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Star Fox Universe: R[aid] Jack Russo Star Fox and all characters within the Nintendo universe are copyright their respected owners

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Chapter Six - Battle Scene: Corneria Part 1

Lylat Corneria Territory Planet: Corneria Hare Residence

Smoke danced from the cinders of Peppy's cigar, lingering lazily in the still night air. He took a puff, letting the tobacco flavor fill his mouth before exhaling an acrid cloud. It was night but stars were diluted by street lights below his eighth floor apartment. Ash fell off the tip of his cigar and fell onto the hare's bare chest and lap. He grunted and wiped it off his jeans and fur lazily before taking a swig of the beer he had on the patio table besides several disorganized stacks of documents. Peppy replaced the beer in his hand with a red marker and crossed out another name to match the growing list of companies and "friends" who had refused him and the boys any support for their mercenary group. He threw the marker across the patio, got up from his seat and swiped the table with a snarl. Paper fluttered all over the place, some through the rails and downward to the streets.

"Shit," he grumbled and sat back down.

It was just another thing that could go wrong in his life. Since the debrief, he had scoured his mind and created a list of old friends and contacts who were the most likely to assist him and the boys. There had always been the expectation that a few of them would refuse, but he had never imagined all of them to quickly shut him out. He was thankful for the few that immediately told him no over the phone. It was the meetings that killed him. He knew just how eager the boys were and he hated seeing their disappointed faces. But the icing on the cake was having to spill out his feelings in front of his acquaintances to sell themselves out for money. The meeting with Greg earlier that day was no different.

His ears picked up the sound of his doorbell. He crushed the remains of his cigar and lumbered back into his apartment. The bell rang a second time while the hare hurriedly put on a t-shirt. "Coming, coming," he hollered.

Undoing the lock, he opened the door and frowned at his guest.

"Peppy," said General Pepper. The general was still fully uniformed and holding a bundle of folders under his left arm.

"Pepper," he groaned. "What are you doing here?"

"Seeking counsel," he whispered flatly. "May I come in?"

"Sure, come in," he hesitated.

The bloodhound entered, taking cautious steps before having a seat in the living room couch and spreading the folders out on the coffee table. Peppy offered him a beer from the fridge before sitting on the recliner across from him. "Let me be clear," he began, taking a gulp, "we never talked."

"One of those types of counsels," mused Peppy.

"Yes. One of those."

"I'm not military anymore, Pepper."

"All the more reason. We never talked." He grabbed the top-most folder and nudged it over to the hare. It was about a quarter-inch thick and filled with various documents and photos. "Tell me what you think about this."

Peppy took the packet up with reluctance and grabbed his reading glasses off the end table beside him. A few times he had to stop and reread to make sure he was comprehending correctly. His frown deepened as he sifted through the rest of the texts and gave each photo a quick glance. "When were these taken?"

"About a week ago."

He growled and stared longer at an image in his hand. Captured was a fleet of ships in attack formation, each bearing the Venomian insignia. His eyes could make out the outlines of many fighter ships, scattered around three frigates, a cruiser, and one capital ship which dwarfed them all. It was littered with blaster turrets large enough that they were blatantly visible in the small photograph. Unfortunately, only half of the ship was discernable and made it difficult to judge just how large it truly was when sections of it was hidden behind multiple asteroids.

"This is Meteo," surmised Peppy. "They've made it this close so soon?"

"They have."

He squinted, daring to ask the next question. "What is Parliament doing about it?"

Pepper finally lost his composure and groaned. He pulled off the hat on his head and threw it on top of the stack of folders before taking another drink. "The Secretary of Defense has been trying to establish a defense around Meteo since the Papetoon incident. He thought that when it was decided the Empire had no hand in the attack he'd be able to get the funding and extra forces moved there and into key planets but, again, he got nothing."

"So we're not prepared," Peppy gritted his teeth. Things were starting to feel all too familiar.

"Fortunately, we are," sighed Pepper. "You should've seen Defense Secretary Krause earlier this week. Feathers all ruffled, owl eyes larger than I've ever seen. He let parliament have it. Told them straight: I've warned you and asked for the forces and now the enemy is on our front door. This is all on you and your bickering and indecision. The lives of the Cornerian people, their blood, are on your hands."

"That wasn't on the news feed," grinned Peppy. "Let me guess, they censored it?"

"Of course. It would've caused mass panic and Parliament is clinging to what little control it has."

"And the Prime Minister? His stance?"

The canine took another drink. "He's been on board with the military, as of late. Though, the gap created when you were ousted hasn't been filled. It's made gathering any meaningful intelligence difficult." He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and folded his hands in front of his muzzle. "We need you back, Peppy."

The hare scoffed and folded his arms. "You know that won't happen now."

"Well we need something," he barked. "All this appeasement for entitled citizens has done nothing but hurt our chances of fighting back." His eyes narrowed as he said the next few words in a low voice. "There are rumors of a coup."

Peppy raised a brow.

"The propaganda video that The Occult made is starting to cause concerns. It's being circulated through the net. Heavily edited, of course. But they're keeping the parts about civilian unrest with the government. We've had numerous arrests and attempts at bombings in many of our government buildings."

"I've not heard of any of this," frowned Peppy.

"We've managed to keep it all under wraps the best we can. You can't imagine just how close information leaked a few times." He leaned back on the couch. "But it's been frustrating, diverting all our energies in keeping things quiet for Parliament's sake. What's worse, is all our assailants are from within the military."

Peppy pondered over that for a moment. If people with military training are up in arms already and attempting to terrorize their own homes... "Who is behind all of this?"

"That's why I'm here," said Pepper. He handed the hare a second folder from the stack.

There was information on each of the attacks starting with the earliest, dated a week after the release of the propaganda video. They ranged from minuscule attempts at local banks, post offices and commercial districts to schools, courthouses and even the Parliamentary dome itself. Weapons of choice for each incident was a bomb. Yet, peculiarly, a very common and outdated one. Something that could be diffused easily by anyone with any knowledge of criminal television. "These are all premeditated by someone," concluded Peppy.

"But who, is the question."

"Any leads?"

"No," confessed Pepper. "But I feel in my gut it has to be someone within the military or government itself."

"Another Venom/Empire sympathizer?"

"Exactly."

Peppy wracked his brain for a moment, trying to remember if anyone rang any bells that matched the description. "Other than Andross, no one has been vocal about this. But with everything you've shown me, the Venomian ships approaching...They're going to make their move, and soon."

"Tomorrow."

He nearly choked, eyes bulging out. "Tomorrow?!" His face contorted even more in disbelief as Pepper slowly nodded. "Are you fucking kidding me?"

"No," he muttered, finishing his beer.

Peppy exhaled sharply. "Just how prepared are we, then?"

"Planetary defense cannons are prepped. The barrier that surrounds Corneria City Proper has been gathering energy the entire week and should be operating at maximum. The only problem with that is..."

"The barrier only protects the government districts," sneered Peppy. "What of the civilian sectors?"

"We have fighters at the ready to defend them. But it's...complicated. We're unsure if this coup will interfere with our defense. So we have men on guard watching not only the skies for enemies, but their own backs. It's exhausting."

"And terrifying."

There was a set of three knocks on the door, the sound silencing both men for a moment.

"She's early," muttered Pepper. "Would you mind getting the door? I've invited someone to meet us here."

Peppy tilted his head, his hare ears twitching slightly. But he couldn't find any harm at following through with the request. Pepper and he have been friends and allies in all manner of issues he knew there couldn't be any reason to be confused. Not at this point anyway. The hare sighed and got up, placing his empty bottle on the end table before making his way to the door.

Outside was a woman. A fox. "Hello, Pep," she said casually, inviting herself inside while the hare stared at her in disbelief.

"Fara? What the hell?"

"It's good to see you again, too," she smiled, taking a seat next to Pepper on the couch. "You'll need to sit; what we have to say is important."

Peppy grumbled, but reclaimed his seat without any other complaints. "Go on. Explain."

"Fara has been under my employ for a while now," started Pepper. "She's been one of the best intelligence agents in the field and is the source of all the information I just shared with you. Now, I understand that you two have history-"

"Of course we do," Peppy scoffed. "She's the reason I lost my arwing!"

"If I recall correctly," said Fara, "you and James McCloud had had way too many drinks and were boasting about your fighter skills in front of everyone at the bar. You can't blame me for taking advantage of our bet, can you?"

"Having me play your Lady at poker at that point was probably the worst thing that could've happened."

"And it was your decision to bet your arwing, which the Lady Van'Der Spaniel is ever so grateful for since it was the catalyst for Arspace Dynamics to get its footing in the market."

"Regardless of how you lost your ship," said Pepper, "that is actually of major concern to us now."

Peppy paused, giving the two of them the stare down before shrugging, defeated. "Go on."

"Do you remember during the debrief that both the Galactic Federation and Inner Empire claimed that they had ships stolen from them around Sector X?"

"How can I forget? The humans were one of the most jarring things about that debrief."

"Well it seems we can tie those thefts to both Venom and their Occult allies," said Fara. "One of these folders should have that information inside it. Allow me."

The vixen sifted past the top two folders, digging into another's contents before handing over a file to Peppy. He gave her a sideways glance before snatching it away, quickly going over the text:

_...Detainee has made numerous claims of working under the influence of a supernatural force. He has referred to it as an Occult type of control where he must obey for fear of bizarre consequences such as, "his timeline being erased or readjusted." Despite the absurdity of his claim, he was hesitant to admit anything about who gave him orders within the military or what his objectives were. It took much coaxing, but we were able to present him with yes or no questions which he answered by blinking once for yes, and twice in quick succession for no. _

We were able to infer that who he is working for is looking for blueprints and crafts from our armies but we couldn't ascertain the reasons with this method of questioning. What was most peculiar was that during the time of this questioning a tribute was playing for Commander James McCloud on the television and he deliberately pointed at the Arwing I that he piloted...

Peppy rubbed his eyes. "When was this interrogation?"

"Just a few days ago," answered Pepper.

"And what of the Arwing I?"

"There is only one of that model that remain to our knowledge: yours. The McCloud jets were destroyed when the Papetoon academy was blown up. We can only speculate that the enemy no longer has Pigma's if they are so eager to take it."

"But wait," stopped Peppy. "You both know that I no longer have the jet. In fact, Fara would have more information of its whereabouts than me."

Fara shrugged, crossing her legs casually and leaning back on the couch. "This is the part where I admit to you that the ship was a bargaining chip for our own company to get started up with Space Dynamic's support. We took the original blueprint but they got to keep the ship for their own research and testing."

"Isn't it their ship to begin with?"

"Legally, not anymore. It belongs to Arspace now."

"And what do you want with it now?"

"Nothing. We want it gone."

The hare sighed. He was very well aware that by "gone" she meant destroyed. It made sense, seeing how the ship was many times advanced compared by the generic fighter that the military used. Should anyone else get hold of it and begin to mass produce it the tides of battle would turn in their favor. And yet, they were telling him about it and he was no longer military. He no longer had any authority or leeway with anyone. Unless...

"You're going to fund us, aren't you?" concluded Peppy. Pepper nodded with closed eyes and Fara's grin just got larger.

"By this point, all your boys probably already know," she said. "While you were speaking with Greg I managed to intrigue McCloud's kid into meeting with the young Lady tomorrow at noon."

Peppy frowned. It didn't sit well that Fox had made this decision without consulting him first. "Just what do you want those kids to do?"

"To show us what they can do. Lady Van'Der Spaniel wants to make sure if she funds this project of yours that she can get her money's worth. Make sure it's a suitable investment."

"They're just kids!"

"Who want to be mercs," Pepper said firmly. "If this is truly the path they want to go then so be it. You're not going to find a better offer, Peppy. History with the Van'Der Spaniels or not. Take their offer. It's the best way you can help all of us."

He flew his hands up in the air, knowing his friend was right. "Fine. But I don't like it."

"That's the spirit," mused Fara. "But there is still the matter of the missing Arwing I."

"What do we need to do?"

"More like, what do you need to do," said Pepper, handing the final folder to Peppy.

Inside was a cardkey, a usb stick, as well as a mission debrief. He was required to infiltrate Space Dynamic's lab Sigma in the outskirts of Corneria City, make sure all data on the Arwing I was removed from their servers through use of the USB card, and then destroy the ship.

"You want me to do it alone?"

"Is that a problem?" asked Pepper. "You were one of our best intelligence agents on the field and with McCloud's crew before your promotion. We want you to do it again."

The hare would've complained more; he wasn't in the same shape as he was back then. Unfortunately, being a General behind a desk as well as the appointed headmaster to one of the military academy's didn't do well for his physique. All his old moves would come out more clumsy than when he was younger. Yet, there really wasn't any other option for him. The kids will be up in the air proving their worth, he couldn't expect to just sit in the sidelines.

"I'll do it," he said, getting up and giving a rigid salute out of habit.

"Then this will be considered your prerequisite mission," said Fara. "You'll need to leave immediately since enemy forces are expected to arrive by noon tomorrow. Get in there and get out. Meet us here..." She handed him a card much like the one she gave Fox. "Merritt Isle Research Facility. Should the boys prove useful and your mission a success, we'll agree to financial terms and General Pepper here will brief us on your next steps."

"Then I better be going."

"As should we," agreed Pepper, reclaiming the folders and hat as he and Fara got up. "I wish you well on your mission, Peppy."

"As always."

Fara said, "I look forward to seeing you tomorrow."

They left his apartment, giving him time to reread his objectives and commit as much of the floorplan to memory as he could. This would be the first time in years he'd be doing ground level work and despite being annoyed he could feel the adrenaline rush inside of him. He made for his office, undid the lock on the cabinet above his desk and pulled out the box which held his old blaster. Even on Corneria, with the chance the rebels would try and stop him, he'd feel much better with the old baby in his hands.

His old combat uniform hung in the dresser on the opposite end of the room. His belly was much larger now, but he managed to fit into the outfit with just a minor struggle. He made sure the key card and usb were pocketed safely in his shirt before leaving his place and out into the night.

~ :: :: ~

It was still dark, but dusk hinted in the sky by the time Peppy arrived, his destination nestled behind dense trees atop a cliff side that peaked out over the ocean. The research facility proper stood a mere two stories above the earth though what was underneath wasn't discernible from the hare's current vantage point behind the thick underbrush. Through his night-vision binoculars he could make out the buildings modern look, the multitude of darkened glass windows stretching out from one end of the building to the other showing little to no movement within. He was able to take note of several surveillance cameras slowly rotating in the more well-lit areas of the exterior.

He pulled his blaster from its holster, set it to silenced and took careful aim at the nearest camera; the device sputtering smoke and sparks as it died down. Then, he bolted to the nearest wall and pressed against it before taking aim at the next camera over the rear entrance. It fizzled much like the previous one and Peppy made his way to the metal door, taking the card key from his front pocket before swiping it through the reader.

The interior hallways were dimly lit; the hare closing the door slowly and with minimal noise. He stood still a moment to see if his ears could pick up any sounds while scanning his surroundings. Beside him a door was ajar with a white lab coat hanging from a hook. His eyes focused on the motion sensor that hung on the foam boards above him and quickly put the coat on; he didn't hear any alarms going off but he knew to move quickly just to be on the safe side.

He holstered his blaster, carefully concealing it behind the long coat and nonchalantly made for the elevator shaft. The access panel required the card again, the hare staring at the numbered buttons for a moment to recall which floor he needed to get to.

"Hold the door, please!" called out a woman. Peppy cursed to himself as the canine bounded from the opposite hall and into the elevator. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it," he muttered.

"I'm on the coding floor," she said casually while catching her breath. She eyed Peppy suspiciously when the hare reached out to the buttons and froze.

Damn memory! I don't know this shit, he cursed to himself. Naturally, he pulled his hand back up to his eyes and rubbed them with a large yawn. "I'm sorry. I just got back from a coffee run. My eyes keep getting out of focus."

"Oh, that's alright," she replied, hitting the button herself. "Where are you going?"

"Server room."

"Ok, I've gotcha."

The ride was a short one but to Peppy it lasted an eternity. He yawned every so often to keep up the charade, though at times he felt to himself it wasn't. As for his guest, she didn't seem to mind him at all, using the elevator time to look at her reflection on a compact to gussy up. When the doors did open she walked out without a word and he finally allowed himself to relax.

A bit too close for comfort, he thought to himself.

He peered through the elevator doors the next time they opened, looking left and right of a dimly lit hall before stepping out. It was a small space with two glass doors at each end while the wall opposite the elevator had a wide window, revealing the server room. There was no light, save the gentle blues and greens from the terminals that created a maze in the room. He had to use the key card once more to enter, noticing that his footsteps made echoes no matter how quietly he tried to walk.

His eyes squinted, trying to make out the numbers of each rack that held the servers. The hare ended up making a few turns inside before finding the rack that matched the number on his debrief: 509. His fingers fumbled with each server, struggling to find a USB port and he cursed under his breath when he put it in upside down the first time. He waited a moment for the light on the USB to turn from red to green before yanking it out and back into his pocket.

But by that time, his ears picked up the sound of the door opening and footsteps in the room. He stood still, using what little light he had to judge his distance to the exit. His mind swept through a series of pictures of the floor plan, trying to find alternate exits until he remembered there should be a stairwell in this room leading to the hangar bay.

"How long 'til arrival," he picked up a voice saying.

Another said, "Not long now. I think our ground troops will make a move first."

"Really? That's not fair. I wanted to be part of the assault."

"Our job's just as important. We need to find that ship and take it before anyone notices."

"The arwing?"

"You don't pay attention much during debriefs, do you?"

"Whatever man. I just want some action!"

The two of them came into view of Peppy, two canines, walking past the aisle of servers he stood still at. He took a deep breath and started to walk, matching the footsteps of the other men as best as he could.

"Where's that damn terminal?"

"Use your damn flashlight. Why are you letting me wander in the dark?"

And then lights blared onto Peppy.

"Who the fuck?!"

The hare reacted quickly, kicking the flashlight out of the canid's hands before pulling out his blaster. His other opponent was too slow; he struggled to undo the strap on his holster - a rookie mistake. Peppy shot him point blank in the chest, the dog howling as he fell backward. The other man took a swing at him, but the dark was on Peppy's side; the hare ducked out of the way and used his strong legs to jump forward and head-butt the man and knock him onto the floor. Just for safe measure, he fired two shots at his chest; he couldn't take any more chances.

Before he made for the exit, his ears picked up the faint sounds of radio static. He knelt down over one of the dead bodies and pulled out an earpiece.

"...Top floors are under control. Hostages are all gathered and accounted for."

"Roger. Hangar team is en-route to the docking bay. Waiting on server team to finish with the hack."

"Server team: do you copy?"

Shit, shit...shit shit shit, thought Peppy. He knew it was a bad idea but he spoke anyway. "This is server team. Hack is underway."

"Understood. Estimated time for mission completion is ten minutes. Everyone gather at the hangar. Once we have the ship Operation: Deer in Headlights will commence."

Peppy dropped the earpiece and scrambled around the terminals, finding the double doors that led to the stairwell. Opening it, he ran into another canine, dressed up in green military garb and holding a blaster rifle. The hare didn't give him time to react; he shoved him over the railing as the man screamed downward, hitting each subsequent rail on the way down before landing on the ground five floors below with a horrifying crack.

"WHO'S THERE? SHOW YOURSELF!"

There were two other men below him who had stopped when they heard their comrade's screams. Peppy used his strong legs again to jump up and land a kick in the face to the nearest soldier, the force knocking him back onto his partner. He fired out two more shots, the blaster hissing upon contact with both men.

Then all hell broke loose. Above him laser fire rained from multiple blaster rifles, Peppy bouncing from wall to wall as he descended down the stairs. At the final floor he nearly tripped over the soldier he had tossed and slammed into the doors. They were locked.

"You have gotta be shitting me!" he shouted, giving the door several strong kicks before they finally gave way. He would've said a silent prayer in thanks that the doors were wooden, but he was immediately beset by more laser fire.

He wall jumped off of the two large storage crates that cornered him by the doors and scampered up on top. Blaster fire hissed at him and burned onto each container as he jumped from one to another, firing from his own pistol. He counted a good five of them on the ground, the higher vantage giving him a good view of them. Ahead he could make out the pieces of the arwing jutting above the containers as well as a large, carrier ship hovering at the mouth of the blast doors. Through them more men spilled in, each just as well equipped as the last.

There was no way he could blow up the ship now and get out in once piece. He counted the soldiers again, totaling up to around twenty. His eyes jumped from one enemy to the next, cowering down on the containers as more gunfire came his way. He spotted a few in the distance clambering up a ladder but he dispatched them easily from his position: nineteen... no, eighteen left now.

"Hold your fire! Hold your fire!"

The barrage stopped and Peppy managed to peek over his hiding spot and saw a large figure, his head concealed within a mask and a heavily armored space suit. For a moment they made eye contact before the man chortled. Peppy knew that laugh - It had been haunting him the moment he heard it on the propaganda video.

"Peppy! Long time no see!" He took off his helmet and took a deep breath before exhaling.

"Pigma," he uttered in disgust.

"I didn't think you had all this shit still in ya," he smiled. "I have gotta admit, you're putting up more fight than Jamie did! I'm impressed!"

Peppy seethed, taking out another soldier next to Pigma. Seventeen.

"Oh, that wasn't so nice. Not nice at all!"

"What do you want, Pigma," shouted Peppy, eyes darting from soldier to soldier and from crate to crate, judging the best route to out of this mess.

"You know what I want. But judging from your appearance here, I know what you want too."

"The arwing."

"That's right. Couldn't help that selling my story and death to Jamie meant the loss of my own ship, but all's well that ends well, right?"

So Fara and Pepper were right, he thought. Not like it mattered much now. His only exit was out through the blast doors. And the only way he could do that is if he killed everyone here on the spot, but he knew that that wasn't possible. Which left one last option.

The arwing.

He judged the distance, several meters ahead with a clean strip in front of it for taking off. There were a few men in the way, but he could duck behind more containers and out of reach long enough to jump into the cockpit and start the engines - should it still be fueled and ready. He prayed it was, otherwise he'd be a sitting duck.

"Well Peppy, this has been fun and all, but times-a-wastin'! Got things to do, deer to meet with. Venison to make, ya'know." He waved an arm around, the men pulling closer to him.

The hare smiled, realizing this worked even better in his favor. He noticed the soldiers trying to corner him into his one container while a few tried to sneak up behind him. But it was now or never. He bolted toward the arwing, guns blazing. They returned fire at him, narrowly missing him a few times as he hopped from one container to the next. He could hear Pigma shouting threats but he was able to make one final jump onto the landing zone and scrambled up the old arwing, slamming a fist onto the cockpit door button. It raised slowly and he turned to fire more shots as the soldiers started to spill out from behind the containers.

He slid into his seat and fiddled with a few buttons on the control console and heaved a sigh of relief when the engines started to rumble. He could hear the hissing of blaster fire hitting the fuselage, Peppy gritting his teeth as the shields slowly rose up.

Everything was drowned out by the roar of the engines now. He eyed the carrier in front of him and gripped tightly on his control stick.

"FUCK YEAH!" he bellowed while firing a volley at the ship.

The ship crumbled away from the bombardment, careening off his path and exploding over the ledge, all the while allowing Peppy to pull on his throttle and out into the air.