LAP 38
Falcon's Crimson Flower

In a dank, dark cave on an unknown planet, there lies a Reactor Might. Even on his Dark Million space station, Black Shadow can senses its power and the energy crackles through him - and Zoda as well, albeit a lot more painfully. The emperor of darkness proclaims it is time Blood Falcon got his own Reactor Might, and he commands Miss Killer to track it down.

Jody Summer and Dr. Stewart are hard at work taking another crack at finding out where brother Andy Summer's body disappeared since she discovered that a few episodes ago. The Galaxy Police's database has no info on it, giving them nothing to go on. The two are summoned to director Tanaka's office, but before they go, the doctor mentions to Jody that he's optimistic about their search. He's thought of a unique way to find answers.

At Falcon House, Clank is surprised by what he's found: someone called Dr. Mask is offering a fat reward for anyone who knows anything about what happened to Andy Summer! Clank cottons on immediately; Stewart needs to work on his disguises.
Tanaka gives the two Platoon members some bad news: the higher-ups want them to cease from investigating Andy Summer, and won't say why.

The doctor and Jody mull this over - if her brother were dead, they would hardly keep it a secret, so there must be more to it. Clank rushes in with even more bad news; Stewart's enquiry for info has gotten so many responses the Platoon's database is at risk of crashing. The three look at the answers, but the sheer number of responses is boggling, and most of them are thinly veiled attempts to snag the reward. Jody is amused at Stewart's idea, but warns him he could get in trouble for this. After all, if something happens to her, he's the only one who could lead the Platoon.

In her off-time, Jody visits the spot where Andy gave his life to protect her, and places a bouquet of red salvias upon the ground: her brother's favourite. That night, Burt and Clank are walking home when they spot the flowers, curious why they're there. Burt scowls suspiciously.

Miss Killer has pinpointed the Reactor Might's location, and Blood Falcon is set out to find it; Zoda is ordered to assist him, but he declines, wanting nothing to do with that clone. Black Shadow believes Zoda isn't willing to sacrifice a Reactor Might to another person.
Jody catches a cup of coffee on the street, but thoughts of her brother still swim through her mind. She sees someone she almosts believes to be Andy, but alas, it is not.

Clank is out shopping and approaches her, surprised to see Jody having some off-time, and offers to take her to Falcon House; after all, she's never been there! Clank shows her the entrance while he puts his groceries away, and Jody examines the café. It appears pleasant enough, red flowers adorning every table, but she gasps upon seeing the owner's face.

He can't be...?!

Jody asks if he is Andy Summer, but he shakes his head; he's Burt Lemming. Clank enters and introduces him to Jody, his boss, and treats her to a coffee on the house. The coffee blows her away - this is delicious, exactly the kind she likes! Clank owes it to Burt's customer-tailoring coffee making, but Jody remarks it's exactly like her brother used to make it.

She gets up to leave, thanking Burt for the coffee and him thanking her for looking after Clank. She visits the graveyard to reflect on all the familiar sensations Falcon House brought back to her, when a surprise visitor appears behind her: Captain Falcon!

"Forget about Andy Summer. The enemy is stronger than you can imagine." Jody demands he explain himself, to at least answer if her brother is alive or dead, but the Captain disappears as suddenly as he came, zooming off in his Blue Falcon. She solemnly returns to her White Cat... only to find a bouquet of red salvias sitting on its hood.

All across Mute City, viewscreens and information boards are replaced with a cackling callout from Blood Falcon, demanding a duel with Captain Falcon and Ryu Suzaku. If they don't answer his challenge, he'll cause mayhem throughout the city! The Platoon have no choice but to respond, and eye out where the challenge will be held: Planet Tank, an icy wasteland that once held F-Zero races, but declining tourism has left it to wreck and ruin.

The group fly out in the Galaxy Runner and make their way through the warp gate. Meanwhile, Blood Falcon has laid claim to the Reactor Might and catches up with Black Shadow, who plunges it into the heart of his machine to grant it untold power. He leaves the clone to his upcoming duel, eager for him to return with the Reactor Mights from their rivals' machines.

The Dragon Bird and Blue Falcon arrive and the three machines zoom off, the Blood Hawk clashing violently with the two of them, leading them into a perilous cave. The Platoon watch the events from the ship; this isn't a race, this is a deathtrap! They head out in their own machines to try and track them down.

The Reactor Might in Blood Falcon's machine begins to emanate energy, Ryu and Falcon's as well, causing the pool in the centre of the cave to create a wall of water. This gives them a convenient arena to battle in, and three machines initiate their Spin Boosters, heading right for each other...

The machines clang right off each other, but that doesn't stop them from trying again and again, each clash generating more and more energy. This eventually generates a vortex above the pool that begins to suck the three of them towards it. The Blood Hawk and Dragon Bird are dangerously close to being pulled in, even while outputting at maximum power...

... but Captain Falcon puts his machine behind Ryu's, giving it that extra push to keep it from falling in. With a little extra accelerator power, Ryu is pushed back above the lip of the pool, bringing him to safety...

... but there's no saving either of the Falcons. The two machines clash one final time before the two of them are pulled into the void. Ryu and Jody can only watch on in anquish, screaming the Captain's name as the vortex disappears in a flash of light, leaving the water to fall in on itself once more.

The next day at Falcon House, Clank is left to man the fort while Burt is said to be out travelling. Ryu enters to find Jody making her second visit, and asks her about the last mission; did she just refer to Captain Falcon as "brother"? With Clank listening they drop the subject, and he offers Jody her coffee. It's... not quite up to standard, but it's certainly unique. While Ryu praises Clank for running the café all on his own, Jody reflects on the flowers and their significance; they stand for "family's love."

Burt's F-Zero Classroom: Burt gives us the dirt on Jody Summer. She's aged 20 (seriously?), born February 21st, and her blood type is B. Her parents died when she was young, though her brother Andy was there to raise her; it was her adoration for him that made her strive to become a police officer, leading her to become captain of the Galaxy Mobile Platoon. She's dedicated to her work, and she enjoys wine and fondue.

It goes unmentioned in the episode, but the F-Zero Climax storyline recaps spells out that the flowers are salvias, most likely salvia splendens (or scarlet sage). Still clueless if the "family's love" meaning is real or just BS. Any flower nerds in the audience want to confirm?