//------------------------------// // First Escape // Story: My Own Wings // by Tatsurou //------------------------------// Venom's landscape was dead and barren as Fox flew his Ar-Wing through the yellow clouds filling the atmosphere. Thousands upon thousands of drones swarmed, whether bio-weapon or technological it was impossible to tell. Fox gripped his controls tightly as he guided his craft back and forth, firing on anything that moved or shot back that wasn't his own team. Everything - even the planet itself - was trying to kill him here. "Don't relax," he told his team firmly. "We're not done yet." That was the last thing he said to his team for some time as they flew, the landscape suddenly sprouting around them as even the grass seemed to try and funnel them for the kill, and mushrooms leapt out of the ground to attack. Tree branches crossed the few available paths, thick enough to be mistaken for architecture rather than biology and be serious obstacles for the Ar-Wings. The others gave encouragement and warning when the time was appropriate, but Fox remained silent. If he said much more, he'd start sharing his worries. About the possible connection between Andross and what happened to Cerinia...about Andross being after Sunset...about what could happen if he got his hands on her... He couldn't let himself think or speak of that right now. He had to maintain his focus. He had to go after Andross, take him down, and stop the threat of Venom. That was the only way he could protect the ones he cared about. The paths available diverged, forcing the group of four fighters to divide their forces in teams of two. Fox always took the path Slippy took, deciding to keep an eye on the only teammate who didn't have an enhanced fighter to work with. The paths always converged in wide open areas after forcing them through gauntlets of seemingly endless swarms of drones. Sparing a glance, Fox could tell they were all taking a pounding from it, with each of the other Ar-Wings scorched or burnt from lucky shots or barrages that were simply to thick to evade completely. "This brings back memories of your Dad," Peppy observed warmly to Fox, plainly trying to lift the mood. "Not now, Peppy," Fox replied brusquely. "I need to stay focused. I can't think about that." "Indeed you can't," Andross declared, once more on their frequency. "You know full well that those magic cans are no match for me. They are but spare parts waiting to be harvested. Come to me, Star Fox. Show me your might...and I will show you death and life." A massive temple seemed to rise out of the ground in the distance, welcoming them into its interior. A sphinx backed by a pyramid and surrounded by statues raising and lowering their arms in obeisance surmounted a tunnel wide enough for the fighters to fly in. "That temple gives me the creeps," Slippy observed nervously. "Keep chatter to a minimum," Fox ordered intensely. "Andross can access our frequency." "Roger!" all three of his teammates confirmed immediately. As they flew down the now stone tunnel, a massive stone golem came to confront them, only to flee as they opened fire. The temple itself seemed to strike out at them as spires of stone erupted from walls, floor, and ceiling behind the golem as it ran to block their path. As they continued to fire, chunks of stone broke off the golem, revealing the circuitry beneath. Eventually, the stone skin was completely gone, revealing the robot beneath...only for it to explode from the focused onslaught. The temple blazed white...and the group found themselves back on the surface of Venom. "What the?" Falco demanded angrily. "An illusion?" Slippy deduced worriedly. "A trap!" Peppy called out as Wolf and his team flew down from the sky to the attack. "Don't get too cocky, Star Fox," Wolf called out smugly. Fox took a quick count of the attackers. "Only three of you?" he asked in surprise. "It seems your Cerinian did more of a number on Pigma's fighter than anticipated," Wolf responded easily. "He won't be joining us...but in your current state, the three of us are more than capable of taking you out. You sent the Great Fox away, so you won't be supercharging on us...not when you need to conserve energy for the battle with Andross." "We'll just see about that, Star Wolf," Fox growled out. Fox and the others flew around the towering columns, upright and fallen, that filled the area they found themselves in. It didn't take long for them to come up with a plan, as it was incredibly similar to the exercises they'd done in the asteroid field before the war began. It became easy enough for three of the team to keep Star Wolf in tail chases, leading them into the fourth fighter's ambush. Careful evasion minimized the damage they all took, resulting in Star Wolf being forced to withdraw with their tails between their legs without doing any appreciable damage. As Star Wolf went down, however, Fox checked everyone's readouts. His fighter was the only one with all systems fully functional, though his tanks were running low. The others all had one critical system or another damaged, though they had more energy storage. "Slippy, can we transfer energy between Ar-Wings?" "The magical energy, easily," Slippy responded. "Just fly close enough together and hit the switch." "Peppy, Falco, transfer your energy to my Ar-Wing," Fox ordered. "I'll go the rest of the way alone. The rest of you head back to the Great Fox for repairs." "But Fox!" Peppy called out. "Don't argue!" Fox snapped out. "All three of you know your fighters are in no condition to continue." "Dammit, Fox!" Falco snapped out. "You better make it back in one piece!" "That's a promise!" Fox confirmed as Peppy and Falco fed his fighter their energy. With his shields and batteries once more full, he turned and dove into the planet. As he dove through the shifting metal tunnels that led deeper into the planet, Andross' voice came through on the communicator. "I've been waiting for you Star Fox. You know that I control the galaxy. It's foolish to come against me." As he dove into what seemed like the center of the planet, Andross continued, "Now you will feel true pain." Fox found himself up against a giant effigy of Andross' head...assuming it wasn't Andross himself, having horribly mutated himself through his own bio-tech research. The face and two hands floated in a green ether, and Fox focused his attacks on the glowing spots on the palms of his hands while dodging the attacks - like lightning from a fingertip - that definitely looked magical. Once the hands were destroyed, he focused on the main head...only for it to explode and reveal a pulsating brain. "Only I have the brains to rule Lylat!" Andross insisted as he began to float around. "But you seem to be lacking the heart!" Fox snapped as he pursued, unleashing as much weapons fire as he could to take down the creature Andross had become. Before too long, it began to explode. "If I go down, I'm taking you down with me!" Andross roared. A massive blast of light blinded Fox...but he accepted it. He'd destroyed Andross, he'd protected Sunset, if he was right he'd avenged Cerinia and saved Lylat. That was a good thing... "Don't ever give up, my son." Fox jerked to attention as the light faded. He knew that voice. "Dad?" Another Ar-Wing flew ahead of him, leading the way through a tunnel. "Follow me, Fox," James offered stiffly. "Let's get you back where you belong. One McCloud already had to go without a father, I won't let another. "D-Dad?" Fox gasped in surprise as he followed down the twisting tunnels. He...he knew about Sunset? "Never give up," James continued. "Trust your instincts...and don't keep that girl waiting too long before making your move." "That's...not exactly easy with a kid in the picture," Fox replied as he felt his cheeks flushing. "Few things in life that are worth it are," James responded calmly. A few twists and turns later, with Fox easily keeping up, and James gave one last message. "You've become so strong, Fox. I may be gone...but I'm always with you." With that, James Ar-Wing vanished as Fox shot out the surface of Venom. As explosions continued to rock Venom's interior, Fox shot out into space only to find it warping around him. In a flash, he was in orbit around Solaar, being gently drawn into the Great Fox's hangar. "Mental note," he mumbled to himself, "spend as little time this close to Solaar as possible. Sunset gets too much of a power boost."