowned,
ìA connection?î
ìI think so. Do you?î
ìYouíve never been wrong
before.î
ìThatís sweet.î
She hugged Fox and they
kissed. They both lay back on the bed and closed their eyes.
The image of the vixen
standing
over the field of death was all that fox saw. The words rang in
his ears... sounding more and more urgent.
But it seemed that they
referred to something far more sinister than a mere civil war.
-Telderon Hills, Corneria
Gray and Mira Lancer walked
up the steep hill that lead to Tagaio Misadaís dojo. The dojo itself
was a large building made of stone and wood. Around it stood many
trees
and plants. The whole area was
one of supreme natural beauty.
The two foxes crested the
hill and approached the building. Someone jumped out of the bushes
and leveled a staff at them. It was a short and fat looking panda.
He snarled,
ìWho goes there?î
He suddenly recognized who
it was and grinned,
ìOh, itís you, Gray. Whoís
this?î
ìMy wife, Mira.î
ìOh, glad to meet you,
Mira.î
The bear bowed quickly and
then resumed grinning,
ìGood to see you both.
Gray,
itís been a long time since youíve been up here. You must be
getting rusty.î
Gray nodded,
ìI probably am.
Unfortunately,
I donít have time for any practice. I need to talk to you.î
ìOh, sure. Come inside.
Please. Iíve got some tea ready.î
They walked up to the dojo
and Tagaio slid the door open. He motioned at their footpaws,
ìShoes off, please.î
Gray and Mira took off
their
shoes and laid them next to the pandaís by the door. They all
entered the dojo and Tagaio closed the door again. He dashed off to
get the tea. Mira looked at Gray
skeptically,
ìThis guy is a combat vet?
Get out.î
ìIím not kidding. Heís the
best paw-to-paw fighter I know, myself included. Donít let his silly
appearance or attitude fool you. Heís deadly and completely loyal to
his friends. Heís the kind of guy you
really want on you side.î
Mira nodded. The panda
came
back with three cups of steaming liquid. He handed two of them
to Gray and Mira and kept one himself. He motioned to several rush
mats on the floor,
ìSit down, sit down. I
donít
have any students right now so Iím not very busy. We can talk a
while.î
Gray nodded,
ìGood. This is actually
pretty urgent. I need to know how you feel about the Cornerian
government.î
Tagaio shrugged and looked
a little puzzled,
ìThatís the oddest
question
youíve ever asked me. I guess Iím Ok with them. I mean, theyíre a
little uptight and pretty annoying... but itís not like I hate them
or anything. The pensionís good and the
health plan covered my stay in the hospital.î
Mira looked confused. Gray
explained,
ìTagaio was caught by the
shockwave of a rather large explosion. He didnít lose anything,
thankfully, but he did take quite a hit. Stayed in the hospital for
months.î
Tagaio grinned widely,
ìHurt a whole bunch. But
the government paid for my medical bill, so I canít complain much.î
Gray nodded,
ìBut you donít resent them
or anything?î
Tagaio shook his head
vigorously,
ìOh no. Why should I?î
ìYou shouldnít. Thatís why
I came here.î
ìSorry Gray, but I donít
quite follow you? Why exactly DID you come to see me?î
ìWell. Firstly I actually
have been meaning to visit you for a while, but thatís not the main
reason. The main reason is because a lot of combat vets are getting
really pissed at the government. We
talked to a bunch of them who were starting a civil war!î
ìYou know, Gray... Iíve
actually heard a little about that from people who pass through here. On
pilgrimages and all that stuff. Theyíve been talking about how
hostile
the combat veterans are getting, and
how bad the morale of the general public is.î
ìWhat do you think?î
ìI think that something
really fishy is going on. This sort of thing isnít natural at all. I
mean,
look at it. My medical bill probably cost more than getting all of
my limbs replaced would have, but the
government still paid it. They also give me a decent pension, which
I donít depend on but I could
theoretically live off it. Theyíre not stiffing me and theyíre
certainly
not stiffing anyone else.î
ìSo why is everyone at
each
othersí throats?î
Tagaio frowned,
ìGray, Mira... can you two
handle a little weirdness?î
Both nodded. Mira laughed,
ìAre you kidding? Do you
have any idea what weíve been through?î
Tagaio grinned,
ìIíll take a simple ëyes.í
Come with me.î
The panda finished his tea
in a single gulp and led Gray and Mira to a small door inside the dojo.
He slid it open to reveal stairs leading down into a cave. The cave
was lit by numerous torches on the
walls. The panda descended the stairs, followed closely by Gray and
Mira. Tagaio explained as the walked
down,
ìYou may find this all
very
hard to believe, but Iím quite fond of the occult. See, this is my little
place for experimentation. None of that wizard stuff, mostly about
the balance of things and the spirits and
stuff. You donít buy any of this, do you?î
Gray responded,
ìTagaio, a few years ago
I was captured by a powerful sorceress who had sold her soul to a
demon. Mira and I were there when she was killed in a spiritual duel
and when her master was banished.
Iím ready to believe anything, soís my wife.î
Mira nodded emphatically.
Tagaio shrugged,
ìFair enough. Here we
are.î
The entered a large
cavern.
There were various charts and diagrams around. There were lots of
pots and cauldrons, along with numerous herbs. There were also
shelves
along the edges of the cavern
filled with books. In the center of the cavern was what looked like
a well. It was filled with a swirling
liquid of many colors.
Tagaio motioned for them
to sit around the well. They did so. Tagaio spoke,
ìOne of the things I can
do... rather poorly, I admit, but I can do it... is to sense the balance
of the
universe and see if anything is wrong. Things like dimensional travel
and spirits crossing into other
planes of existence will upset the balance. So I began to notice
something
a couple years ago.î
ìAbout the same time the
whole slump began?î
ìExactly. Anyway, I
noticed
something is really messing up the balance. Itís bigger than
anything thatís recorded in any of those books... except for one
event.î
Gray squinted at Tagaio,
ìWhat one event.î
Tagaio got up and wandered
over to a table. He picked up a book and brought it back. He opened
the book and began flipping through it,
ìThis is the record of
some
pretty ancient times. Let me see... ah, here it is. The First War of the
Destroyer.î
Gray and Mira both stared
at Tagaio. The panda continued,
ìSee, apparently something
came through from another dimension and began to turn everyone
against everyone else. The Protectors of Lylat fought it to a bitter
standstill. The whole thing ended with a
massive battle on what was later known as the Field of Blood. The
thing,
whatever it was, returned to its
own dimension to lick its wounds. But everyone knew it would be
back...
it was just a matter of how
long.î
Gray spoke,
ìThereís no Second War of
the Destroyer? Is there?î
Tagaio shook his head.
ìThatís what I was afraid
of. You think itís whatís happening?î
Tagaio shrugged,
ìI donít really know.î
ìGuess.î
ìIf I had to guess... Iíd
say yes. Itís happening and the ancient prediction is coming true.î
Gray nodded and stroked
his chin. Mira spoke up,
ìDoes the book give any
details about the order of what happened? Did the thing appear right
away?î
Tagaio consulted the book,
ìApparently not...î
He flipped through it some
more,
ìApparently he didnít come
through until the people were fighting brutally amongst themselves.î
Gray muttered softly to
himself, but the other could hear him,
ìSo it started a civil war
and then came through... itís happening again all right.î
He looked up and spoke in
a louder voice,
ìWe need to know
everything
we possibly can about this Destroyer thing. I donít care how
obscure the reference is. We need to know what the hell is going on
here... and we need to know now...
because, from the looks of it, this only gets worse.î
-Office of Public Relations, Corneria City
The sound was unmistakable,
the firing of automatic weapons. Tim Banaway jumped up from his
chair. He saw the rest of the staff in the large room getting up and
looking around in confusion. One of
them spoke,
ìWhat the hell is going
on here?î
The sounds were growing
louder. Now they could pick out shouting as well. One of the staff
members had been talking over a com unit. She put the unit down and
turned to the rest,
ìSomeoneís attacking a
whole
bunch of government buildings! Theyíre inside!î
Tim shook his head to
clear
it,
ìWait a minute... thereís
still a bunch of pistols from the war against Andross in the closet. Get
them out and make sure everyone gets one.î
The staff member nodded
and ran off. She returned with a box containing pistols and
ammunition. These were distributed amongst the staff members. One of
them sneered at the pistol,
ìThis thing wonít do crap
against automatics! Itís only a freakiní .22!î
Tim growled,
ìWould you rather use
paw-to-paw?î
That shut the staff member
up. The automatic weapon fire was getting really close. Tim
overturned his desk and ducked behind it. The rest of the staff
followed
his example. He glanced over the
top and watched the door to the large office.
Suddenly, bullets punched
through the area around the lock and someone kicked it down. It was
someone wearing combat armor. It was impossible to see their face
under
the heavy helmet. They held a
large 11mm gatling gun. The screamed into the room,
ìYou farginí govies are
gonna get it for what youíve done to us.î
Several more armored
troopers
walked into the room. They were armed with everything from
shotguns to a large gun that Tim remembered from an article in the
paper as being a 10mm railgun.
One of the staff members
poked out from cover and fired their handgun. The trooper with the
railgun fired and hit the staff member directly in the head. Tim
heard
a wet splatter and saw red on the
carpet. The body hit the rug with a dull thud.
The troopers moved into
the room. Tim resolved to take at least one of them down with him
before he went.
He heard the fire of
another
handgun, and the roar of a shotgun. Someone screamed in pain,
definitely not one of the troops. Another shotgun blast and the
screaming
went silent.
More gunfire, a few yells.
The light partitions that were set up around the officer prevented Tim
from getting a good view of what was going on.
He heard footpawsteps and
looked up. One of the troopers was standing over him holding the
10mm railgun. The trooper grunted,
ìWhen you get to hell,
tell
ëem to clear some room... cause every govie in the system is gonna be
down there soon.î
The troopers squeezed the
trigger. Timís lifeless body hit the floor and his blood oozed out onto
the carpet.
-Crew Section 12B, the Broadsword
Darus sat in the dark and
shivered. He was not cold, and wouldnít have shivered if he had been...
but he was terrified.
He knew that they were
coming...
but no one would listen to him. They didnít believe that such a
thing could possibly exist.
Their own unwillingness
to except the unusual would be their own downfall.
Darus suddenly felt that
he wasnít alone in the room. He looked around in terror,
ìWh...whoís there?î
No one answered. The dark
merely remained silent. Taunting him without saying a thing.
Darus moved his arms
around.
The technicians had disconnected him from the cables earlier that
day. They felt that he was getting unstable and that they wouldnít
need him until he could give coherent
advice again.
He was still confined to
this damn chair, though. He was a more machine than he was fox.
Again, he felt that he was
not alone. He tried again,
ìWhoís there? Who i...is
i...i...it?î
Again, no one answered.
The dark still mocked him silently. The feeling of someone... or
something... being with him in the room did not go away. Darus looked
around again but could see
nothing.
ìM...mark? This isnít
f...f...funny.î
To his surprise and
terror,
someone answered,
ìNo. Not Mark.î
The voice was deep and
rich.
But it sounded perfectly horrible. The voice was flawless yet it held
an undertone of complete evil. Darus stared into the darkness,
ìWho are you?î
ìMe? Iím just here to pay
you a little visit, friend.î
Darus felt his body begin
to shake violently. He tried to control it but found that he couldnít.
The
voice continued,
ìThe broken one? Is that
what they call you here?î
Darus tried again,
ìWh...wh...what
a...a...are
y...you?î
ìOh, youíre getting good
at this Darus... but say it with some conviction.î
Something brushed Darusí
cheek. It felt cold and scaly. He quaked with terror. The voice went
on,
ìBut that IS a very good
question. What am I? How to put this in a way youíll understand.î
The voice paused. Darus
felt a feeling of something very evil near him. He saw two points of red
in the dark in front of him. He realized that they were the eyes of
whatever was speaking to him. The
voice spoke again, but this time it seemed even more evil,
ìI am your worst nightmare
and then some... come to very real life.î
There was a green glow
around
the eyes. Darus could vaguely make out a strange face. It looked
like something across between some sort of reptile and a skull. Darus
managed to choke out some more
words,
ìWh...what do y...y...you
want?î
The face grinned. Darus
quivered with fear. The voice spoke,
ìWhat I want... what I
want...
I want you, Darus... I want you...î
Darus was nearly paralyzed
with fear. The face continued to grin. More of the body began to
appear. It was across between skeletal and reptilian. Darus wanted
to look away but found that he couldnít
move his head.
ìItís time, Darus... it
is time...î
-Brett and Kelly MacDonaldís country home, Corneria
Brett sat back on the couch
and tried to watch the newscast without letting Fenica Lancer out of
his site. He muttered to himself,
ìGray and Mira, I do not
envy you one bit.î
Fenica was playing with
a whole bunch of blocks on the floor. Fortunately, she hadnít tried to
use
any of them as missiles... yet.
Brett listened to the
newscast
as he watched Fenica. Something caught his ear in the broadcast,
ì...fatality rate is
thought
to be nearly one-hundred percent. This the worst attack in the history
of
the Cornerian Government of Lylat. A terrorist group is claiming
responsibility
for this... calling
themselves the ëBrethren of the Fallení they have released the
following
tape to all media distributors...î
Brett looked up quickly
at the TV. The picture changed to show someone sitting behind a desk.
The lighting was such that they were obscured by shadow. The video
was obviously home-made and done
rather hastily. The person spoke,
ìBy the time you see this,
you will have witnessed the incredible power of my forces. We have
attacked the Office of Public Relations, the Office of Colonization,
and the Embassy of Katina. You will
notice that there are few survivors at best. We are sending a very
straightforward message with this... you
have shoved veterans of the war against Andross aside like spent
shells
for far too long... this is going to
stop NOW. Our demand is simple... there is no demand. The time for
reconciliation is long past... now is
the time for revenge. We will continue these attacks and there is
nothing
you can do about it. The
Brethren have spoken.î
The tape ended and the
newscast
went back to the studio view. The newscaster spoke again,
ìFor those of you who are
just tuning in, there was a brutal attack on the Office of Public
Relations, the Embassy of Katina, and the Office of Colonization, all
in Corneria City. The attacks were
made by large teams of armored soldiers who killed everyone they
encountered.
It is believed that they
have achieved nearly a one-hundred percent fatality rate.î
Brett shut off the
newscast.
He turned back to look at Fenica. She was building towers out of her
blocks. Oblivious to the disaster that had happened earlier that same
day. Kelly walked into the room and
smiled at Fenica. Brett looked up at her,
ìHave you seen the evening
newscast?î
Kelly shook her head,
ìNo, did something
happen.î
ìYes. A bunch of war vets
calling themselves the ëBrethren of the Fallení attacked a bunch of
Cornerian government buildings. They killed everyone inside. The
newscast
is saying that they got almost
everyone.î
ìDo Gray and Mira know
about
this? That sounds like it would connect to their assignment.î
ìI have no clue where Gray
and Mira are. I called Gray on his personal com unit and he only said
that he couldnít talk and that heíd call when he could.î
Kelly sighed. She sat down
on the couch next to Brett. She looked down at Fenica, who had
stopped playing with her blocks. Fenica walked over and jumped onto
Brettís lap. Kelly smiled,
ìBy the way, dear, itís
your turn to try to get her to eat something.î
Brett groaned,
ìNo, itís my turn to give
her food and try not to run out. She eats like thereís no tomorrow and
doesnít gain a pound! Takes after her father.î
Fenica giggled,
ìFood! I hungry.î
Brett corrected her,
ìNo, itís ëI am hungry.íî
Kelly laughed,
ìYouíre giving grammar
lessons
to a two-year-old.î
Fenica frowned,
ìTwo aní a HALF.î
Brett nodded,
ìYes. Well, itís time for
a certain two and a half year old to eat something. What would you
like?î
Fenica smiled, she liked
the idea of dinner time,
ìEvíryfing!î
Brett groaned again,
ìWeíll find something
nice.î
-Fox McCloudís old den, Papetoon
Fox heard a loud knock on
the door and sat up straight. He looked over at Fara and saw that she
was also awake. Fox got up and put his shirt on. He walked over to
the door and opened it a crack,
ìWhoís there?î
ìItís me, Tefin.î
Fox squinted into the
light
of the hall and saw the muskrat who had led them in, with his
camouflage gone, outside. Fox sighed,
ìWhat do you want?î
ìUh... Ms. DelVariot
requests
that you both be present for her... ahem... little speech. Feel free to
bring any recording devices for... er ahem... posterity.î
ìWeíll be there in a few
minutes.î
The muskrat nodded and
waddled
off. Fox closed the door and turned on the lights. Fara buried
her head under the covers of the bed,
ìPlease tell me weíre not
going to that stupid speech.î
ìUnfortunately we are. I
want to get a tape of this. Might be useful. Get dressed and letís go.î
Fara nodded and stepped
out of bed. They both quickly dressed.
Fully dressed, they
stepped
out into the corridor and walked outside. Sure enough, Minita was
standing at a makeshift podium with a number of her followers already
there. Fox looked around at the
gathering crowd,
ìThey must be camped
nearby.
Thereís no way this many could fit in my den... and thereís more
coming!î
Fara nodded. Minita was
drumming her paws impatiently on the podium. She called out Tefinís
name and he scurried out of the shadows to her. She whispered
something
in his ear. He nodded quickly
and scurried off again.
Fox and Fara found
somewhere
where they could see Minita and hear her well. More and more
people filed in and the field began to get fairly crowded. Finally
Tefin came up to the podium and spoke,
ìAttention everyone,
please
be silent. Our glorious leader, General Minita DelVariot!î
There was a massive cheer.
Fox started the small recorder he had. Minita smiled down on her
followers and began speaking,
ìFor a long time the
Cornerian
government has oppressed those who fought for them in the war.
For a long time they have tossed us away!î
There was a hiss of
derision
from the crowd. Minita continued,
ìThey have cast us down,
but now we will rise up! We have gathered force and gathered power!
We are ready... now it is time! The PIDF will join the Brethren of
the Fallen and make it stronger! We
will overcome the Cornerian government and make them bow before us!î
A massive cheer went up.
Fox and Fara looked at each other with worried expressions. Minita
spoke on,
ìOur first mission is one
of great importance... there is a huge convoy coming very near this
planet. Every one of you with a ship must be prepared to leave in
exactly
half an hour. We will strike this
convoy and destroy all of it! This will show the Cornerian government
that is no longer safe in space or on
the ground... that it is not safe anywhere! Now go! Prepare
yourselves
for the first battle in our new war!î
The cheer went to a roar.
Pilots and crew scrambled to go to their ships and prepare them. Fox
and Fara looked out over the field and saw what looked like hundreds
of various small ships. There was
even a couple larger ships.
They got down from their
vantage point and walked over to Minita. She smiled at them,
ìNow Corneria gets what
it deserves.î
Fox only nodded, Fara did
nothing. Minita waved her right paw around,
ìThis isnít even the best
of it... in orbit on the other side of the planet is a medium carrier!
It is
my new flag ship. Both of you will accompany me on it. Your Arwings
will be in the hangars and at your
disposal. You will witness firsthand the revenge of the fallen ones.
Corneria will regret its decision to
throw us aside.î
Fox and Fara both nodded.
ìWe will leave in half an
hour. You should probably get your things.î
Minita walked away and
left
Fox and Fara alone on the field. Fara looked over at Fox,
ìAre we going to do it?î
ìI donít think we have a
choice.î
ìThis is nuts. Theyíre
going
to start a civil war!î
ìNo kidding. The Brethren
of the Fallen? Whatís that?î
Fara shrugged,
ìNo idea. Well, letís get
our stuff.î
They walked back inside
Foxís den and went to their room to retrieve their things.
-Telderon Hills, Corneria
Deep inside the Telderon
Hills, under Tagaio Misadaís dojo, Gray, Mira, and Tagaio looked
desperately for any information on the First War of the Destroyer.
Actually, at the moment
they had all fallen asleep.
Gray picked his head up.
He looked around and saw that the other two were still asleep. He saw
something in front of him. It looked like a vixen wearing a dark tan
robe. She had silver hair and carried a
large sword. Gray muttered to himself,
ìOh man... I have to be
dreaming.î
To his surprise, the vixen
spoke,
ìFind Fox McCloud and Fara
Phoenix-McCloud. Combine your knowledge and you will know
what is to happen. Continue the search in the fortress in the clouds
of a dead world.î
The image disappeared.
Gray
shook his head but things remained the same. That didnít seem
very much like a dream, more like a vision. Fox McCloud? Fara
Phoenix-McCloud?
Hadnít seen them in
a long time. Gray lay down again on the mat he had been sleeping on
and thought.
Combine our knowledge?
That
meant that Fox and Fara knew something he needed to know, and
he knew something they needed to know. It also probably meant that
the search for more information
could stop at least for a little while.
Gray walked over to Mira
and shook her awake. She turned over and groaned,
ìLet me sleep.î
ìNo. We have to find Fox
McCloud and his wife. Now.î
ìDo you have any idea
where
they are?î
ìNope. Weíll have to wing
it. You with me?î
Mira nodded her head,
ìGray, Iím ALWAYS with
you.
No matter how stupid your idea sounds. Letís get moving... wait
a minute... what about Tagaio?î
Gray found a sheet of
paper
and took out a pen,
ìIíll leave him a note.î
He quickly wrote a note
and stuck it next to the sleeping panda. He and Mira made their way
back up the stairs and into the dojo. They put their shoes back on
and walked out into the early morning
air. Gray explained everything as they walked,
ìI saw someone in a vision
that told me to find Fox and Fara and combine our knowledge. I
assume that means we tell them about the war with the Destroyer and
all that and they give us something
that makes sense of that. Then the person... it was a vixen with a
huge sword... told me to ëcontinue the
search in a fortress in the clouds of a dead world.í Those are her
exact words... donít mean a thing to me,
how about you?î
Mira shook her head,
ìNot a clue. How do you
suggest we find Fox and Fara?î
ìNo idea. Iím completely
open to suggestions.î
Mira sighed,
ìGood old impulsive Gray
Lancer... youíve never actually thought your actions through in your
life, have you?î
Gray shook his head
earnestly.
Mira laughed,
ìGo figure. Well... Iím
not really sure how to find Fox or Fara... the only sure bet is that
theyíll
be together.î
ìI think I know how we can
do this.î
Mira shot him a
questioning
glance. Gray nodded,
ìEvery spaceport has a
departure
and arrival log. You know, we have to sign in with control
before landing... well, we can just check the log and that would at
least give us a spaceport name.î
Mira nodded,
ìSounds like as good an
idea as any. Except that the log is protected by a bunch of security
features to prevent people from doing exactly that.î
Gray smiled,
ìNot for long. Iíve still
got my wild card.î
-Cornerian Underworld, Corneria City
ìMan, they werenít kidding
around when they named this place, were they?î
Gray nodded at his wifeís
comment. The Cornerian Underworld was the generic name for the
lowest levels of Corneria City. It was below the busy and sunlit
streets,
below even the modern power lines
and sewage system. This was the remains of an earlier era.
The place was far from
uninhabited.
There were still many who lived down here... or who did
business from the underground chambers.
They were here to find
someone
in the latter category. Gray and Mira jumped down from the
large pipe they had been walking on and onto a rusty catwalk.
They went to the end of
the catwalk and to a ladder leading further down. Gray got on first and
began climbing, followed shortly by Mira. They climbed down about
fifty
feet and the ladder ended. There
was no floor, but a deep pit which went down even further. There was
also a huge pipe behind the ladder.
Gray swung on the bottom rung of the ladder and into the pipe. Mira
followed. They walked down the
pipe to a small door. A slit in the door opened and someone looked
out. Gray heard a raspy voice,
ìWho are you two?î
ìTell Auerulis that Gray
Lancer is here to see her.î
ìWhy?î
ìJust do it and youíll
see.î
The slit snapped shut.
Gray
heard footpawsteps and some talking inside, though he couldnít
make out the words. Finally, the door opened. A lanky weasel was
beyond.
He motioned for the two foxes
to come in,
ìCome on. Sheís expecting
you.î
Gray smiled and entered,
followed by Mira. The weasel pointed to a rusty door at the other end of
the small room. Gray opened the door and he and Mira stepped inside.
They closed the door behind them.
Inside was a small wooden desk with a vixen sitting behind it. She
had dark brown fur and was wearing
jeans, a tank top, and a combat vest. She smiled at Gray and Mira,
ìHey, good to see you
both.
Havenít since...î
Gray finished her
sentence,
ìThe fight against
Sevantra.
Yeah, I know. Good to see you again, Auerulis.î
Auerulis Varius stood up
and extended a paw. She shook paws with Gray and then Mira.
Auerulis sat back down and motioned for Gray and Mira to do likewise.
They took seats on two crates.
Auerulis smiled again,
ìI really am glad to see
you both. Been a while, hasnít it. Both of you still in one piece? Gray,
no
mechanical limbs yet? Theyíre all the rage with war vets, you know.î
Gray shook his head,
ìSorry, Auerulis. Iím
still
mostly in one piece. You?î
ìIím fine. With all Iíve
been through, Iíve never taken a scratch. Itís pretty amazing, actually.î
Mira was looking around
the room. She turned to Auerulis,
ìAuerulis, youíve really
relaxed your standard since we last saw you.î
Auerulis chuckled,
ìNo kidding. Well, in case
you havenít been following the news...î
Gray came in,
ìWe havenít been. Weíve
been out of touch for quite a while. Please start at the top.î
Auerulis took a breath,
ìOk. Well... a day or so
ago, a bunch of very pissed off war veterans attacked three government
buildings. They killed everyone inside. Theyíre calling themselves
the ëBrethren of the Fallení and arenít
demanding anything. They just want war. And so far theyíre getting
their wish. And only about an hour
ago, they sent another message out. Look at this.î
She motioned for them to
watch a small screen on the wall. Auerulis pressed a button and the
image of someone behind a desk appeared. The lighting on the video
hid their face in shadow. They spoke
in a defiant voice,
ìOur glorious war has been
joined by fresh forces. The Papetoon Independent Defense Force has
come over to our side and destroyed one of the oppressor convoys in
the process. Their leader, General
DelVariot, will be our new air force commander! You are no longer
safe
in your space ships, Corneria. Do
you hear that, Cornerian people? You too may join us against the
horrible
oppressor. We are only
concerned with the death of the government and wish no harm upon
innocent
people.î
Auerulis shut the
recording
off,
ìGet the idea? I donít
think
the media will be allowed to air that little one. Did you get that last
part? I think itís total crap. Soon theyíll been turning on the
innocent
people they claim to be supporting.î
Gray stared at Auerulis,
ìThen itís even more
important
than ever that we find Fox McCloud and Fara Phoenix-
McCloud!î
Auerulis raised one
eyebrow
in a skeptical gesture,
ìHow, might I ask, do you
plan to do that.î
Gray smiled,
ìThatís why I came to you.
I want you to hack into the takeoff and landing logs for every major
spaceport in Lylat and find out if theyíre mentioned.î
Auerulis nodded,
ìGive me half an hour.î
Gray smiled again,
ìYouíve got ten minutes.î
Auerulis laughed and took
out a small computer,
ìEasy enough. Ten minutes
then.î
After ten minutes of
sitting
around and doing absolutely nothing. Auerulis finally looked up from
her computer,
ìRight. Fox McCloud
registered
a transport for two Arwings off of Corneria City Central
Spaceport. Destination: Papetoon. Then he got tickets for himself and
his wife on the Far-Runner to go to
the same place.î
Gray nodded,
ìTrace the fighters and
find out what happened with them.î
Auerulis shrugged,
ìOk. Letís see...
apparently
they got picked up Fox and Fara after they got to Papetoon. Flew ëem
right out.î
Gray tapped his nose and
flicked one ear down,
ìWell, that probably means
that he and Fara stayed on Papetoon. Maybe we should start our
search there.î
Mira nodded,
ìYeah... but where would
Fox want to go on Papetoon.î
Grayís eyes lit up,
ìHis old den. We should
definitely check that out. Hey, Auerulis, thanks a lot.î
He got up and hugged
Auerulis.
She smiled and nudged him,
ìGet going. Iíd love to
help you two out... truth is, I got nothing to do... but both the
government
and the veterans will probably want me dead. Theyíve both got good
reason to hate me. Maybe Iíll be able
to offer some help in the future.î
Gray smiled,
ìIíll keep that in mind.
Have fun hiding in your stink old sewer.î
ìHey, watch it there,
mister.
Itís not a sewer... anymore.î
Gray laughed as he and
Mira
left the room. Auerulis grinned and leaned back in her chair.
-The Broadsword, in orbit around Venom
There were guards all
around
Crew Section 12B when Mark Selster got down there. He had been
called down by Commander Akaris himself.
Mark saw Commander Akaris
and saluted,
ìSir. You called.î
Akaris looked sick. He
nodded
and motioned around,
ìYeah yeah yeah. Do you
have any idea what happened down here?î
ìNo clue.î
ìWell... this morning we
tried to consult Darus and he wasnít responding... we thought
something was wrong so we went down to check it out...î
ìAnd...î
ìSee for yourself.î
Commander Akaris pointed
to the door to Crew Section 12B. Mark walked up to the area and
slowly opened the door.
He shut it quickly and
turned
away. He swore loudly,
ìOh god... what the hell
happened in there?!î
Commander Akaris shot him
a wry smile,
ìGo on in and see.î
Mark took a deep breath
and collected himself. He had to face this. He opened the door and
stepped inside.
At first, what he saw was
just a tangle of images with no connection. But suddenly things
resolved to horrible clarity. Mark felt the bile rising in his throat
and he turned away to collect himself
again. He took another look around.
The walls were heavily
splattered
with what appeared to be blood. As if that werenít enough, he
saw the remains of Darus.
The chair was still there,
along with the legs... still on the floor. The ended in bits of flesh
that
suggested that they had been torn off. Mark looked around for the
rest
of the body.
He heard someone come in
from the door. It was Commander Akaris. The commander spoke
softly,
ìNasty crap, isnít it?
Almost
made me puke myself. His arms are over there and there.î
The fisher pointed. Mark
looked and saw Darusí arms to the left and right of the chair. Akaris
spoke again,
ìNow come around and look
behind, itís the best part.î
They rounded the table and
again Mark had to turn away. He had to fight hard to keep the bile
down. He looked back at what he had just seen.
What was obviously Darusí
limbless, headless torso lay on the ground. It was ripped wide open.
Mark forced himself to look closer,
ìGood lord... thereís no
organs! And whereís the head?î
Commander Akaris pointed,
the head was at the far end of the room. The face was fixed with a
permanent of utter horror. Mark closed his eyes,
ìGood god... good lord...
oh god... where are his organs?î
Commander Akaris groaned,
ìYou wonít like this
part...
we canít find them but we think we know what happened to them.î
Mark glanced up at him.
Commander Akaris continued,
ìWe examined the torso
closely,
which was real fun. It appears as if something ripped him open
and ATE his organs.î
Mark stared,
ìYouíre not kidding, are
you?î
ìNo. There are goddamn
tooth
marks on that corpse. Someone decided to take a nice bite out of
our friend Darus. Someone with with damn big and damn sharp teeth.î
ìSir, I need to talk with
you, preferably elsewhere.î
ìUnderstood. Letís get the
hell out.î
They walked out the door
and out of Crew Section 12B. Commander Akaris and Mark moved
away from the guards. Commander Akaris looked at Mark,
ìWhat is it, soldier?î
ìSir, I saw Darus before
he died... it looked a whole lot like he was really afraid of something.
It
looked as if he was afraid of something coming to kill him.î
ìInteresting.î
ìAnd another thing... does
this killing seem a little... ritualistic?î
ìWhat?î
ìCome on, commander. Look
at it... both his arms in symmetry... his head placed at the end of
the room on line with the torso which is ripped open and has no vital
organs... THAT IS NOT
COINCIDENCE!î
Commander Akaris grabbed
his shoulder and looked straight in his eyes,
ìAre you suggesting that
someone on this ship has killed one of my men and may do it again?î
ìNot someone... something.
Do you remember Darusí messages... they seemed like nonsense...
maybe it was more than that.î
ìYouíre telling me that
some creature has come through from god-only-knows where and is
killing people?î
ìAfter seeing that damn
room, Iím ready to believe anything... especially things which would
explain a ritual killing involving huge tooth marks.î
Commander Akaris stared
directly at Mark,
ìYou are not to breath a
single word about your private theories to anyone.î
ìYou donít believe me?î
ìNo... the thing is... I
believe you are one-hundred percent right. And as of now you are going
to
work with anyone else who would possibly be of assistance and find
out what the hell we can do.î
ìCaptain Meris, sir.î
ìWhat?î
ìSheís the one who first
noticed that Darus looked like he was afraid of something. Sheíd be
useful.î
ìThen get her! You can
have
the entire squadron if you can find out what the hell this thing is.î
ìSir...î
ìYes?î
ìCan you stop saying
ëhell?íî
ìWhy?î
ìBecause I think it might
be an accurate description of what weíre dealing with here... and thatís
beginning to scare me.î
-Fox McCloudís old den, Papetoon
Fara was sitting on the bed
in Foxís old room curled up in a ball. Fox walked in and sat
down next to her. She moved closer and Fox held her close in his
arms.
She shook her head and
closed her eyes,
ìIs this what itís all
about?
Has it come this far?î
Fox just held her. She
groaned,
ìItís as bad as the war...
worse even... theyíre intent on destroying the entire government and
everyone who works for it. The convoy never had a chance... they hit
it too quickly and with too many...î
Fox nodded and stroked his
wifeís hair,
ìThey want a civil war...
and it looks a lot like theyíre going to get one...î
He heard someone speak
very
urgently,
ìGo outside! Now! Thereís
someone coming you need to see!î
Fox looked at his wife,
ìDid you say something?î
She shook her head. Fox
looked puzzled,
ìSomeone just told me to
get outside.î
Fara stared at Fox,
ìYou mean you didnít say
that?î
They both got up quickly
and opened the door, they made their way outside the den quickly.
Outside Minita was sitting on a stump with Tefin hovering nearby.
Minita
was playing around with a
mean looking combat knife. She looked up and saw Fox and Fara,
ìAh, glad to see you two
again. Did you enjoy our little show today?î
Fox shrugged. Fara
remained
still and silent. Minita grinned,
ìAfter today, the
Cornerian
government canít ignore the Brethren any longer. Weíll crush them
like they tried to crush us.î
Off around the corner they
heard the sounds of a commotion at the perimeter checkpoint. They
heard someone shouting,
ìDammit! Let me see Fox
McCloud!î
Then the sound of someone
cocking a rifle. The voice spoke again,
ìYou really know how to
use that? I donít think so.î
A loud crack and a yelp
of pain. The voice again,
ìAt least let me talk to
whoever is in charge.î
Minita got up and walked
around the corner, followed closely by Tefin. Fox and Fara decided it
was worth looking in to and they too followed the red wolf.
Around the corner an
interesting
sight greeted them. The checkpoint guard was sitting on the
ground holding his jaw and cursing, his rifle lying next to him.
Above
him stood two foxes. A fox and a
vixen. The fox had gray fur and looked very angry. The vixen was
grinning
broadly. Fox looked closer at
them... they looked familiar. Fara spoke out,
ìItís Gray and Mira
Lancer!î
Fox looked again and
confirmed
this. From the looks of things, Grayís temper had got the better
of him. Gray hauled the guard up and spoke again to him,
ìLet me talk to someone
or Iíll find some other bones to break!î
Minita ran up and placed
her paw on Grayís arm,
ìIím sorry, would you
please
drop my guard.î
Gray did this and squinted
at the red wolf,
ìWho the hell are you?î
ìMy name is Minita
DelVariot...
I command these forces...î
Grayís eyes widened and
a look of intense hatred crossed them,
ìMinita DELVARIOT?!
General
DelVariot?!î
She nodded. Gray punched
her across the face. There was a loud smack of his fist connecting and
Minita fell back hard. Gray hauled her up by her collar,
ìHow the hell could you
attack that convoy?! How could you join the Brethren of the Fallen?!
Donít you have any bloody honor?!î
Minita snarled and lashed
out at Gray. He didnít realize that both her arms were cybernetic
and wasnít prepared for her swiftness. The blow caught him dead on
and knocked him back. Minita
backed off and Gray stood slowly. Minita glared at him,
ìThe question is not my
honor but your intelligence.î
She ran at him and slashed
down with her right arm. It connected with Grayís nose and blood
erupted from a small wound. Gray flailed backwards and Minita caught
him with another punch to the
gut. There was the sound of a blade being drawn and
a combat knife was in Minitaís paw. She
stabbed at Gray and barely grazed his shoulder. Gray kicked at her
paw holding the knife. It hit square on
but had no effect. Minita laughed,
ìHaving arms made of metal
is a great help sometimes.î
She reached out with the
paw not holding the knife and grabbed Gray around the throat. She
lifted him up and held the knife to his throat,
ìI donít know who you are
or what youíre doing here... but you are going to die...î
There was a loud thud and
Minita let out a surprised yelp. She dropped both Gray and the knife
and fell to the ground, stunned. Mira was standing over her holding
a large rock. Gray collapsed and lay
on the ground. Mira walked over and picked him up, holding his head
in her lap. He groaned,
ìWhy is it always me
getting
hurt?î
ìItís not. Remember
Venom?î
ìOh yeah. Forget I said
anything. Just get me some bandages.î
Mira nodded and ran off
to get the equipment. Fox and Fara walked over to Gray stood over him.
Fara looked down at the injured fox,
ìYou wanted to talk to
us?î
ìOh yeah... almost forgot
about that. Tell me anything youíve experienced lately that has any
vague connection to this whole civil war... no matter how obscure.î
Fox thought for a second
and then answered,
ìWell... we were on the
cap ship that attacked the convoy. The PIDF has joined the Brethren of
the Fallen... and thereís this weird dream Iíve been having where a
vixen, I think itís Mariel Phoenix,
standing over a field with the remains of a huge battle. Someone asks
if it will happen again and
she says it will someday.î
A look of fear crossed
Grayís
face. He sat up,
ìYou two need to come with
me and Mira.î
Fox almost laughed,
ìWhat? Where?î
Gray glared at him,
ìThis is deadly serious.
This is no ordinary civil war... itís only the beginning of an invasion
from another dimension... thatís a bad way to describe it but Iíll
explain later.î
Foxís expression became
serious,
ìWhere are we going?î
ìTo recruit a little bit
of help.î
Mira came running back
with
bandages and began to dress Grayís wounds. She looked at
Minita nervously,
ìThe whole camp is too
confused
to do anything, but only until Minita wakes up. Weíd better get
out of here.î
-The Broadsword, in mid orbit around Venom
Captain Alison Meris and
Sergeant Mark Selster sat together in Markís cabin and looked over all
the data disks they had been able to find in the shipís library on
ancient ritual sacrfices. It had seemed like
a good place to start, considering the nature of the killing.
Alison ejected another
disk
and tossed it down,
ìUgh! This is useless! I
havenít been able to find a single thing that matches the violence and
brutality of that killing! Nowhere is there a ritual that involves
tearing the victim open and eating their
vital organs!î
Mark groaned,
ìDonít remind me. Ok, I
think that we can stop this search now. Itís pretty obvious that we
arenít
dealing with anything even remotely normal here.î
Alison was fishing around
in the vast stacks of data disks and came up with something. It wasnít
a disk but a small leather-bound book. She opened it,
ìThis
is odd. Must have been in the back of the
library or something. Hmmm... ëThe Accounts of Tisirus... volume 5,
Major and Minor Demons, Demonic
Acolytes, Fallen Angels, and Other Denzins of the Realms of Demons.í
Weird. Maybe worth a look.î
She opened the book on the
floor and Mark looked on as they read it. Alison read one part of the
contents aloud,
ìíChapter 18, Visitors of
the night.íî
She opened to the chapter
and they saw the sub-contents. Alison looked through them and found
a likely heading,
ìOk, here we go. ëPart 5,
Night killers.íî
She flipped to the chapter
and they read it. Alison shook her head after they had finished,
ìNo. Thatís nothing like
it.î
Mark picked up the book,
ìMaybe weíre looking at
this wrong. Remember how Darus kept going on about something
ëcoming through.í Letís try this, ëChapter 14, Heralds of the demon
world.íî
They opened it to the
chapter.
Mark look at the sub-contents,
ìThis is just a list of
names. Weíll have to read the entire chapter.î
Alison sighed. They began
to read.
-Arris City, Fortuna
Gray caught the closing
door with his paw and held it open. He winced as the door was pressed
harder against his paw,
ìWill you please at least
hear me out?î
The person on the other
side answered quickly,
ìNo. No I wonít.î
The door was given another
shove and Gray grunted in pain. He tried again,
ìHow about if we told you
this civil war is just a front for an invasion from another dimension?î
ìIíd say you were lying.î
ìHow about if we showed
you a book several thousand years old that says itís happened before
and will happen again?î
Gray felt the pressure of
the door being released. The voice spoke,
ìShow it.î
Gray pulled out the book
which he had taken from Tagaioís study and held the edge up to the
crack in the door. The door opened
completely
and revealed Katt Monroe standing in the doorway. She
nodded at the two visitors, Gray and Mira Lancer,
ìCome in.î
She glared at Gray,
ìYouíre really testing me
here... trying to pull me back into a war.î
ìListen, if weíre right...
and we probably are... then youíll get involved now or by default when
thousands of creatures from another dimension storm your house and
kill you.î
Katt narrowed her eyes,
ìLike I said, youíre
really
testing me. Letís see the book.î
Gray passed it to her
along
with a small slip of paper,
ìThat paper is the date
test slip. It proves that the book is about a thousand years old.î
Katt glanced at the slip
and nodded,
ìAlright. But what if the
info inside was just made up?î
ìRead it and then compare
it to whatís happening now. Iíve written a summary, itís in the front
of the book.î
Katt pulled the printouts
out and glanced over them. Her eyes widened. Gray nodded,
ìSee. By the way, there
are archeological findings from modern times that say those battles did
occur... lots of strange skeletons. Most of them have been passed off
as some throwback species that
was hunted to extinction. Iím not so sure that theyíre a throwback
species.î
Katt nodded,
ìOk, Iím willing to hear
what youíve got to say. Something weird is happening. You probably
know a whole lot more about the civil war than I do.î
Gray sighed,
ìFrom the top. The
organization
known as the Brethren of the Fallen has declared total war on
the Cornerian government. They donít want anything except to wipe the
government out of existence.
They have recently been joined by the Papetoon Independant Defense
Force. We think that this is all
the start of a repeat of what happened over a thousand years ago. The
book has all that.î
ìLancer, this is still a
stretch. Why should I, of all people, believe that the civil war is the
start of
some horrible dimensional war just because a book says it happened
before and MIGHT happen
again.î
ìThe morale of Lylat.î
Katt looked closely at
Gray,
ìAre you drunk?î
ìNot even close. Havenít
you read any of the reports on how no one wants to live in Lylat
anymore, how the suicide rate is however many times what it was two
years ago?î
Katt nodded,
ìSo?î
ìThe system is in its best
shape ever. Think of one reason besides an influence from some
powerful being that would account for the lowering morale.î
Katt thought for a minute,
ìI canít. There isnít a
reason... but it could just be a fluke.î
ìA system-wide fluke that
reaches every level and every class? I donít think so. Katt, itís time
to
face up to things...î
ìWhy me?î
ìBecause youíre one of
veterans
of the war against Andross who isnít trying
to start a civil war.î
ìWell, why not find some
old war vets who donít want the civil war and convince them to help
you?î
Gray sighed,
ìBecause, in all honesty,
I donít trust them for crap.î
Katt nodded and smiled,
ìI knew you were going to
say that. Ok, if you trust me... Iíll help you. Where do we start?î
Gray smiled and took the
book from Katt,
ìWe wait for Fox to call
me back about his little mission. See, we have to solve a little riddle
to
go on in our quest and Fox decided he knew who could help us out. He
and Fara should be calling
back within the next few hours.î
Katt groaned,
ìOh goodie, that sounds
like loads of fun.î
Gray laughed,
ìDonít worry, we can go
get something to eat while we wait.î
Katt nodded,
ìOnly one condition, you
two are paying.î
-Corneria City
ìDid I ever tell you about
how your father and I got away from those pirates in Jarekís Run on
Katina?î
Fox groaned. Peppy was
going
into one of his numerous stories. Fox quickly countered,
ìYes, several times.î
Peppy totally ignored Fox,
ìAnyway, it was back...
whenever... we were being chased by pirate ships on Katina, in the area
which is near Jarekís Run. Now, some say that Jarekís Run gets its
name from Sir Edmund Jarek, who
discovered the place back in the olden days of such. Now thatís a
completely
different story which I think
Iíll tell you right now. See, sir Edmund Jarek was a great explorer
known for taking incredible risks
and...î
Fox growled,
ìWill you stop going off
on those irrelevant stories! Iíve come here to ask your help, not for
bloody story time!î
Fara began laughing. Peppy
squinted at Fox,
ìYouíre just like your
dad.
Did I ever tell you...î
ìShut up and listen.î
ìOk, Junior.î
Fox sat down on Peppyís
couch and the old rabbit sat in his favorite armchair. Fara sat next to
Fox. Fox looked up at Peppy,
ìWe have a little riddle
for you.î
ìNow, that reminds me
of...î
ìNot now. This is serious.
Solve this riddle: ëThe fortress in the clouds of a dead world.í Where
is it?î
ìNow, Junior, thatís a
tricky
one.î
Fox nodded,
ìYep, can you solve it?î
ìGive me a second to
think.î
Fox drummed his finger
impatiently
as the rabbit thought. Finally, Peppy spoke again,
ìIíve got it, Junior. The
dead world must be Venom. The only fortress in the clouds I can think of
there is Orbital Hangar V1. It was an old attempt by the Cornerian
Air Force during the war to put ships
right next to Venom. The whole place was abandoned suddenly for an
unknown reason.î
Fox nodded. Fara leaned
forward and spoke,
ìCan you take us there?î
ìSorry, Fara. I canít do
that.î
Peppy saw their
crestfallen
expressions and smiled,
ìDonít worry, I know
someone
who can.î
Fox nodded. Peppy got out
a piece of paper and began writing,
ìHeís a coyote named Arrek
Largen. Was in the special forces during the war...î
Fox frowned,
ìI know him. Do you know
how to get in touch with him?î
Peppy nodded,
ìSure. Hereís his business
card.î
Peppy handed Fox a small
card with writing on it. Fox read the card:
Arrek Largen
Supernatural bounty
hunter/investigator
Com: 11294-20192
Jharnik City, Corneria
Fox put the card in his
pocket
and got up,
ìThanks, Peppy.î
ìNo problem, did I ever
tell you how much youíre like your dad?î
ìOh yeah. We have to go
now.î
He and Fara thanked Peppy
for his help and walked out. Outside Fara turned to Fox,
ìHeís getting old, isnít
he?î
ìYep. Now we need to call
Gray.î
Fara pulled out her
personal
com and punched in Grayís number. She spoke into the com,
ìGray, the riddle is
talking
about a place over Venom called Orbital Hangar V1. Peppy says that
Arrek Largen can get us there.î
They heard Gray swear on
the other end of the com,
ìI havenít seen him since
Sevantra. Well, Katt agreed to help us. I called Falco and his stream of
vulgar expressions assured me he doesnít want any part of this! Good
going, both of you.î
The com shut off. Fara put
it back in her jacket pocket. She and Fox continued walking down the
street towards the transit system station. Arrek Largen had helped
them a couple years ago in their fight
against Sevantra and her dark master. In fact, he had been the one
to kill her and banish her master.
But would he want any part
in another invasion of dark forces?
-Jharnik City, Corneria
Arrek Largen leaned back
in his chair and groaned loudly. It had been too long a day. He hadnít
had anything interesting to do... just lots of professors consulting
him on matters of the occult. All Arrek
could think about was going home.
His com unit chimed.
Arrek picked up the com
unit, set it to private mode.
He listened to what the
person had to say...
And his eyes widened. He
took a short breath,
ìIíll be there inside the
hour.î
He shut the com off. That
was Gray Lancer, an old acquaintance of his. Together they had fought
the evil Sevantra and her master. Together they had defeated both.
But now something far
worse
was happening. Gray had managed to sum it up rather quickly.
Arrek shook his head and muttered,
ìGood god, have mercy on
my soul. This is worse than I feared.î
He rumaged around his
crowded
office and found a number of books he knew he would need. He
packed them in a bag along with several other artifacts and extra
clips
for his handgun. He kept several of
these clips separate from the rest... they were divided into several
pouches. These clips held special bullets
for use outside of the norm.
It had been a long time
since heíd been hunting anything really big. Now it looked like heíd
really have a chance at something challenging. This made Sevantraís
master look like a ghost that jumped
out of dark corners to scare little children.
-The Broadsword, in mid orbit around Venom
Alison was the first to see
the sub-chapter that looked likely. She read out loud,
ìíHerald Vermontalis...
herald to him known as the Destroyer and his army. The Herald
Vermontalis is often sent to silence those who are too talkative
about
his masterís coming. Although
Vermontalis is indeed powerful, he can only appear in complete
darkness...íî
She skipped down the page
a little,
ìí...to be also noted are
Herald Vermontalisí methods of dispatching with victims. He seems to
prefer a ritual approach, tearing his victims limb-from-limb and
arranging
them in a symmetrical pattern.
He is also known to tear open a victimís body and devour their
internal
organs...íî
Alison and Mark looked at
each other. Alison nodded,
ìYeah... thatís it. Utter
darkness? No light at all... the only place on the ship like that is Crew
Section 12B. Well, at least no one else has to worry about being torn
apart as they sleep.î
Mark grimaced,
ìI donít know... it didnít
look like Darus was asleep when he was attacked. It looked like he was
conscious of every part of it.î
Alison shuddered,
ìThatís not a good
thought.
Think we should tell Commander Akaris about this?î
ìNo.î
Alison looked very
surprised.
She looked closely at Mark,
ìAre you feelin Ok?î
ìAlison. Akaris has a
vague
feeling that something weird is happening. He may even be prepared
to accept the supernatural explanation... but in no way is he
prepared
for this kind of stuff. You and I both
know Akaris very well... if we tell him heíll overreacte, misjudge,
and screw everything up.î
Alison nodded she was
looking
through the book,
ìOk then. Mark... there
are seven full chapters with information relating only to the Destroy.
This is probably worth a look!î
-Arris City, Fortuna
Arrek Largen sat down and
sighed,
ìNot a good thing, is it?î
Fox McCloud shook his
head.
Arrek nodded,
ìYeah, well... was Peppy
absolutely sure that the riddle meant Orbital Hangar V1?î
ìHe got it right off. I
think heís pretty sure that itís the only place that fits the
description.î
ìDamn. Too damn bad. Well,
listen, I know a little bit more about that place than most. Judging
from other info youíve given me... it seems likely that it IS the
place.î
ìHowís that?î
ìWell... let me give you
a little background on this whole thing.î
Arrek sat down and got
comfortable.
He was frowning,
ìSee... the Cornerian Air
Force decided a while ago it wanted a base really close to Venom where
they could just reach out and smash whatever Andross was doing and
then scurry back before he could do
a thing about it.î
Arrek paused. Fox nodded
and Arrek continued speaking,
ìWell, the managed to run
the supplies to build a small base in via small cargo ships. Got the
thing assembled piece-by-piece hidden in the clouds of Venom. But
then
stuff started to go wrong. Little
things at first, a few minor accidents on site and stuff like that.
They all figured that the base was gonna
go up right on schedule. Nothing special.î
Fox nodded again,
ìSo what?î
Arrek smiled grimly,
ìWell, the little
accidents
began to escalate. I donít know many details but I do know this... the
Cornerian Military abandoned suddenly, they disavowed all knowledge
of its existence... and I went there
and got some weird feelings off that place.î
Fox looked skeptical,
ìWeird feelings?î
Arrek glared,
ìFox... I know you donít
understand the supernatural to save your life, but when dealing with it,
feelings and instinct mean a lot more than hard facts.î
Arrek looked closely at
Fox and frowned deeply,
ìFox, listen to me and
listen
very carefully. It is very important that you understand exactly what
is happening here...î
Foxís look vanished. He
was beginning to get a little bit nervous. Arrek looked deep into his
eyes
and spoke in a slow and deep voice,
ìFox... we are about to
go to a place that has been condemned... you cannot even begin to
imagine the kinds of things which I have heard about happening in
places
like this. Iíd tell you some
stories, but you would refuse outright to set a paw near it if I did.
Do you understand?î
Fox nodded nervously.
Arrek
sat back and frowned again,
ìWe leave tomorrow.î
Fox only nodded again.
Arrek
got up and left the room. Fox shook his head slowly and muttered
to himself. What was he getting into?
He hadnít the faintest
idea
whatsoever.
-Foxís old den, Papetoon
Tefin was smarter than he
looked. He wasnít going to talk to Minita when she was in a mood like
this.
The red wolf sat on a
stump
outside with a combat knife in her right paw. She looked
dangerously close to the edge. Tefin watched her nervously with two
of her other aides.
Minita took the combat
knife
and placed the point on her thigh. Tefin swallowed nervously.
Minita pressed the knife down until blood flowed up through her pants
leg. She slid the knife down about
three inches and lifted it again. There was a red streak of blood
oozing
from the rip in her pants.
Tefin cringed. Minita
looked
down at her own blood as if it were the most fascinating thing in
the whole world. She slowly turned her head and spoke in a low growl
to Tefin,
ìBring the prisoner...
whatís
his name?î
ìUh... uh...Renit
Buroughs,
sir.î
Minita narrowed her eyes,
ìBring him now.î
Tefin saluted and dashed
off. The two other aides glanced around nervously. Minita glared at
them,
ìWhat the hell do you
think
youíre doing around me? Get the hell away.î
They quickly obliged the
viscious red wolf and ran off themselves. Minita looked around and
growled. She took the knife and set it to the left of the first wound
on her thigh. Again she pressed it down
and made a small gash down her thigh. She did the same to the right
of the first wound. Finally, she made
a cut running across all three of the wounds.
She couldnít take this
much
longer. She needed to fight... she needed to kill. She needed to smell
the perculiar odor of death and have the tang of blood on her tongue
again.
The prisoner was now being
brought out. Two guards escorted him into the field. The prisoner
was also a red wolf. He had been one of her pilots who had refused
to fight for her. The guards brought
the prisoner up to Minita. She glared at him,
ìSo... Renit Buroughs...î
He sneered defiantly,
ìNice try, DelVariot...
hiding behind your damn goons.î
Minita motioned at the
guards
and snarled,
ìLeave now.î
The guards nodded and ran
off. Minita kept her head down. Renit spoke in a defiant tone and
sarcastic,
ìWhat are you going to do
to me, oh glorious leader?î
That was what Minita had
been waiting for. She brought her head up. Renit stared directly into
her eyes and saw every ounce of the blood lust and hatred. Minita
flashed
an evil grin,
ìUse your imagination.î
Renitís expression of
defiance
and confidence completely vanished. He stared in fear at Minita.
She grinned widely and brought up her right arm.
She pulled the glove
slowly
off to reveal the cold metal underneath. She flexed the fingers slowly
and shook her head slowly,
ìItís been too long...î
With a flick of her wrist,
her combat knife was in her paw. It still had a touch of her own blood
on it. Renit looked down and saw the cuts on Minitaís right thigh.
He swallowed hard. Minita rasied the
combat knife high.
She plunged it down into
her own right thigh, right in the middle of the cuts. She pulled the
blade out, covered in blood. Blood oozed from the wound but Minita
showed no sign that she had felt any
pain. She smiled again,
ìImpressive, isnít it? No
you try.î
Renit began to slowly back
away. Minita was on him like a lightning bolt. She grabbed his throat
and hauled him up,
ìYou betrayed me, Captain
Buroughs. Isnít that right?î
Renit could only let out
a choked sob. Minita narrowed her eyes,
ìWhatís that?î
She tightened her grip.
Renit gasped for air. Suddenly, Minita threw him back to the ground.
Renit lay on the ground and held his throat. Minita sneered at him,
ìSeeing as you have no
particular
need to use your mouth...î
She kicked out with her
left footpaw and caught Renit directly under the jaw. The male red
wolfís jaw cracked and he yelped in pain. He spat blood and backed
up, whimpering. Minita jumped over
to him and held up the knife. Renit put up a paw as if to tell her
to stop...
Minita thrust the combat
knife into the dead center of Renitís paw. He screamed in pain and
blood quickly flowed around the knife and down his arm. Minita
removed
the knife, leaving a gaping
wound through Renitís right paw.
She kicked down at his
left
leg and hit the kneecap. A loud popping sound and another cry of
pain. Minita felt alive now. Her victim was bleeding profusely now...
his bones broken... his flesh torn.
Minita skillfully lashed
out with the knife and grazed Renitís chest. It sent a large gash running
open down his chest. Renit screamed again.
Minita breathed deeply and
stood back. She watched as Renit writhed in agony. It was over now.
Time to finish the job.
She drew another blade
from
the belt across her chest. A long throwing blade. She took careful
aim and let fly with her enhanced strength...
The blade stuck deep into
Renit Buroughsí head. He gave a final choked cry and fell back, finally
dead. His eyes rolled back in his head and the blood seeped out
around
the blade embedded deep within
his skull.
Minitia called out. One
of her aides came running up. She motioned at the corpse of Renit
Buroughs,
ìGet that out of my
sight.î
The aide nodded. He looked
down at the body and winced visibly. He ran off to get some guards
to take it away.
Minita sat down again on
the stump. A temporary fix at best. She lapped the blade of her combat
knife with her tongue. The Brethren were taking too long to make up
their minds about what to attack and
when.
Besides, they never put
her on ground assaults. She was always in the air... away from the smells
and sights of true war. She couldnít take much more of it.
Tefin had nervously poked
his way back to Minita. He glanced away from Buroughsí corpse in
disgust. Minita spoke to Tefin without looking at the muskrat,
ìTefin. You are to prepare
the best two squads of ground troops we have and prepare them for an
attack.î
ìOn what, sir?î
Minita smiled wickedly,
ìI want the oppressors to
know how much we mean business. We will move on the Corneria
Central High School.î
Tefin seemed to falter,
but only a for a second,
ìYes sir.î
ìAnd Tefin...î
ìYes?î
ìMake sure that none of
them would hesitate to kill a child.î
Tefin grimaced,
ìYes sir.î
He walked off to find the
troops.
-The Broadsword, in orbit around Venom
ìCommander, look at this.î
Commander Akaris walked
over to his situational officerís console and looked over her shoulder
at the display. He frowned,
ìWhat am I supposed to be
seing?î
The officer pointed her
finger at part of the display,
ìThis here... thereís
something
on the energy scope... very faint but itís too strong to just be a
natural disturbance.î
ìA lightning storm?î
ìNo sir, too regular. This
isnít a natural occurrence.î
ìCan you get a better look
at it?î
ìYes sir, I just need to
have the ship brought in a little closer.î
Commander Akaris walked
to the center of the bridge and called to the pilot,
ìDannik, take us to 500
meters off that thing. Be careful.î
500 meters was incredibly
close to just be taking a look. A ship as large as the Broadsword was
usually kept far out from potentiol obstacles. However, the dense
atmosphere
of Venomís middle layer
made it necessary to get that close to really find out what they were
dealing with.
The pilot nodded and
gently
nudged the ship forward, steering it to the left to get alongside the
source of the energy readings. The situational officer was staring
at her console and suddenly cried out,
ìSir! Iíve got a bead on
the readings... I know what theyíre coming from.î
Akaris walked down to her
console. He looked down,
ìWhat is it?î
ìSir, the energy readings
are coming from an orbital platform!î
ìWhat?î
The pilot shouted from his
controls,
ìSir. Take a look at main
visual.î
Commander Akaris turned
to look at the large main visual screen. The whole bridge began to
stare at the screen... on it showed a huge orbital platform.
Lightning
flashed through the clouds around it.
Akarisí jaw dropped,
ìTake us in, Dannik.î
ìSir?î
ìYou heard me, dammit, I
want you to take us in to look at... whatever the hell that is.î
Dannik silently nodded and
turned back to his controls. Akaris continued staring at the strange
structure on the screen. He shook his head slowly. He didnít know
what
it was, but he got a strange
feeling just looking at the thing. A feeling like he shouldnít be
anywhere
near it. But, at the same time, he
had to investigate. He had to know what the thing was.
-The Remorseless, a Mercenariesí Guild heavy carrier in orbit around Corneria
ìFlight 1, over there!
Flight
4, youíve got point duty. Flights 2 and 3, come with me. Flight 5,
youíre on back. Flights 6 and 7 are reserve. 8 is fallback. Letís
go.î
Edmund Harris was the
weasel
who was in undisputed command of the Mercenariesí Guild
fighter squadrons on the Remorseless. He ran down the corridor to the
main flight bays for the 67th
Interdiction and turned left. He was followed by the pilots of
flights
2 and 3. He stopped and shouted over
the general noise of alarms and fighter preparation,
ìOk, flights 2 and 3, you
guys are all under me and weíve got heavy duty. You know the drill, hit
all cap ships and let flight 1 handle the fighters. If it get too
hairy,
weíll call in 6 and 7 for a little help.
Everyone, seal your suits and prepare for combat launch!î
The pilots quickly did up
the seals to their suits. The carrier pilot flight suit, when fully
sealed,
was air tight and pressurized. It had its own oxygen and life support
systems. Combat launch meant the
air would be sucked out of the hangar after they had climbed in the
cockpit. The Remorseless would drop
the force field which kept the air in the hangar and kept it
pressurized.
Without those fields to maintain,
the Remorseless could cycle the fighters faster.
The pilots of flights 2
and 3 scrambled into their fighters, a mix of various medium and heavy
fighters ranging from ArSpace AR-46Ds to Repulsor S-7s. The cockpit
canopies closed and sealed. A
siren sounded to alert all personnel that the hangar force field was
being dropped.
There was a rush of air
as the field dropped and the hangar rapidly became a vacuum.
Edmund throttled his
fighter,
an ArSpace AR-70C Strike Arwing, forward expertly. The large
fighter shot out of the hangar and into the blackness of space. He
watched as the other members ot the two
flights did the same. Experts all of them. And restless experts. Now
they had something really important
to do.
He turned on the com and
heard the voice of the Remorseless captain, Andrea Yarnovich,
ìAll units precede to
interdiction
point alpha and look for enemy units. Fighters are expected to
be mostly light and medium, maybe a few heavy... cap ships are a few
cruisers and several transports. We
donít know their exact target, but itís probably in the Corneria City
area. Just to be safe, terminate with
extreme prejudice. Kick their tails. Captain Yarnovich out.î
The com shut down. Edmund
contacted his squadron on the private channel,
ìYou heard the lady. Ok,
we follow flight 1 in and go cap ship hunting. Flight 3, I want you guys
to hit the cruisers. Flight 2, weíll take the transports. Flight 3,
be ready to assist if they really are trying to
land troops. Letís go.î
The fighters fell into
formation
with Edmundís ship. He waited for flight 1 to pass by and then
throttled up to speed and fell in line behind them. At last,
something
to do.
-Invader 1, on approach to Corneria
Minita sat in her full
combat
gear and growled low,
ìWhat the hell is our
ETA?î
The pilot at the head of
the transport responded quickly,
ìAbout five minutes, sir.î
The co-pilot had been
watching
the threat display. He looked up and spoke nervously,
ìSirs, enemy ships
incoming.
Estimated intercept in one minute.î
Minita snarled,
ìDammit! Of course thereís
farginí enemy fighter incoming! Thereís a bloody Mercsí Guild
carrier on interdiction duty around Corneria. Theyíve got their
entire
fight compliment out by now. Weíll
have to pull an EHALO drop.î
The co-pilotís eyes
widened,
ìIíve never seen that done
before, not even in exercises.î
Minita growled,
ìThereís always a first
time.î
EHALO stood for Extra High
Altitude Low Opening and was the most dangerous para-drop
known to anyone. It involved dropping from the very edge of the
planetís
atmosphere down to about 3000
feet before opening the chute.
The pilot looked back at
Minita,
ìIs your gear qualified
for EHALO?î
ìYes. Itís designed for
HALO and EHALO.î
ìRight. Have it your way.
Entering EHALO approach.î
Minita turned back to the
commandos sitting in the back of the transport with her,
ìListen, weíre going to
pull an EHALO drop. Weíll pull slow at 4000, pull half at 3000, and pull
final at 2000, last resort is 1000. Got me?î
Nobody said anything.
Minita
nodded,
ìGood. Letís get ready to
drop. Iíll go in first.î
Minita moved to the back
of the transport where the drop door was. She sealed her suit and
motioned for the others to do the same. The transports flew into the
straight EHALO approach pattern.
The pilot looked back at Minita,
ìItís drop time.î
The door slid open and
Minita
looked down at the planet far below. Without further hesitation,
she threw herself from the transport. She turned to look back and
mentally
counted to four. Another
commando dropped out. She counted to four again and another commado
leapt out. Good, perfectly on
schedule.
Minita turned herself
downwards
to gain speed and prevent the enemy from tracking her. Below
awaited their unsuspecting target.
-Brett and Kelly MacDonaldís country home, Corneria
Brett and Kelly sat in
their
livingroom with Fenica sleeping on Brettís lap. The little vixen had
finally given up her wanderings in favor of going to sleep for an
undetermined
period of time.
It made a heart-warming
sight... but Brett wasnít feeling happy at all. He was worried. Gray had
made his report to him... it looked bad, really bad. Gray had been
plenty vague but it was relatively clear
that the civil war was more than it seemed. Right now, Arrek Largen
had been called in to help. If Arrek
Largen was helping, that meant that something supernatural was almost
certainly involved.
Brett groaned and stroked
Fenicaís head gently. Kelly smiled sympathetically and held her
husbandís paw. She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek,
ìCute, isnít she?î
Brett nodded and smiled.
They heard a sudden, very
loud sound. Brettís eyes widened,
ìGunshots!î
Another shot, followed by
the sound of the bullet striking wood. A number of shots. Kelly
listened closely,
ìThose are coming from the
door, I think someoneís trying to get in here.î
They looked across the
room
to the door. Another series of shots finally blew the lock out. The
door was kicked wide open and someone wearing full combat gear
stormed
in. Fenica was now fully
awake and wide-eyed in terror. Brett threw himself in front of her.
He heard three shots and felt three
points of intense pain in his back. He dived behind the couch and
placed
Fenica on the floor. Brett drew
his own .38 pistol that he carried and flicked off the safety. His
back was aching now. Felt like small
caliber bullets, probably .22 caliber or less. Good thing they
werenít
shooting with something bigger.
Kelly quickly poked her
head over the couch and fired two rounds out of her own pistol. She
dived back behind the couch and spoke quickly to Brett,
ìItís a female red wolf,
as far as I can tell. Sheís got an automatic rifle on her back and sheís
firing at us with what looks like a .20 cal special. Tiny gun.î
The sounds of the small
pistol firing were replaced with the loud chattering of an automatic
weapon. Fenica whimpered and covered her ears. Kelly groaned,
ìNow sheís firing with the
automatic.î
Brett nodded and jumped
out from the couch. He fired his pistol four times and scored a direct
hit
on the red wolfís left arm. She didnít even flinch. Brett dived back
under cover right as a trail of
automatic weapons fire was about to reach him. He shook his head,
ìIt sounded like that
bullet
struck something hard. Either sheís wearing some strong arm guards
or she has prosthetics.î
Kelly whispered to Brett,
ìLet me try something.
Wait
a minute... Brett... youíre bleeding!î
Brett reached behind his
back and felt the warm liquid on his paw. He nodded,
ìShe hit me three times.î
Kelly nodded. She stood
up quickly and yelled across the room,
ìCoward!î
The automatic weapons fire
stopped. They heard the red wolfís voice, filled with anger,
ìWho the hell are you to
call me a coward?î
They heard the rifle fall
to the ground. There was the sound of rustling cloth. The red wolfís
combat suit dropped to the floor, revealing her true figure. She was
trim and attractive, but extremely
menacing at the same time. She snarled loudly at Kelly,
ìYou foolish feline, drop
you weapon and face me in unarmed combat.î
Kelly dropped her pistol,
ìYou asked for it.î
The red wolf was across
the room and practically on top of Kelly in a moment. She had Kelly in
a grip of steel. The red wolf put her face close and growled,
ìNow you die!î
Kelly felt herself being
crushed in the grip. She struggled to breath. She heard Brett call out,
ìNO! Leave her alone!î
The red wolf turned and
saw Brett,
ìWhatís this? Boyfriend?
Lover?î
Brett glared at her,
ìHusband.î
He pulled out his pistol
and fired point blank at the red wolf. It caught her dead in the
shoulder.
Blood spurted from the wound and the red wolf dropped Kelly. She
launched
herself at Brett and grabbed
his gun. She bent the barrel with her paws and tossed the now useless
weapon aside. She drew a combat
knife and held it up,
ìYou cheated.î
She kicked Brettís right
leg hard and he felt it give way. A spear of pain shot its way up his
spine. He fell to the ground, his teeth gritted against the
incredible
pain. The red wolf raised the knife and
poised it to stab it down at Brett, killing him in a single stroke.
The sound of an automatic
rifle firing echoed around the room. The red wolfís expression twisted
in pain. She turned around to face Kelly, who was standing behind her
holding the rifle. Brett saw a
number of bullet wounds in the red wolfís back. She must be wearing
a thin combat vest. The red wolf
seemed about to attack Kelly when she turned and ran to the door.
Kelly
leveled the rifle and fired another
burst, catching the red wolf in the right leg. Her leg apparently
wasnít
armored and a bullet tore a chunk
of flesh off. The red wolf limped out of the house and ran as quickly
as she could away and Kelly dropped
the rifle. She ran over to Brett and held his paw. He yelped sharply
in pain. Kelly looked down at his leg,
ìLooks broken.î
Brett nodded. Kelly looked
around the room,
ìIíll go get the first aid
kit. Weíve got to get you to hospital.î
Brett nodded again and
pointed
at Fenica, who had her eyes closed and her paws over her ears,
ìYeah... make sure sheís
Ok first, then that would probably be a good idea.î
Kelly nodded and walked
over to comfort Fenica.
-The Remorseless, in orbit around Corneria
Commander Jennifer Kiren,
the mink in command of the Remorseless, listened to the report of
the fighter operations commander,
ìItís over. Theyíve gone
EHALO, canít track ëem for crap.î
Jennifer buried her head
in her paws and muttered softly. They had already lost the battle. The
enemy had dropped. She raised her head and spoke agrily,
ìTake them out!î
The operations commander
raised his eyebrows,
ìSir?î
She growled,
ìYou heard me. I want you
to order all units to destroy those ships. Every single one of them.î
The commander saluted,
ìYes sir.î
Jennifer glared at him,
ìMake sure none of them
escape.î
ìSir.î
The commander saluted
again
and walked off to pass the word on to the squadron commanders,
who were still in space. They may not have prevented the troops from
dropping... but they could prevent
the pilots from ever getting home again.
Jennifer turned back to
look at the 3d tactical display in front of her. An aide walked up and
saluted. Jennifer nodded,
ìWhat is it?î
ìSir, reports of ground
combat near the Cornerian Central District. Centering around the
Cornerian Central High School.î
Jennifer frowned deeply,
ìThat must have been their
target. Good lord... all those kids...î
ìYessir. Also, weíre
getting
reports of an attack on a private residence in the countryside near
Corneria City. The attacker got away and is assumed to still be in
the area. From the description, it sounds
like the attacker was one of the drop troops who missed their mark.î
Jennifer closed her eyes
and nodded unhappily,
ìWhoís home?î
She heard a slightly
familiar
voice,
ìMine.î
An aide looked up and
shouted
over the background noise on the bridge,
ìOfficer on deck!î
Jennifer turned around and
saw the Guild second-in-command Kelly Halden. Jennifer saluted.
Kelly did not return the salute but only glared at Jennifer,
ìCall off the attack.î
ìWhat?!î
ìThis isnít our fight,
call
it off.î
ìBut... they...
dropped...î
ìThereís no more good we
can do. What do you want to do? Lose half our pilots in combat? It
wonít reverse whatís already happened. Call it off.î
Jennifer nodded. She felt
tears welling up in the corners of her eyes but held them back. She
called out to the fighter operations commander,
ìCall it off.î
The fighter operations
commander
nodded. Jennifer shook her head sadly,
ìWhat can we do?î
Kelly frowned. She didnít
look any happier than Jennifer felt. She sighed,
ìNothing. What could we
do? Attack and bring the Brethren of the Fallen down on our heads?
This is a delicate situation.î
Jenniferís face flushed
with anger,
ìSo we do nothing?! Like
the damned Cornerian Military?! Just sit around and let the people take
the fall for us... is that what weíve become now?î
ìListen, COMMANDER, my
house
was attacked by one of those troops. My husband is in the
hospital because of them and Iím not feeling so hot myself. The
Brethren
have lots of support and ships...
the Guild is in no shape to fight them. Look at it... the Remorseless
is our only fully operational carrier...
if we lose this ship, the Guild goes under hard. Do you want to
avenge
the attack by throwing our own
people at the enemy only to get them killed?î
Kellyís eyes narrowed,
ìCommander... those pilots
are people too. Many of them have families... kids. This Guild does
not have ëexpendable resourcesí... do you understand that?î
Jennifer nodded,
ìIím sorry. The pilots are
being recalled.î
ìGood. Once everyoneís
back,
weíre taking this ship to Zoness.î
ìWhat?î
ìYou heard me. All Guild
ships are moving to Zoness. Weíre going to have a little meeting.î
Jennifer nodded again,
ìAs you wish.î
-The Broadsword, in orbit around Venom
Commander Akaris looked
around
the room directly before the airlock. The room was commonly
called the ësuit roomí and was where anyone planning to go out the
air lock put on their space suits. The
Broadsword had actually docked with the mysterious orbiting station,
but Akaris wasnít taking chances.
They didnít know if the station had an atmosphere or not.
He was taking a small team
in. Captain Alison Meris and Sergeant Mark Selster, his two
investigators, were both coming. Also coming was a short beaver named
Jake Garrit, who was an expert
engineer. Lastly was Devan Porter, a squirrel who served as the ship
munitions expert.
Mark walked up to him and
spoke,
ìSir, before we go, Iíd
like to say one thing.î
ìGo ahead.î
ìThis is a really really
stupid idea.î
ìThank you for your
input.î
Mark sighed and walked
away
again. Commander Akaris motioned for everyone to move to the
airlock,
ìTime to move out, people.
Remember, Merik and Selster are group one. Garrit and Porter,
youíre with me and weíre group two. Always stay with your group at
all times. Letís go.î
He opened the airlock and
they all stepped inside. The door back into the Broadsword closed
behind them and sealed automatically. The far door opened and
revealed
the interior of the inner airlock
on the space station. They all stepped inside and the outer door on
the Broadsword closed. Akaris
motioned for Devan to cut the inner airlock door on the station open.
The door opened. Akaris
looked over at Mark, who was holding the control handle. He released
the handle and shrugged,
ìFigured Iíd just see if
it worked. Guess this place has power.î
They moved inside the
station
itself and used the manual control to close the inner door again.
Jake Garrit looked at a small device he was carrying,
ìSir, this place has an
atmosphere... and itís not toxic. We can take our helmets off.î
Akaris nodded for them to
do it. They all removed their helmets and set them by the airlock door.
Akaris glanced quickly around the room. He spoke to the rest,
ìThis place looks like a
standard Cornerian Military station... more or less. Letís split up.
Group
one, you two try and find the bridge. Iíll take group two and weíll
find the engineering. Call the other
group when you get to the destination.î
Mark had been looking at
a small plaque on the wall. He looked back at the group,
ìThis thing says this
place
is called ëOrbital Hangar V1.í Funny. Itís a Cornerian Military station
all right. Looks like no oneís home. Wonder why.î
Commander Akaris shrugged,
ìWho cares. Maybe weíll
find out when we look around a bit. If either group runs into trouble,
call the other group and get some help right away.î
Mark spoke up again,
ìSir, I have a
suggestion.î
ìWhat is it?î
ìWe should take our
helmets
with us.î
ìWhy?î
ìWell... thereís no
guarantee
that all of this place has an atmosphere. And if it was abandoned, it
might not exactly be completely safe.î
Akaris nodded,
ìGood idea. Ok, everyone
take their helmets with them. You donít have to wear them all the
time, but be ready to slap them on if... for some reason... the
atmosphere
is compromised.î
Mark grabbed his own
helmet.
Compromised? Interesting way to put it. He wondered how much
of this place was still in decent condition. Funny that things still
worked at all. Some of the lights worked
but most were gone. At least there was generally enough light to see
by.
Mark and Alison walked to
one of the exits of the room. They pulled the door open. The corridor
beyond was long but very narrow. Flickering lights ran along the
ceiling,
about half of them no longer
working. They stepped into the corridor and Alison closed the door
behind them. Mark heard Alisonís
voice in his ear,
ìWhy would anyone just get
up and abandon a place like this?î
He felt a cold chill run
up his spine and he shuttered involuntarily,
ìI donít know... but I
have
a nasty feeling weíre about to find out.î
-Cornerian SWAT headquarters, Corneria City
ìLIEUTENANT! You are
overstepping
your authority!î
Lieutenant Julie Morio
snarled
and grabbed the captainís shirt,
ìUp yours! Those people
need my unitís help! Iím moving them into the combat zone.î
The captain pushed Julie
back and growled at her,
ìLieutenant, you could be
court martialed for this.î
Her voice dripped with
loathing,
ìOh... so you can court
martial me for trying to help?î
ìIf you try to send your
unit into the combat zone, yes.î
Lieutenant Morio wrinkled
her nose and glared. She raised a paw,
ìWell, if you insist.î
She let fly with a hard
right jab and caught the captain in the face. He grunted and fell over.
Julie
leaned over him and slapped his face lightly,
ìSorry, but youíre an
idiot
and trying to argue would only waste valuable time. Seeya later.î
She turned and ran out of
the room. The captain slowly lifted himself up and rubbed his snout.
He shouted at a passing SWAT officer,
ìYou! Stop her!î
The SWAT officer shook his
head,
ìSorry sir. Iím going with
Lieutenant Morio.î
The officer kept on
walking.
The captain lifted himself to his footpaws and muttered,
ìIíll have them all court
martialed... theyíll all be sorry they did this.î
-Corneria Central High School
ì...more units moving into
position. Weíve got snipers moving in on the north side. Got to be
careful with this one.î
SWAT commander Jason
Barlow
nodded as he listened to the tactical advisor. He butted in with
a question,
ìWhatís the hostage
situation
like?î
The advisor groaned
loudly,
ìBad. Theyíve killed a
whole
bunch of students already and have several hostage. Teachers too.
The whole school is being held.î
Jason growled. He hated
hostage situations. Usually a SWAT raid was about as subtle as a punch
in the face... but when hostages were invovled, it got a whole lot
touchier. The advisor continued,
ìWeíre looking at almost
two standard squads of enemy commandos.î
Jason interrupted again,
ìCan we get a rapid
response
team in?î
The advisor looked up as
if trying to see the answer in his head. He thought for a second and
answered,
ìI think that Captain
Tyres
is trying to put one in through the ventilation ducts without being
seen.î
Jason nodded. He looked
over and saw a vixen wearing SWAT combat gear walking up. Jason
called to her,
ìYou, what do you want?î
The vixen saluted and
answered,
ìSir. Lieutenant Julie
Morio.î
ìSo?î
ìSir, Iíve got a fresh
unit,
thought you might like some help.î
ìStop calling me ësir.í
My name is Jason Barlow. Whatís your unitís specialty?î
ìStealth infiltration.î
Jason gaped,
ìWhy the hell didnít you
get here sooner? Weíve been looking for an SI unit since we knew the
hostage situation. Listen, weíre trying an insertion through the
ventilation
system... do you think itíll
work?î
Julie closed her eyes and
thought for a bit. She opened her eyes again and answered,
ìNo. These guys will
expect
that. Get those people out of there.î
Jason nodded to the
tactical
officer. The officer saluted and ran off. Jason turned back to Julie,
ìOk, Lieutenant Morio,
weíll
get them out. What do you suggest yourself?î
She smiled slowly,
ìGet me and my people to
the top of that building undetected and weíll take it from there.î
Jason stroked his muzzle
with a paw. He finally nodded,
ìYou got it. Welcome to
the battlefield, Lieutenant Morio.î
ìOh... Commander Barlow?î
ìYeah.î
ìI punched my captain in
the face and stormed out with my unit to be here.î
Jason laughed,
ìThereís only one captain
who wouldnít send his SI unit into a situation like this... Captain
Gerhart. Am I right?î
Julie nodded vigorously.
Jason laughed again,
ìRight. As of now, heís
no longer your captain. Your whole unit is being transferred to my
command. Welcome to the 2nd Tactical Response Team.î
He extended a paw. Julie
grabbed it and shook. Jason pointed across the street to a hawk who was
arguing with someone,
ìThatís the guy who can
get your people to that roof. Just tell him I sent you. Good luck.î
ìThanks, Commander
Barlow.î
She saluted and walked
across
the street to speak to the hawk. Jason smiled and sat down on the
ground. Captain Gerhart was the biggest idiot in the SWAT with the
worst judgement to boot. Not a good
person to give an SI team to. Well, he didnít have that SI team
anymore.
-Orbital Hangar V1, in orbit around Venom
Two Arwings were sitting
in the lower hangar of Orbital Hangar V1. The cockpits opened and
out climbed Fara Phoenix-McCloud, Fox McCloud, and Arrek Largen.
Arrek
had been cramped into the
Arwing with Fox, which was possible if a little uncomfortable.
Gray and Mira Lancer had
heard about the attack on Brett and Kelly and had returned to
Corneria to be with their daughter. That left them out of the mission
to Orbital Hangar V1.
Fox looked around the
hangar
and whistled,
ìBig place. Kind of
creepy.î
Arrek shuddered,
ìKind of? This place
scares
the hell out of me.î
Fox nodded. Arrek walked
ahead and led the way towards the exit of the hangar. All around were
ships from the time of the war against Andross. Fara shook her head
and looked at the ships,
ìIt looks as if most of
the people here didnít actually evacuate.î
Arrek spoke,
ìA lot of them probably
didnít.î
Fara shuddered, it was
clear
from the coyoteís tone of voice that he wasnít implying they were
still alive.
They arrived at one of the
doors leading out of the hangar. It was locked and had a small keypad
to one side. Arrek glanced at the keypad and pulled out a small
knife.
He opened the panel and worked
inside it for a minute with the knife.
The door slid noiselessly
open and revealed the dark corridor beyond. A couple of lights still
flickered in the darkness but, overall, the corridor had none. Arrek
pulled out a flashlight and shined it
into the darkness.
Everything was completely
silent, like a tomb. Nothing waited to jump out at them from the
shadows, just a small data disk that someone had dropped. Arrek
walked
forward into the corridor,
folowed by Fox and Fara. He stooped down and picked up the disk. He
slipped it in his jacket pocket and
continued on. Fara spoke in a whisper,
ìItís so quiet. Why arenít
there any noises? There should be at least the ventilation system.î
Arrek shrugged,
ìI donít know. Youíre
right...
there should be at least some noise... but this whole place is
completely silent.î
They reached a fork in the
corridor, with a door leading left and the passage continuing to the
right. Arrek stopped walking,
ìDo you want to go to the
bridge?î
Both nodded. Arrek pressed
a button on the door and it opened. He motioned for the two foxes to
follow,
ìThis way. Weíll take the
service shaft up to the second lateral and go right to the bridge.
Thereís
an exit from the second lateral to the bridge. Itís a little bit of
climbing around, but itíll be fast.î
Fox and Fara both nodded
to signal their agreement. They all walked into another corridor with a
few more working lights than the last one. Most of the lights were
flickering erratically but they did cast
enough light to see by. Arrek switched the flashlight off.
The corridor went down a
long ways and ended in a small door. To either side there were a few
doors of about the same size. Fox shot a questioning glance at Arrek
and motioned at the doors. Arrek
explained,
ìSupply rooms. Probably
empty. Want to check one anyway?î
Fox shrugged,
ìWhy not?î
Arrek walked over to the
nearest door and opened it. Darkness waited beyond to greet them.
Arrek switch on his light and shined it into the room. He motioned
for Fox and Fara to join him,
ìCome here. Thereís
something
I think you should see.î
Fox and Fara walked over
and looked inside the room. Fara gave a surprised yelp. Inside the
room was a skeleton still dressed in combat fatigues. The skeleton
was bent over in a kneeling position
with both paws clenched together. Fara calmed down and walked over
to inspect the skeleton. She shook
her head,
ìHow did he die?î
Neither Fox nor Arrek made
any move to respond. Fara tried again,
ìIt looks like he was
praying...î
Fox nodded,
ìOr pleading...î
Arrek frowned and spoke
in a low voice,
ìI think it was a little
of both.î
He turned around and left
the room. Fox and Fara quickly scrambled after him. They closed the
door to the supply room. Fox smiled,
ìWell, at least thatís
probably
the worst weíll see in here.î
Arrek frowned and grabbed
Foxís shoulder lightly,
ìNo. Thatís probably not
even close.î
He released Foxís shoulder
and turned off his flashlight. They set off down the corridor again.
This time, they did not stop to enter any more of the supply rooms.
-The Broadsword, in orbit around Venom
The cat lifted her head off
the ground and struggled to comprehend what her eyes were showing
her. It wasnít easy... a jumble of random images... a lot of red...
a whole lot of red.
Suddenly, feeling came
jolting
back into her body. She screamed with agony as the spears of pain
shot through her back and sides. Then her arms... finally her legs...
her whole body felt like it was on fire.
She struggled hard to move
her arms... even one paw. Nothing. Her arms refused to obey her
brainís commands. Legs next... they didnít respond either. Just pain.
She looked down...
Red on the floor. Coming
out from under her... blood! Her blood! She screamed again and
gagged on something. She realized that blood was beginning to fill
her mouth as well. She spat and the
red liquid slopped onto the floor in front of her.
What she saw around her
still made no sense. There were people... or at least it seemed that way.
A lot of fire... explosions? Blood... on the walls?
The last thing she
remembered
was being on the bridge of the Broadsword. She guessed that she
was still there... but it was somehow different.
Another spear of pain...
this time from her left arm. She felt and especially bad pain down near
the end...
She looked at the end of
her left arm and immediately saw something not right. There was too
much blood... and it was shaped all wrong...
She screamed, a choked
scream
this time, again when she saw what had happened. Her paw was
gone. Only the wrist remained.
The whole world went quiet
all of a sudden. She wasnít deaf... no... she could still hear
something. A low noise, very persistent. Like chanting.
The noise grew louder. It
was chanting. She couldnít hold her head up anymore and slumped
forward into the pool of blood. Someone was standing over her. She
looked up to see who.
Her blood turned to ice.
She heard one last thing before losing conciousness,
ìThe time is here... the
vessel is complete...î
-The Remorseless, in orbit around Zoness
Brett sat at the head of
the table in the main conference hall and looked over everyone assembled.
They were coming up to saw hello as they came in. Oddly enough, Gray
and Mira Lancer had both
showed up with their daughter.
Brett looked down for a
second. Looked up again and saw someone he had seen several days ago.
He spoke in astonishment,
ìAllais? I though you
quit.î
Allais narrowed her eyes
and spoke in a low and angry voice,
ìIíve got nothing else
left.î
Her tone lightened,
ìItís good to be back,
Brett.î
He smiled and shook her
paw. She grinned half-heartedly,
ìJust give me a little bit
to get back in the swing of things.î
Brett nodded. Allais took
her usual seat and promptly buried her head in her paws. Brett saw
another familiar face... one he hadnít seen in a while. He looked
closer
to be sure... yes... it was. Brett
walked up to the fox and tapped him on the shoulder,
ìDerik? I thought you got
killed on that counter-assassination mission.î
The fox turned around and
smiled,
ìNot by a bloody long
shot.
Killed the shooter before he could even take a shot at the president of
ArSpace. They had help and my team had to run.î
ìBut I heard you were
shot.î
ìI was! Took a bloody
heavy
cal smooth-bore in the flak vest for my fiancee. Thank god for flak
vests! Was in the bloody hospital for bloody three months.
Actually...
I got married right after getting out.
Sorry you couldnít come, but it was a low-key thing.î
Brett grinned,
ìSaw hi to Jane for me.î
ìI will. Iím glad I could
be here.î
Brett walked back to his
seat. Gray Lancer was standing next to it. Brett looked at the fox,
ìYes.î
Gray frowned,
ìBrett, you have to call
the meeting to order NOW and let me speak. Iíve been talking to the
monitoring station near Venom... theyíre picking up something
serious...î
ìFine. Iíll call it now.
Sit down.î
ìSure.î
Gray dashed off to his
seat
next to his wife Mira. Brett sighed and stood. He spoke loudly,
ìAttention! This meeting
will come to order!î
The room was blanketed in
silence almost instantly. Brett nodded and motioned to Gray,
ìMr. Lancer has something
to say.î
Gray stood. He looked
urgent.
He spoke in a strained tone,
ìThe civil war is not
going
to happen... something much worse is...î
A murmur grew up. Brett
motioned for silence and Gray continued,
ìI donít know if you
believe
me or not, but the war is being provoked by someone or something
not of this universe. They are using it as a front for their own
invasion.î
Again, muttering began
among
the assembly. Gray snarled and there was silence,
ìShut up! About ten
minutes
ago, a monitoring station near Venom began picking up energy
spikes from a certain Orbital Hangar V1.î
One Guild member stood up
and threw out her paws,
ìNO! That place is dead!
IT IS DEAD!î
Gray glared,
ìI see someoneís heard of
it. Why donít you tell the rest of them. Tell them about the project...
tell them how the place was plagued with mysterious accidents that
progressively got worse and worse...
how the military had to suddenly abandon it. Itís not dead... it was
just sleeping.î
Brett looked shocked,
ìWhat do you want us to
do?î
ìPull any ships near the
thing out, NOW! And send in this squadron.î
Gray threw a packet across
the table and it landed next to Brett. He opened it up and stared,
ìYou want me to give
nuclear
weapons to HER?!î
A voice spoke up from the
back of the table,
ìCool, ainít it?î
Everyone looked and saw
Katt Monroe, sitting and grinning. Gray looked over and nodded,
ìSheís qualified to do
it.î
Brett sighed,
ìFine. You know more about
the situation than anyone else at the moment. She gets the squadron
and the nuclear warheads. What are you and Mira going to do? What is
this Guild going to do?î
ìWeíre going to prepare
for war.î
Brett groaned,
ìOh god... when does Katt
leave?î
ìShe left about twenty
seconds
ago.î
Brett looked at Kattís
now-empty
seat. He frowned,
ìWhy do we have to get
ready
for war if sheís gonna go in a nuke the enemy?î
Gray sighed,
ìI have no doubt that Katt
will do some serious damage... but the enemy in this is way bigger
than you think. The rebels are the enemy too. Theyíre mostly fanatics
and I think their commanders know
full well who or what theyíre actually serving. Brett... I need to
talk to you personally.î
Brett nodded. He stood and
spoke,
ìEveryone but Gray and
Mira
Lancer, get the hell out. Now. The rest of this meeting does not
concern you.î
There was a loud shuffling
noise as everyone in the room quickly got up and filed out. When the
room was empty, Gray and Mira walked up to Brett and Kelly MacDonald
and sat down. Gray stared
directly at Brett,
ìCan we fight a war in our
current situation?î
Brett shook his head,
ìNo. We canít.î
Gray nodded,
ìThen weíll need help.î
ìWhat kind of help?î
Gray smiled,
ìThe Brethren of the
Fallen
claim to have been kicked aside by the Cornerian Military... well...
there are some who have been kicked aside by everyone.î
Brett cocked his head,
ìWho?î
Gray held up a thick file
folder and nodded his head at it,
ìThe Outlanders.î
Brettís eyes went wide,
ìYouíre seriously using
the Outlander listing to get help?!î
ìYes.î
ìYouíre nuts. Theyíll
never
agree.î
ìOh yes they will.î
ìWhy?î
ìBecause they, of all
people,
know that this civil war is just a crap front for something much
bigger.î
-Orbital Hangar V1, in orbit around Venom
Alison almost screamed when
the lights suddenly snapped to full intensity. Mark backed into her
and they both yelped. Alison almost laughed. Mark was laughed and
pointing
at her. They both stopped as
further sounds echoed around. Alison glanced around nervously,
ìWhy did the lights just
go on?î
Mark shrugged,
ìNo idea. And listen...
sounds like things are being powered up!î
ìWhat kind of station can
just power itself up?î
ìI donít know. We should
get to the bridge, and fast.î
Jake Garrit pounded his com
unit and swore,
ìCanít get this frikkiní
thing to work!î
Commander Akaris sighed
and looked at the com,
ìDid you check
everything?î
ìHell yeah! Itís fine but
it wonít work.î
Devan Porter looked up
from
trying his own com,
ìSir, mine ainít working
either.î
Akaris growled. Why did
he have to bring these two idiots along? His own com wasnít working
either. Nothing was working. They had reached engineering without a
hitch. But now they couldnít get in
touch with the other group.
Plus, the whole place had
come alive. The lights were on in full strength. The air purification
system seemed to be fully operational. The whole place had just
suddenly
started working again. Maybe
Alison Meris and Mark Selster had reached the bridge and turned
things
on.
Akaris heard a soft
shuffling.
He turned around and looked angrily at Jake,
ìWill you stop shuffling
and walk normally!î
Jake shook his head
angrily,
ìNot me! ëm not doing
anything!î
Akaris growled and turned
back around. The shuffling continued. He growled again... damn Jake
Garrit... could be so annoying when he wanted to...
-Venom surface
Mira Lancer looked over at
her husband Gray. He looked so... different... now... his special forces
experience returning to him.
They were hidden in the
sand dunes of Venomís surface. Gray was wearing full camouflage and
carried a 10mm railgun. Mira was also dressed in camo and carrying
a CSF laser rifle.
All around them were their
newest allies... the Outlanders. They had gotten the point pretty
quickly. The air seethed with a certain energy. Everyone knew that
they were the last line of defense
before an all-out war. A war which, once started, would end in the
complete and total destruction of the
Lylat system.
Nobody knew about this
mission.
Not even Brett knew about this mission. Gray and Mira had
retaken their place in their old Guild unit... the 13th deep
rear-area...
The Doomed. The Doomed had
always done the most suicidal, most dangerous, most completely insane
jobs in the Guild. It was an odd
job for someone with a family... but Gray and Mira knew they had to
do it.
One of the advance scouts,
a grizzled old Outlander wolf, came crawling back and snapped a
quick salute at Gray, grinning. They liked Gray... they liked him a
lot. The scout made his report,
ìSir, I donít know what
the hell is going on up ahead... thereís a lot of activity.î
ìWhat kind?î
ìWell, looks like theyíve
got goddamn MG 4s out there. Maybe even some 5s.î
Gray swore under his
breath.
He nodded at the scout,
ìTell someone else to get
their tail out there and you can take a break. Any word from our gal in
space?î
The wolf nodded,
ìYes. She says that
something
weird is happening with the station. Why donít you talk to her?î
The wolf opened a com unit
and handed it to Gray. He looked down and saw Kattís face on the
display. She laughed,
ìYou look a little
different
with the cammo paint on.î
ìNo crap. Whatís the
word.î
ìWell... Iím not exactly
sure. I know this sounds crazy... but weíre getting bio readings off that
thing!î
Grayís eyes widened,
ìBio readings?! Life
readings?!î
ìYeah. Donít know what it
is... but this is serious stuff.î
ìNo kidding. Keep watching
it... oh, and I wouldnít recommend an attack.î
Katt sounded sarcastic,
ìReally? I wouldnít have
thought of that.î
Gray shut off the com and
put it down. The wolf was gone by now. Mira walked up to Gray and
put her arms around his neck,
ìLong day?î
ìIt only gets longer.î
-Corneria Central High School
Lieutenant Julie Morio
moved
silently down the hallway near the top of the Corneria Central
High School. She and her team had encountered minimal resistence at
the top. They had got rid of the few
guards without wasting a bullet or alerting anyone else in the
building.
Julieís point man tapped
her shoulder. She turned and nodded. The point man made the paw
signals for ten hostages and three terrorists in the next room. All
hostages at medium gunpoint. Julie
nodded and signaled to half of her team. They slipped up to the room
and looked inside.
Three terrorists held the
hostages. All three had their backs to the door. Easy.
Julie motioned to two
other
SWAT troopers and made a paw signal. The two troopers slid up
next to Julie. She made another signal.
Three throwing knives from
three SWAT troopers buried deep in the backs of the terrorists. The
SWAT team ran into the room. Julie motioned to the hostages to be
quiet.
She spoke in a low whisper,
ìDo not make a sound.
Weíre
with the CSWAT.î
The hostages only nodded,
looking deathly afraid. Julie drew her knife from the back of one of
the terrorists and wiped it off on the dead ferretís shirt. She put
it back in its holster and motioned for one
of her officers. The officer came up and Julie whispered in his ear,
ìGet these people back to
the roof safely and silently. Then sneak back inside and rejoin the
team.î
The officer nodded and
went
to rally the hostages. The rest of the team moved on down the hall.
The point man came back and signaled that there were five terrorists
and no hostages. Julie screwed a
silencer onto the barrel of her automatic rifle and nodded for the
others to do the same. They approached
the next room.
Julie and three other
officers
jumped into the room. Julie squeezed the trigger on her rifle lightly
and there was a muffled sound as the bullets left the gun. There were
a series of thumps as the bullets
entered the bodies of the terrorists. One of the terrorists began to
scream and was quickly silenced by a
bullet directly in the windpipe. They were all dead.
Julie nodded. Her team
knew
what they were doing. They searched the bodies for usable clips.
They managed to get some .45 pistol clips. Not much, but it would
help.
The team crept forward,
the point man moving ahead of the rest. This was a delicate operation...
if they screwed up... lots of people would die.
The eagle shifted his gun
uneasily and looked around nervously. He looked over at his
commander and spoke nervously,
ìBoss, when are we gonna
get the hell outta here?î
ìShut up. Keep an eye on
those hostages.î
The eagle nodded and
returned
to holding the hostages at gunpoint. His commander, a tall and
heavyset rat with one eye permanently closed. The rat held a heavy
personal autocannon to the several
hostages under his charge. They had taken most of the school... had
to waste a few of them already. But
they had some serious bargaining power now.
The eagle looked up
quickly,
ìHey, I think I just heard
something.î
The rat laughed,
ìMy tail you did. Just
getting
a little nervous, thatís what.î
The eagle nodded quickly,
ìYeah, I guess thatís it.î
They both returned to
watching
the hostages. The rat shuffled around and moved his autocannon
to a more comfortable position. The eagle took one wing off his rifle
to scratch his head and resumed
holding the gun.
They heard a series of
muffled
bursts. The rat looked up quickly and saw someone firing in his
direction with a silenced rifle. He gave one short yelp before the
bullets got to him. The eagle paniced and
began firing at the assailants.
It didnít work. A moment
later the eagleís lifeless corpse slammed into the floor with a wet
splatter.
Julie Morio jumped down
from the stairway she had been on. Her team followed and fanned out,
making sure that the building was secured. Julie walked up to the
hostages
and spoke to all of them,
ìHey, weíre getting you
all out of here.î
One of them spoke up,
ìN...no, thereís more! One
of the terrorists took some of them downstairs.î
A SWAT officer walked up
dragging something. He dropped it. Julie looked down. It was the
dead body of a massive squirrel. Julie pointed at the body,
ìIs that him?î
The hostage who had spoken
nodded,
ìY...you saved us!î
Julie shrugged,
ìOur job. Now we get the
hell out.î
-Orbital Hangar V1, in orbit around Venom
The shuffling had grown
louder
and more persistent. Commander Akaris was beginning to get
annoyed he spun around and glared at Jake Garrit,
ìStop!î
Jake looked angry,
ìListen Commander... I
know
you donít like me much... but Iím not doing that! Youíll have to
take my word for it.î
Akaris growled,
ìWell, whoís doing it
then?
Porter sure isnít.î
Jake shrugged,
ìNo clue. No clue at all.
Frankly, Iím not sure I want to know. I mean... this place just sort of
turned itself on and now that damn shuffling starts.î
ìWell, I think we can
thank
the other group for this place just turning itself on.î
Jake shook his head
vigorously,
ìI doubt that. I donít
think
theyíre at the bridge yet.î
ìMaybe theyíre having the
same trouble with their coms as weíre having with ours.î
ìMaybe. Maybe. Why are we
ALL having com trouble, anyhow?î
Akaris started to shrug
and then stopped. He looked closely at Jake,
ìHave you called the ship
recently yet?î
Jake shook his head and
pulled out his com. He punched in the frequency for the ship...
It worked. But something
was wrong. Someone answered... in a way.
They heard a deep gutteral
growling on the other end of the com. That was followed by a heavy
breathing. It didnít sound like anyone who could conceivably be on
the crew. Jake gulped nervously and
shut off the com,
ìMaybe we should get
back.î
Akaris shook his head,
ìNo. I think thatís pretty
solid proof that we shouldnít. By the way... have you seen Devan
around?î
Jake glanced around
nervously.
The squirrel was nowhere to be found. Jake shrugged. Akaris
frowned,
ìI could have sworn he was
here just a...î
The heard a splatter and
saw felt something warm. They looked over in the direction they had
heard the splatter.
Jake screamed. Akaris felt
his stomach turn. What appeared to be the remains of Devan Porter
were spread across the opposite wall. It looked as if he had hit the
wall going at an incredible speed. Jake
had his head turned down and away and was quickly muttering to
himself.
Akaris realizes he was praying.
Akaris pulled out a service pistol and cocked it. He shouted a
challenge,
ìShow yourself!î
The shuffling sound
returned.
This time it was accompanied by a heavy breathing and low
murmuring. Almost a chanting sound. Akaris shouted again,
ìDamn you! Show yourself
now!î
He fired the service
pistol
into the air. The sound of the gun echoed around the room and all
other sound stopped.
Jake stopped praying and
looked around nervously. He didnít even seem to notice the horrible
remains of Devan Porter. Jake glanced at Commander Akaris,
ìSir... y...you shouldnít
have d...done that!î
The chanting began again.
Slowly and quietly. But the sound was gradually rising in volume.
Jake squeeled,
ìS...s...sir! Weíre gonna
d...die!î
Akaris smacked the beaver
across the back of his head. He growled low,
ìShut up. Weíre not going
to d...î
Akaris never got a chance
to finish his sentence. He stood transfixed with a huge spike
protruding from the center of his chest. Jake Garret screamed and
backed
away. The spike had just grown
out of the wall...
The chanting was almost
deafening now. Jake backed away as fast as he could.
He saw a shadow cross over
him. Someone was standing behind him. Jake looked up to see who
it was...
And he instantly regretted
his decision.
-Cornerian countryside
Minita DelVariot woke up
in a state of confusion. It was dark. What had happened the day
before?
It came back in rush. She
had attacked the home... gotten shot. She felt her leg... at least it
wasnít
bleeding anymore. She might be able to move at a normal speed by now.
She looked up out of the
bushes she was hidden in at the sky above. No clouds and no moon.
Maybe she should try to contact the rest of her unit... or to arrange
pickup. She was tough... but she also
wasnít stupid. Trying to fight with an injured leg would be stupid.
Besides, her team had undoubtedly
completed the mission by now.
Minita leaned back in the
bushes and groaned. This would be a huge embarrasment. The great
Minita DelVariot driven off by two damn cats taking care of a little
fox kit. It would have been funny had
it happened to anyone else.
Minita reached into her
bag and retrieved the long-range com unit. She quickly assembled the
unit and turned to the pickup frequency. Whoever was on the other end
of the line sounded overjoyed,
ìThis is pickup, who is
this? We thought you were all gone!î
ìThis is General
DelVariot.
Get me the hell out of here.î
ìSir... are there any
other
survivors?î
ìRun that by me again...î
ìSir, we heard that all
your team got killed.î
ìWhat the hell? I missed
target and landed in the country... I have no clue what happened. Fill
me in.î
ìSir. The team took the
high school as planned... then the CSWAT rushed the place and killed
them all. Youíre the only one left.î
Minita swore loudly. She
hissed,
ìDAMN! How the hell did
that happen?! Pick me the hell up.î
ìSir. Within the next ten
minutes.î
Minita snarled and slammed
to button to shut off the com. Terrorist tactics were beginning to
lose their effectiveness... it was time to escalate things a little.
-Vemom surface
ìITíS COMING AROUND AGAIN!
GET DOWN!î
Gray heard the shouted
warning
and looked up. His wife Mira came running and also looked.
They saw a small fighter circling around their location. It was dark
green and strangely angular. Mira
squinted at the fighter,
ìWhat the hell is that?î
Gray shook his head,
ìHavenít got the slightest
idea. Iím surprised you donít know.î
ìHey, itís not Cornerian
and I donít think itís free-lance.î
ìWhatever it is, itís
hitting
pretty damn hard.î
The fighter resumed its
attack, firing down at the small com tower that had been set up. The com
tower was lost in a storm of smoke, sand, and fire. Gray threw
himself
and Mira to the ground and closed
his eyes. They felt heat above them, but both looked up again and
were
still alive. Gray raised himself to a
sitting position and helped Mira up. She looked at the fighter which
was rushing around for another pass,
ìWhat is it shooting
with?î
ìMaybe some kind of
thermal
ray.î
One of the Outlanders ran
up. He shouted at Gray and Mira,
ìWe need the 75mm AA
railgun!î
Gray nodded without saying
a word. He and Mira got up and ran across the blasted patch of
desert to something under a large covering. Gray motioned for Mira
and the Outlander to help him get the
cover off. The threw it aside to reveal a large weapon mounted on a
tripod. Gray nodded,
ìLetís nail that sucker.î
The Outlander ran around
to the back of the gun and checked the systems. He grinned and
switched on the weapon. Gray turned and saw the fighter approaching
quickly,
ìOn our 6!î
The Outlander swivled the
gun around as Mira and Gray dived to the ground. The Outlander
aimed directly at the fighter and squeezed the trigger on the
railgun.
There was a hiss as the gun slung its
projectile to critical velocity. A milisecond later there was a flash
and explosion as the large railgun slug
slammed into the enemy fighter.
The fighter went flying
over the gun position and went down behind some dunes. There was
another explosion as the fighter hit. Mira got up and turned towards
the dunes,
ìNice shot. Wanna check
out the wreckage?î
Gray nodded,
ìYeah. That would probably
be a pretty good idea.î
They left the Outlander
sitting at the railgun and grinning and walked towards the area where the
enemy fighter had crashed. They crested the dunes and Mira pointed
down,
ìLook, thereís the
fighter.î
The enemy fighter was at
the end of a large swath in the desert. Bits and pieces of the fighter
were strewn all over. Interestingly enough, the main body seemed
mostly
intact. Gray and Mira ran down
the dunes and walked to the swath. Gray looked down into it and
whistled,
ìWow. Hit the ground
pretty
hard, didnít it?î
Mira nodded. They walked
back from the ditch in the ground and towards the remains of the
fighter itself.
Nearing the fighter, they
could make out a small hatch on the side. Gray and Mira ran forward
and looked at the hatch. Gray pulled out a small package from his
combat
vest and set it next to the hatch
lock. He took out another small device and motioned to Mira,
ìStay back at least ten
feet.î
They dashed back and Gray
pressed a button on the device. There was an explosion and the hatch
lock blew open. Gray and Mira walked back to the ship. Gray took out
a flashlight and shined it into the
darkness beyond. He stepped back,
ìThe pilotís dead, anyway.
Letís get the body out.î
Mira nodded. They both
entered
the shipís small cockpit and unstrapped the dead pilot, still in
their flight suit. The suit was bulky and had a large helmet with
dark
tinted glass over the front. They
dragged the body out the hatch and lay it on the ground. Gray looked
down at it and frowned,
ìWonder what this guy was.
Kinda big.î
Gray fiddled with the
helmet
and loosened the clamps. He looked down again,
ìFunny suit. Almost like
armor.î
Gray finished with the
clamps
and slowly removed the helmet. He dropped it and jumped back.
Mira gasped and finally managed the speak,
ìWh...what the h...hell?î
Gray shook his head. The
face underneath the helmet was vaguely reptilian... but it had
something else about it that made it seem completely alien. The face
was thin and hard... almost skeletal.
The fangs were large and colored yellow. But the worst part was the
eyes... they were completely black.
They looked as if they were made of oil.
Mira swallowed hard and
turned away. Gray also looked away from the strange body. Mira
walked over and leaned against Gray. He put his arms around her. She
shuddered,
ìThatís not from this
dimension...
I know that much.î
Gray was about to respond
when they heard a loud explosion. The sky lit up. Gray reached for his
com. He contacted the camp frequency. Someone picked up and was about
to speak when the com went
dead. Miraís eyes were wide,
ìThat was a nuke!î
ìHow do you know?î
ìThe EMP from the blast
is what knocked your com out. Itíll be back in another few seconds.î
Gray waited and then tried
the com again. This time, the person on the base end picked up and
spoke,
ìSir, are you two
alright?î
ìYep. Why?î
ìWell... a nuke just went
off in the vicinity of V1.î
ìOh god... uh... thanks.î
He shut off the com and
turned to Mira. She was nodding,
ìYeah...î
She stopped nodding and
a look of worry crossed her face,
ìI hope sheís alright...î
ìWho?î
ìKatt. She was probably
the one who fired the nuke.î
Gray nodded,
ìHerís wasnít the only
ship
with one.î
ìNo, but she had primary
firing clearance. If anyone fired one, it was her.î
ìDamn. Iím sure sheís
fine...î
Mira nodded. Gray held her
closer. They looked up at the clouds of Venom. Mira shook her head
sadly. Gray saw tears running down her cheeks. She spoke very softly,
ìGray... this is it... the
warís already begun.î
-Orbital Hangar V1, in orbit around Venom
Arrek Largen typed in a
code
on the keypad next to the door and it slid open. He motioned for
Fox McCloud and Fara Phoenix-McCloud to go on through. Arrek followed
and closed the door again.
Fox spoke to him almost in a whisper,
ìDoesnít it seem a little
odd to you that everything in this place is suddenly working?î
Arrek groaned,
ìYou idiot... of course
it seems odd.î
They had found no more
bodies
in the ship. The place was now humming with the operation of
the ventilation and electrical systems. The lights were all working.
The whole place had come alive rather
suddenly.
Arrek turned a corner and
stepped back quickly. He motioned for Fox and Fara to stay where they
were. He whispered quickly to both foxes,
ìDo not move, do not talk,
do not make any noise. Thereís a Guardian around the corner.î
Fox gave Arrek a confused
glance. Arrek shook his head and whispered again,
ìPoke your head around the
corner and donít freak out.î
Fox nodded and looked
around
the corner. He quickly jumped back. His face had a look of terror
on it. He swallowed hard,
ìWhat the hell is it?î
Arrek motioned for him to
be quiet. He moved closer to Fox and Fara and whispered quietly,
ìWe have to leave this
ship
now. And I mean NOW.î
Both nodded. Arrek turned
around and began to walk back the way they had come. They heard a
soft but very clear female voice behind them,
ìA...arrek? Why are you
leaving me?î
Arrekís eye went wide. His
expression was a mixture of terror and hope. He slowly turned
around, looking for the speaker. He spoke in a low voice... almost
a whisper,
ìThis isnít real.î
The voice spoke again,
ìIt is... please help
me...î
As Fox and Fara looked on
in confusion, Arrek turned his head down and his eye saw who had
been speaking. It was a female coyote lying on the ground in a
doorway
several feet away. She was
bleeding badly from wounds on her legs and shoulder. Arrek
caustiously
stepped slightly close. The
female coyote spoke again,
ìArrek... donít you
recognize
me?î
ìDiana?î
ìYeah... please help
me...î
Arrekís eye narrowed,
ìThis isnít right. It
isnít
real... you donít even sound like she did.î
ìArrek... please...î
Arrek snarled,
ìWhat the hell are you
bastards
trying to pull on me?! What kind of idiot do you think I am? This
isnít real...î
He turned his attention
to the female coyote,
ìI saw her body... lying
there... cold and lifeless. Damn it all! DAMN IT ALL! IT HURT! It hurt
to see it... it HURTS to admit it now... BUT THIS IS NOT REAL!î
The voice was more
sinister
now while at the same time more pleading,
ìPlease Arrek... you donít
know what Iíve been through.î
ìI know exactly what
youíve
been through. So who are you? Which acolyte? Or are you merely a
two-bit succubus who was lacking on work?î
The coyote bared her fangs
and stood up. The wounds which should have hampered her
movement didnít seem to have much effect. She snarled loudly at
Arrek,
ìYouíll die for that.î
Suddenly, the air
shimmered
with energy. Someone shouted loudly,
ìNO!î
There was a beam of light
that came out of the air and connected with the female coyote and
knocked her back. The form of a coyote began to disappear to reveal
a hideous monster underneath. Arrek
growled,
ìDamn... youíre ugly!î
He pulled out a pistol and
aimed it. He squeezed the trigger once and the hollow-point bullet
slammed into the creatureís head and exploded. The remains of the
creature
fell to the ground in a bloody
head. The voice spoke again, much more softly,
ìWe always did make a good
team, didnít we?î
The air wavered and a
faint
image appeared. It resolved itself into a female coyote that looked
remarkably similar to the shape-shifterís appearance as a coyote. The
difference was that this form was
surrounded by a bright aura and had wings. She was also wearing a
brilliant
white robe.
Arrek fell on his knees
and raised his paws to the figure,
ìItís really you, isnít
it?î
The coyote nodded her head
and reached out and grasped one of Arrekís paws. She smile at him
and knelt down next to him. Fox looked closer at Arrek... there were
tears filling his eyes. The figure
spoke again,
ìI never... really got to
say... goodbye...î
Arrek didnít answer...
couldnít.
He was crying now. Tears streaming down his face. He embraced
the female coyote and she held on to him. She spoke again,
ìArrek... you shouldnít
be here. They know about us... they tried to use it against you. Thank
you
for not getting fooled.î
Arrek managed to finally
get a few words out,
ìY...youíre d...dead?î
The figure lowered her
head
and nodded sadly,
ìYes. Iím sorry. Iím sorry
I canít stay with you...î
ìItís been so long... so
much has happened...î
ìWeíll be together sooner
or later. Arrek... I love you... Iíll be waiting...î
The figure began to fade
from sight. Arrek reached out and kissed her once on the cheek. He then
turned away. The figure vanished completely. Fox walked up to Arrek
and helped the coyote to his
footpaws. Fox glanced at Arrek,
ìWeíre leaving, right?î
Arrek nodded grimly,
ìYes. This war is so
strange...
almost like a play...î
ìWhatever. What do we do
now?î
ìI know something I didnít
know before... itís time for a new actor to take center stage.î
They turned and continued
down the hall.
-The Conviction, Cornerian Space Navy carrier in orbit around Corneria
The tactical officer stared
down hard at her threat display. She wiped a paw across her eyes and
looked again. No difference... this was for real. She shouted up at
the ship captain,
ìSir, we got a little
problem.î
ìHow little?î
ìOver thirty-four enemy
cap ships incoming. At least six carriers, possibly more.î
The captain swore. He
stood
up and shouted across the bridge,
ìBattle stations! Scramble
all fighters! Full battle alert now.î
The bridge lights went red
and the general alarm sounded. The tactical officer looked down at
her screen. She wiped her forehead with a paw and looked back at the
captain,
ìSir, weíre going to
fight?î
ìYes. Weíre going to
fight.î
ìAgainst those odds sir?
They outnumber us over thirty-four to one... and thatís without counting
all the smaller ships and fighters.î
ìAs the old saying goes,
ëthe odds are no good in dice and dying.íî
The tactical officer
saluted
smartly,
ìIt was a pleasure serving
with you, sir.î
The captain returned the
salute and nodded grimly,
ìLikewise. Letís go to
it.î
The main display shifted
to show a view of the battle beginning. They could make out the
fighters from the Conviction approaching the enemy ships and the
enemy
fighters coming to greet them.
Then the radio chatter
began.
Reports coming in from the fighter squadrons. Orders being sent in
and out and being relayed all over the place. The bridge was suddenly
a bustle of vocal activity as the
attack was quickly organized.
Silence came as quickly
as it had left. All radio communications ceased. The attack was ready.
Now it was all up to the individual squadrons. This was a period many
pilots called ëhellís moment of
silenceí... the time right before an attack. All check-ins and
planning
was done... but there were no calls
for help or battle reports yet. Nothing to talk about... just
silence.
ìThis is the intervention
cruiser Jhíarik KíTarin to Cornerian ship Conviction. Please state your
current situation.î
The captainís eyes went
wide. Jhíarik KíTarin? That wasnít a Cornerian ship name... or a free-
lance one either... hell, even Andross hadnít named his ships things
like that. The captain picked up the
com and spoke slowly,
ìJhíarik KíTarin, would
you mind telling us where youíre from. Youíre not in our registers. And
how did you get our frequency?î
There was a laugh on the
other end of the com,
ìIt was easy. As to where
we come from... weíre from out of system. Way out. Now state your
current situation.î
ìWeíve just launched
fighters
against the enemy fleet. Awaiting engagement.î
ìPull them back now.î
ìWhy?î
ìPULL THEM BACK or we will
open fire and destroy your carrier.î
ìWhat?î
ìLook at your display.î
The captain looked up at
the main display. He stared. There was a huge new ship moving around
at the edge of the close sensors. He nodded slowly and spoke into the
com,
ìRight. Weíre pulling them
back now.î
At a nod from the captain,
the fighter operations commanders began to tell the fighters to return
to the Conviction. The captain spoke again into the com,
ìDo you guys have some
sort
of plan... by the way, who are you?î
There was another laugh,
ìOf course we have a plan.
Weíre going to eradicate the enemy fleet.î
A short pause, then they
continued speaking,
ìAnd my name... my name
is Sir Janith Tarius... you may call me Admiral Tarius.î
The com channel was shut
off at the other end. The captain slumped down in his seat and sighed.
This whole war thing just wasnít making any sense.
-Sirus Peak, Aquas
Sirus peak was a mass of
rock, dirt, and vegatation that jutted far above the seas of Aquas. It
was
a large place, and pleasent. There were lots of trees and green
grass.
Gray and Mira stood there
looking rather confused. They had received an anonymous tip from
someone claiming to know more about the civil war that wanted to give
them information. Gray shook his
head and kicked a pebble away,
ìI donít get it. Why would
someone possibly want to set us...î
He yelped sharply and
suddenly.
He pulled out his pistol automatically. Mira looked down at his
leg and saw a bloody gash where a bullet had torn through. The pistol
itself was hit and Gray dropped it.
They heard someone laughing behind them. Gray and Mira turned and saw
Minita DelVariot laughing.
The red wolf raised her pistol and waved it at the two foxes. She
laughed,
ìI know lots about the
civil
war... but Iím not interested in talking to you about it. Iím more
interested in killing you two.î
Mira glared at Minita,
ìCoward.î
Minitaís face fell and she
dropped the pistol,
ìWhat... did... you...
call...
me?î
Mira sneered at the red
wolf,
ìI called you a coward.
A dirty lying cheating cowardly whore, thatís all you are and all youíll
ever be.î
Gray looked in shock at
his wife. She was always the calm one and Gray always the hot-tempered
one. Minita looked furious. She pulled off her loose jacket.
Underneath
she was wearing a tight-fitting
tank-top. She still wore the long gloves over her prosthetic arms...
but even the parts of her body that
werenít cybernetically enhanced looked extremely strong. Her
expression
was one of complete comtempt
and loathing,
ìYou just signed your own
death warrant.î
Mira laughed,
ìYeah right. Youíd never
have the courage to kill me. You wonít even fight me, worthless slut!î
Minita let out a snarl of
pure rage. She ran fast at Mira. Mira stepped aside. Gray pushed himself
back and rolled on the ground. He pulled two combat knives out of
their
holsters on his ankles. Minita
stared at him,
ìThis is between me and
your wife.î
Gray shook his head,
ìNo. Youíre not going to
get us with that crap. You just picked a fight youíre not going to win.î
Minita pulled out her own
combat blade. The knife was long and looked extremely dangerous.
She charged Gray with the blade lowered. He put his own two knife
blades
together and trapped Minitaís
weapon. He gritted his teeth and squeezed even harder. Minita used
her incredible enhanced strength to
try and press through Gray grip.
He suddenly rolled back
and put a footpaw up. Minita went flying forward over him and landed
hard on the ground. She rolled and was up again, holding a long
pistol.
She sneered,
ìIf you wonít play fair,
I wonít either.î
Gray stared in surprise
right before she pulled the trigger. He was hit by a blast of energy and
thrown back onto the ground. He lay there groaning and holding his
chest.
Mira ran in form the side
and struck Minitaís pistol. The gun was knocked away and Minita
turned and snarled. She faced off against Mira... the two circling
and looking for an opening. Minita ran
and kicked at Mira. The fox was hit and sent backwards into the dirt.
Before she could get to her
footpaws, Minita was over her with a knife in paw. She held it up to
Miraís throat and grinned,
ìI want your husband to
see my work before I kill him...î
Minita raised the blade
high. Mira looked up at the knife in horror...
And the blade went flying
out of her paw into the air. Minita looked up at her own paw in
surprise. She heard a voice behind her,
ìSee what now?î
She turned around
frantically
and saw Gray Lancer standing over her. He was holding a pistol.
Minita quickly lifted a paw to rip it form his paws. He fired at the
arm she had moved. Sparks flew and
the arm went limp. Minita swore. Gray glared,
ìThis is a .9 rated
pistol.
Donít farginí try anything.î
Minita nodded. Behind her
back, she was slowly working a combat knife out of its sheath. Mira
grabbed her neck and held a knife up to it,
ìPlease donít try and hurt
him with that or Iíll have to kill you.î
Minita put her arm out and
stopped reaching for the knife. Gray held the pistol up to her head
and growled,
ìTell us what the hell is
going on, now!î
Minita frowned,
ìYou canít kill me.î
ìWanna frikkiní bet?î
Minita swallowed hard,
ìYouíll never defeat him.
Heís almost through already.î
Gray growled low. He
pulled
back and motioned for Mira to get up. Mira did so and stepped back
from the red wolf. Gray handed the pistol to Mira. He motioned at
Minita,
ìI think youíve earned
this.
You saved my life...î
Mira nodded. She pointed
the pistol directly at Minitaís head. She spoke in a quiet voice,
ìFor all youíve done.î
She squeezed the trigger.
The pistol barked once and Minita slumped over, instantly dead. Mira
dropped the pistol and walked to the edge of the island they were on.
It ended in a cliff looking out over
the ocean. Mira lowered her head. Gray walked up next to her and put
his arms around her shoulders. She
was crying. She whispered softly to Gray,
ìWhat are we going to do?î
Gray couldnít think of an
answer. He just stood and held Mira.
-Bloodlust, Brethren ship in orbit around Corneria
ìWeíve lost all our point
ships. Not even the carrier is left!î
ìSir, our gunnery strength
is only at two percent.î
ìSir, fighters have been
wiped out!î
ìWe HAVE to pull back!î
The captain snarled loudly
and spun to face the speakers,
ìSHUT UP! We will NOT
retreat!î
They saluted and walked
off. All except one of them. That one was a tall ferret who looked angry.
The captain squinted at him,
ìWhat is it, soldier?î
The ferret glared,
ìSir... I am officially
relieving you of command.î
The ferret pulled out a
small pistol. The captain stared in surprise. He felt several kintetic
rounds
enter his body, ripping through vital organs and spilling blood on
the deck. He collapsed to the floor with
the surprised expression locked on his face.
The ferret stepped over
the captainís body and shouted over the noise of the bridge,
ìI am now in command! We
are going to retreat, NOW!î
He heard a low voice near
him,
ìThat is not recommended.î
The ferret turned and saw
someone wearing a black cloak. Their face was obscured by the hood.
The ferret pointed his pistol at the figure and sneered,
ìRight. Recommend this...î
The ferretís smug
expression
turned to one of shock and horror when his pistol literally melted in
his paws. The figureís right paw was glowing brightly. The figure
pulled
back their hood. Underneath was
a fisher with glowing red eyes. They cocked their head at the ferret,
ìWhat was that? Our master
knows who the captain of this mysterious ship is... he is concerned
but not worried. Now step in line or be trampled.î
The ferret shook his head,
ìNo way... youíre not for
real.î
The fisherís expression
was one of pity. He put a paw up and it glowed very brightly. The ferret
gave one choked cry and his eyes rolled back into his head. Blood
oozed
out his mouth and he fell over
dead. The fisher replaced his hood,
ìI am now the captain of
this ship and I order it back into combat for the glory of our leader.î
The bridge staff, now
frightened
beyond belief, hurriedly returned to their appointed tasks.
-Orbital Hangar V1, leaving Venom orbit
Alison Meris whispered
urgently
into the darkness,
ìMark? Are you there?î
Mark Selster responded,
ìYeah. Whyíd the lights
go out again?î
ìNo idea. Did we actually
see that on the bridge?î
ìëfraid so.î
The bridge hadnít been a
pretty sight. They had found the severely disfigured bodies of several
crew members, still in remarkable condition. That wasnít really
saying
all that much, considering that
most of the bodies were missing critical parts, organs, and large
amounts
of flesh.
Some had obviously killed
themselves, some had killed each other, and some had been killed by
something entirely different.
ìMark... is it me or is
this place moving?î
Mark nodded slowly. A
futile
gesture in the pitch dark. He spoke,
ìYeah... yeah it is
moving.î
ìI didnít know it could
do that.î
ìJeez... I didnít either.
This is all so weird. Any luck contacting the Broadsword?î
ìNope. Not a bit.î
Mark sighed heavily. He
leaned back on wall. He whispered very quietly,
ìIs that breathing?î
Alison listened carefully,
ìIt is... and chanting...
far off...î
Neither of them made a
move.
Neither was particularly interested in finding out what was off in
the darkness of this mysterious station.
-The Conviction, in orbit around Corneria
Sir Janith Tarius, a very
tall fox, sat across the table from the captain of the Conviction. Janith
was laughing,
ìYou Lylatians... funny
people you have. You have no sense of proportion. Let me explain this to
you...î
He pulled out a piece of
paper and a pencil and lay them on the table. He drew a small circle in
the center and pointed at it,
ìThis is you, your
UNIVERSE,
not just your system. A tiny little place. Now look at this.î
He drew a slightly large
circle which just barely touched the first. Janith pointed at the circle,
ìThatís MY universe. The
story of why we have the same races as you is long. Bascially, we
came from this universe. Thatís not my point. Look at this...î
Janith drew a third circle
which touched both of the others,
ìThatís another dimension
that doesnít really behave normally. See, itís not always connected
with the other two. It moves in cycles. Itís touched yours before,
but that was thousands of years ago. The
inhabitants of that dimension look very different... the best way to
describe the place and its inhabitants in
one word is... hell.î
The captainís eyes
widened.
Janith laughed,
ìDonít look so frightened.
I would tell you the truth but it would only make you really nervous
and kind of paranoid. Letís just say that these guys are an enemy.
A very powerful enemy but an enemy all
the same.î
The captain nodded. Janith
continued speaking,
ìOk. Well, I can do plenty
against the little servants the enemy has here... well, the normal ones
in space ships anyhow. There are another set of servants that are a
little trickier and then thereís the
enemy themselves. Basically, the enemy is trying to get their leader
through to here. If that happens, weíre
screwed. Objective: kill ëem all. Get me?î
The captain nodded again
dumbly. Janith sighed,
ìNo you donít. The thing
is... the final enemy can only be faced by one person. One and one
alone. See, they have some power after all! Anyway, I need you to
help
me find all these people. One of
them is the chosen one... so to speak. Now get your butts moving.î
Janith tossed the captain
a packet of papers. The captain looked through them and read off a few
names,
ìFara Phoenix-McCloud...
Fox McCloud... Fana McCloud... Bill Grey... Katt Monroe. Those are
all from the war against Andross!î
Janith shrugged. The
captain
read a few more names,
ìMira Lancer... Gray
Lancer...
Auerulis Varius... James Robertson... and a lot more. Who the
hell are these people?î
Janith shrugged again,
ìI donít know any of them.
Except one.î
ìWho?î
ìArrek Largen. Heís
somewhere
in there.î
ìHow do you know him?î
Janith laughed,
ìOh that. Well... I know
his official records say he was born somewhere in this system... but
thatís crap. He was born in my universe and his parents fled here and
took him with them when he was
only a couple months old. Again, itís a long story.î
Janith started to leave
the room. He stopped and turned,
ìWhat did I just say?î
ìUh... that Arrek Largen
is from your universe.î
Janith nodded,
ìYeah... he is... isnít
he? Oh god... that damn riddle! Damn those stupid little freaks and their
damn riddles! Forget that list, just find Arrek Largen! Now!î
Janith turned and marched
out of the room. The captain tossed the list aside and turned to his
aide,
ìYou get to help me on
this.
Arrek Largen? Isnít he a bounty hunter or something?î
-Green Valley Cemetary, Corneria
Fox McCloud sat on a small
stone bench with his wife Fara. He was looking at the twin graves of
his parents. No bodies to fill either. Both completely gone. Almost
nice... after all, there was something
unsettling about the thought of oneís relatives being slowly eaten
by worms.
Fox looked up at the sky
above and sighed. They were out there, somewhere... the next life
probably. Together, no doubt.
Fox sighed again, wished
his mother had been with him longer. Sighed yet again, wished that
both parents were still alive. Wished they could have seen Fara...
seen what Fox had turned in to.
Fox almost laughed... he
had turned into his father, hadnít he? Kind of ironic... after all the
years
of Peppy telling him how much like his father he was... it was true.
Foxís thoughts turned back
to their original course... that is... not much of a course at all. He
had
come to his parentsí graves for no real reason. To remember them...
as he once knew them.
Fara had her arms around
him. He leaned against her and sighed. Neither fox said a word.
Finally, they stood up. They walked to another part of the cemetary.
They were looking for Arrek and
knew exactly where to find him.
As expected, he was beside
a solitary grave. A stone with the name written small and an
inscription. About the only remnant or Arrekís past. The coyote was
praying softly. Fox and Fara waited
paitently for him to finish.
Arrek did finish and
looked
up. He nodded at Fox and Fara, silently thanking them for not
interrupting him. They all turned and walked towards the exit to the
cemetary.
They heard Arrekís com
unit
beep. Arrek reached into his jacket and brought the small device
out. He pressed the receive button and put the device to his ear. He
listened for a second and then
responded quickly,
ìWhat are you doing here?
How did you get through to my number?î
Arrek listened some more.
Responded again,
ìWhat was that? Can you
give me some details...î
He listened to the answer.
His eyes went wide and he swallowed,
ìReally? Youíre serious?!î
Again, he waited for the
answer. His expression returned to normal,
ìI understand... I accept
the offer. I have my reasons which, as usual, will be kept private.
Understand?î
The response was quick.
Arrek nodded,
ìGood. Iíll be there as
soon as I can.î
Arrek shut off the com.
He turned to Fox and Fara,
ìEither of you know a Sir
Janith Tarius?î
Both shook their heads.
ìWell, weíre going to meet
him on the Conviction in about half an hour. You two need to go
because I donít have a ship. Letís just say that this is very
important.î
Fox shrugged,
ìWhatever. After all the
crap thatís happened today, Iím ready to believe anything. Letís go.î
-Spearhead Squadron, in pursuit of Orbital Station V1
ìHey, Iíve got a deep
question
for ya... how does something survive a direct hit with a nuke?î
Katt finally heard her
second-in-commandís
comment after the com came back online. The
second she heard the comment, she checked the threat display. Then
she swore loudly and punched the
console, which hurt her paw. She switched to all-squadron mode and
spoke into the com,
ìOk, is everyone there?î
She heard the five
positive
responses and sighed in relief. At least no one had bought it. Yet. She
looked again at the threat display to confirm that the target was
still
there. It was. To top it off, the target
was moving away at a high speed.
ìGuys, we have to try and
stop that thing.î
She heard the response of
Spearhead 4,
ìWhat? The nuke didnít
touch
it! How do we stop something like that?î
ìBy feeding accurate info
to people with bigger guns.î
The pilot yelped,
ìBigger than a NUKE?!î
ìYep. Iíll bet a 600mm
planetary
railgun could punch a hole in it.î
The pilot sounded
incredulous,
ìTheyíve got a 600mm
railgun?î
Katt sighed,
ìWell... no. But it made
a good example.î
Without waiting for an
answer,
Katt pushed her fighter forward and accelerated towards the
fleeing station. Her squadron followed close. They might question her
vocally, but they would always
follow if she led.
They had to make sure they
didnít lose the station. If they could keep track of it... who knew?
Maybe the Mercenariesí Guild or the Cornerian Space Navy had
something
that could stop it.
But it was seeming less
and less likely that any force, no matter how powerful, could stop this
thing in any normal fashion.
It was beginning to seem
a little hopeless. Katt swore again and growled,
ìDoes anyone have any good
ideas?î
No answer. Katt groaned.
So far, so bad.
-The Conviction, leaving Corneria orbit
Janith Tarius looked across
at Arrek Largen and gave him a half-smile. Arrek nodded. Janith
took a seat in a chair nearby and motioned for Arrek to do the same.
The fox and coyote sat across from
each other. Janith spoke quietly to Arrek,
ìNo more hiding.î
Arrek only nodded.
ìArrek... you know full
well whatís been happening. Your parents surely told you why they fled
our universe.î
Arrek nodded again and sat
back. Janith sighed,
ìGive it to me.î
ìWhat?î
ìYou know what.î
Arrek pulled a strange
object
from his jacket. It was half of a knife, split straight down the center
of the blade. Janith nodded and produced another half. Janith took
the two halves and put them together.
The blade clicked, glowed blue briefly, and finally sealed into one.
Janith handed the knife back to Arrek,
ìDo you know the old
legend?î
ìOf what?î
ìOf the second war of the
Destroyer.î
ìYeah. Iíve heard it
before.
The battle that destroys Lylat and then moves over and cripples our
dimension.î
Janithís eyes narrowed.
He frowned and leaned forward,
ìArrek. The legend is
true.
It is beginning now! We must draw the front lines and we must stand!
I donít want to tell you this... but youíre our only real hope. Pull
up your right sleeve.î
Arrek obeyed. Janith
turned
Arrekís and pushed aside the fur on the underside. He pointed at a
small mark in the shape of a knife. He released Arrekís arm and the
coyote pulled his sleeve back. Janith
nodded,
ìFirst time youíve seen
that?î
Arrek nodded. Janith bit
his lip,
ìYeah... figured... you
remember that part of the legend, donít you?î
Arrek nodded again. Janith
bowed his head,
ìYou understand that you
must do it alone.î
ìNo... I must do nothing
alone.î
ìHuh?î
ìI see no reason why I
should
explain. Iíll do it.î
ìGood. Weíve arranged a
merc transport to get you in. The Quicklight.î
Arrek looked at Janith in
surprise,
ìI know the two foxes who
own that ship.î
ìGood for you. Youíve got
ten minutes to get ready and get to the hangar.î
-The Quicklight, leaving the Conviction
Mira Lancer was in the
cockpit
flying the ship while Gray Lancer and Arrek stayed in the back
and Arrek got ready for his upcoming mission. Arrek sighed loudly,
ìIím as ready as Iím ever
going to be.î
Gray frowned,
ìIíll say goodbye now. I
know you arenít going to live and you know it.î
ìIsnít that a bit cynical,
Gray?î
ìShut up Arrek. I can tell
when someone knows theyíre going to die.î
Arrek nodded,
ìYouíre right. If I come
back alive, something has gone seriously wrong.î
ìI wonít even ask.î
ìGood... listen, Gray...
Iím going to entrust you with something.î
ìWhy?î
ìBecause Iíve learned I
can trust you. Take this and keep it. Please donít read it just yet...
but you
and your wife will know when itís time. There wonít be any way of
missing
it. Donít worry, youíll know
in good time.î
Arrek handed Gray a letter
sealed in an envelope. Gray nodded and put it in his jacket. Gray then
lowered his eyes and pulled out a piece of folded paper. He handed
to Arrek,
ìNow Iím going to entrust
YOU with something. Take this. I never want to see it again.î
Arrek put the folded paper
away. He nodded,
ìIt was good to see you
again Gray. I wish we could meet sometime outside of such
circumstances, but that seems destined not to be. I have only one
more
request...î
ìWhat?î
ìBurn my records, burn it
all. Make sure only that letter I gave you survives.î
ìBut thatís the only
really
accurate info there is on the supernatural!î
ìExactly. Gray... Iíve
realized
a lot of things in my life... some of them hurt a whole lot. But one
thing that stands above all else is that we canít handle some
knowledge.
My records are all in my office
and home. I want them to burn when Iím gone, do you understand?î
Gray nodded solemly,
ìYou donít mind that
youíre
going to your death?î
Arrek leaned close to Gray
and frowned,
ìImagine losing Mira and
being assigned to a suicide mission. Would you care either?î
Gray nodded,
ìI understand. Say hello
to her for me and Mira.î
Arrek reached out and
offered
his paw. Gray shook. Arrek nodded,
ìConsider it done.î
-Sirus Peak, Aquas
Tefin, Minita DelVariotís
muskrat aide looked down at the body of his former leader. He looked
around nervously and then looked back at the body. He muttered to
himself,
ìOoh... look what they
done
to ëer... ooh, makes me sooooo mad!î
He reached down with a
small
syringe. He took a small amount of blood from the shoulder of the
corpse. He stowed the vial of blood away in a small container.
ìBut theyíre gonna pay.
Ooh... theyíre gonna pay good. Bye maíam. Donít you worry now.î
Tefin scrambled away to
his own small ship.
-Orbital Hangar V1
Arrek Largen walked solemly
down the corridor. His way was lit but there was darkness on both
sides. The darkness was not empty... there were people in there
watching
him. Cloaked figures who were
neither moving nor making a single sound.
But Arrek showed no fear.
He strode confidently down the path. And as he walked chanting
began. The chant rose in volume until it was almost overpowering.
Still
Arrek walked straight on.
He stopped before a
strange
looking pulpit. Around the pulpit were small candles, burning
brightly.
A loud voice boomed out
of the darkness,
ìWho are you and how did
you enter my sanctuary?î
ìAnswer yourself...î
Arrek lifted his sleeve
and pushed aside the fur around the strange mark. There was a silence,
as
if the invisble presence was pausing to look closer. Then the voice
spoke again,
ìYou are he who the legend
spoke?î
Arrek did not answer. The
voice spoke again,
ìThat legend will NEVER
be fufilled! I will make you bow and swear your very soul to my
service.î
Arrekís voice dripped in
contempt,
ìGo ahead and bloody try.î
The chanting stopped. A
cloaked figure walked out of the darkness and faced Arrek. The figure
slowly raised their arms...
Arrek quickly reached into
his jacket and drew the strange knife. It flashed as he cleaved into the
cloaked figure. They screamed and reeled back. Warm blood spattered
onto Arrek. He grimaced and spoke
low,
ìYouíll have to do a lot
better than that.î
Two more cloaked figures
rushed, bow holding large swords. Arrek dodged around and stabbed
one. The other was taken down by a quick slash from Arrek. The voice
spoke from the darkness,
ìSTAND DOWN! Gradin, come
forth and serve your master!î
There was a loud shuffling
in the darkness and something came out. It was a huge lizard creature
dressed in full armor. The lizard hissed and glowered at Arrek. He
drew a huge sword and swung at the
coyote. Arrek ducked and the blade sliced overhead.
Arrek ran back. He looked
closely at the lizardís head. He pulled back the knife and threw with
all his strength.
Gradin let forth a
horrible
scream. The lizard, contrary to all logic, did not fall over dead.
Instead, it faded slowly from sight into a red mist. The mist
disappeared.
Arrek heard the voice roar,
ìYOU WILL BOW!î
He felt a hard blow to his
back and fell down. He couldnít see his attacker. He felt a sharp pain
in
his leg and pulled away. He looked down and saw a line of blood
running
down his left leg. He hauled
himself to his footpaws. He ran to the knife and picked it up. He
heard
a strange laughing,
ìYou cannot defeat me with
such a silly little weapon.î
Arrek sighed and gritted
his teeth. He knew the time had come. He raised the knife high,
ìI know. I know. But I
never
even said once that I intended to do that.î
The voice let out a
startled
cry,
ìNO! You will BOW!î
ìNever. ëIt will be seen
fit that all shall never happen once the covenant is sealed self-shed
blood.íî
There was a hideous
scream.
Arrek thrust the knife. It went into his stomach. He screamed as he
felt the intense pain. He collapsed to his knees.
Why the stomach? Of all
places... the pain was rushing throughout his body. He dropped the
knife.
Suddenly, he knew he felt
alone. There were no cloaked figures and no evil presence. He was
going to die alone. Nothing so bad as dying completely alone.
But there was a strange
light around the room. The gloom was lit up by a glow. Not harsh or evil
like the light that had illuminated the path, but warm. Warm and
inviting.
The pain in Arrekís stomach
was actually bearable now. He groaned as he felt his life essence
oozing
out of him. He was weakening.
Someone spoke softly,
ìDid I ever tell you where
I was born?î
Arrek groaned and tried
to look up. He had a lot of trouble. The voice spoke again,
ìYeah... I guess I didnít.
Well, I was born on Altius Proxima.î
Arrek tried to push all
his remaining strength into looking up. He couldnít. The incredible loss
of
blood had completely weakened him. He would soon be dead.
But someone held him up.
He looked straight forward into familiar eyes. His own eyes were now
wide with amazement,
ìDiana... youíre here...î
ìOf course. Arrek, weíre
together again. This time for good.î
ìYou were born on Altius
Proxima... so was I... thatís not in Lylat.î
ìNo. I was brought here
when I was very little, just like you. Thereís so much... that and a
million other things...î
ìWill there be time?î
ìAll the time you could
ask for.î
Arrek felt a warmth. No
pain now. The world was all light... and he felt himself slipping away,
in the arms of one he hadnít seen in a long while... together with
her forever.
&nbs p; * * *
&nbs p; Prologue 1: Rilahís final note to Gray
-The following is an exact transcript of the note which was given to
Arrek Largen by Gray
Lancer:
Gray, Iíve heard that you
and Mira are now engaged! I canít even begin to tell you how happy I
am for you. I wish you can both have a great life together. I hope
to see you again soon. Itís been awhile
and we need to catch up.
&nb
sp; &nbs
p;
-Always your best friend, Rilah
&nbs p; * * *
&nbs
p;
Prologue 2: The aftermath
Exactly one day after the
death of Arrek Largen, Gray and Mira Lancer gathered all of his
records. They set fire to them and made sure all of the records were
burned to cinders. Three days after
that, Orbital Hangar V1 was authorized for demolition. After a week
of work, Orbital Hangar V1 was
destroyed.
All the participants in
the battle went their own ways. But none would ever forget what they had
all been through.
&nbs p; * * *
&nbs p; Prologue 3: The characters
-Gray and Mira Lancer
Gray and Mira returned to
their small apartment in Corneria City to raise their daughter again.
They still run small missions on the side, even with a daughter. Both
are considered semi-active members
of the Mercenariesí Guild. The letter given to Gray by Arrek remains
unopened and in a safe location.
-Fox McCloud and Fara Phoenix-McCloud
After their disturbing
experiences
on board Orbital Hangar V1, they were glad to assist the
Cornerian Military in its destruction. They have returned to their
lives as roaming free-lance mercenaries
and maintain only the loosest ties with any organization, mercenary
or otherwise.
-Katt Monroe
Assisted heavily in the
demolition
of Orbital Hangar V1. Commended for bravery by the
Mercenariesí Guild, the Cornerian Military, and several other
organizations
for her actions in the fight.
-Janith Tarius
Quietly left Lylat and
returned
to his old dimension. He spent two months in isolation to mourn
the passing of his two good friends, Arrek Largen and Diana Mycelles.
He relinquished command of his
ship and returned to a job as the speaker for Altius Proxima.
-Brett and Kelly MacDonald
Just glad to get Fenica
Lancer
back to her loving parents. They resumed full-time control of the
Mercenariesí Guild shortly thereafter.
-Alison Meris
She witnessed the events
with Arrek Largen on Orbital Hangar V1 from a dark corner with her
friend Mark Selster. Both reported back. Alison decided sheíd had
enough
of the military and left to train
with Tagaio Misada.
-Mark Selster
Recovered quickly from the
events on the Broadsword. Retired from carrier operations and was
promoted to Captain. Went on to train troops on Katina. Cited again
for bravery after saving a cadet from
a rockslide in mountain training. Promoted again to Commander.
-The Brethren of the Fallen
After the defeat of the
Destroyer,
most of the Brethren realized what they had been doing and
disbanded. Few were even charged with anything because of the unusual
nature of the whole thing. The
few die hards who stayed loyal to their defeated master were soon
killed.
-Julie Morio
Received the Cornerian
Medal
of Valor for her actions in the hostage rescue. Promoted above her
old captain and given command of a district. She promptly demoted
Captain
Gerhart to corporal and stuck
him on a desk job, where he couldnít do any more damage.
-Tagaio Misada
Currently training Alison Merris. Still accepting students in his isolated dojo.
-Tefin
His current whereabouts are
unknown. However, rumors suggest a secret project on Zoness.
&nbs
p;
;
The end!
&nbs p; * * *
The final word: Well, thatís the end of it. You may notice a couple
ëloose endsí floating
around. Do you honestly think that Iíd leave that much uncertainty?
I donít think so!
Youíll be seeing more of those soon enough.