Mall Mission (I can't think of a good title)

[Orbital Fox]

I'm reading it still, I like what I see so far.

[Blaz3]

Hey, I could use that... Thanks Firefox I got an idea, you'll have to wait and by the way, I haven't actually finished it yet but I have parts that I know that I want to add. Finally, I'm glad to see that there are people actually reading this, I really appreciate that.

[Orbital Fox]

It's not so bad, it does have a few parts that could throw you off and miss the entire point but I still understand what you're trying to say.

[Blaz3]

Yeah, yeah, keep reading. Nah, just joking, thanks for all your comments, here's your next chapter, ooh its a biggie!

Chapter 10

Bullets flew past Fox, only narrowly missing him. Coming close now to the soldiers, Fox leapt into the air in a forwards flip, shooting soldiers at all angles around him, landing behind the horde and rolling sideways, all the time shooting at the swarm and eliminating soldiers with his constant fire. No bullets touched him now. Fox was hardly more than a blur in amongst the crowd of the soldiers, constantly rolling, flipping and shooting down guards. Almost half the soldiers were lying on the floor now and Fox’ energy was starting to waver. Soldiers had started to shoot at him and he was having a hard time dodging bullets, his shirt was now ripped around the sleeves, the tops of his shoulders were scorched from bullets skimming his shoulder. Ducking behind a pillar, Fox desperately looked for an exit so he could catch his breath. The soldiers were preparing and Fox could hear them discussing on how to ambush him. There was no exit any other way out of the room he was in except where he had come through and where the soldiers had come from. Not taking his chances, Fox came out from behind the pillar and using what little energy remained, shot two of the guards who were watching the pillar while the other four who were guarding the pillar took shots at him. Fox leapt forward landing in a handstand, then throwing himself up and continuing to dodge in a flick flack out the door. His final backflip put him outside the door and Fox stumbled slightly. One of the soldiers took this opportunity to shoot one of the guns from Fox’ hand. The rest followed his lead with a volley of shots that Fox barely dodged. He twisted behind a wall and dashed into a nearby shop for cover. Breathing heavily, Fox looked down at his side to see a drop of blood fall from his stitched side. There was an uneven pattern of stitches where the blood was coming from. He had pulled a couple of stitches out. Letting a sigh out of frustration and worry, Fox ran to the edge of the shop as he could still hear the soldiers giving orders to check nearby stores. The hunt was on. Fox ran up a staircase to the balcony. On the top, he was met by at least 12 soldiers patrolling the top. Ducking and running back down the stairs, Fox was all out of energy. He couldn’t keep running, his body wouldn’t let him any more. He needed to rest. In the shop, two soldiers were scanning for him. Fox ran into the store, he needed a good area to rest in. Hiding behind an aisle of plates, Fox peeked around the corner and saw the soldier heading away from the front of the shop, away from the checkout. Fox took this opportunity, but in his tired state, his stealthy run wasn’t so stealth and the guard heard him running and turned to see Fox and shot. The bullet was heading right towards him, but Fox had no energy left. Weakly and hoping against hope, he held up his armlet and braced. Sheer luck saw the bullet burst into nothing on his armlet and Fox was sent sprawling onto the checkout. Dazed and stunned, Fox saw the soldier heading towards him. Panic struck him, he was the last hope for the other hostage shoppers, he couldn’t let this simple soldier take him, he was the greatest mercenary in the Lylat system. Anger overwhelmed him and he grabbed his blaster which was now lying next to him and shot the soldier right through his helmet. Fox saw the other soldier come running to see what had happened, calling,

“Hey Joe, what did you…”

Fox shot him before he could finish his sentence, using all his energy he could muster. Too weak to hide himself further, Fox activated his armlet and once again, the two medibots popped out. Managing a whisper, Fox ordered the robots to drag him behind the counter. He then fell back into blissful sleep.

The small spider-like robots dragged him behind the counter and hid his unconscious body as best they could. The robots then began to analyze Fox’ body, fixed the stitches that had been ripped, but didn’t find any other physical injury. One of them crawled its way back into the armlet while the other put its front legs around the side of Fox’ head, monitoring his brain activity. It found what it was looking for and crawled away from Fox’ head and sent a small bolt of electricity between its front legs legs. It then placed its front legs on either side of Fox’ head and sent the faint electrical shock through his brain, effectively waking him up. As he tried to pull himself into a sitting position, Fox found his muscles in his arms and legs ached too much for him to move so he laid back and let the robot finish its work. The robot made its way over to the armlet and from a small compartment, drew out a tiny capsule which it pushed towards Fox’ lips. He swallowed the tablet and the medibot said to him,

“This tablet will mask the pain in your arms and legs and keep you awake, but over exertion of your body will result in unconsciousness, it is recommended that you avoid activity where excessive movement may be necessary. Thank you for using Medibot 1.0.” The robot clawed its way back to Fox’ armlet and folded itself back into the gap it occupied. Fox attempted moving his arms, finding they didn’t ache. He stood up, to check that he could but sat down again to think. The soldiers had no doubt got guards going through all the shops looking for him, but they were all spread out around the mall, this meant that it was harder to get to places but it also meant that it would be easier for him to get rid of the soldiers, one by one. “I still have my blaster, though, it wouldn’t work here very well because other soldiers are bound to hear or see it firing.” Fox thought

He would have to surprise them, using stealth. Mentally mapping out where he was in relation to the room with the hostages, Fox guessed he was about three shops across and on the opposite side of the mall to the hostage area. Angry at himself for choosing somewhere so difficult to get where he needed to be without being seen, Fox decided on a route. He would quickly go from shop to shop that were next to each other, staying out in the main room in the mall as much as possible till he was opposite the hostage area. From there, he would try for a silent dash across to the room. Not his greatest plan of all times, but Fox wasn’t going to spend hours on end deciding on the best plan. He peeked out the top of the counter for any soldiers that may have swapped patrols with the two he had previously taken care of. None. Fox felt a wave of relief wash over him. He hadn’t really made much of an effort to move the bodies so it would have been quite obvious if replacements had come. Fox ran to the front of the shop and hid in cover. Looking up to see if there were any soldiers who might just be peering over the balcony, or on ground level, Fox scanned the area. Nobody was there that was within eyesight of Fox so he quietly but quickly ran to the corner of the shop where he proceeded to slip around the corner, slide along the wall and enter the next shop. Right in front of him, walking into the shop, a soldier was patrolling. Shock gripped Fox and he froze. The soldier hadn’t noticed anything and the tapping of his footsteps masked any noise from Fox. Without giving himself any time to relax, Fox crept in total silence towards the guard. Fox kept low and eventually got close enough to the soldier, he could read the label on the back of the soldier’s armor vest. But Fox didn’t waste time doing that. He put one arm around the soldier’s mouth so the soldier couldn’t talk and with his free hand, he squeezed the soldier’s shoulder. The soldier fell limp in Fox’ grip and Fox lowered his unconscious body to the floor. Fox did not like to kill if he could avoid it. After hiding the unconscious body between a section of an aisle filled with pillows, Fox scanned the shop for the guard’s partner who was, no doubt, also patrolling the shop. After quickly finding him, Fox hopped up an aisle to try what had failed once before. This time he had success. Fox dropped down right in front of the unsuspecting soldier and struck him on the bridge of his nose, knocking, yet another unconscious. Satisfied, Fox carried on to the next shop where the two soldiers had taken a different approach, they had set up a makeshift fort and were both sitting inside it. This made it a little more difficult for Fox as he wouldn’t be able to cross the shop without them seeing him, but he couldn’t see much of a clear way to them either. He needed a diversion. Thinking quickly and running back to the shop, Fox took the blaster out from one of the unconscious guard’s holster. Running back to the main room, Fox threw the blaster over the front entrance of the shop, to the other side of it. The metal made a satisfying clang as it hit the hard floor, startling the two guards in the barricade. To Fox’ joy, both soldiers came out from the fort and went to investigate, the one staying a little behind the other to cover him. Fox took this chance and ran into the fort. It was quite a large fort for the short time the soldiers had to make it and Fox immediately found a good place to hide, the counter right behind the fort. Fox leapt behind it and laid down in wait of the soldiers’ return. He had only been waiting a couple of minutes when he heard the two talking about how it was probably nothing, trying to reassure each other that nothing was out there. Fox let them settle in for a bit and then took action. He swung himself onto the counter and dropped into the fort behind the two without either of them noticing. He saw that they had taken off their helmets, probably to see better through the sniper scopes they had to their eyes, which made the job all the easier for Fox. He squeezed the first one’s shoulder and lowered the unconscious body to the floor. The movement startled the other who turned to look and received a sharp blow to the top of the head, knocking him out too. Fox relaxed for a brief time, even allowing himself to sit back and review what his latest accomplishments were, before getting back up and dashing to the entrance, into the next and final shop before the holding area. This room had two guards patrolling it again, an easy target for Fox crept behind the first soldier and hit him on the back of the neck, catching the unconscious body before it hit the floor. The second guard caught Fox out and saw Fox lowering the body to the floor. After a stunned curse, the soldier tried to shoot at Fox but the gun was kicked out of his hand before he could pull the trigger. Fox leapt at the soldier and knocked him to the floor. He pushed his thumbs into the fleshy area at the bottom of the guard’s neck until the guard’s eyes fluttered and closed. Fox checked the guard’s pulse quickly and smiled to see that he was still alive. He dashed to the front of the shop and checked for any soldiers patrolling the area or looking down to the entrance to the hostage holding area. Luck was smiling upon Fox at that moment and he took the opportunity to make his wild run across the hall to the room. He got there and wasn’t noticed at all. Fox realized he had been holding his breath and let out a deep breath. He was close to rescuing the hostages; and Krystal.

OOOhh getting close!!!! I'll leave you people in suspense for a day or two, and I'll probably get the next chapter up tomorrow.

[Dark Fox]

YAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!

:P

[Blaz3]

Woops! That "day or two" turned out to be quite a while, I need to write more. Anyway, here's chapter 11, oohh its getting close to the end, I can feel it (and I get to say when it ends oohh such power!!) anyway, don't listen to me talking, its all ubbish, get reading the chapter!

Chapter 11

The hostage area was remarkably unguarded, and to Fox’ slight disappointment, he did see two guards. Fox shot the first guard with a simple blaster shot to the guard’s chest, causing the soldier to fly against the wall. The other guard put up a bit more of a challenge than the previous untrained soldiers and managed to shoot at Fox, twice. This surprised Fox and caught him off guard, luckily the first shot only skimmed Fox’ shoulder, burning through the one area holding Fox’ shirt together, while the second hit Fox’ blaster, hurling it away from him. As the blaster was shot from his hand, a brief moment of panic gripped Fox and he found himself staring down the barrel of the blaster. The soldier pulled the trigger. The shot flew through the air and dissipated against the wall behind where Fox had been. Fox had seen the gun being aimed before the soldier shot, so he had quite easily managed to get out of the way. The soldier kept trying to shoot at Fox but never even once hit. Still on the other side of the room, Fox decided upon a strategy. He threw himself across the ground in the direction of the soldier, crossing about half the room. He rolled forward and balanced himself into a handstand position which he continued by throwing himself up to his feet, landing right in front of the stunned guard. Fox smacked the gun out of the soldier’s hand and looked back at the guard who now had a look of terror upon his face. Fox smiled an almost malicious smile, flipped off the guard’s helmet and struck the bridge of his nose, knocking the guard unconscious. Fox had no time to look over what he had accomplished so far, so he ran over and picked up his blaster, briefly looking at his old shirt, he had liked that shirt too, but now wasn’t the time to think about that. Checking the safety switch was still off, Fox held the gun loosely at his side and walked through the door. As he entered the room, the first thing he saw was Krystal. She was behind a blue barrier along with at least one hundred and fifty other people. There were two guards and Fox lifted his blaster to shoot but was stopped by a voice. “Stop.”

The voice sounded familiar to Fox, but he couldn’t quite put it to a face. He lowered the gun slowly and turned to his right. A figure in full armor had a gun aimed at Fox. As was his natural instinct, Fox lifted his blaster, took aim and fired. He tried to pull the trigger a second time but found there was nothing there any more. He heard the clatter of his blaster falling to the floor and slide against the wall and he looked back at the armored figure. He also no longer had his gun, which now rested against the wall away from him. In response, all the soldiers raised their guns and aimed at Fox. However the figure called, in its rough voice,

“Wait! Lower your weapons, I have a different way of working this out.”

Fox was perplexed by this, the figure laughed in response.

“Surely you remember me, Fox Mcloud?”

His mind still racing, Fox was silent

“Well, instead of just telling you, let me show you.”

The figure pulled off the helmet that hid his face, revealing General Scales. Memories flooded Fox’ mind and he talked for the first time in the room, “General Scales, so you did live.”

“Yes and I’ve sided with Venom now, I will be the one who successfully defeats you, Fox Mcloud! But, I shall make it a fair fight.”

The figure removed his armor and kicked it aside.

“Now, lets get this over with!”

General Scales leapt at Fox who sidestepped and stood ready. The general recovered and started launching a series of punches and kicks. Fox had practiced blocking these millions of times, using what he had learnt into practice now, he executed a series of his own blocks, with the occasional counter, not hard counters, but annoying ones. Scales threw another punch at Fox’ head which Fox dodged and blocked, but Fox was getting bored of simply blocking so he grabbed the general’s wrist and used the momentum from the general’s punch in the throw, flipping the general onto his back. Fox enjoyed this and an enraged general rolled onto his feet and roared at Fox, following it up with sharp, powerful and quick blows. Fox managed to block most of them but one kick got through, knocking Fox over. The general let out a triumphant cry and walked over to Fox, who was gasping for breath. The kick had winded him and left him an easy target. Scales picked Fox up under the arms and slammed him against the wall, talking in a low, quiet and menacing voice.

“You have no idea how long I have waited for this fight, then you embarrass me in front of my own soldiers?!”

Fox stared back, he was starting to feel faint

“But today, I shall succeed where everybody else has failed, I will defeat Fox Mccloud.”

Finished with his threatening speech, Scales threw Fox across the wall, leaving him sprawled on the ground. Fox felt unconsciousness grabbing at him, beckoning him, but he fought it off. Moving his arms to pick himself up, Fox brushed against a metal object. Scrambling desperately at it, Fox picked it up and could not believe what he was holding. His blaster. The general’s face flashed with horror, then terror, then anger. He let out a cry and ran at Fox, expecting the inevitable. Fox pulled the trigger. The general watched the bullet head towards him and he closed his eyes, waiting for the impact. It never came. The general opened his eyes to see Fox, near unconsciousness in front of him, the blaster now gone from his hand. Scales threw his head back and laughed. He sneered,

“The great Fox Mccloud, sure-shot mercenary of the lylat system, and he missed!”

Fox’ face did not show any signs of disappointment, instead he was smiling. He replied,

“Oh did I? Why don’t you see for yourself?”

The general turned, confused. The barrier had been dropped. Fox had shot out the lock and the prisoners leapt out. Krystal ran at General Scales and punched him in the stomach, causing him to double over and fall to the ground. Krystal then told a mall security guard to restrain him. She then turned to Fox. Fox was standing up now and he took two slow, unbalanced steps forward, his vision a blur. Krystal ran over to him to help him. Fox saw her and fell to his knees, exhausted. He could feel his arms and legs throbbing angrily, while his head was swimming. His upper body swayed gently and he was about to fall forward when A light pink filled his vision, he smiled weakly, holding himself up for as long as his body would let him to show that he was all right, and he fell forwards into Krystal, her slim, furry, warm arms gently slipping around his shoulders and back and pulling him closer. Content, Fox felt his eyelids flutter, then shut and he blacked out.

[Orbital Fox]

GAH my eyes need rest they've been looking at the screen reading your fanfic for too long, I'll read the next chapter as soon as my eyes stop hurting.

[Blaz3]

Yeah, its quite a wall of text.

[Blaz3]

I finally got around to writing the next chapter and plan on finishing this soon, so here's chapter 12.

Chapter 12

In the wild flurry of activity as shoppers were running out, glad to be free, Luca stopped for a minute. Despite the short time she had gotten to know Krystal, she felt very affectionate towards her. She looked around trying to find her, then the crowd cleared a bit, and she saw the blue fox with a brown fox in its arms. She walked over to them. Krystal heard her, but didn’t move. Luca asked her,

“Is that really Fox Mcloud?”

“Yes, the one and only.”

“Wow… M -may I check him for injuries?”

“Oh ok.”

Luca’s head raced. She had never been this excited before in her life! Krystal gently lowered Fox to the ground and rolled him onto his back. Luca hesitated a bit, then knelt down next to the unconscious body of Fox. Performing numerous checks, she found that he had ripped a couple of stitches in his side, lots of bruises, a broken rib, some slight burn wounds and a stitched up side which had been sewn together again remarkably well. Luca told Krystal what injuries Fox had and then turned back to Fox and pulled off some fabric from a shirt she had been using as temporary bandages and tied it around Fox’ stomach, covering the area of pulled stitches. She stood up and announced,

“Done!”

Krystal replied with

“Luca, I don’t know how to show my appreciation…”

Luca waved off Krystal’s thanks and smiled

“Don’t worry, getting to work with you is thanks enough.”

Krystal smiled a big smile at Luca and said,

“Thank you.”

Luca replied with,

“No problem.”

Krystal bent down to Fox’ side again and lifted his arm. She tapped some commands into his armlet and put his arm down again, moving to Fox’ head, She picked him up underneath his arms and lifted.

“Oof he’s heavy!”

Luca walked over to Fox’ legs and said,

“Here, I’ll help you.”

They both carried Fox to the main room of the mall, heading towards the exit, when Krystal’s eye was caught by the shop she and Fox had hidden in previously. She lowered Fox to the ground and told Luca to wait there. She quickly ran to the shop and looked around. It was just as they had left it. Fox’ backpack was lying, discarded on the ground near the rack of coats they had been hiding in. Smiling, she picked it up and slung it over her back and ran back to Luca.

“What was that about?” Asked Luca, a questioning look upon her face.

“Oh Fox ditched his backpack once he and I didn’t need it any more, I just wanted to get it back, plus, it has all my shopping in it.”

“Oh, of course, can’t leave the mall without all your shopping.” Luca replied, grinning.

Krystal walked back to her position, in front of Fox and slid her arms underneath his. They carried Fox back to the landing area where his arwing was already waiting for them.

“Krystal, is there any way I can keep in touch with you? I feel that we could have a great friendship.”

“Yeah, sure, do you have a phone number? My armlet has a built in one so I can give you that number.”

“Great! It would be nice to hear how you and your team are doing, and to just chat.”

After exchanging phone numbers, Luca asked,

“How do you plan to get Fox back up?”

“He’ll have to sit in my lap, I can’t get him into the back seat, it’s too difficult.”

“Ok, do you need help?”

“It would make things faster, yes please.”

“Ok, lets get to work.”

Krystal picked Fox’ arm up again and tapped at his armlet until a ramp folded out of the arwing. Luca and Krystal picked Fox up and carried him up the ramp. Krystal got inside the arwing and Luca pushed Fox in gently, when Krystal told her to do so.”

After saying a final goodbye, Krystal closed the cockpit and shifted Fox a bit. It was going to be a difficult trip home. Luca waved to the arwing and saw Krystal wave back, then the arwing flew up, up, until it was gone. Luca smiled to herself, what an adventure she had experienced today.

[Guest Snytbaggen]

I like it!

Wasn't quite the wall of text this time, though (nat that it's a bad thing).

[Blaz3]

Certainly came close thought, ah well. The next chapter is gonna take a while to get up.

[Guest Snytbaggen]

Take your time, the important thing is that it gets good.

[Dark Fox]

Glad to see you aer still writing it. I shall read more in depth when i don't have a headace that could kill a donkey

from what i did read, though, it seems to be getting better.