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Chapter 34: Cerinian Rescue

It had been decided that two guardians would remain behind to protect their home on New Cerinia from possible attack by rogue telepaths. Renjiro would join Fokkusu and Kurisutaru on this mission to rescue Corneria. The other guardian with them was Isamu. He was chosen because of his bondmate, Kasumi, who was a genius when it came to computers and the networks they supported. Most importantly, she had a knack for getting by security protocols, which she had often done for her amusement during her university studies back on Cerinia. Kurisutaru and Fokkusu were not as close to Kasumi and her bondmate as they were with Akina and Renjiro, but still considered them friends.

They had ascended into orbit around Sauria and were now contemplating how they would return to Corneria on the other side of Lylat. "I just hope that the Beltino Gate has not been taken over, or our return trip could take over a week." Fokkusu fretted.

From her engineering station, Fay expressed her confidence. "I don't think they have. Striker came through because some agent had overridden the gate's controls remotely using their prefix code. If they had taken it over from the inside, they would not have needed any codes. As it stands, the commander of the gate had to shut down the whole station to regain control."

"They also changed their prefix code before they powered back up," Dash added. "That's how they were able to open the gate for us to get here."

Falco nodded and activated his comm. "Let's find out. Great Falcon to Beltino Gate. Do you read me?" An anxious half minute later with still no reply, "Beltino Gate, this is Falco...."

"Beltino Gate here. We read you, Great Falcon." The sigh of relief on the bridge was palpable.

"What's the status on Corneria?" Falco asked.

"The insurrection was suppressed. The ones responsible have been apprehended." A sense of elation washed through the bridge of the dreadnaught heavy cruiser. Many tails were wagging at the news that disaster had been averted.

"That's fantastic!" Falco replied. "Can you put us through to General Hare?"

There was a pregnant pause which was followed by gut-wrenching news. "I'm sorry, but General Hare was killed in an explosion at CDF headquarters."

The members of the resurrected Team Star Fox sat in stunned silence. The last member of the original Star Fox, their mentor, was dead. "I'm sorry, Captain Lombardi. I know he meant a great deal to you..."

"Did they capture that bastard, General Striker, and his supporters?"

The reply sent every mind on the Great Falcon reeling. "It wasn't Striker. The Cerinians tried to take over our military and government. The Senate has ordered a strike team to Sauria to eliminate the threat. They are coming through the gate now."

"Roger that." Falco replied, and promptly terminated the communication channel. In the next instant, several things happened at once. From his tactical station, Dash called out in alarm. "Captain! The CDF Vigilant has locked weapons on us!" Before Falco could issue any order, the CDF Dauntless emerged from the artificial wormhole generated by the Beltino Gate. The Great Falcon lurched under the salvo delivered by the destroyer that had suddenly turned against them, severely damaging their vessel. Falco called out to Dash, "Shields!"

"Shields up, but we have multiple emitter offline. We are at only 23%!" Dash called back frantically.

Fay sprung to her feet. "I'll do my best to get them back online, Sir!"

Before anybody could do anything further, they heard over an open channel the voice of Lupo Ramius from the Dauntless. "CDF Vigilant! Stand down!"

"Commander! The Great Falcon has Cerinians onboard. We just received orders to destroy them a minute ago."

"The orders are false. They are not the enemy." Lupo countered. "We have solid intel that prove that they never tried to overthrow our government and military. Now stand down!"

For a weighty moment, everyone on the bridge of the Great Falcon waited for the outcome. Then, with a sigh of relief, they heard ROB-64 report in its dispassionate voice. "CDF Vigilant weapons powering down."

*****

Falco looked out the window of the shuttlecraft he was piloting from the Great Falcon to the Dauntless and griped. "This is nuts. First the Vigilant saves us from Striker's people chasing us through the gate's wormhole on our way here. Then they try to blow us up when we try to head back. And now, they're going to help us?"

From the co-pilot's seat, Katt growled. "The Senate has a lot to answer for, letting fear dictate their actions like this."

"But was it really the Senate?" Kurisutaru put in. "Lupo said the orders were illegal."

"And there's the prophesy saying that the Cerinian race would recover and become Lylat's greatest ally." Fokkusu added. "This attack on us has to be a mistake." Privately, he fervently hoped it was the case even as he glanced out his passenger window at the repair bots moving about to undo the damage that had been inflicted upon his father's legacy by the Cornerian Defense Force.

From her seat, Fay glanced out on her side of their shuttlecraft towards the Dauntless and its open hanger bay. "I think we'll soon find out."

"I do hope so." Dash added while glancing at the four Cerinians with them. Even without telepathy, it was obvious to him that Renjiro, Akina, Isamu, and Kasumi were anxious and afraid.

Falco piloted their shuttle through the energy barrier of the Dauntless' hangar bay and brought the vessel to a gentle landing upon the deck. Once the shuttle's gangway was lowered, they filed out, with Falco and Katt leading the way, followed by Fay and Dash. Behind them were Fokkusu and Kurisutaru with their Cerinian friends.

They were greeted by ship's first officer, Commander Fenral Rufus. Before anything was said, the grey wolf began without preamble. "I'll get right to the point. We know Cerinians had nothing to do with the overthrow of our government."

The sense of relief among the Cerinians was palpable, and was voiced by Renjiro. "We are gratified to see that you understand that we would never do such a thing to the people who rescued us from the deserted wasteland you found us in."

"But who then issued the order to kill us all?" Falco asked.

"A Senator Joshua Howly, at the behest of Gordon Striker." Fenral snarled. "That disgrace of a wolf is the current leader of the minority opposition party. Given what I've read about him, I know he's the type who would follow a usurper like Striker for political gain."

"If we have our way, he'll end up in prison too." Katt hissed in response.

Fenral looked over this most unusual group made up of Lylatian mercenaries and Cerinian warriors. Falco Lombardi and Katt Monroe were the oddest of couples. Despite a prior rocky relationship, the two had stayed together in the eight years since they had formed Star Falco. Fay Spaniel was such a girlish, bubbly female, and yet the reports he read stated that she was a topnotch engineer that had formerly worked for Space Dynamics. Then there was Dash Bowman. If there was a better repudiation of Andross than this brave, noble ape, he did not know it.

He did not know the Cerinians all too well, except for Krystal McCloud and the one who stood next to her. The grey wolf walked up to the tod standing next to her and took in his features. He sported the same tattoos as the vixen, and despite his blue fur, there was no mistaking the white blaze on his forehead and the white fur around his muzzle, nor his piercing green eyes. "And I am gratified that you are alive and well, Fox McCloud, and wholeheartedly understand why you sought refuge among a people who have a greater respect for privacy than many back home on Corneria."

Fox closed his eyes and sighed. Part of him had hoped that he could have left his old identity behind for the rest of his life, but another part of him was thankful for the possible path back to that life and the home he left behind on Corneria, for the sake of his children, especially his son. "Thank you for understanding why I had to leave after that attempt on my life and that of my family's."

Fenral nodded to the gathering and beckoned them, "If you will follow me, I will take you to Fleet Captain Ramius. We have much to discuss and little time to do so." They followed the first officer up through the carrier, passing many of the crew who gazed wide-eyed at the wolf's entourage as they walked by. A short ride up the central lift brought them to the bridge where they were greeted by the fleet captain.

Lupo Ramius took in the sight of the Star Falco crew and the Cerinians with them and could not suppress the quirk that formed on his muzzle. "So Mister Lombardi. You and most of your crew have taken to wearing Cerinian jewelry?"

Falco had forgotten that he was wearing Fox's diadem and conscientiously reached up to the jeweled band of gold covering his forehead. "Uh...we can explain."

"Oh, I am quite sure there is a reason for this." Lupo assured as he led them to the conference room at the aft end of the bridge deck. Once they were all seated around the central table, the white wolf began to brief them. "All of you may be wondering how we know Cerinians were not involved in the attack on our government and military headquarters." He nodded to Fenral, who then inserted a data crystal into the computer terminal in front of him.

Above the emitter in the center of the table, a holographic image of Peppy Hare appeared. "Bill, first off, do not believe any stories the media puts out....."

Six hours ago:

It had been less than an hour since Peppy had sent Falco and his crew on their mission to New Cerinia when he received a frantic call from the CDF Headquarter lobby. "Sir! Unknown assailants have broken into the building! They're..." Over the open microphone, he then heard an agonized shriek before the connection was cut off.

A pit formed in Peppy's stomach even as he placed a call to the security station one floor below his. "Jabari here."

"Lieutenant Commander, access the lobby security camera. What do you see?"

From his computer station, the serval brought up the video feed from the CDF Headquarters lobby. What he saw sent a shiver of fear down his spine to the tip of his tail. On the monitor, military police where sinking to their knees with their hands pressed against their heads while screaming in agony. The last time he had seen such a horrific scene was eight years ago, when Krystal McCloud had presented to the Senate archival footage of the Cerinian clan wars where combatants would mind rape opponents.

There was no doubt as to what he was seeing. "General Striker's making his move. We are under attack by rogue telepaths. You must evacuate at once, Sir."

"Where else has his followers been attacking?"

A quick search revealed that the situation was worse than expected. "Several CDF bases around Corneria have been taken over....and the Senate is under siege."

"Then we must both make our escape, Lieutenant Commander. But first, come upstairs, and bring explosives."

It was a rushed affair, with time not on their side. But with Jabari's help, Peppy was able to booby trap his office with multiple thermal grenades that would lay waste to the entire top floor of the CDF Headquarters. The floor had already been evacuated, and they were about to take the emergency stairs when the sound of multiple screams coming from below reached their ears.

"We need to find another way out of here...." Jabari murmured to his commanding officer while looking around for other possible ways out. It was Peppy who pointed to an unorthodox avenue of escape. "The garbage chute..."

Not for the first time in his life, Peppy Hare was thankful that he had devoted many hours in the CDF Headquarters gymnasium to keeping himself fit. Otherwise, he would never have been able to follow the serval down the narrow shaft. Quickly worming their way down, they had nearly reached the bottom when the entire building shook with the massive explosion that resulted when the general's office door was opened.

Peppy looked up in horror at the conflagration rushing down towards them. Doing the only sensible thing, he let go of the garbage chute walls and let himself fall, dislodging Jabari along the way. Together, they plummeted the remaining levels and landed in a heap in the garbage bin below and rolled out of the way of the fire pursuing them.

The flames quickly dissipated upon the refuse that had cushioned their fall. "Let's hope that explosion draws the rest of them up." Jabari panted. Just outside the garbage collection room, they found a Corneria City Sanitation garbage truck. The sanitation workers were nowhere to be found. Inside the cab, they procured for themselves spare uniforms. "These will do." Peppy grumbled. He walked over the smoldering refuse at the base of the garbage chute and smeared some ash over his face and then donned the sanitation worker cap, going as far as tucking his long ears underneath it.

Peppy got into the passenger seat and nodded to Jabari. "Drive. You're less likely to be recognized if we are stopped by regular CDF guards."

"Yes Sir, though it looks like Striker's telepaths have taken out all the CDF security personnel." replied the serval. The front security gate was opened, but there was one rogue telepath guarding it.

"Damn. If he reads our minds, we're done for."

"Not if he has a mind to attack us with." Jabari withdrew his personal blaster.

"A headshot with a blaster at range is a tall order." Peppy cautioned. "We'll only get one chance at this before he mentally attacks us." The general pondered their situation for a moment. "I have an idea. Hand me your blaster and start driving towards the gate." Once Jabari had surrendered to him his weapon, Peppy withdrew to the shadows in the back of the garbage truck's cab. "Whatever you do, do not make eye contact with him. One thing I learned from Krystal McCloud is that telepaths can more easily get into your head if you look them in the eyes."

Jabari drove towards the gate within the posted speed limit of the base and endeavored to not arouse suspicion. Even from a distance, they could see that they had drawn notice from the telepathic canid blocking their escape. The serval focused only on the road ahead of him and did his best to fill his mind with nothing but thoughts of his family. But try as he might, he could not prevent the unwholesome presence attempting to invade his mind.

Even as he squeezed his eyes shut, he could not suppress the terror filling his heart. He had faced death many times in his military career, but this was worse. He could accept losing his life, but the thought of losing his mind was not something he had ever prepared himself to face. Before panic could set in though, his ears rang out with the rapport of his blaster behind him, and that terrible presence pushing into his mind vanished.

From the shadows of the back seat, Peppy had been able to see that the lieutenant commander was in distress. Thankfully, they had come into close range and he was able to dispatch the telepath with a headshot. The canid fell limply to the ground with a burn wound on his forehead, leaving the way open for them to make their escape.

They drove on into Corneria City itself and eventually stopped in an alley in the downtown area. By a fortuitous circumstance, they were two block from a business establishment he knew well. It gave Peppy an idea. "This way." he gestured to Jabari. The serval followed the general down the alleyway until they reached a door. Above it in small letters were the words, 'Costumes for All Occasions.' Peppy led them through the boutique's back entrance.

Walking among the backroom racks of clothing, Jabari suddenly understood what the old lagomorph had in mind. "We still smell like garbage, though. We'll need to clean up."

"You most certainly are stinking up the place." said an albino ferret who stood there with his arms crossed. "Now I suggest you leave at once before I call the police."

Peppy immediately recognized David, Madam Samantha's business partner who now oversaw the boutique ever since the vixen had emigrated to New Cerinia. He had changed in the eight years since he last saw him. The ferret was no longer the young, shy, introverted person he was. Instead, a strong, confident individual stood before him.

Doffing his cap to let his long hears spring up freely, Peppy revealed himself. "It's alright David. It's me, Peppy Hare."

"General! They said you were killed in that explosion at the CDF base, and that Cerinians were responsible." David took in the Corneria City Sanitation uniform that he and the unknown serval next to him were wearing. "Dressed as you are, I bet there is a very interesting story behind all that."

"There is. I can't go into the details except that the Cerinians had nothing to do with it. We need some discrete disguises before we go any further." Peppy replied.

"What you need to do first is wash up! You two are filthy!" David would not brook any argument. "And I am not going to allow you any further into my store to stink up the place." He then shooed them towards the back and up the stairs to a flat above the boutique that was the ferret's home. "Bathroom's in there. Once you are clean, meet me downstairs. I'll start looking for something depressingly plain for the two of you."

While Peppy was in the shower and Jabari was in the process of stripping, David picked up the discarded sanitation worker uniforms. "And I'm going to dispose of these."

"Are we supposed to walk back downstairs in just our underwear?" Jabari asked in irritation at the pushy ferret.

"Yes!" was David's terse reply.

A quick, rushed shower later, Peppy and Jabari found themselves standing nearly naked in the middle of Costumes for All Occasions. Thankfully, David had locked the front door and put up a 'Closed for Lunch' sign. "You would not believe how difficult it was to find some plain clothes." David griped. "This is a costume boutique. People come here looking for something fancy and special to wear, not what you can find at a local department store."

The ferret went from one costume to the next, pulling out a shirt from one, pants from another, a pair of shoes here, a cap there. In the end he had to cannibalize several costumes to extract the plainest part of each. Peppy and Jabari were soon dressed smartly in nondescript civilian clothing. "Sorry to do this to you, David. Once the dust settles, I'll make sure you are compensated for your efforts."

"It's alright. I don't fully know what's going on, but I get the feeling that things are not what they seem." he replied while they made their way to the front door. He sighed and then gazed to the wall behind the cash register. "Things have not been the same ever since Fox McCloud was murdered."

Peppy and Jabari followed David's gaze. There, he saw a shrine to the famed leader of Star Fox, and next to it was an autographed photo of Fox and Krystal McCloud. "Do any of your customers give you grief for supporting the McClouds?"

David growled, showing needle-sharp teeth. "The ones that talked trash of Fox and his wife were promptly showed the door, and I refused to sell them anything." He then closed his eyes and sagged. "Even before the car bomb, I made no secret of my support for the McClouds."

"How much business did you lose because of that?" Jabari asked, feeling sympathetic concern for the proprietor of the costume boutique.

"Actually, business picked up. I've been getting a lot of veterans as customers once word got out." David gave the two CDF soldiers a watery smile. "I'm not surprise either. Star Fox fought alongside you military folks during the past wars."

"Yes, we did." Peppy replied, reminding Jabari and David that he once was a member of Star Fox. "We best be going. Thank you David."

"Great Maker protect you." the ferret wished them as they left.

Outside the boutique, they stood there as people walked by along the city sidewalk. Jabari was not well known, so had no problem being anonymous. Peppy's ears were folded back under a cap and draped down his back. Because of that subtle difference, and the civilian clothes he was wearing, there was not even a glimmer of recognition from any of the passersby. Together, they walked down the streets with Peppy leading the way until they reached the lobby doors of one of the city's main skyscrapers.

Upon entering, Jabari whispered to his commanding officer. "Where are we going?"

"Somewhere that none of Striker or his minions would expect me to go." Peppy replied as they entered an elevator. Upon getting off near the top floor, they walked along a short hallway until they reached a door, and Jabari then began to have a suspicion as to what the general had in mind when he saw the word on the door: Star Wolf Security and Investigations.

Wolf O'Donnell and his team had been closely monitoring the situation at the Senate and at CDF Headquarters. He, Panther, Miyu, and Leon were gathered in a conference room monitoring the news feed as well as security cameras that had been hacked into. So he was not surprised when he saw Peppy Hare walk in. "I was wondering if you'd be showing up here." the lupine commented.

"And I'm not surprised that you'd be cognizant of what is happening, which is why I thought of you. I need your help, Wolf."

Wolf gestured to the two empty seats and folded his arms. "Obviously, since you are here, though I'm wondering why you did not mount a counter offensive with soldiers loyal to you."

"Because the ones attacking us are rogue telepaths under the command of Gordon Striker and with him possibly in control of the Senate, they are likely to have the CDF eliminate the Cerinians, who are the only ones who can help us." Peppy then placed a data crystal upon the table. "I had anticipated that this might happen and recorded this message. If I just transmit this message, even encoded, Striker will become suspicious and take counter measures."

"So what do you suggest?" Wolf asked.

"Bill Grey is on leave. I think he should be contacted discretely." He then address Leon. "I know you have a knack for hacking, Mister Powalski...."

One of the chameleon's eyes glanced at Wolf while he kept the other on Peppy. "I don't know what you are talking about."

Peppy waved his hand dismissively. "Spare me. The CSA has known for a long time what you do for your boss." He then nodded to Wolf. "It's well understood that sometimes, underhanded subterfuge is necessary to achieve certain goals. I'd normally go to them, but not knowing where Striker might have telepathic agents, I needed to find someone independent of the military and government in general, and your people fit the bill."

When Wolf nodded to Leon, the chameleon grudgingly accepted the data crystal from Peppy. "I...could hack into Bill Grey's communicator and plant this message."

"Good. When Bill reads it, he'll know it's genuine and report it to his commanding officer. I know Lupo Ramius. He's no fool. Both of them have a good rapport with the Cerinians and will believe this message over any false orders they receive from the Senate." Peppy then got up and nodded to the group. "Lieutenant Commander Jabari and I now need to lay low and find a way to contact those loyal to Corneria while not being noticed."

"We have several safe houses that can be used." He wrote an address on a piece of paper and handed it Peppy, along with an access card. "The two of you can hide out there." Wolf then glanced to Panther and Miyu, and also thought of his wife Vanessa and Sean, his son. "While it's unlikely they suspect our involvement with you, I am not going to risk it as I do not feel like having my brain scrambled. So we are going to make ourselves scarce."

*****

Bill Grey and his fellow Bulldog wingmates were sharing drinks at a bar in Corneria City when they first saw the news reports of the attack on the Senate and the CDF Headquarters. A very familiar-looking female pug with scars along one side of her muzzle was sitting at the Lylat News desk instead of Walter Kent. "Again, to recap, Cerinians attempted to take over CDF Headquarters and the Senate." The video feed then changed to security camera recordings of what had happened two hours earlier.

The bar went quiet as everyone anxiously watched security guards and CDF soldiers drop to their knees and holding their heads while screaming in agony in front of blue-furred individuals in uniforms. "In a brazen act of betrayal, Cerinians used their mind powers to attack our brave soldiers. Thankfully, in a brilliant counter attack, these would-be usurpers were either captured or killed."

The video image then changed to focus on the smoldering top floor of a well-known building. "Sadly, General Peppy Hare was killed in a violent explosion at the Cornerian Defense Force headquarters. The one believed to be responsible is Lieutenant Commander Jabari." An image of the serval appeared on the viewer. Bill and many of his wingmates recognized the feline, having served with him on the Dauntless. "He is believed to be collaborating with the Cerinians. Anybody who has seen him should report it to CDF Security."

The scene then cut back to the news anchor's desk. To Bill, the pug's solemn expression seamed insincere, as if it was a staged performance by a mediocre actress. "This afternoon, the Senate voted to resume research into telepathy as a countermeasure to the Cerinian threat. CDF warships are to be sent to Sauria to eliminate the colony of New Cerinia."

Amid the murmur of discussion within the bar, Bill addressed his fellow Bulldog squadron wingmates. "Something feels off. I cannot believe they would do something like this."

"But the security camera recordings..." Kristin Pepper began to say.

"I know, I know, but....We've met these Cerinians. I and some of you even had telepathic interactions with them." Bill countered. "This doesn't feel right."

"These people attacking the Senate and CDF HQ may have been blue-furred, but they weren't wearing those jewels on their forehead that we always see the Cerinians wear." Ernie Green pointed out.

"I didn't see any tattoos either." added Eric Tawney.

Just at that moment, all their personal communicators sounded off. Each saw that they had received a message from the Dauntless to report back to their ship for a mission. All suspected it had to do with the so-called Cerinian threat. Together, they began to file out of the bar and walk down the sidewalk to the parking lot where their ground cars waited for them. They were halfway to their personal vehicles when Bill's communicator activated again, but the sound it emitted was not the usual one he was accustomed to hear when someone called him or sent him a message.

Bill stopped in his tracks and looked at the display. A recorded holographic image had been planted in his comm unit. "My communicator's been hacked into!" His other wingmates stopped and watched with Bill as the recording activated. To their astonishment, a holographic image of Peppy Hare appeared over the emitter in Bill's communicator. "Bill, first off, do not believe any stories the media puts out. I am alive and well. Second, the reason why I've gone underground is that Gordon Striker has cracked the genetic code for telepathy. He's the one behind the attacks on the CDF and Senate, using his own telepaths."

The general paused, and glanced to the side. "I don't have much time. We are rigging my office to explode to take some of them out while I make my escape. If he succeeds in taking over the Senate and CDF, he's bound to turn against the Cerinians. They're the only ones capable of stopping him. Send word to Lupo Ramius. Hopefully, Star Falco has relayed my call for help to the Cerinians, but they will need our help in reaching Corneria."

The image then abruptly ended. There was a stunned silence as Bill and the rest of Bulldog squadron stood there in the middle of the city sidewalk. "Well damn." Nena Gordon murmured. "What are your orders, Sir?" she asked, snapping Bill out of his shocked silence. "Right! Let's get back to the Dauntless."

*****

They sat in silence after Peppy's message had finished. For Krystal, it was her worst fear coming to fruition. The other worlds in Lylat would see it as a threat, and endeavor to develop their own telepath. It would be like the clan wars on Cerinia three centuries ago. The other Cerinians present were equally uneasy. Hiroshi had led them away from Lylat after the destruction of their home world for precisely this reason. And yet, it would not have made any difference as Fox put it succinctly. "So Striker finally did it, all thanks to my blood sample that he had stolen."

"And your son's blood sample too." Lupo added.

"What?!? That bastard got Marcus' blood too?!? How the hell did he get that?"

The commanding officer of the Dauntless pulled up a report from his terminal and reviewed the intelligence summary he had received a week ago from General Hare. "Apparently, the attending nurse, an Amelia Greyfur, made off with the afterbirth right after your son was born."

Fox face palmed himself in a fit of exasperation. "That damnable vixen. She must have been working for Striker from the beginning."

"And according to the report, having blood samples from both you and your son allowed them to isolate the telepathic gene." Lupo rested his elbows on the table and steepled his fingers. "The question now, is how do we defeat Striker when he is surrounded by telepaths loyal to him?"

"That's why Peppy sent us here." Falco replied. "Only Cerinians, and that includes Foxy here, can deal with those renegade telepaths."

"Against over a hundred of them?" Fenral asked dubiously.

"A hundred, untrained, undisciplined telepaths." Renjiro countered. "From the recordings Falco showed us, we could tell that these Cornerian telepaths have no idea how to mentally shield themselves like we can. We also have other mental techniques that will give us a significant advantage."

"And Star Falco will be going with them to provide backup." Falco added.

"Provided you are not mind raped like those soldiers were at headquarters..." Fenral warned.

Fox nodded to his friends. "That is why we have them wearing our focusing gems. It will allow us to easily link our minds to theirs and mentally shield them from telepathic attack."

Lupo nodded in approval. "Then we just need to figure out how to get you down to Corneria where you can take care of Striker and his traitorous followers. They have taken over the government, and had the Senate send out that false order to destroy New Cerinia."

He then growled. "Worse yet, Lylat News was also taken offline. When it was restored, they had replaced Walter Kent by someone from one of the tabloids. They then rebroadcasted altered recordings of the takeover that made it look like Cerinians were behind this, while promoting all those conspiracy theories the tabloids had previously aired. Lylat News has been reduced to a propaganda tool for Striker, who's controlling everything from the shadows. "

Fox then nodded to his wife, Falco, Katt, and Fay. "Then Star Fox will see to it that we record everything as well. The truth will come out once we're done with Striker."

*****

In what had been a very busy and chaotic day for the crew of the Beltino Orbital Gate, they again found themselves receiving a transmission from Sauria requesting gate activation. Once the authorization codes had been received, the six large emitters were directed to separate from the station and move into position to reform the only known stable wormhole in their corner of the galaxy.

Through this wormhole, the Cornerian Defence Force carrier Dauntless emerged. They had not arrived for more than five minutes before they received a call from the Lylat Senate. On the bridge, Fleet Captain Lupo Ramius sat at his seat and gazed up at the holographic image of Senator Joshua Howly. The wolf's expression was anxious, almost fearful, when he asked. "Is it done? Have the Cerinians been eliminated?"

"Yes Senator. The New Cerinia colony was bombed from orbit." Lupo lied convincingly.

"And the Great Falcon?"

"Destroyed by the CDF Vigilant just as we arrived with our orders."

The relief displayed by the senator was apparent. "Thank you, Fleet Captain. I will see to it that the Senate recommends you for a commendation for saving Lylat form this telepathic threat."

"Thank you, Senator. Will there be anything else?"

"No, that will be all. Good day, and again, Thank you." And with that, the senator terminated his call.

In the hangar deck, Fox, Krystal, and their entire team were gathered inside one of the Dauntless' supply shuttles. All were attired in CDF uniforms. "Alright. So we'll be landing at the CDF base right after sunset. Since we have no stealth suits, the darkness will help in keeping us from being noticed, especially those of us with blue fur."

Fox then gazed to the leader of the guardians. "Renjiro, I've never done a group mind link before. Will you lead us in joining our minds together?"

"Of course, Fokkusu. It is not all that difficult, really. You already have the mental discipline for it. It'ications link to spacecraftd grounde truth will come out once we'ther, with their nontelepathic s similar to a bonding ritual, but just not as deep. We'll be linking only our conscious minds."

"What about us?" Falco asked, indicating himself, Katt, and Fay.

Renjiro and the other Cerinians could sense their nervousness. The tod gave them a reassuring smile. "Because you are wearing the focusing gems of close friends, you will feel yourselves being pulled into our group mind link with them. When that happens, just relax and let yourselves be drawn in." He then nodded to the other two male guardians. "Alright, Fokkusu, Isamu, gather around in a circle with me, with Falco, Katt, and Fay between each of us."

Fox, Falco, Renjiro, Katt, Isamu, and Fay gathered together with arms linked behind their neighbors' shoulders. "Now, lean your foreheads together." He instructed for the benefit of their non-telepathic friends. While they did this, Krystal placed a reassuring hand against the back of Falco's head, and Akina did the same for Katt. Though she could sense no nervousness from Fay, Kasumi nevertheless joined their circle by placing her hand against the back of the she-dog's head.

Renjiro then guided their friends into the telepathic communion. "Close your eyes...Relax...slow deep breaths...."

Falco let himself be lulled by the tod's words. It was subtle at first, but he soon became aware of a presence tugging at his inner self. Though unfamiliar, it nonetheless felt friendly to him. He tentatively directed his attention to this presence, and somehow knew that it identified itself as Renjiro. Letting himself be drawn further in, Falco soon became aware of the one who called himself Isamu.

Then their growing mental communion was joined by a mental presence that was familiar to the avian. He had felt it many times before, when the tod would mentally speak to him and read his surface thoughts. "Hello Falco. Glad you could join our party."

"Uh....yeah....wow...." Falco thought back tentatively.

A giggle was heard in response that was also very familiar to the avian. "Speechless even in thought..." Krystal mentally said in their growing group mind link.

"Go easy on him, Kurisutaru. It is not every day that a non-telepath experiences what we take for granted." Akina countered.

"Indeed. Most would be frightened at hearing so many in their mind." Kasumi added.

_"That's because he's used to me and Kurisutaru telepathically communicating with him."_Fox pointed out.

_"Uh... guys? I'm right here in your heads...."_Falco thought back in mild annoyance at being mentally talked about in their presence. He then felt another presence join their mental link. It was very girlish, full of glee and excitement, and devoid of any nervousness.

"This is so cool! I can actually hear each of you think." Fay thought back enthusiastically. "Is this what's it like to be a telepath? Can all of you read my mind? Do you feel how exited I am? Will I feel your emotions too?" she mentally gushed.

Fay did in fact sense their amusement at her open trust and child-like wonder, and could not help but bark out loud in laughter when she heard Krystal mentally reply to her, "Somewhat. Yes. Yes. Maybe."

Falco himself could not help but be amazed that he was hearing another non-telepath's thoughts. Then another presence made itself known to him, one that even though he had never felt in his mind, he nevertheless immediately recognized. "Hello Birdie. Glad to see you're not freaking out."

Snapping his eyes open, Falco gazed back at the pink-furred feline that had shared her life with him, fighting by his side, sleeping in his bed, and generally being there with him. When he mentally reached out to her, Katt welcomed her captain and lover inside her head. For the first time in his life, Falco found himself reading her thoughts and feeling her emotions. He could sense how much she loved him, her amusement, her frustrations, her hopes.

One of her thoughts laid bare for him to see, one that shamed him for his inactions. It was a question he had been too afraid to ask. He had felt like he would never be ready for such a commitment. But then, seeing it from her perspective for the first time, he realized that it would not change anything between them. They were already devoted to each other, spent all their times together, and gave each other moral support. This final step he had failed to take would only declare for all to see a fact that already existed between them.

Having had his epiphany, Falco Lombardi had only one thought for Katt Monroe. "Marry me, Kitty."

Her response was to push her way through their circle and embrace him while rubbing her muzzle against his beak._ "Finally figured it out, did you?"_

"It's about time!" Fay mentally shouted._ "We were wondering when you'd work up the nerve to pop the question."_

Any apology that was forming in Falco's mind was drowned out by Katt's happiness at finally being engaged to her avian lover.

"Congratulations on your engagement." thought Renjiro. "Hopefully, we can all celebrate your joining once we are done putting an end to this General Striker and his minions."

"Just let me know if there's anything I can do to help with the wedding arrangements." Fox added while his and Kystal's tails were wagging excitedly at the unexpected, but very much welcomed, development.

Fox settled into the resupply shuttle's pilot's seat and began the preflight check. He was just about to close the gangway when he and the other Cerinians sensed a new presence. As one, they and the Star Falco crew turned to look at Bill Grey. "Commander Rufus suggested I join your crew to pilot you down to Corneria."

"That's okay, Bill. I've got this." Fox replied.

"Oh? You do?" Bill challenged. "Even if you know the proper responses when CDF approach control calls you, that thick Cerinian accent of yours will make them suspicious."

"Nothing would please me more than to have you at my side, Bill, but I don't want to see you mind raped." Fox countered. "Krystal and I have no more spare focusing gems to protect you from telepathic attack."

"I'll lend him mine." Renjiro said while taking off his diadem.

"But shouldn't he be loaned a focusing gem from a close friend who is familiar with his mind?" Fox asked.

Renjiro carefully slipped his personal diadem over Bill's forehead while he explained to Fox. "And Bill Grey is a close friend to all Cerinians. We will never forget his adamant resolve to see us safely to our new home on Sauria and everything he did for us in the days following our rescue."

"I could not help but feel...." Bill began, but then gave the empathic tod a lopsided grin. "Well, you know how I felt."

"Indeed we did and still do." Renjiro murmured. "Now, to bring you into our group mind link...." He then leaned his forehead against Bill's. They all watched the canid close his eyes and take slow, deep breaths, and moments later, heard his thoughts.

"Do you guys hear me?"

"We do." Fox thought back to his friend.

"Welcome to the party." Falco mentally added.

Bill's eyes widened in astonishment as he gazed at Falco, who was still embracing Katt. "Woah. I didn't expect to hear you too."

"That is one of the purposes of our group mind link." Renjiro explained. "We will now be able to all think to each other. So communicators, which can be jammed, will not be necessary."

"Yeah, it came in handy for Fox and Krystal when they flew against those pirates years ago, during our last training mission." Bill reminisced.

"You will also discover that we all have a heightened awareness of each other, allowing us to better coordinate our attacks and defenses." Renjiro continued. "But most importantly, it will allow us telepaths to shield your minds from telepathic attacks by Gordon Striker's followers."

Bill Grey grinned and clapped his hands together. "Excellent, then let's get..." He then found himself facing Fay Spaniel. "...to it...."

"Hi, Lover Boy." Fay stood there, waving shyly to her longtime boyfriend. It was a profound moment for the two of them. Neither had ever imagined they would be able to connect on such an intimate level. Bill and Fay came together and held hands. "Imagine that. The two of us reading each other's minds like telepaths." he thought to his girlfriend. Both their tails were wagging excitedly. Their muzzles came together in a chaste kiss that sent mutual shivers down their backs before they separated.

Falco frowned. "Well, that's anticlimactic..."

"What do you mean?" Bill asked. Gazing at the avian and his feline girlfriend, his eyes widened and a grin formed on his muzzle. "Oh wow! So you two are finally engaged! That's fantastic!" _ He then tilted his head and it suddenly dawned on him. _"And you thought I was going to do the same with Fay..."

"Well, yeah...." Falco thought. His eyes then widened when he heard Bill's surface thoughts. Katt laughed out loud, also picking up on what the two dogs were thinking. "You two have already talked about getting married!"

Fay kissed her boyfriend on the side of his muzzle. "With me flying for Star Falco and Bill flying for the CDF, we decided to wait for the time being, but yes, we do want to get married."

Bill chuckled. "Quite handy, this telepathy. Maybe I should check my family tree to see if I have any Cerinian ancestors like Foxy has." _ He then gestured to Fox. _"Okay. Let me take it from here. We have a mission to do."

Fox ceded the pilot's seat to Bill and sat back with the others. Fay took up the co-pilot's seat next to her boyfriend and the two began the pre-flight check.