FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Chapter -11-

"Highway to the Danger Zone"

*Scratching sounds on the hull * caused Fox's ear to flicker. Consciousness returned and he became aware of how he lay, sprawled out on the bed with an arm draped around her waist. His left leg was between her lower thighs and his chest was flush against her back. Instead of a blush, he smiled. The scratching noise caught his attention again and he perked an ear.

The moment Fox moved, Kursed murmured and opened her eyes. She yawned and asked, "What time is it?"

"I don't know," he whispered in return. "How did you sleep?"

"I would say 'like a baby', but to be honest... I slept more like a lazy teenager."

"That good, huh?" Fox nuzzled the backside of her head then withdrew his arm.

She released his leg from between hers then slid away from him, sat up and put her legs on the floor. "Yes, that good. It sounds like our prisoners are struggling. If the sun is already down, I should be safe to send an encoded message to Great Fox. Slippy can tell us how to get these guys out of Octoman's control. Then we can simply release them."

McCloud stretched and rubbed at either side of his face. "That would be a good idea."

She moved across the small room but the afternoon daylight coming from the cockpit no longer existed. Kursed felt her way along the bulkhead until she found a light switch. "Close your eyes, Fox." She paused then flipped the switch and squinted until her eyes adjusted.

Fox zeroed in on her exquisite figure. He watched while she withdrew the clothes from the cubbyhole, freshly washed and dried. She turned to look at him, holding the wad of clothing then she tilted her head. "I must look so domesticated right now. I won't fold them for you, though." A grin touched the corner of her muzzle then she dropped the pile onto the mattress so they could sort everything apart. "Maybe if you're really good I'll consider it, one day. Are you hungry? I'll make us something to eat before we leave the ship."

The pilot's eyes widened and he looked at her in wonder. "You're doing my laundry and now you're offering to cook for me?" He paused for effect then said, "Let's make the napkins blue, I'll hire a DJ for the reception, and I'll ask the older-looking rabbit in the scrapbook to give you away. My schedule is clear tomorrow. Is that good for you?"

She blinked at him. "Marriage?! My goodness, just because I offered to clean and cook? I'm not that domesticated, Fox; I don't even own a house." She looked down with a coy smile, dumbstruck with realization. "Sorry, I overreacted to your joke."

He stood up, careful not to hit his head on the low ceiling. "At least you considered it. I should be so honored." He placed his paws and forearms against the metallic ceiling with ease. His elbows to his fingertips were now flush against it. With his arms up, the sculpt of his athletic chest became more prominent.

Kursed's eyes flitted over his physique then she turned back to the wall and pushed the panel back into place so that the laundering cubby was hidden. She moved to the left and opened another panel, displaying a refrigeration unit and, adjacent to that, something akin to a microwave. "I'm afraid my selection is lacking. I'll tell you what... You look at what I have while I try to contact your team." She turned back to the bed but didn't bother covering herself from Fox's eyes.

At a leisurely pace, Kursed separated the clothes then she got dressed. She watched Fox for another moment then got down on her knees and made her way through the crawlspace to the cockpit. It was after dark and condensation was starting to form on the canopy. She diverted the battery power to include her communication's array. After scanning the skyline, her computer located the Great Fox by the network interface code saved in her databanks.

Taking the extra precaution of narrowing the communication beam and pointing it directly at the Great Fox, she hailed the ship up in its orbiting position. ROB answered. He recognized her immediately and said, "Krystal, it's good that you're alive. Popular belief suggested otherwise."

She turned down the audio so that Fox wouldn't hear the conversation. "I've changed my name. Please refer to me as Kursed until told otherwise. I'm glad you recognized me."

"The algorithms used in facial recognition are part of my geometrics program." He trailed off briefly then said, "I liked the blue hair better."

"Everybody's a critic," she murmured. "Where is Slippy?"

"In his quarters with his fiancée. It's three in the morning Cornerian Capital City time."

Her eyes glanced to a display panel on her HUD. "It's eight thirty in the evening at my present location, planet-side. I have an emergency situation regarding Fox McCloud's whereabouts. Surely you've noticed that his Arwing disappeared yesterday."

"Stand by." ROB's visual disappeared and the display went dark. A distant tone sounded, coming over the audio panel. The visual brightened, showing Slippy Toad's quarters, facing a sofa on the far wall. She could hear Slippy complaining about the noise then she heard his approaching footsteps.

He slumped down in front of the display wearing pajama pants and a matching shirt. His eyes snapped wide open, seeing her face. "Oh my goddess."

"Surprise. And you'll be glad to know that Fox is alive, too. He's my prisoner." She smiled just to see how Slippy would react.

"What?! Your prisoner? What are you talking about? What's going on?"

She rolled her eyes. "You have no sense of humor, Slippy Toad. Listen... two things. One, Fox is safe. Number two is crucial... do you remember when Octoman brainwashed you during the Anglar Wars? (During StarFox Command) I need to know how you came out of that spell. It's important."

"I, uh, was jarred pretty hard when my shields collapsed. I hit my head on the canopy and slumped in my seat. When I did, my seatbelt harness caught against a collar I was wearing. The collar came loose. It was all luck. I was okay after the darn thing came all the way off; that was the mind control device."

She nodded slowly. "I didn't look very closely but... I didn't see a collar on these men." She lifted a paw and snapped her fingers. "But the one whose neck I saw up close wasn't brainwashed now that I think about it. All he had was a cardkey. Very well, I'll check these four. Do me a favor and go to the bridge. I'll need you to create a complete sensor blackout. I don't want Octoman to see us coming and I have no problem flying blind. Fox's ship was destroyed yesterday, minutes after entering the atmosphere but he's with me. He's..." She glanced over her shoulder at the crawlspace then she sighed and looked back at the video screen. "He hit his head quite hard. He doesn't remember anything."

"Anything at all?"

"He didn't even know who he was. I would appreciate you making things easier on him by refraining from talking about anything painful. His family, the wars, his past lovers, our rocky romance, Panther Caruso, or anything else. It's a delicate situation. Do me a favor and explain everything to Falco and anyone else aboard. Your fiancée for example. Do you understand?"

He nodded then glanced off screen for a moment. Kursed assumed Amanda was standing nearby. Slippy's next statement confirmed it. "Yeah, all that's left is for Falco to find out... well, I won't wake him right now." He glanced back at her and said, "I'll head to the bridge. Thank you for contacting us. We've not changed our docking codes, so you'll be able to land at any time with the automated system." He closed the channel and the Star Fox logo filled her screen. Kursed's nose twitched. She sniffed at the air then slid out of the cockpit seat and lowered herself into the crawlspace.

Returning to the aft section of the ship, she was quite surprised to see Fox still undressed, pulling food from the microwave oven. She quirked a brow at him then stood up. "You cooked? For as long as I've known you, I've never seen you cook anything."

"It wasn't that hard. I felt like I knew what I was doing." He separated the servings to two plates he'd found in her cupboard. Fox handed her one and put the other on the bed and reached for his clothing. "It's not slow-roasted over an open flame or anything but... it'll do, right?" He adjusted the waistband of his boxers after putting them on, followed by his pants. Fox went for his shirt and socks, settling on the floor to finish getting dressed, followed by his boots.

"Slippy says those men outside are probably wearing collars. You eat. I'll go and release them. After that, I'll come in and eat then we'll go."

"No," said Fox. "Please, I wanted to cook for ya'. So, by all means, take your time to enjoy it. I'll go out and take care of it." He laced his boots then got back to his feet. "I insist."

She eyed him for a moment then took the plate and settled on the far edge of the bed mattress. "Very well. If you insist." She took a fork in her right paw, holding the plate with her left. "I won't stop you."

Fox offered her a smile, opened the cupboard and took some fruit. He opened a storage closet and retrieved several nondescript coats then he left through the hatch. Less than ten minutes later the hatch opened again.

He came back in, closed the entranceway, settled on the bed and picked up his plate. "Sorry about giving your coats out... I'll replace them... but I couldn't let those guys freeze out there."

"I keep a spare of everything on this ship," she murmured, finishing her small meal. "Except food. Sorry I didn't have very much for you to cook."

"It's fine," he said, settling on the other end of the mattress. "Those men begged to help us but I told them to go about freeing the others. How did you want to attack Octoman?"

Kursed placed her empty plate on the bed. "I arranged for Great Fox to create a sensor blackout focused on this region. He won't see us coming. I'll use radio waves and low frequency audio waves to build a computer model. Once we know what his base looks like, we can determine if landing or pounding him with ordinance will work."

Fox looked up from his plate. "What about stopping by my crash site, getting one of those big bombs then putting the fuse back in... we can use that against him."

"I'm not trying to flatten the entire mountain. That's needless destruction. If blasters will penetrate his hideout, we'll take him down that way. Worst comes to worst, we'll land and fight him in person."

"For some reason, Kursed, your computer model idea sounds familiar (Chapter 8). Maybe that's a good sign. We'll do it your way. What's the plan?"

"You finish eating and I'll pilot the ship." She stood up, reached for the light switch and turned down the interior lighting to a respectable level then she headed through the crawlspace and began to power up the Cloud Runner's systems. By the time Fox finished with his plate, the ship was starting to lift.

He smiled to himself, glad the ship hadn't been sabotaged earlier by Octoman's guards. Next, he figured out the Murphy's bed and put it away. Finally, he climbed up into her cockpit but nothing looked familiar about its interior. Fox settled on the deck plates by her seat and watched the HUD and the controls. "Where did you put the access card?"

"I still have it. Don't worry, I didn't run it through the wash." She offered him a thin smile then said, "Go into the back and get our gear together. We'll need weapons, my staff, your blaster... make sure everything is charged and ready to go. His most trusted personal guards aren't brainwashed. This won't be easy and we need to be battle ready."

"Understood." Fox climbed back out of the cockpit. Back in the aft section, he began packing gear bags. He checked the charge on each pistol's power cell then holstered them on equipment belts. He went through a storage closet until he found shield barriers and set them aside along with the gear belts, bags and her staff. McCloud paused for a moment to admire the ornate metallic pole.

He ran his fingertips along the engraved shaft, decorated with beautiful textures - the mark of exquisite craftsmanship. He blinked and looked to the right. A flashback played out before his eyes. He watched as Krystal dropped from the crystalline prism atop of Krazoa Palace. He thrust the staff outwards and she caught it. Her feet dangled twenty stories above the first floor of the palace. He reached for her paw and their eyes met for the first time.

He shook his head and the flashback ended. It was so real that he could practically feel light rain on his fur. She had shorter blue hair back then. He ran his fingers over the staff once more then climbed back up to the cockpit. Through the canopy, he could see the mountain in the distance. The dark shadowy peak loomed in the distance, lightened with snow just above the cloud cover.

"I've located his ship," she said with a smile. "He's parked it inside of a cave near the summit. Watch this." Kursed eased into the control yoke and brought the Cloud Runner to the mouth of the cavern. She turned her ship about carefully then lowered it into the cave, so that her landing blocked Octoman's escape. "Now he won't be able to fly out of here."

"I see you're proud of yourself." Fox placed a paw on her shoulder in a reaffirming way. "You're very clever, not to mention that was some very impressive piloting - turning your ship around with your retro-reverse brakes like that."

She placed a paw on his face, patting the side of his muzzle. "My 'teacher' was a very good fighter pilot. He was patient, too." Kursed brushed her nose against his then unbuckled herself from the chair. "Get our gear. It's time we finish this so we can focus on your memories and getting out of this contemptible system." She opened the canopy and stood up.

"I'll meet you out there." Fox slid back into the aft, gathered the gear and made his way out through the rear hatch. He secured the ship then approached her from behind and held a bag up. She put her arms through each strap then took her staff. Once both of them were fully suited up with gear she motioned to Fox with a nod.

He took the lead and withdrew his blaster. "Let's try and stay silent once we're inside. If you sense an enemy just touch my shoulder. I'll take point because, no offense, you won't be able to sense any sentry bots, mines or other types of traps. Also, if the enemy is tracking us, they'll be more likely to try and flank us from behind."

A smile flashed over her face like sunshine over a flower. He was far more thoughtful and logical than Panther Caruso. He was also more willing to put himself in the line of fire for her. She gave her staff a slow twirl then clicked the base against the rock floor. "I've got the access card. If you come to a locked door, I have it in my pocket." She grinned a bit then fished it out with her free paw and passed it to him. "Here, just take it now. Let's go."

Fox came to a door at the back of the cave. He blinked and murmured, "It's an old fashion hinge door." He jiggled the knob but it was locked. There was a card scanner adjacent to the doorframe, but the card didn't seem to work on that particular one. He took a step back then swiftly kicked in the door and pointed his weapon forward.

A long dark corridor stretched out before them, dotted with dim auxiliary floor lamps along the baseboards. He turned back to her and asked, "Do you want to take my gun and I'll take your staff? I don't mind; it's up to you."

She deadpanned with a dull glare. "Fox..." Krystal shook her head then lifted one of her paws and showed him the padding of her palm. "You see these?" There was a faint trace of what looked like some sort of glyph on the velveteen pad of flesh. "These came from this very staff (Chapter 12, Reflections of the Future) and, believe me, this staff has never let me down. Trust me, your high power pistol won't make me feel any safer. I'm content with this." She gave the staff another twirl then, with her free paw, she patted her hip. "Besides, I have the enemy pistol we secured earlier. It's not as strong as yours but it's more than fine."

He nodded then frowned. "I wish I could remember some of these things. Those marks on your palms... are they related to the ones on your thighs, arms and back?"

"No. I was with you when I burned these markings into my palms." She licked her lips and looked away briefly. It happened less than two days before he proposed to her. A glimmer of a smile found her muzzle. Her eyes flitted back at him and she nodded forward. "Go on. Octoman's not getting any younger and neither are we."

Fox chuckled and brought his left palm to the bottom of his gun handle, cupping it firmly. "I wouldn't want your outfit to go out of style before we finish our mission."

"Exactly. Let's go."

He stepped into the corridor, gun pointed forward, and with slow deliberate steps he began to move up. She followed close, ears perked and nose to the metaphorical wind. Every step was silent.

A skylight in the ceiling filled the next intersection with natural lighting. Kursed glanced up. A silver moon, like a new-stamped coin, rode triumphant in the sky. While she gazed up at it, Fox could see the glow on her face. Her ears lowered, sensing something amiss. A shadow of melancholy touched her svelte face. He drew his lower lip between his teeth and thought to her. 'What's wrong?'

"I think we might be in over our heads, Fox." She moved near him, as close as oak and ivy stand, to feel his warm thoughts. Her heart quickened, knowing that many foul-minded guards were close. "They don't know we're here," she whispered. Together, they continued down the hallway to the left. Occasionally, there were windows, designed to peek out of the mountains summit.

Fox paused at one of the portholes and peered out. Bright as the tear of an angel, glittered a lonely star in the west. He blinked, not intending to be distracted by the dot but... something seemed familiar about it. Kursed placed a paw on his forearm and whispered, "That's the Lylat System. Quite tiny from here, isn't it?"

Again, Fox bit his lower lip. He brought his left paw up to her face, cupping the side of her muzzle. Her cheeks were as soft as mid-summer peaches. His eyes lowered then lifted and he nodded. "I don't remember anything about it but... I couldn't help but notice that tiny dot... it's so bright." She brought her paws up to his and gently lowered his touch. He paused, looking for something else to say to her.

Fox swallowed then spoke again. "That's home?" His own paws moved to the outside of hers, simply taking comfort in the touch. She held the staff in her fist and he held her paw in his. He was noticing all the little details about her, regardless of the poor timing and dim lighting. Her clenched little hands were like rumpled roses, dimpled and dear. His thumbs ran over the vixen's softly furred knuckles. "I don't want to be without you."

"Fox..."

"No, wait, I just... I had to get that out. I know this isn't the time for it. And without my memories, all you're getting is my cloudy mirror of opinions and I'm sorry."

She pondered his simile momentarily then shrugged a little. Her shoulders lifted then slumped and she looked away. They were safe and no one had been alerted to their presence yet, so she gave him a moment to be sweet. "Go on."

He didn't know how to go on. He didn't know what to say. He only knew what he felt. Fox was never really strong with words. But he was very good at showing his appreciation when the time came. "I have this... phrase in my head and I don't know where it came from. Companionless as the last cloud of an expiring storm whose thunder is its knell. He collapsed like a concertina, his soul dark as pitch and his memories danced like a wave of the sea. But they were all in the past, a deep dark well of sorrow, deep as the fathomless sea. For she was dearer than night to the thief, as dear as light that rarely visits theses sad eyes, and as dear as remembered kisses after death. For their love that was thought to be as eternal as the skies was evanescent as bubbles, their hearts were limpid pools in the shadow, for they fell away like a speck in space. Their love fled like sweet dreams, and was gone like a glow on the cloud at the close of day. I'm not sure where this came from but... for some reason, the thought of losing you... the thought of not having you back in my life reminded me of those words. And, for some reason, I was able to recite them."

Her eyes lowered momentarily then she looked up at him and said, "It's from a Cerinian Poem. I had Slippy download everything from my databanks when I still had my shuttle. I... I can only assume you must have read it in my absence." She swallowed, licked her lips then feigned a smile but her lower lip trembled. "It was one of my favorites - it tells the story of star-crossed lovers who, at the end of the poem, are finally reunited. I've not heard it since I was a girl." She lifted her left paw and dabbed at her eyes with the backside of her fingers. "We... Fox, we should go after these people. We can't stay here and talk, right now. But I promise you this... after Octoman is dead we will return to GreatFox together and talk things out. You have my word."

He smiled. His smile caused her to feel warmth in her heart. Her returned smile was as soft as the down of a turtledove, and it caused his eyes shined with happiness. He leaned forward and brushed his lips over hers then said, "Let's do this together. I want to be a team again. I don't know what's happened to us before, but I know one thing... and I'm absolutely sure of this... I'm in love with you."

"...Fox." She blushed, visible even in the gloom. It took her but a moment to catch her breath. "I love you, too." Her eyes glistened, giving them a subtle glow in the dim ambiance. The auxiliary light panels on the floor made them shine with reflection. "If we're a team then let's go and fight together."

"I'm ready." He took a deep breath then sighed in content and nodded. "Let's rock."

She led him down the hallway a little ways more then stopped in front of another hinged door with a brass knob. Kursed turned to him and said, "Three men. One is a shark of some sort; the other two are Venom-born lizards. All three of them have their wits about themselves so be careful."

"I'm ready." Fox's expression changed. All at once his face went emotionless. He lifted his blaster, stoic and rigid. His back was straight; his shoulders were broad and perfectly set. He drew back his foot and kicked in the door, slamming the flat of his boot adjacent to the knob.

McCloud's left paw was on a shield barrier, tucked beneath the handle of his blaster, ready to activate it if necessary. The three men turned to face him, still as death but staring about like calves in a pen. Fox's eyes narrowed as if in a stand off. They saw that he had his weapon ready and all three of them were holding clipboards and pens. A single light fixture hung from the ceiling, casting forty watts of dim illumination over them. They gazed at Fox in confusion and shock, seeing the vulpine pilot with his headfur disheveled and his clothes wrinkled. The infamous Lylat mercenary stood in the doorway, chest puffed out and steadfast like a wave-beaten rock.

Fox's ear flickered. He flipped off the safety and said, "I hope you boys speak Cornerian. We're here for Octoman. If you three leave with the un-collared soldiers, we won't kill you."

The standoff lasted several more seconds. One of the lizards ducked back behind his comrades and withdrew an automatic mechanical pistol with an extended magazine. Fox aimed between the shark and lizard, firing at the one with the gun. McCloud's impeccable aim caught the man in his shoulder, mid dive.

Spun like a top, the armed guard hit the ground, rolled twice then lifted his gun and opened fire. Everything felt sudden but Fox's mind processed the situation he witnessed as if in slow motion. Shell casings glinted beneath the hanging light bulb, a perfect arc of streaming metal tears, like pearl drops from a flint. Fox dove forward, bowling over the two standing men. All three spilled onto the now-injured gunman.

Kursed remained unwavering in the doorway. Something divine seemed to cling around her like some subtle sapphire vapor. Rounds flickered off the energy shield, dispersing in random directions. With a relaxed gait, she strode into the room. Bringing her left paw to the fulcrum of the staff, she twirled it upwards, using the base to strike the gunman in his chin. During the second rotation, the ornamental tip caught his gun.

The weapon went flying. She twirled about one full turn on her left toes then swung the staff much like a golf club. Forcing the stored kinetic energy from her body, it became amplified in her staff, which acted as an antenna to channel the focused chi. Her staff struck the man. He was drawn out from beneath Fox and the other two guards and launched clear across the small room. The lizard hit the wall face first then dropped back to the floor.

Fox looked up at her and blinked then, vaguely remembering the words as if drawing them from a past lifetime, he said, "Dahn Daju...?"

The injured gunman crawled on his elbows like a wounded snake dragging its length along ever so slowly. His gun was in the far corner. His clipboard and pen were several feet from his face. His arms quavered under the weight of his upper body then gave out. The motionless guard sighed in defeat; his eyes snapped shut.

Meanwhile, Fox got to his knees, keeping his blaster pointed at the two men on their backs beneath him. Hands of scale and flesh moved to their heads in surrender. He shifted his eyes from one to the other then asked, "Where's Octoman?"

The shark grimaced. "You will never defeat him. He is too strong and is amassing an army that will sweep over Corneria too numerous to count. The last thing your precious planet will see is the soldiers of Octoman blazing over the countryside. They'll burn everything in sight."

"Is that so?" The voice belonged to Kursed. She approached the two men opposite of Fox, with their heads at her feet. She brought the tip of her staff to the shark's throat and the eagerness faded from his eyes, leaving them cold as a winter sky after sunset.

"I will kill you, woman. But first, I will make you watch while I peel back layers of flesh from your mate, here, with his toy gun."

"Are you suicidal?" she asked with a tilt of her head. "Because you're threatening me and I'm in the perfect position to crack your head like an egg." She bared her teeth. "I've split the skulls of better soldiers than you." She watched the man's expression, waiting for him to even so much as twitch the wrong way.

"I don't run away," said the shark.

"I do," said the lizard. "Octoman may be a far better leader than Dash Bowman but he's not worth dying for." His face became illuminated with a particle buildup charging at the tip of Fox's blaster. "Wait, I said I won't...!" He fainted under the energy round.

Fox smirked. "He's stunned."

Without warning, the shark kicked his leg up at Fox's blaster. Kursed, anticipating the movements, pivoted on her heel and built momentum in her staff. The dark mass of her hair billowed up around her like the swell of the sea. She swung her staff completely around her like a glinting black maelstrom that surrounded the whirling vixen. The impact at full swing was colossal. Her staff struck the side of the shark's head with such force that vertebrae in his upper spine replied with a skin-crawling crack. His eyes widened, glaring up at her.

She lifted the staff in both paws, holding the tip directly above his head in a threatening manner, ready to impale him if necessary. With her arms elevated, the simple light illuminated the white fur of her muzzle, neck and chest. Kursed waited, staff at the ready, her curvaceous body firm like a slope of snow. It was then that the shark's eyes rolled upwards. The release of his dying breath whistled like the wind in a keyhole.

Slowly, she lowered her arms, bringing the staff tip down until it touched his nose. Instead of driving it straight through his face like she initially intended to do, she used the tip to poke him. His jarred brain began to fade - she sensed his dying thoughts. It caused her to shudder quite visibly. A moue of disgust marred her delicately furred facial features.

The pilot watched her for a moment then, in a respectful tone, he asked, "What do you see from his mind when that happens?"

"It's different every time," she murmured. "Let's keep moving."

A door at the far end was modern and lacked a knob. She moved into position and Fox followed. The door swished open to reveal an elegant setting. The floor, newly waxed, gleamed in candle light like beaten moonbeams. At the center was a wooden dining table with simplistically elegant chairs surrounding on all sides. The table was set with empty plates and shining silver utensils.

The pilots made their way across the room and came to the next door. Kursed blinked, sensing the numerous enemies on the other side. It was too late. Fox opened the door wide, coming face to face with countless beady eyes. Men in various states of undress looked up at the two foxes in the door. Some soldiers were in their briefs and t-shirts, others were playing board games between their bunks. There was a guard for every rack on both sides of the room.

For a split second, Fox was reminded of boot camp before attending the academy. Three-dozen men abandoned their racks, their games and their evening chores. The hurrying crowd of men gathered like clouds coming together to create a storm.

"We don't have time for this," Kursed snarled. She lifted the cane then brought it down on the tiled floor, unleashing the super quake ability. The tiles in her vicinity shattered like glass and the mountain shook all around them, knocking the men from their feet. The shockwave threw metal bunk racks over, toppling the next several in their wake. The small game tables flipped with checker pieces and cards going everywhere.

With everyone thrown from their feet, the dazed mass of men looked up at Kursed in surprise. Instant realization set in - they were dealing with something out of the ordinary. The check of reality dissipated them like smoke. Men were scrambling over one another in an attempt to flee, creating a scene of chaos.

"They're running away," Fox cried in delight.

Kursed's pupils dilated as she mentally decoded the mishmash of thoughts. "No, they're falling back to the armory!" she cried. "Don't let them leave!"

Fox blinked. "SHIT!" He brought his blaster up and fired across the room. The armored metal door took the brunt of his energy round and bent inwards to the point where it was rendered useless. Regardless, men were making a mad dash for the doorway. It began to open on its tracks but got suck in place. Several men crowded around it, banging on the exit with their fists to no avail.

The other men in the room realized that they were the last line of defense. The crowd became organized and they swarmed Fox and Kursed swiftly. McCloud withdrew the previously secured enemy blaster from his belt. He fired rounds as quickly as he could pull each trigger.

Kursed opened her stance then abruptly unleashed a devastating roundhouse on the nearest attacker. She followed through with the kick then slammed the base of her staff into the floor and vaulted over another attacker. She landed adjacent to a diagonally leaning metal bunk and powered up her staff. The vixen struck the rack with her charged staff, sending it clear across the room. It bowled down the men in its path. They dropped like autumn leaves, piling up together in the object's wake. It struck another bunk at the far end of the room with a deafening clang.

One of the soldiers came at Fox from the side. A fist struck the pilot across his face in unison to a blaster discharge erupting from the attacker's torso. Fox's head snapped back and the enemy dropped to the ground. It kept McCloud off guard for another strike from behind; more enemies joined the fray. He took a jab in the lower back then an arm came about his throat. His face soured from the hit to his kidney. He continued to fire his blasters as quickly as he could to keep others at bay so as not to become swamped with multiple enemies.

The vixen sensed his distress and turned to see him struggling. She twirled the staff and fired a single blaster shot, which struck the man behind Fox. She changed the application from fire to ice then somersaulted back into the skirmish.

Fox brought his elbow back, hit his stunned opponent in the gut then jerked his right paw up, using his weapon to catch the man in the face. McCloud turned around, shot him in the torso then whirled about, facing the rest of the room again.

A blast of arctic chill swept across the room. The misty white cloud stung the skin and, just as quickly, it frosted the reptilian blood of the mostly-lizard enemies. She twirled like a ballerina and swung her staff out, shattering a line of enemies. They burst into frozen chunks. Three nearby men trounced her. Overcome and inundated with attackers, Kursed went to the floor beneath their combined weight. She couldn't even find the breath to cry out for help from the pressure on her torso.

Another volley of blaster fire moved across the room from left to right. Fox took another hard punch to the face but responded to the man with a gunshot. Three more men came at him in tandem. He put his paws out to the left and right and fired at the same time. Meanwhile, Fox buried his left foot into the third man's gut and literally walked up his chest, using his right foot to catch beneath the attacker's chin. Unable to get the momentum necessary to back-flip off his opponent, Fox fell straight onto his back instead, firing upwards several more times at incoming opponents.

One of the men he'd just shot was still alive and grasped at Fox's right wrist. Another man dove at Fox from the left side, pinning his arm and torso to the floor. More men moved into flanking positions then converged on his position.

A few meters away, Kursed was struggling with the three attackers that sandwiched her to the ground. Other men approached and went for her flailing arms to keep her subdued. She writhed beneath them, unable to wiggle out.

Of the thirty-six men, only thirteen remained. They worked together to keep Fox and Kursed down. The two mammals were stripped of their weapons. In a matter of minutes Fox was bound and gagged. Kursed had her head pushed down until her left cheek met cracked floor tiles. She saw the other group of men that were piled up on McCloud. Her heart ached seeing him pinned. They began to disperse with one of the men moving to straddle Fox's chest. She winced, seeing the lizard punch Fox in the face repeatedly while he was unable to defend himself.

Something was forced into her mouth and she tried to gasp in surprise. The tightly twisted shirt, now crammed into her muzzle, was tied off behind her head. She tried to shout but the fabric muffled her voice. A man's scaly hand came to her throat, choking her firmly but she couldn't lift her paws or move her body. Kursed gagged. For the first time in a long time she feared for her life. Her heart raced. The vixen attempted to will herself to calm down. She closed her eyes and went completely limp in hopes that she could trick them.

The grip at her neck loosened and she took a shallow breath through her nose so as not to appear alive or awake. She felt multiple hands on her body, keeping her pinned. Together, they rolled her onto her side. Another pair of hands went for her wrists and pulled them behind her back. While one man tied her wrists together, another one worked to bind her ankles. After that, she felt herself being lifted from the floor. Another blow of pain filled her mind. She sensed that Fox was still receiving punches to his face and gut and every inflicted wound stung her heart.

Her ears flickered, hearing men argue. Relief flooded her body - the personal assault on Fox concluded. He was picked up and thrown over the shoulder of one of the stronger lizards but he was still conscious. One of the men spoke in Venom's most popular language. "Bring the vulpine's gun and the alien girl's staff."

Minutes later the two pilots were carried to a makeshift brig and laid side-by-side on the floor on their stomachs. Kursed turned to face Fox and sighed through her nose. He slowly swiveled his head to her until his weary eyes met with her own. Fox thought words for her to hear. 'I'm sorry I got us into this mess. We should have used a stun grenade and rushed in with shield barriers. Did they hurt you?'

She nodded somewhat to his question.

'Is anything broken?'

A meek shrug was offered followed by a slow shake of her head. She didn't think anything was broken but she couldn't be sure just yet.

'I love you.'

She couldn't smile because of the tightly twisted shirt that was tied around her head. Her tongue was starting to dry out from having her muzzle propped open. All she could do was reply to him with a subtle nod. There they lay for what seemed like forever. Her eyes widened and her ears perked then shifted back on her head. Seconds later, footsteps filled the room.

"You two are the ones causing all this trouble?" asked Octoman with an eerily calm voice. He approached the pilots then rolled McCloud onto his side. "Well I'll be damned. You're the Cornerian pilot who killed Andross and defeated the Aparoids. You're a hero and a burden. I wouldn't be alive if you hadn't stopped the Aparoid invasion but I wouldn't be on the run if you hadn't stopped the Anglar rise to power. So, by all means, let me just say THANK you... AND! FUCK you, Cornerian. However, you're a far better pilot than your little green friend. Perhaps this is a turn of good fortune in my favor. I can use you to attack Corneria."

Next, Octoman approached Kursed and rolled her onto her side. "But what famous team would be complete without a teammate? So I could send you both to attack Corneria. They would trustingly let you both fly right to the capital without any trouble. Then you could unleash waves of Nova Bombs right into the center of the city. You'd wipe out that annoying old rabbit General, you would kill hundreds of thousands, if not a million innocent people for me... Then you would fight until your deaths against the entire Cornerian Fleet."

Kursed felt something cold clamp around her throat. Her eyes shot open with fear. She was now wearing one of the control collars used on the mindless drone soldiers they came across earlier. Octoman chuckled and placed one of the collars on Fox's throat. "Or maybe I should simply order you to kill one another. The survivor can load up their fighter with explosives and detonate it over the Cornerian Capital City. That would be delightful! The epic, strong and dashing hero, Fox McCloud, squaring off against the beautiful but hardened military-ace-turned-bounty-hunter... Kursed was it? Is that what you call yourself?" He glowered at her. "You annoying blue bitch, you killed that owl on Tempas II. He was important, you twit."

The octopus lowered two arms to each pilot, patting their backs. "I can't even guess who would win in a match to the death. Fox... a strong man who has never been beaten... or Kursed, an infamous alien female who has proven herself on every battlefield across the galaxy... equally unbeaten. And here you both are... in my collars, both of you utterly defeated." He paused then stood up and asked, "What the hell happened? Against the both of you, I should have died instantly. What gives? Did you two bite off more than you can chew? Did your egos cancel one another out, rendering you both worthless against my men? A mistake, perhaps? Ah... who knows? Outside of your cockpits, you're both fierce warriors but you're no match against several dozen men. Fools." He walked away.

Kursed could hear the soft thud of blunt, weighted objects on a nearby table. She sensed that he was looking over the blaster and the staff. "Interesting toys but neither is worth anything to me. I suppose I'll just sell them to a collector. Someone will want the weapons of the immortal Fox McCloud and the mysterious alien, Kursed. I'm sure they'll fetch top dollar at auction."

'He's smart for a mollusk but if he slips up - even the slightest mistake - I'm going to rip off every single one of his arms and beat him to death with them. I never cared much for cephalopods and this one takes the cake.' Fox's eyes were cold and angry. His body ached and his face was bruised beneath the fur but adrenaline had him on edge. 'I won't lie to you... I'm scared, Kursed. I don't want to battle you to the death. I love you.'

Octoman clapped two of his tentacle-arms together. With grace, he walked on the other six, rubbing the first pair together in a devilish way. "This is going to be astounding. I propose we do this the old fashion way. Tomorrow at high noon, you'll be placed back to back, untied then I'll activate your collars. You'll march six paces from one another, turn around then I'll command you both to fight one another to your death in hand-to-hand combat - or perhaps we'll tie your wrists together and give you each a knife! Splendid! My men and I will make ourselves comfortable and watch like spectators. We'll do this in the clearing where we found your ship earlier, Kursed. The surrounding forest will make for a nice, quiet arena setting... don't you think so?"

He knelt back down besides Fox and Kursed and in a delighted voice, said, "Sweet dreams! Enjoy your last evening of freedom. You'll be spending it right here, face down on my floor. I hope neither of you have to use a bathroom." He stood up and walked back to the door then added, "Sleep well!" The lights went out and Octoman shut the door behind himself. Seconds later a force field flickered to life, surrounding the two foxes.