As Fox disembarked from his Ar-Wing, he found Falco, Peppy, Slippy, Krystal, and Sunset waiting for him. Before anyone could say anything to him, he strode up and pulled Krystal and Sunset into a tight embrace. This surprised Krystal and pleased Sunset, as it was several moments after Sunset started returning the embrace that Krystal did so.
"Already celebrating, Fox?" Falco suggested teasingly.
"Not now," Fox responded flatly, struggling to keep the emotion from his voice as he finally released Krystal, Sunset having crawled out of the embrace and onto his shoulders to wrap her legs loosely around his neck while lightly gripping his ears to hold herself on for the 'Pony Ride!' she started screaming for.
Falco bridled at Fox's tone, but Peppy spoke up before he could say anything. "What happened down there, Fox?" he asked worriedly.
"I...I saw Dad..."
Everyone fell silent at that admission. Krystal bit her lip as she glanced away. Slippy hung his head. Falco's ire cooled as his gaze became sympathetic. Sunset hugged Fox's head tightly. It was Peppy, looking stricken and wan, who finally managed to speak. "He...he's..."
"I'd just defeated Andross," Fox explained softly. "He decided to take me out with him, setting off chains of explosions through the planet to destroy me. I thought I was done for...and then I heard Dad, telling me to never give up." He looked up at Peppy, his eyes dewy. "I saw his fighter, leading the way out ahead of the explosions. I...I saw him on the commlink. He spoke to me...gave me advice. He said...he was proud of me. And...and just before we made it out of the planet, his fighter vanished. His last words..." He felt his throat lock from the sadness. "He said he may be gone...but he's always with me..."
Peppy closed his eyes tightly, trying his best to hold back his tears. He'd always known the chances that James could still be alive were next to nothing, but some part of him had still held onto hope. Now, with James' goodbye to his son, he felt that hope dying as he was forced to truly say farewell to his oldest friend...
"Utzum..." Krystal murmured softly.
"Hmm?" Fox asked curiously.
"It's...it's a legend of my people," Krystal explained. "Of warriors so dedicated to the protection of their kin...that in death their spirits became anchored to their descendants, watching over them forever and even appearing to them in moments of imminent death, either to help them survive or - if impossible - guide them gently into the next world." She shook her head in wonder. "I...no actual instance of it had ever been recorded in our history...but he's speaking the truth. He may be gone...but his spirit is always with you."
Fox smiled softly, raising one hand up to gently brush Sunset's mane. She nuzzled into his head happily.
Slippy cleared his throat awkwardly. "Well, we should probably do some maintenance and repairs now," he managed to say. "No telling what stuck to the ships from Venom and who knows where else. Don't want Sunset getting sick from anything we brought back, or anything like that."
"Yeah, that's a good idea..." Peppy began carefully, latching onto the mundanity to hold back the whirling emotions.
"Communication from General Pepper!" Rob announced from the bridge. "Full crew please report to the bridge!"
"Right!" Fox confirmed, immediately turning to rush to the bridge. He was definitely worried about something else going wrong now. Why else was General Pepper engaging a real-time communication at this distance. It was expensive and tough on the systems.
When the entire group reached the bridge, General Pepper's visage appeared via holo-projection to address them all. "Team Star Fox," he greeted formally, "first and foremost I want to offer my heartfelt congratulations and the gratitude of the entire Lylat System for your efforts in this conflict. You proved instrumental in every battle against Andross and his forces, and I can honestly say that without your efforts we would have been helpless before him. It was a real treat to watch you in action, Fox McCloud. I can honestly say you are every inch your Father's son, and the team you have assembled is - if anything - even more impressive than it was under his leadership. I am certain he is proud of you. We are in your debt."
Fox managed a smile. "Thank you, General," he greeted, warmly but stiffly. "It was our pleasure to assist. Lylat is our home too." He hesitated. "But somehow I don't think that's all you called to say. If it were, it would have been a burst message with an invitation for a formal event, as you did with Dad."
"You are correct," General Pepper confirmed, his expression turning somewhat dour as his gaze flicked downward, plainly glancing at reports. "As much as I am pleased you saved us all...some concern has arisen given the nature of your performance. Specifically, events on Corneria, Katina, and Titania, and the demonstration of...certain weapons technology."
"Katina and Titania...you're talking about the Main Mana Cannon," Slippy deduced. "But we didn't use it on Conreria. We'd never unleash that level of devastation anywhere near inhabited space."
"While this...Main Mana Cannon is something I wish to discuss," Pepper agreed, "the events I refer to on Corneria are in regard to your fighter's...defensive systems? At least, I presume that's what it was..." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "As well as...a gravity weapon?"
As Fox and the others looked at each other in confusion, Krystal groaned. "You mean the enemy drone that split in half with no explanation, and the manned battle cruiser that was crushed to bits?" she clarified.
"Indeed," General Pepper confirmed. "What technology did that?"
Fox groaned softly. "...General Pepper, can I trust you to be discreet regarding the explanation?"
Pepper frowned. "I'll be as discreet as I can manage, but I need to file some sort of report...especially about new weaponry technology at this scale."
Fox and the others exchanged thoughtful glances. Eventually, Falco shrugged. "You're her Dad," he whispered so Pepper wouldn't hear. "It's up to you."
"You can trust General Pepper," Peppy confirmed firmly. "Don't doubt it."
Nodding, Fox turned back to the General. "General...this is my adopted daughter, Sunset Shimmer," he introduced. Sunset waved happily from her spot on Fox's shoulders and atop his head. "She did it."
"I...beg your pardon?" Pepper asked in confusion.
"Sunset Shimmer is gifted with magic on - relative to the rest of the known universe - a massive scale," Krystal explained quickly. "This enables her to manipulate the fabric of reality in ways that physics normally doesn't allow for."
"Such as causing an enemy drone to split in half by drawing a line through it with a glowing finger on a view screen," Slippy pointed out.
"Or playing the 'I am crushing your head' game and having the ship actually get crushed," Falco added in a joking tone.
"Is...that why she's glowing so brightly?" Pepper asked curiously.
"No, that's because we're in close proximity to Solaar," Krystal explained. "She has a fire affinity, so being so close to such a huge source of heat and flame drastically boosts her magic's reach and output."
"I...see," Pepper allowed nervously. "Well, I'm not about to get between a child with that kind of power and her perceived parents, especially not when said parents are system wide heroes. That would be suicide politically and literally. Though I can't say the same for the civilian authorities." He sighed gustily. "You have no idea the loopholes I had to jump through to give Peppy legal custody of you after James died, Fox. Bloody bureaucrats..."
"Wait, you did what?" Fox asked in surprise.
"Well, you were still a minor," Pepper pointed out logically. "Speaking of minors, how old is Sunset?"
"We aren't sure exactly," Peppy offered calmly, "but Fox found her the day he learned about James' last mission."
"So you've had her for three years?" Pepper concluded. "Definitely not interfering with that bond. But...did her having so much magic for that long...?"
"There were some problems at first with just how much magic she generated," Krystal spoke up. "It's what led to me being hired as her nanny...only for her to decide I was her mother. The main issue was a magicless environment causing feedback loops as her body tried to reabsorb her own released magic while simultaneously stabilizing the magic levels of her environment...but once he was aware of the problem, Slippy was able to address it with his ACSU systems."
"I'll show you the schematics in person," Slippy spoke up before Pepper could question. "And...well, pretty much everything else about the Great Fox and the Ar-Wings that's new can be traced to those systems, and trying to make use of all that excess magical energy."
Pepper frowned worriedly. "...I'll need to see these schematics soon," he insisted firmly. "And figure out how to put it into a report without giving too many details. The last thing we need is the wrong people getting their hands on anything this potent..."
Back in the hangar, a tiny fragment of metal slipped off Slippy's Ar-Wing. It bounced off the hanger floor and slipped down a vent before bouncing around inside the ship's walls. It briefly passed through an open ACSU conduit, receiving a small surge of magical energy before falling into a part of the ship that would not be charged magically for a long time.
On the tiny piece of metal, a single eye opened, watching and waiting for its opportunity for revenge.
oh boi here we go.
This sounds like the perfect opening for Star Fox Zero. Please tell me you're doing Star Fox Zero next.
8380886
Nope. That's Chekov's Gun being cocked.
Now to bridge the gap between Starfox 64 and Starfox Adventures. I hope andross finds a hobby to keep himself entertained over the next eight years.
"Gravity cannon? What gravity cannon, we don't have anything like that, it was a disturbance in space, random fluke, nothing more."
Well that little piece of 'metal' is going to cause bug problems, guess we will just have to sit back and enjoy the ride to find out.
Guess the good General is gonna have to spice up his report to make it seem legit enough without exposing too much.
Nice wrap up and set up for Andross's survival. I can't wait to see what he does in regards to Sunset. And given Pepper has gone through some hoops for Fox, will Sunset adopt him into her family as well??? I can see her calling him Granpa Peppa or something similar.
Oh shit.... that is gonna get all sorts of bad before THAT particular problem is solved....
The general is quite an ally, it's probably a good thing to have all cards on the table with him.
Narrator's voice: "The wrong people eventually get their hands on it."
It's been a long time since I've messed with Star Fox stuff from the 64 era, but unless I miss my guess, we're dealing with the comics next. Either that, or the Dinosaur Planet.
8380950
Uncle Doggie!
i dont understand andross again? or king sombra?
I knew it was too soon to celebrate! Curse you, Andross!
8380886
Star Fox Zero is just Star Fox 1 and Star Fox 64 again, though. This arc might as well have been all three
8381066 They always do
Would it be Andross if it came off of Slippy's Arwing?
8381292
More than likely
Ah yes...Star Fox Adventures...
Andross is making me think of how Medusa avoided death in the Soul Eater anime...
8381229
Andross always survives... he's even more resilient then a cockroach.
why can't the bad guys just stay down for once
8381320
But Fox was the one who fought Andross directly, Slippy wasn't anywhere near the final battle.
Diekbeck? Clockwerk?
8381398
An evil cockroach.
8381531
8381540
At least he's not a spider. Hate those damn things.
8381409
It was a piece of metal, not a piece of a flesh and blood body. Slippy did fight the robo-Andross.
8381233
Still, some aspects of Zero can be carried over to other arcs. Like the development of the Gigarilla superweapon, and the Gyrowing.
8381667
8382197
Exactly!
8382364
I don't mind spiders... it's ant's I can't stand. ever since I saw that scene in the bad 4th Indiana Jones movie where the guy get's dragged into the ant mound, I can't stand the things, no matter how small the are. Yeagh
8382150
Ok sure, I'll give you that. Some of Zero's unique gameplay aspects can be introduced to this fic, but the plot of Zero is the plot of 64 is the same as Star Fox 1, therefore has just been completed here.
I don't know why but that ending made me think of Sly Cooper's Clock-la.
Whooo~
Lives in a owl head under the sea?
Neyla Clockwerk!
Whose soul is trapped and yearns to be free?
Neyla Clockwerk!
Internal torment under the fish?
Neyla Clockwerk!
Neyla Clockwerk!
So does this lead into star fox 2 or adventures?
Gotta write that Utzum thing down.
8381066
Is it weird I heard Morgan Freeman narrating this?
Ok, so Andross contracted "Wesker syndrome". Interesting.
8585344
What's wesker syndrome?
8673727
http://residentevil.wikia.com/wiki/Albert_Wesker
That guy.
Just realized, that was the AI they fought.
8879697
The AI that wanted to be whole?
8879697
Can't be that ar wing was destroyed
Spyborg? What are you doing here? How are you here? How are you so tiny?