STAR BLAZERS: A VOYAGE TO REMEMBER

A fanfic recapitulation of Series One “The Quest for Iscandar” by

Frederick P. Kopetz

EPISODE NINE: FIRE IN THE SKY

October 4, 2199

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Ganz and Bane were again watching the Argo’s progress as the space battleship left Mars.

“The Argo is leaving Mars, Colonel Ganz,” said Bane.

Ganz put a hand under his chin. “How were they able to complete a Gestcham jump and get to Mars…they don’t know how!”

“There’s something very strange about that ship of theirs, the Argo. Could they be getting help from another planet?” Bane mused.

“NEVER! Gamilon dominates this galaxy…no one would dare!” said Ganz, who maintained an odd sense of bravado even when the evidence appeared to indicate otherwise.

With a scowl, he retreated to his office.

In his office, Colonel Ganz opened a holography capsule and viewed a transmission from his daughter, Hilde Schultz.

Hilde was a vivacious young Zaltzian girl in her early teens, with a smile in her eyes for her father as she said, “Father, Mother and I had this sent to you. I hope you’ve received it by now. You’ve been away in space at the edge of the Empire far too long! Mother and I hope that you’ll be home soon for Leader Desslok’s Accession Anniversary Ball. It would be great if you would get home soon. Love you, Father, and keep on fighting hard. It would be great if Leader Desslok could give you a medal and promote us all to first-class Gamilons. Bye!”

Yes, Hilde, that would be great, Ganz thought as a rare, warm smile came to his face. That’s why we are fighting so hard against these vermin from Terra. Maybe we can capture that accursed ship and present her and her crew to Leader Desslok for an Anniversary Triumph for recapturing our ancient homeland back from the Terrans at last…

Ganz decided to look at the latest dispatch from Gamilon later. He had other things to think about.

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At the Argo’s helm, Mark Venture looked around going, “Heyyy…whaaaaa?” as the ship’s helm became sluggish and was slow to respond.

“What did you do, Mark, make another mistake?” Derek sneered from his post.

“Would you shut up?” Mark snapped. “I’m trying to steady it!”

“Derek, shouldn’t you help him?” Nova suggested from her post.

“I’m not that bad off yet, Forrester!” Mark grunted. “I don’t need the space cowboy’s help!”

Nova was about to come up with a snappy retort, but the Wildstar, Venture, and Forrester Musketeers were shut up by Steven Sandor saying, “What’s making the ship vibrate like this? Venture, slow it down!”

“Whadda ya all think I’m doing?” Venture snapped.

“Maybe there’s some damage from the warp we didn’t find and didn’t repair?” Sandor mused.

“No, there’s something wrong with the engine!” Orion said from his post.

Derek, Mark, and Nova all blurted out “WHAT?” in three-part harmony.

“C’mon, what’s wrong with the engine?” Orion barked into his comm mike. “Wake up, Yamazaki and Sparks! You’re shakin’ the whole kit and kaboodle to pieces, fellas!”

“We’re going out of control! She’s bucking all over the place!” Venture said.

“Eager, Nova, start taking scans,” said Captain Avatar from his post.

“I’m tryin, but it’s hard for me to get a fix on anything!” Eager said while Nova worked her controls like a dervish, lost in her task.

Finally, Nova popped up her head, “Captain, got something. The ship is being pulled by an extra-strong gravity force from several thousand megameters out…getting a visual now!”

A moment later, a hazy image of Jupiter came up on the Argo’s main screen.

“We’re heading right for Jupiter,” said Avatar. “We’re caught in its gravity well, even this far out. No wonder. Its gravity pull is enormous, and it’s over one hundred times bigger than Earth. Its surface is covered with gasses that are poisonous to us.”

“Captain Avatar, can’t we warp out of this?” Derek said.

“Good idea,” Nova said. “Except that we’re being pulled at such a rate that one mistake would pull us right down into the core, or send us to some other weird dimension. You can’t warp around something that big if you’re that close to it!”

“Wildstar, she’s right!” Avatar snapped as he saw Derek stiffening to make some wise guy comment of some kind.

“Let’s call Earth,” Homer said sarcastically. “Maybe they can send a ship out for a tow since Venture messed us up!”

“Our two physicists on the crew had better put on their thinking caps, Homer,” said Dash.

“Three,” snapped Avatar. “I have a doctorate in astrophysics, and this is not a laughing matter, Dash!”

Sandor looked at his instruments and muttered, “Damn.” Then, he stood up, and said, “Captain, if we let ourselves get pulled into Jupiter’s outer atmosphere, we might never be able to get out. We don’t know if our ship can fly in that kind of an atmosphere!”

“It’s no good!” said Venture as he brought the engines up to one speed below full and tried to turn to starboard.

Derek got up to try to help Mark pull on the controls as Nova gave him and Mark a slight thumbs-up.

“How are you doing with the help?” Derek asked.

“Still can’t get a bead on it…the ship’s dropping faster and faster!” Mark said. Then, Mark felt another set of hands, and turned from his instruments to see that Nova was gritting her teeth and helping to pull on the yoke along with him and Derek.

“Thanks, guys,” Mark muttered. “We’re dropping a little less fast now…”

“Do itashimashite,” Nova whispered softly in Japanese. (“Don’t mention it”)

“Venture, try applying thrust from the belly thrusters,” Avatar snapped. “Wildstar, Nova, thanks for the effort, but right now, we need you two at your posts.”

Wildstar broke his death-grip and nodded at Avatar, helping to steady Nova as the ship vibrated again beneath their boots.

“We’re in the outer part of Jupiter’s atmosphere now,” said Eager. “Gasses all over the place! It’s like bad split-pea soup at a dive bar in Dallas!”

Sandor then said, “We’re dropping more rapidly, and the atmospheric pressure is rising!”

“Is everyone’s military life insurance paid up?” Derek quipped.

“I’ve got an object on radar,” Nova said.

“What the…?” Derek snapped. “Is it a spaceship?”

“It’s much bigger than a spaceship,” Nova said. “Sensors are telling me it’s the size of Australia!”

“Nova, keep tracking it,” Avatar ordered. “Eager, get me a visual!”

Eager worked his controls and then said, “I can’t get a picture, Captain! The gas clouds are too dense!”

“Like your head?” teased Dash.

“Would you can that?” snapped Wildstar.

“Maybe a blast with the shock cannons will clear out the gas!” Derek suggested as he began to activate the main guns.

“Just a moment, Wildstar!” Avatar said.

Then, the gas clouds seemed to part.

What was floating in Jupiter’s atmosphere was….

…an entire floating continent!

“A floating continent!” Captain Avatar said.

“Captain, have you ever encountered anything like this before, sir?” said Sandor.

“How solid is it?” asked Avatar.

“It’s a good-sized mass of solid ground,” said Sandor as he scanned it.

Nova then ran her own scanners. “And there’s…plant life on it?”

“I’m reading that we have issues with the engines,” said Orion. “We’d need to make repairs to try and get out of this mess.”

“Venture, set us down and see if you can find a suitable place to make an emergency landing! We need to make repairs!” Captain Avatar said.

“I’ll lock on the anti-gravs,” said Venture. “I don’t want to physically land until I know what that surface is like…”

“I think it’d be solid enough to support us,” said Wildstar.

“I’m not sure,” said IQ-9 from Analysis beside Wildstar. “My sensors can’t get a clear fix on the surface from here. I’d need to get in closer to read it.”

“It’s better to be careful until we have more intel,” Captain Avatar said. “How long can we keep station with anti-gravs?”

“An hour, maybe,” said Venture. “I’ve never tested them beyond that.”

“How strange,” Nova said as she looked down at the surface.

The Argo cruised in, and then stopped, hovering several meters above the surface.

“Now, how do we check the ground?” Derek said.

“I’d like to send out a recon plane,” said Captain Avatar. “IQ-9, can you scan the surface if a plane can get you in towards the surface?”

“I sure can,” said the robot as he left his post at Analysis.

“I’ll fly him out,” Wildstar said as he volunteered.

“No,” said Avatar. “Permission denied, Wildstar!”

“Whaat?” Derek said.

“You’re a fighter pilot. I want you on standby in case the Gamilons show up, Wildstar! I’d rather have someone skilled in environmental reconnaissance do this,” Avatar said. “Sandor?”

“I’d want to be on board the ship in case we get some kind of weird ground quake and this thing comes apart, sir,” he replied. “We do have a perfectly qualified recon pilot on this bridge who knows different environments and xenobiology,” Avatar said as Nova began to get up.

“You’re a pilot, too?” said Venture.

“Got my certification in ROTC,” Nova said. “I also learned to drive a hover-scooter when I was young, along with a steam locomotive at a railroad out past Denver before the bombs hit. That was the last good summer we had.”

“There’s no choo-choo trains in space, Nova,” Derek kidded as he thought, Yeah, Nova. While you were playing with trains, I was trying to get my parents to pay attention to me and not Alex!

“Yet,” Nova commented. “IQ, are you coming? We have no time to play games, my friend!”

“Coming as soon as I check my universal joints,” he said as he shook, rattled, and rolled.

“Wildstar, order her Type 100 plane prepared, and then order the crews to ready your Super Starfighter…just in case,” Avatar said.

“Roger that,” he said as he gave the orders. Then, he looked at Nova and IQ-9 and said, “You two be careful.”

“Thanks for your concern, Mister Wildstar,” said IQ-9.

“Thanks,” Nova said. She gave Derek a pat on the arm before she left.

Venture rolled up his eyes a little as he thought, Danger makes strange friends. A few days ago, you two were at each other’s throats! But now…you’re best buds? I don’t understand women yet.

Both the young woman and the robot left the bridge.

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A few minutes later, Nova was maneuvering her Type 100 through Jupiter’s dense liquid atmosphere while she and IQ-9 made scans of the surface and the atmosphere.

“The surface seems pretty substantial,” IQ-9 said. “Mixture of granite and sedimentary rock. It seems to be pretty old, geologically.”

“I’m reading the same thing,” Nova said as she flew. “My Doppler radar is telling me it’s more than solid enough to land the Argo on. Good. Now, let’s scan the atmosphere.”

As they worked, IQ-9 looked at Nova and said, “Do you want to hear a limerick?”

“I think I’ve heard most of your repertoire already,” Nova snorted. “Most of them are dirty. You know I don’t like those jokes! They’re puerile and adolescent!”

“Well, I will tell you a new one I picked up from the Black Tigers,” said IQ-9.

“Do we have to?” Nova said. “We’re supposed to be scanning the atmosphere!”

“That gives me license to begin, then,” said IQ-9. “That twisted old dude called Lee, had a thing for a woman's knee…He tossed her a coin…She kicked in his groin…And now he is known as Cicely.”

“You’re getting worse,” Nova groaned. “And you’re supposed to be a genius! What are you picking up, my tinwit friend?”

“I’m getting the following; “67% Methane; 30% Carbonic Acid; Three Percent, Trace Elements. It’s like a bad ramen soup out there, Nova. Or your chili.”

“I do not add liquid methane to my chili!” Nova huffed. “And I disagree with you on the Carbonic Acid. I’m reading Carbon Dioxide, 29%, Carbonic Acid, 1%, Three Percent, Trace elements of all kinds, noble gasses, mostly. It’s liquid glop. I can fly in it…takes some effort on the controls. When Venture can apply full power later on, I’m optimistic that we can get out.”

Nova then made a quick report to Homer via voice as IQ-9 saw her working her control stick. IQ-9 observed that Nova had a slight build like a gymnast or swimmer, but that she had muscles somewhere, because she was working at flying, breathing a little hard as she worked.

“Are you strong enough to handle it?” IQ-9 said in a more serious voice.

“Takes a little work; it’s manageable. I’m using a combination of control surfaces and thrusters. No wonder Mark was having such a hard time steering the ship through this mess!”

“Power steering, Nova?” said IQ-9. “I sometimes think you’re a genius!”

“Thank you, IQ-9!” Nova said. “Okay. Report your findings back to the ship while I take us under the keel for a look,” Nova said as she worked some controls and then flicked on two searchlights in the Type 100’s nose.

“Calling the Argo, this is Firehorse Beta,” said IQ-9.

“Captain, we’re hearing from IQ-9 and Nova again,” said Homer on the first bridge.

“Go ahead, Beta,” snapped Avatar.

“Nova sent our findings on the surface a minute or two ago. Our findings on Jupiter’s atmosphere are as follows,” said IQ-9. “It is composed of compressed, liquid gasses. 67% Methane, 29% Carbon Dioxide, 1% Carbonic Acid, Three Percent Trace elements, Argon, Krypton, Neon, et cetera. The atmosphere is poisonous. However, there is sub-tropical vegetation on the continent below, which we pick up is about the size of Australia as Nova surmised earlier. Humans would both drown and suffocate in the liquid atmosphere. Maneuverability of our recon boat is 88% nominal. Takes a little work for the pilot. I’m also seeing our hull is intact. Could use a paint job.”

“Firehorse Alpha, do you concur?” said Avatar.

“I do,” Nova said. “I’m having to use thrusters and a little more stick and rudder than normal, but I don’t have that much trouble flying in this, and I should be able to land back on the ship just fine. I’ll make another pass and catch the landing beacon.”

“Roger that,” said Avatar. “Nice job, Firehorse!”

“Thanks,” Nova said. “Catching the beacon now. Should be in soon. Open the lower hatch! We should be safe to land on the continent in a moment after we’re in.”

The hatch opened, and Nova cruised in with IQ-9 for a nice landing.

Unknown to her, she was being watched.

“Well, why the heck is the Argo sitting in this glop?” said Lieutenant Sambor in the Gamilon base on the floating continent.

“The floating camera fifty gerads away picked up minor damage to the ship and also picked up a little recon plane flying around their ship,” said another officer.

“Is the damned plane still out there? We can use it for target practice!” laughed Sambor.

“The ship zipped back into base and she’s back inside now,” said the younger officer. “Oh…real-time report…their damn ship just landed on the continent at Area Ninety-Five Jelan!”

“Then they don’t know about us yet,” said Sambor. “I’m calling Pluto Base and advising Command we’ve definitely found them.”

“Not bad,” said the younger officer. “We might get decorated for this!”

“Yes, we just might,” laughed Sambor. “Maybe they’ll even make us first-class Gamilons.”

Both men had a good laugh over that possibility.

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Sambor made his report, while, out beyond the edge of Jupiter’s gravity well…a small ship was picking up the comm signals from the Argo.

“Do we make our move yet with that distress signal?” said one of the two men in the small ship. “We attached to her during the warp…jumped…ran while they were woozy from warp…got here…”

“No. Not yet. Let’s…let’s hope they get out of this…we’ll follow them if and when they get out.”

“Understood,” said one of the men with a twisted grin.

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On the Argo, Orion and his crew were working in the engine room.

“A lot of paint is melted!” said Sparks. “Chief, you think we can fix this?”

“Stop being so pessimistic and move your tail, Mister!” Orion barked.

Then, Avatar’s voice came over the speakers. “How’s the repair work going?”

“There’s a leak in the energy storage unit. We’ll get it repaired in no time, Captain.”

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ROUGHLY ONE HOUR LATER…

Sambor received a command from Pluto.

“Great, more garbage from Command,” he muttered. “Wonder what it is?”

“Sir, should I ready a plane?” said the younger officer, who was named Ensign Malakhas.

“Let’s listen first,” said Sambor as the image from Pluto came up.

Major Bane’s image came up a moment later. “This is an order from Colonel Ganz to Sol System Base Six! Check out position and movements of that Terran ship…Argo…Yamato…whatever those barbarians call that THING.”

Sambor saluted, “Zar BELK!” he snapped in their language. Then, he said to Malakhas. “Ready your damn plane. Have some fun with the bastards. Hope you can kill one of them.”

“With pleasure,” hissed Malakhas…who ran for the hangar bay.

His plane took off a moment later. “Devils,” he hissed as he flew towards where the Terran ship was. “How dare they infest our sacred home world of Garuman? Gamilon’s time is short! WE need it. They do not!”

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On the Argo, Nova was back at her post. She and IQ-9 had just had another fight when they had gotten back to the Bridge. Mark had taken her side that time, and the robot had shut up.

Nova was checking her radar on different bands to scan through the…muck…when she spotted something. “Captain! Unidentified object! Approaching from eight hundred kilometers’ range, speed, twenty space knots and accelerating. She or it is coming right for the ship!”

“I’ll go check it out, Captain,” Derek said as he stood.

“Permission, granted. Nova, keep a visual on his location…best you can!”

“Aye, aye, sir,” Nova said. “Getting a fix on Wildstar’s transponder.”

“Again, she blinds us with science,” said Venture.

“Doing my job,” Nova said with a wink.

Cute, Mark thought as he grinned to himself.

Wildstar promptly took off in his Cosmo-Zero, heading through the glop. “Okay, I’m getting a blip…where the HELL is he? Blip’s hazy!”

“I’m not doing much better, Wildstar,” Nova’s voice replied in his helmet headset. “He’s getting close…he’s one hundred kilometers away…you should see him any minute!”

Derek scanned visually, and then he noticed the familiar flying-wing shape. “Gamilons! DAMNIT!”

“Derek, watch your mouth,” Nova chided.

“Nova, this is a war, not a tea party!” Derek barked. “Those Gamilons are everywhere! Do they think they own all of space?”

“Point…taken,” Nova said. “Be careful.”

“Why? Do you care or something?”

“Derek, you might be surprised, my friend,” Nova said as she cut off.

As Malakhas’ plane approached, he thought, You idiot Terran! You’ll wish you stayed home where you BELONG once I end you!

Malakhas watched the Terran pilot flying about, jinking, avoiding him…getting into position to fire his own machine guns…

I have you now, Terran! Malakhas said to himself.

He fired. “ALMOST!” he said as his fire clipped Wildstar’s wing.

The Cosmo-Zero wheeled about, smoking.

On the Argo, Nova cried out “WILDSTAR!” as she watched him in what looked like a death-spiral. The bridge crew, her included, looked on aghast.

“He was a…good kid,” sighed Orion.

“SHUT UP!” Nova cried, banging her board hard with a fist.

“Nova, how do we know that?” said Mark.

“It’s a gut feeling I have!” she said.

Out in the battle, Wildstar plunged toward the jungle in a dive as Malakhas taunted him. “Guess what, Terran! I bested you! We’ll get your ship, soon, too!”

“REALLY, GAMMIE??” Derek barked back.

“You will soon fall in that jungle, you piece of animated trash!” laughed Malakhas. “I even have a song for you, Terran! “The Worms Crawl in…the Worms Crawl out…” learned it from your stupid media!”

“You jerk!” Derek snapped back as he hugged the ground as his fire went out…but a vent was still smoking gasses and coolant. “That jungle’s for the birds!”

“I hope you like the feel of wreckage going up inside you as you die,” Malakhas said. “And you’ll be on fire, too…”

“Stop taunting him, you…you…MANIAC!” Nova’s voice suddenly yelled in both their headsets.

“Ah…a pretty one!” Malakhas taunted. “I wonder what Terrans sound like when they rut?”

Malakhas laughed and cut off.

He stopped laughing when he saw Wildstar was rising from the jungle, and was on his Six!

Derek snarled, and caught Malakhas dead-on in his heads-up display.

He fired.

The laser fire caught Malakhas’ plane, and the pilot. His blood spattered his windshield and dashboard while he screamed and flames broke out all around him.

The Gamilon plane went down, hard, missing a wing.

It smacked down on the edge of the Continent, shattering Malakhas’ legs.

The dying pilot worked his thrusters to avoid the pull of gravity, but the plane began to fall off and tumbled into Jupiter’s gravity.

Wildstar saluted his fallen foe, and said to him, “Good battle…whatever your name was, Gammie…”

“GAMILON FORVEVER!” were Malakhas’ last words as the gravity crushed his plane like a cockroach.

Derek returned safely to the Argo, slightly rough landing in one of the upper bay’s landing passages under the catapult, but he made it, albeit with a smoking Zero.

“We need better pilots!” roared Sambor as he banged his console. “Get that damn ship with missiles! If that doesn’t work, I’ll deploy our destroyer squadron!”

“Yessir!” said another Ensign.

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ON THE ARGO….

“We’re ready to launch again in ten minutes,” said Sandor. “Orion is finishing up the repair work on the energy transmission units!”

Venture stood. “Captain, when we take off, we can fly along with the floating continent, and then break away when up to speed.”

“All right, let’s try it!” said Avatar.

“Repair work on the energy transmission units is completed, Cap’n,” said Orion from below in the engine room as Sparks made a very sour face.

“All right; test them…Orion…at full power!” said Avatar.

“Roger! Start Auxiliary engines!” barked Orion as the rest of the engine room crew got to work.

The engines began to come up as Orion snapped, “Power Cells up! Energy Transmission Units on line and holding! Two seconds to energy point contact! Rotation between 80 and 90 percent!”

The engines began to roar as Avatar snapped, “Venture! Activate Astro Compass and Gyros! Nova, scan at full intensity! Eager! Side scans!”

“Power up, ignite wave motion engine!” snapped Venture.

“Missiles approaching!” Nova reported. “Range four hundred kilometers…they’ll hit in six seconds!”

“VENTURE!” Derek yelled.

“Shut UP, jackass!” Mark yelled back. “Taking off NOW!”

Down below in Sickbay, while Doctor Denise Carroway and Nurse Michele Sakamoto were watching things…the ship tilted, hard, at takeoff.

They held on to chrome handrails intended for that purpose,

Doctor Sane was intoxicated. He did not.

Doctor Sane went head over heels in a deranged somersault. His bottle flew with him.

“Doctor! Grab something!” yelled Nurse Sakamoto.

“It…won’ be that bad! YAAAAAA!” he yelled as the ship twitched again.

This time, Denise grabbed his hand and MADE Sane hold on. “You idiot!” she snapped. “You’ll get your neck broken if you don’t hang on to the damned handrail!”

He finally held on.

On the bridge, Venture grunted as the engines pushed the Argo upwards and onwards.

The ship struggled up in just enough time to evade the Gamilon missiles.

The flight buffeted the whole ship, and the crew was just as buffeted as the ship.

Wildstar snapped on his safety harness. Mark did the same…so did Sandor, and Nova took her cue there. So did the others.

Finally, when the Argo emerged from the Continent, Venture said, “Good takeoff…we will soon be up to cruising speed and can try to escape this gravity well!”

They were in orbit with the Continent.

Derek said, “Captain Avatar, let me fire a barrage…send out the Tigers…something! We need to take care of that Gamilon base!”

“Negative, Wildstar,” snapped Captain Avatar.

“Captain…we were lucky just now! We may not be next time we pass it!”

“We’re not counting on luck, Wildstar. We’re doing all we can to get out of this situation!” Avatar rejoined.

“Any suggestions?” said Dash. “Captain! Sandor? Miss Brainiac?”

“There’s some things we can do,” Nova said, ignoring the insult, but nodding when Sandor nodded at her.

“One in particular…maybe,” said Sandor. “Although…”

“Enough of this debate!” Avatar snapped. “Venture, turn the helm over to Eager!  Dash, stay behind with him and man the main Combat Console! Eager, when you take over, the conn is yours! Nova, please have Miss Misaki man your post! Homer, stand fast and man your post! I want to see the rest of you in the Central Operations Room in ten minutes!”

Venture let Eager take over the helm while Nova called Yuria on the PA.

When Yuria came to relieve her, Nova got up and ran out leaving only Eager, Dash, Homer, and Misaki on the First Bridge.

TEN MINUTES LATER…

A graphic was up on the deck screen in the Operations Room. It depicted the Argo’s current course around Jupiter, and the Floating Continent.

Captain Avatar, Sandor, Wildstar, Orion, Venture, and Forrester were gathered around the deck screen.

Captain Avatar said, “To protect ourselves, we will have to attack that Gamilon base as we pass it. We will have only one chance!”

“Captain, the Wave Motion gun!” Wildstar suggested.

“We don’t know if it’ll work!” Sandor said. “It hasn’t been tested yet!”

Avatar rejoined, “This is as good a test as any, Sandor. If it doesn’t work, we may as well find out now!”

“But it’s possibly hazardous to the ship!” said Orion.

“He’s right…it’s not proven technology,” said Venture. “It’s a long shot…a Hail Mary pass! And if we don’t use it correctly…the base will still be there…and we’ll be helpless!”

“We need to use it!” Derek said. “Orion…Mark…Sandor…you can see that!”

“I…agree with you,” said Orion. “Just make sure the damage to my ship can be fixed.”

“Venture?” Derek said.

“It’s still a long shot,” he said.

“You know my opinion, Captain,” said Sandor. “But I guess I am to be overruled…?”

“This is not a democracy,” snapped Avatar. “Even though I see we are divided. There is one officer whom we have not heard from. Nova. Your opinion?”

The young woman bit her lip while she deliberated. “Yes…It’s risky…but we need to silence that Gamilon base and test the weapon. I agree with Wildstar and Orion and I say yes!”

Derek smiled at her and said, “Nova, you are a woman after my own heart.”

She smiled back and said, “Thanks! But don’t get too snarky, Derek!”

“But…it’s almost like suicide!” Mark said.

 “It will not be as bad as you think, Venture!” said Avatar. “Let’s take a look at the structure of the wave motion gun.”

Avatar flipped a control switch, and a schematic came up.

“The wave motion gun works on the same principle as the wave motion engine given to us by Queen Starsha of Iscandar,” said Avatar. “She knew that we would need an incredible power source to warp us to Iscandar and back. The wave motion gun is a variant we developed of that design, based somewhat upon the heavy shock cannons placed in the hulls of our older space battleships, such as the Kirishima.  In this weapon, all of the tachyon energy is concentrated in one point and then released. The whole ship, as you see, becomes a giant cannon.” said Avatar, pointing at an animated graphic of the wave gun’s workings as the gun’s action was demonstrated. “After it is fired, for a very brief time, we lose all energy throughout the entire ship. That is why, when we fire the wave motion gun, we must be sure to hit our target! We will use it now. Everyone…to your posts!”

The officers saluted Avatar and followed him back to the First Bridge. The die had been cast.

Today, there would be fire in the skies of Jupiter.

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On the Gamilon base, Lieutenant Sambor observed the Argo’s approach and said, “Twice we missed them, by attack planes and by missiles. Now, we will not miss! Launch the destroyer squadron. Now…we shall destroy…their so-called Star Force,” hissed the Gamilon. “For the honor of Gamilon, and Leader Desslok…we fight!”

Sirens blared in the base as ready crews ran to the three destroyers.

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The Argo was on approach. The regular crew was back in place, and sirens blared throughout the ship.

Captain Avatar said, “Transfer all energy to the Wave Motion Gun!”

Down below in the engine room, Orion responded. “Yes, sir!” He flicked several switches.

In Sickbay, Doctor Carroway sat up and took notice as the lights went down. Doctor Sane was asleep, dreaming of cats and sake’. He would later be told by Michelle and the other nurses, “You missed the whole thing!”

Conroy, the recently-released Hardy, and the rest of the Black Tigers sat in their cockpits, ready to go, but they were stunned when the announcement went out and Conroy said, “They’re really gonna use that thing! My God…hope it works!”

Avatar sat at his post with his hands steepled, whispering a private prayer as the emergency lights came up on the Bridge. Then he said, “Increase energy input to the wave motion engine…close all emergency valves!”

“Energy level up, aye…all emergency valves closed and locked,” said Orion from below.

The people mover belts in the ship stopped.

Then, an ominous, building thrum of energy that would soon become very familiar to the Star Force began to resound through the frame of the ship for the first time.

It was an unearthly sound.

The wave engine roared in the engine room. Down below, on the speakers, Avatar’s voice said as the engine room echoed to his words, “Open the circuit to the wave motion gun!”

“First circuit released…second stage set,” Sparks said, sounding like an engineer for once and not like a fool.

“Open the circuit!” said Orion as he turned a huge wheel in the engine room.

“Gun chamber pressure increasing…up to full!” Derek Wildstar said from his post. “Pressure now at eighty percent!”

“All of the ship’s energy is now in the wave motion gun!” Orion barked.

Avatar said, “Wildstar, release the safety on the gun!”

“Safety removed. Gun chamber pressure now at ninety percent of capacity! All systems checked!” he barked as he flipped a switch, and a crew in the bow nodded and released their switches to release the massive safety lock. “Final barrel safety lock removed! Chamber pressure nearing saturation point! Now at one hundred and five percent!”

Outside, the muzzle of the wave gun began to glow ominously even as the Gamilons readied their destroyers for liftoff.

“Storm Leader Manda,” one of the Gamilon captains said on one of the destroyer bridges. “Why isn’t the Argo moving?”

“They must be preparing their funeral rites!” laughed Manda. “We’ll have them dead in two minutes! Thrusters ready! Squadron launch on my mark!”

“All circuits complete! All systems, GO!” Wildstar barked.

From the Cosmo-Radar, Nova said, “Floating continent confirmed…ten kilometers ahead!”

“Stand by!” snapped Avatar. “Venture, hand over the guidance system to Wildstar!”

“It’s all yours, Wildstar!” Venture said, skepticism evident in his voice.

“That’s okay,” Derek replied. “The ship is right on target with the Floating Continent! Target Scope, open, and correct for magnetic drift! Electric cross gauge level, up to thirty!”

The target scope and firing grip came up before Derek. “All hands, ready anti-flash defenses!”

Nova reported, “Target: Speed, forty space knots!”

The thrum of the wave motion gun was now a loud, bleeping roar.

The first Gamilon destroyer was off. Its fellows followed…advancing from the base towards the Argo.

Orion turned a last valve. “Pressure now at one hundred twenty percent!”

“Ten seconds to firing!” Avatar snapped. “All hands, prepare for recoil shock!”

The bridge crew lowered their blast goggles.

Derek counted out loud, “10…9…8…7…6…5….4….3…2…1…ZERO!”

Then he gripped the grip just as Nova said, “Three Gamilon ships spotted! Advancing towards us!”

“FIRE!” Derek barked.

He pressed the firing trigger.

And a bit of Creation’s fire was unleashed.

The wave gun muzzle glowed bright, brighter than any light they had ever seen, and a massive blast of energy, crackling with lightning bolts, blasted from the bow and roared through Jupiter’s atmosphere towards the base, and the floating continent.

Like many after them, Storm Leader Manda and his squadron were the first unlucky Gamilons to feel the wrath of the wave motion gun. “Massive burst of tachyonic energy!” he reported back to the base. “It came from the Argo…can’t avoid it! NO! All ABOUT! WAAAAAAAAA!”

Then, the destroyers dissolved like snowflakes thrown into a blast furnace.

The Argo was caught in the lurid glow, and the ship and her crew shook with the power released.

“What was that, Manda, what was that?” yelled Sambor on the Gamilon base as he felt the whole floating continent shaking. A wave of light covered everything. “Send telemetry to Pluto! External and internal! The Argo hit us with some tachyonic surge! Evacuate! Use the fighters and cargo ships…use…WAAAAAAAAA!” he yelled as the buildings, the ground around the base, and the whole base dissolved, just like his own skeleton. Sambor screamed out a final cry to the Deity, and he was gone.

On Pluto, Colonel Ganz got the telemetry, fragmentary reports, and saw the Floating Continent actually beginning to DISSOLVE. “Hello, Sambor! Floating Continent! Come in! Come IN!”

On the Argo, Derek screamed…so did Venture…so did Nova, as the very ship seemed to be sucked into the maelstrom they had released. “DAMN! We’re falling down into the blast!”

Avatar snapped, “Switch over to the wave motion engine! Venture! Use the override…full power!”

Mark worked every control he could, and then, finally, slowly, agonizingly, the Argo escaped from the blast.

Derek shook his head.

Nova wiped her brow, “whew!”

Mark said, “We’re free of Jupiter’s gravity…but it was a close one.”

“And that…was the wave motion gun,” Derek said in awe.

Sandor shook his head. “We shouldn’t have blown up the entire floating continent; we were just aiming at the Gamilon base!”

Captain Avatar shut his eyes. “We have just learned a very important and painful lesson. Without meaning to, we used too much power. This sort of power is a grave responsibility.”

The Argo thus sailed away from Jupiter, finally free from the gravity trap.

On Pluto, Colonel Ganz and Bane evaluated the telemetry and satellite data, and Ganz said, “I must report this to Leader Desslok, and I wouldn’t blame him if he doesn’t believe me. The whole floating continent is gone…destroyed. What sort of weapon did the Star Force use? Where did they get such power?”

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TO BE CONTINUED….