[center]In loving memory of Rick May[/center] [center]September 21st, 1940 to April 13th, 2020[/center] [center]~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~[/center] "ATTENTION!" A huge crowd had gathered for the sad occasion, four flags flying at half-mast at the entrance to the military cemetery; Corneria City, the planet of Corneria, the Lylat System... and Star Fox. The soldiers and pilots flanking the crowd snapped straight at the order while a single canine rose a bugle to his lips and played those heart-wrenching notes to the sky. Silence fell -- save for the odd sniffle from the crowd -- as General Pepper took the podium. He paused for a moment, closing his eyes to brace himself before letting out a deep breath. How many times had he delivered this speech, he thought? And why did it feel worse every time? "...We are gathered here today to recognize one of our greatest, and to see him off as he passes his torch to those who follow." He began, clearing his throat and straightening his back while he rose his gaze from the speech on the podium before him to the throng of mourners that had gathered. "...Peppy Hare, accomplished member of the Star Fox team and General of the Cornerian Military, will be remembered in the annals of history forever." Stepping back from the podium, the general looked over to the team assembled behind it alongside him. Krystal held Fox close, the leader of the team staring intently at the ground, as if he were in denial. On the other side of her sat Slippy, a handkerchief pressed to his eyes and struggling to keep his composure. ...Falco was absent. After a few moments of silence, the blue vixen patted Fox's shoulder, jarring him back into reality as he looked up and around, only to remember where he was; and why he was there, before he saw General Pepper's hand held out for him. "I'm sorry for your loss." he said softly, the words tasting like ash in his mouth. Fox simply nodded and took his hand, rising from his seat and heading over to the podium. As he looked down, he realized that he hadn't prepared anything to say. He [i]couldn't[/i] have prepared anything to say. The silence in the yard slowly grew more and more oppressive as the vulpine dug his claws into the wood of the podium, struggling to find words for his friend. "Peppy..." he began, hesiating before clearing his throat and straightening up. "When... when my father died, he... I'm sorry." he choked out, stepping back from the podium and putting his face in his hands. Krystal was quick to rise and slip an arm over his shoulders, bringing him back to their seats. When Pepper looked to her and Slippy, both simply shook their heads. Nodding slowly and returning to the podium, the general looked straight into the crowd. "Our lost will never be forgotten." he declared. "They cannot be. So long as Lylat exists, so long as we exist, we will carry on their legacy. 13th Cornerian Blasters, assemble..." From the sidelines, seven infantry stepped out, their blaster rifles at the ready as they took formation behind the general. As he rose his hand, they took aim at the sky and the bugle sang out once more. "Fire!" [b][i]PEW[/i][/b] [b][i]PEW[/i][/b] [b][i]PEW[/i][/b] [center]~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~[/center] Standing on a rooftop in the distance, a beer in his hand and leaning against his Arwing, Falco saw the blasts streak into the sky. Shaking his head and wiping a tear from his eye, the aven cursed at himself and rose the bottle before finishing half of it and pouring the rest onto the roof. "I'll do a barrel roll for you, buddy." Dropping the bottle in the puddle and hopping into his ship, he took off for the atmosphere, streaking over the cemetary and raising the heads of the whole crowd. [center]~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~[/center] "Son of a bitch, he's really dead..." Wolf leaned back in his chair as he watched the live feed, shaking his head as Panther overheard the comment, twitching an ear and bringing two glasses over. Handing one to his leader and tapping it with his own, the swave cat took a quick swig and leaned on the chair's back, tuning into the display as well. "I was almost convinced he'd live forever." [center]~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~[/center] Hours later, General Pepper let out a heavy sigh as he sat down behind his desk, taking off his hat and dropping his head into his hands. He thought back on what lead to this -- the news coming in, recon teams confirming the attack, and then... It was the worst part of his job, and it never got easier. Reaching down and opening up a cupboard in his desk, the old dog pulled out two glasses of his own with a bottle of scotch, half-filling each before re-corking the bottle and setting one glass forward for his old friend. [i]"We're the old guard, Pepper. You know as well as I do that we won't be around forever."[/i] Tapping the late hare's glass with his own, the general rose from his seat and walked over to the window of his office, with its grand view of the capital of the system they'd sworn to protect. Shaking his head and rubbing at the back of his neck, the dog shot the scotch down his throat, clearing it and giving a sigh before 'plink'ing it down on the windowsill. "You were good, Peppy. Maybe even the best."