Attack and Counterattack

A Speed Racer Fanfic by "Freddo"

Chapter Eleven "Party Time"

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Reiterating some copyrights and credits....

July 16, 1968

Space Battleship Argo

Captain's Quarters

0012 Hours (Local Time)

It was rather late per the local time; it was just past midnight.

A new day had just begun on the Argo, which had taken off into the night sky in a spectacular night-time water launch in the dark middle of Lake Ontario that had been Wildstar's last surprise for his guests...and also a way of getting the ship back onto her mission after Wildstar, Nova, and Sandor had talked with UNIT and the Doctor from the bridge communications station of Homer Glitchman while Aliscea had entertained their twentieth-century guests with some wonderful stories of her people.

The Argo was bound for a location off the shoreline of Central America. UNIT had arranged with the government of Kapetopac for the Mach Five to take a quick run through the volcano through which it had raced years ago to reach El Tigre in secret the next day. It was expected that after a few hours at the party and a quick breakfast the next morning around 1000 Hours, the Mach Five would be repaired and on the road again for El Tigre with Spritle, Chim-Chim, and the globe. There, the Doctor would be waiting to help them destroy it at last, ending this mission. They had heard that the R'Khells had escaped, but it was felt that they could still be cornered in either New York State or Canada, possibly with help from the Car Acrobatic Team, who had been released from prison after Captain Terror had told Inspector Detector that he thought he had an idea where the strange troopers would be headed. Detector hadn't trusted him, but the Doctor felt that maybe his knowledge was their best hope, so he had prevailed upon the authorities to let the Acrobatic Team go, feeling they were they best hope.

At any rate, one of Captain Terror's tips had helped, and three R'Khells were found near the Canadian border; they had been given over to UNIT, who was now interrogating them in a secret, secure prison in Britain with the help of the Brigadier and the Doctor. So, the Car Acrobatic Team had changed sides yet again; and they were now helping the government. No one knew why.

But, Terror had his reasons. One of them had to do with an old friend of his who had contacted him while in prison. A friend named Scarl. But, that was yet another story; a story that would not end until years later, when it was finally discovered how deep Captain Terror's own dark roots lay. The rest of the R'Khells were still being sought by UNIT. Of course, no one knew where the R'Khells actually were...back in the space-time continuum with the Master.

But, the Doctor had some idea of were they were as he worked in his TARDIS back in Britain near UNIT HQ.

"I wish I could get a better fix on him," he said as he banged on the control panel of his TARDIS. "Sorry, old girl," said the grey-haired dandyish man as he stroked the control panel of his TARDIS while Jo Grant walked in.

"Who are you having a hard time discovering?" asked Jo.

"The Master, who else? He's using an illegal technique to disguise the whereabouts of his TARDIS in the time-space continuum. Also, someone else is interfering with my tracking scanners. I wish I could figure out what was going on. This situation is even stumping me. By the way, has our race car been left safely in Kapetopac by UNIT forces as I asked?"

"Yes. The Brigadier also told me to tell you that the leaders of the United States and Soviet Union are in negotiations via telephone now to finish defusing the crisis, and their governments are making plans for a summit that will lead to the Soviets joining UNIT in secret and joining a joint anti-alien protocol even as their Cold War rivalry continues in the open."

"Typical. They're working together but won't admit it in public due to the politicians on both sides. Go on, Jo."

"They now recognize that the problems with their space program were caused by the R'Khells and not by the United States, and they're pulling their special operations forces out of North America. Finally, plans are being made to re-run the Trans-America Race at a later point, in a month or so."

"Reassuring," said the Doctor. "Of course, please let them know that I can't attend, since I'll have business on Staronis Major at about that time, and I also expect that Commodore Wildstar's appointment book is a bit filled up once he and his crew return to 2204. Now, if only I could find the Master and those remaining R'Khell chaps so I can let the Brigadier know this business is finished...just as I recently told the crew of the Argo, who will be expecting me in Central America tomorrow to deal with that sphere at last..."

"Of course, Doctor," said Jo.

On the Argo, the tour was winding down. Finally, when Spritle finally got sleepy as the Argo continued in flight, Speed and Trixie took him and Chim-Chim below to an empty cabin where Trixie would eventually spend the night minding the smallest members of Go Team after a party in the holography room. Trixie had a vague idea what a holography room was, but she would be quite surprised when she saw it in use.

At the moment, she and her Space Marine escort were looking for Speed. She also knew that the Star Force was looking for Snake; no one had seen him since he had been seen missing from Sickbay for a second time; he had been seen by two medics, and then he and the medics had vanished again. I wonder where he went? Trixie thought. Wherever he is...I hope they find him soon.

Trixie walked through a corridor and saw a Space Marine walking around in green fatigues with a rifle. She knew that the search for Snake was pretty serious.

I'll bet it won't be good for him when they find him, she thought. I wonder how they treat criminals in the twenty-third century? Whatever they do, I'll bet they'll make him regret the fact that he sabotaged part of this ship...

Snake Oiler was being tormented by the Master in his TARDIS. "Balda" and "Rabin" had brought him there after

"How!?" he roared. "How could you have failed us...after I gave you yet another chance to redeem yourself, Snake?"

"What did you do?" gasped Snake.

"We saved your miserable life, that's all," said Karnaz. "Do you think that if we didn't want you to live, we would have let you wake up? Do you think the Master would have helped heal your wound?"

"I can cut you open again if you wish," hissed the Master. "Or, I can just cause you more pain," he said with a Satanic smile as he twisted a switch.

Electricity passed through Snake Oiler as he writhed on the bed he was tied to.

"Okay, okay," he said. "Whadda you guys want me ta do?"

"Listen very carefully to my instructions," said the Master in a charming, evil voice. "If you heed them, I shall make sure you have wealth and power beyond compare..."

In the meantime, Commodore Wildstar had his peacoat and scarf off as he and Nova relaxed in their shared cabin at the very topmast of the Argo in the room that Captain Avatar had once used as his combined cabin and office. Both of them now bunked there together as one of the married couples on board the twenty-third century ship.

"What do you want to change into tonight?" asked Nova as she pressed a button and the internal privacy screen rolled shut over the huge windscreen that made up the front wall of their cabin.

"My regular blues," he said as he stood there barefoot, looking for his standard blue duty uniform in their locker.

"Well, why you don't you let me help you?" asked Nova as she took off her boots and socks. Barefoot, she tiptoed up to Derek and began to help him out of his white uniform. A moment later, she rubbed her husband's back after she stripped him bare to the waist. They kissed, and Derek asked, "Shall I make you comfortable?"

"Sure."

"Tell me when you want me to stop?"

Nova looked at him with shining eyes and she nodded. She smiled softly as Derek reached under her minidress, and gently unzipped it and pulled it over her head. He cast it aside, and rubbed Nova's back. Nova nuzzled against his chest and kissed it.

"You aren't telling me when to stop," whispered Derek as he ran his hands through her honey-blonde locks.

"Maybe I don't want you to stop," whispered Nova as his hands ran up her back to her bra strap.

"Why?"

"I have a beautiful outfit for tonight, Derek."

"Yes?"

"But you have to put it on me...from the skin up," she said with a small wink. "Go ahead," she whispered. "I don't know if you noticed...but our bunk is down..."

"Nova...," replied Derek softly and sweetly as she ran her toes over his instep, and they began to become entwined in each other as they enjoyed what was rapidly turning into a sweet, unexpected burst of lovemaking.

A while later, they stood together again in their cabin, slightly wet from the shower they had shared (and one which they needed anyhow after the events of the day) after their rapid bout of passion. Derek was being driven mad by the sight of his wife as he stood there in fresh underwear and she stood looking for a garment bag in her locker in only her sweet-smelling skin.

"I got it," said Nova.

"Aww," said Derek. "You have to cover yourself up. Too bad. I like you like that."

"Silly," she said with a cute blush as she held the black garment bag before her body. "The fun part is that you get to dress me now...and undress me again later."

"Are we gonna sleep at all tonight?" teased the Commodore (who was driving Nova crazy with his muscular form clad in only his EDF boxer shorts.)

"Oh, have some fun. You readjusted everyone's schedules so we can sleep in a little tomorrow. 0900 hours is a better reveille time than the usual 0500. We'll be fine. We only have to be at that party for an hour or two. But you'll like my newest hologram tape."

"Which is?"

"A nightclub," said Nova as she unzipped a bag and handed Derek some lacy black ladies' underwear. "Help me into that? Then, you get to see the dress..."

"I don't want to see the dress."

"Awww..."

"I wanna see you in the dress."

"That's so sweet," said Nova as she cuddled against her husband.

"I can't believe this!" squealed Trixie as she danced near Speed in a typical 60's-style frug-like dance in a darkened room filled with flashing lights, color, and the sounds of Jimi Hendrix playing Foxy Lady at full volume.

The most amazing thing that Speed found about this was that the Star Force had apparently hired Jimi and his band to play live. Or, at least, as Sandor told him, the holography room had created a convincing illusion of that fact.

"The holography room," said Sandor as he sipped at some sake, "was designed to give us a taste of home on long space journeys, like the first one we made to Iscandar. Also, because the environment of the Earth was devastated, the apparatus we designed took our personal memories and made them manifest in this place. We'd love to expand this some day to simulate an "infinite" environment."

"This is an amazing place," yelled Sparky with a laugh. "Where'd you get this from?"

"Well, Nova plugged you guys into the apparatus, and this is what it came up with."

"Yeah, this here club came outta your heads," said Eager in his strong Texas accent. "Wish my fiancée' Lisa was here to enjoy it!"

"The same goes for my girlfriend Wendy," said Homer.

"You've got a girlfriend?" asked Nishina, an officer who was serving as the bridge gunnery chief in the absence of Dash on this mission; Dash had been assigned to serve as first officer aboard a destroyer back in their time to fill up personnel gaps left as a result of the Rikasha Incident that had decimated the ranks of the EDF two years beforehand.

"Yes, I do," said Homer. "Wanna make something of it?"

"Easy, you guys," said Joe Yamazaki, the Argo's chief engineer as he sat up bolt upright at a table where he, Sandor, and Sparky had been discussing technology and the repair of the Mach Five.

"What a groovy club you have in your head, Speed!" laughed Trixie.

"Well, I think you had Jimi Hendrix in your head, Trixie."

"Silly," laughed Trixie as they both sipped at their cocktail and then kissed.

"Whoooooaa," said Sparky as he looked up.

"What?" said Speed.

"I know it's not Aliscea," said Paul Rosstowski as he danced nearby with his alien bride. "She's right here."

"Amusing dances you have," said the black-clad beauty as she danced over and kissed him. "Oh! Wow!"

He got a glimpse before he made darn sure his eyes were locked on Trixie and her dress.

The Wildstars had just made their appearance.

Derek looked incredibly tall and handsome in his black peacoat, ascot, medals, blues, gloves, and Captain's hat. Nova walked beside him on his arm.

Nova looked a little older and she looked stunning. She wore a navy-blue dress that was very close to ankle-length, with a bit of a slit in the skirt to show her leg as she walked. The bodice of her dress was covered with many glittery stones that caught the light in many colors and flashed it back, along with the single silver necklace she wore at her bare neck above her bare shoulders, and the glittery matching ballroom-dancing sandals she wore on her feet.

"Oh, God, I'm gonna kill you," said Trixie with a laugh.

"But you look nice in that dress," smiled Nova. "Maybe better than me."

"Don't be ridiculous," said Trixie.

"I can see you dressed up like this someday," said Nova.

"When?"

"Someday," said Nova. "Maybe the day you become Mrs. Racer?"

"Nova," laughed Trixie in embarrassment as she knew that her friend from the future had just touched on that she had been thinking of. Has Aliscea taught her how to read minds or something? Trixie thought, who stammered out, "How old are you, Nova?"

"Twenty-six," she said. "I've got a few years on you."

"But not that many," said Derek. "Sometimes, you still look like a kid."

"Not tonight, I hope," said Nova as a friend of hers, the small analysis robot IQ-9, came up to her and piped, "Hi, Nova!"

"Don't you think about it!" barked Nova.

"About what?"

"I know what's in your chips...," said Nova as she stood up on tiptoe to hug Derek, flashing quite a bit of her bare leg under her skirt in the process. Unknown to her, both "Balda" and "Rabin" were watching the proceedings and laughing to themselves.

"She's got the sphere," whispered "Balda".

"How can you tell?" asked "Rabin".

"Its aura is still on her. She must have it in that little clutch bag she is carrying."

"How big is it?"

"Karnaz did not say," whispered "Balda" over the sounds of Jimi Hendrix. "The music is about to stop. We must be quiet."

"Jimi" stopped singing, and Nova took the holographic stage, to the cheers and applause of the crew. Derek came up beside her as she tried to shove IQ-9 away; he was trying to make her leg show. Nova did it on her own anyway a moment later as she hugged Derek and stood there showing her right leg from her toes to just above her knee as Derek took the microphone.

"Glad you're here?" he said.

The crew yelled back, cheering and whooping as they gave Nova a few wolf-whistles.

"I'd like to introduce our twentieth-century friends and comrades to you as we approach the end of our mission," said Derek. "Tomorrow morning, we will be saying farewell to our friends in Central America as we and UNIT deal with the last segments of this attempted R'Khell invasion."

"I took a scan before I put on this dress," said Nova as more of the guys whistled at her to a somewhat jealous look from Wildstar. "And...I found out that the R'Khell fleet has pulled back to the Mars area. I think they might be preparing to warp back home in defeat. If not, we can take them on there, right?"

"YEAH!" yelled the Star Force as everyone applauded at the impending victory.

"We can beat them," said Hardy.

"They've only got five ships," said young Timothy Orion, the son of the late engineering officer of the Argo, who had died in the Rikasha Incident.

"One Earth ship is worth five of theirs," said a Black Tiger pilot named Tatiana Lubyanska as she patted the back of a female friend of hers named Diane Henson, who was also an engineering officer.

Speed smiled as a shiver went down his back. These guys are about to go into battle tomorrow...to help us? Amazing that they're having a party right before they go into battle. Of course, he didn't know of the traditions of the Japanese, British, and US Navies that the EDF had absorbed. Speed hadn't been at Rainbow Galaxy in 2200 and seen the crew of the Argo toast their upcoming victory over the Gamilons in spring water laced with rum and sake, for example. And he didn't recognize what was going on when IQ-9 brought in a cart with a barrel on top with many small cups and a ladle.

"Before we make our toast," said Nova, who had just strapped on a guitar. "I'd like to finish introducing our friends. I've received a request from a dear friend of theirs, Sparky Sabu, for a song for our other two friends, Gregory "Speed" Racer and Trixie Shimura. Speed's younger brother, Spritle, is in bed now with their pet Chim-Chim. Speed, Trixie, would you like to step out on the floor and dance?"

Speed and Trixie blushed and looked at Sparky, who just shrugged and grinned. Both of them gave him an "I'll get you, Sparky" look as they walked out into the center of the holography room holding hands as IQ-9 passed out the victory toast.

"Would you begin to dance?" asked Nova. "This song is for you."

Then, Nova began to play the Hollies' "Bus Stop" on her guitar (backed up by a recording she had prepared earlier as a holographic combo served as her "backup") and began to sing the lead vocal herself as Speed and Trixie smiled and then began a slow dance, lost for a moment in each other's arms. Speed and Trixie kissed softly as they danced around and around.

My God, thought Trixie. I usually like Motown, but this is sending chills up my back. It feels like our wedding rehearsal or something. And Speed, you haven't even proposed to me yet!

Nova continued to sing as Derek got up on stage beside her and began to sing harmony into the "mike" as he looked at his wife with love in his eyes and also watched Speed and Trixie with amusement...

Came the sun the nice was melting, no more sheltering now...

Nice to think that that umbrella

Led me to a vow...

Speed's heart was pounding as he said, "Trix..."

"Yes?"

"I could never stand it if anything happened to you..."

"Speed...when you had that...that globe thing...I had doubts..."

"Don't have any more doubts now...please...I want to tell you something..."

"Yes?"

"I love you, Trixie."

"Speed."

"And I'd like to tell you something else...or ask you something else...after this business is over...I want to ask you in front of all our friends..."

"What?"

"Let that be my secret," said Speed softly as an idea came to his mind, right then and there. It was an idea he had thought of for a long, long time...but it was something he couldn't do here...

..because here, he couldn't get a ring...

...or could I? Speed thought. That machine? I don't know...

A while later, the crew gathered before a cart with a barrel on it. The holograms had been shut down, and the holography room had reverted to its bare, round walls. Speed, Trixie, and Sparky watched as IQ-9, Dr. Sane, Nova, and Aliscea handed out small glasses to the crew. Speed sniffed his cup; it was a small cup of sake.

When all of the sake was distributed, Commodore Wildstar stood at the head of the group in the large, empty room. "My comrades and friends," he said. "Tomorrow morning, we will finish our task here, and tomorrow, we will probably go into battle with Karnaz's fleet to rid the solar system of this time of the great threat he poses to the people of this time. We cannot fail in this task. We are literally Earth's only defense against a starfleet in this time and place. Before we retire for the night, or head to our overnight duty posts, whatever the case may be, I would like to drink this toast with you, in sake brewed with water from our precious Earth; the home we nearly lost a few years ago in our time."

At that comment, Trixie shivered. My God, the human race was nearly wiped out in their time. But, somehow, maybe by the grace of God, they survived. How did they do it?

Nova came up beside Derek. "Now," said Wildstar. "Our toast! To victory! Kampai!"

"Kampai!" yelled back the rest of the crew.

Then, they drank. But, unnoticed, "Balda" and "Rabin" dumped their small cups of sake on the deck. Their sense of honor forbade them from drinking to their own defeat.

Then, as the party began to break up, "Rabin" whispered, "My friend, we have to act soon. We must take that woman and the globe and signal the Master and Karnaz."

"We cannot do so now," whispered "Balda".

"We must do it when she is alone. Or, we must arrange for an emergency..."

"Understood."

Commodore Wildstar returned to his cabin; he guessed Nova would follow him soon.

He was surprised when he heard a tap at the door, followed by Nova's voice; since it was also her cabin, she usually didn't knock.

"Derek?" she asked. "Are you decent?"

"I am," he said. "What's up?"

"I have a guest," she said. She opened the hatch and escorted Speed into the room.

The privacy shield was up, and Speed looked out at the view and whistled. "Is that...Earth?"

"We're about 200 miles above the surface in orbit right now," said Derek. "Yes, that's sure Earth."

"Fascinating," said Speed. "I'll have to tell Trixie about this. I wish she was here now, but I'm sort of glad she isn't."

"Where is she?" asked Derek.

"Aliscea and she are making sure that she, Spritle, and Chim-Chim are safe in their cabin...along with the globe," said Nova. "Speed has a favor to ask of you."

"Which is?" asked Wildstar as he sat down at a computer console and typed some notes into his log. "I hate to sound rude, but I am busy right now."

"Uhhhmm...you know how that device makes things? The machine Sandor showed us?"

"Yes?" asked Derek.

Boy, this is gonna sound stupid, thought Speed. He took a ring out of his pocket. "This is a ring I got for Trixie; it's 18-karat gold. The stone that is in here is just a small ruby...but I haven't given it to her yet. Can Sandor take out a stone and exchange something else for it?"

"What?" asked Wildstar, intrigued by this request.

"I was wondering...you probably wouldn't want my money, so I was going to ask...uh...is there any machine that Sandor has to synthesize a diamond? It has to be a diamond...since I want to ask her something...uh...right before or after this battle ends..."

"What?" said Derek. "And I think Sandor could synthesize a diamond."

"He won't have to," said Nova as she took a small box out of her drawer. "Derek, we still have these...from Iscandar..."

"Iscandar?" asked Speed.

"It's a planet we went to once to help save Earth," said Derek. "They have many beautiful diamonds on that planet; those diamonds are even more beautiful than what anyone in any time could find on Earth."

Nova took off a ring from her finger. "Look at this, first," she said. "This was the engagement ring Derek gave me. It was part of the same diamond I'd like to have Sandor cut for yours tomorrow before or after the battle. It won't take long with our computers."

Speed looked at the glittering diamond, it was clear, sparkling, and beautiful. He also estimated that in their time, it would be worth something like...half a million dollars. She's wearing a piece of another planet, thought Speed. Another world that people live on. How much would that be worth to us?

Nova opened the box and unwrapped a few small clear diamonds; they were uncut, but the contents of the box were worth a small fortune. "Will this do?" she asked as she held up one of the stones.

Speed nodded. "Thanks."

"I take it that this is for more than a friendship ring," said Derek.

"It is," said Speed. "I don't know when I'll do it...but...I want to pop the question soon to Trixie. To do that...I'll need a decent ring."

"Consider it done," said Nova after she put away the stones and put the box in her clutch bag. "Derek, I'm going to take him to the cabin I've prepared for him. Then, I'll give this to Sandor, and I'll be right back."

"How long will you take?" asked Derek.

"No more than half an hour," said Nova in a sweet voice as she kissed Derek on the forehead. "Keep the cabin warm for me," she whispered.

"I will. Make sure you have your weapon ready," said Derek. "They haven't caught..."

"I don't think I'll have a thing to worry about with this," said Nova as she buckled her gun belt on over her dress.

Derek smiled and nodded.

"Well?" said Lt. Natalie Fisher as she began to clean up some items in Sickbay.

"I'm turning in soon," said Doctor Sane. "Do you know where Rabin and Balda went? They were supposed to help me clean up down here."

"I'm not sure, but I think they might have had too much sake," said Fisher. "They were supposed to be down here twenty minutes ago to end their watch."

"Go look for them and give them a piece of my mind," said Sane. "And I wonder where that twentieth-century miscreant Oiler went? Hemsford told me they still haven't found him yet. Be careful."

"He'll turn up," said Fisher. "And if I do see him, I'll have Rabin and Balda with me. They're both big enough and thuggish enough to guard me; not to mention I have an astro-automatic," she said as she pointed to the weapon she wore with her nurses' tunic.

"Good," said Sane. "I told all crew members not to wander about unarmed. Even Nova has something."

"In that dress?"

"You'd be surprised to know what she can put in her clutch bag," said Sane.

Nova was whistling to herself as she walked alone down a corridor of the Argo, looking a little incongruous with that gun belt over her beautiful dress. Dangerous times call for dangerous measures, she thought. Well, at least I got the ball rolling on that diamond for Speed. And he's in his cabin. Now, back to see Derek. I guess this is the quickest route, she thought. And they'd better catch that creep Snake soon.

Nova stood beside a vertical people-mover conveyor belt (one of several on the Argo) and began to unbuckle one of her dress sandals. Before she finished getting rid of her heels for her ride on the conveyor belt, she heard a voice.

"Ma'am, we're in trouble," said Rabin as he showed up. "We're late. Think you can cover for us, Nova?"

"Balda...Rabin," sighed Nova. "Do you think you two can charm me out of the write-up I'm going to give you when I drag you back to Sickbay? It's almost 0200! I have to get to bed in a while. I have to be up again at 0800 to stand watch as Officer of the Deck on the First Bridge. Whatever your excuse is, it'd better be a good one," she snapped.

"Oh, we've got a good excuse," said "Rabin" with a smile.

"Which is?" snapped Nova with her hands on her hips. This doesn't smell right; this doesn't feel right, she thought. These two usually respect me. Maybe they're drunk? They weren't supposed to drink too much; we may have to fight tomorrow, she thought. "If I find out you two are drunk, you'll stand Mast when we get home," said Nova tartly.

"Oh, we're not drunk," said Balda happily as he got behind Nova.

"What are you doing with that bottle in your hand?" snapped Nova. "That's from Sickbay! You're not authorized to be carrying that stuff ar..."

Suddenly, a rag soaked with some fluid found its way over Nova's nose and mouth as "Balda" grabbed her from behind...

..and his face began to change.

"You idiot," hissed Nova sleepily as her body began to grow cold and numb all over. "That's Malanite D! Do you people know what that can do...to...a...person? Given in an overdose...well...gooodd...so sick...it can cause gastric disturbance...no...or c...c...c...cardiac arrest...and it can...kill you....And you're...not...Balda! You're..."

"Leftenant Malik Viggatz of R'Khelleva," said Viggatz merrily as Nova fell to the deck like limp spaghetti. "My comrade is named Ratzen. Now, be a nice little bitch and give my comrade Ratzen and I that globe."

"Never..." gasped Nova.

"Got it on you?" bellowed Ratzen. He grabbed the trembling, half-conscious form of Nova as she reached for her gun and slapped the Astro-Automatic out of her hand. Then, he slapped her across the face for fun. "Where is it, you scheming little scum?"

"Don't...have...it...and you...can drop dead if's ya think yas gonna findz it," mumbled Nova as she began to succumb to the anesthetic.

"Search her," said Viggatz.

"Where?"

"In her clothes, ya dope. Rip them all off if ya have to," leered Viggatz. "Then keep her around before the Master shows up so we can..."

"Yeah!" laughed Ratzen. He pulled one of Nova's shoes off (the unbuckled one). "Is it between your toes?"

"Die, you....stupid...," gasped Nova as she twitched a bit and moved her hand towards her gun. God, she thought. Before I pass out...even if I won't see Derek again...give me just two shots...just...two....

"Is it up your skirt?" he laughed as he began to put his hands up her leg.

"What about in here? Peekaboo!" yelled Ratzen as he pulled down the bodice of Nova's outfit.

Nothing was there...except Nova, that is. Even in her half-conscious state, she retained enough strength to make herself decent with one hand...

...and shoot at them with the other. Her aim was off, but for a moment, the R'Khells got their heads down.

And Nova got up. She staggered to her bare feet and prepared to fire again...

But, Ratzen jumped at Nova and tackled her. She fell to the deck, and then Ratzen punched her hard in the mouth. As she lost consciousness, Nova tasted blood in her mouth.

"Search you?" yelled Ratzen. "I'll search you all right...I'll strip you bare and then search you right down to the damned bones for that globe!"

Then, they heard footsteps. And then, Viggatz yelled. "I sense the globe!"

"Where?"

"I dunno, someone else has it. Wadda we do with missy here?"

"Let me cut her throat," said Ratzen. "Don't need no witnesses."

"Nah, too bloody. Dump her in here," said Viggatz. "In here..." He opened a hatch. "I think it's a locker."

"It is. Got it..."

They threw Nova in the locker and phased back into the forms of "Balda" and "Rabin" just as a young woman in striped pajamas and bare feet showed up carrying a monkey down the corridor.

"Chim-Chim," said Trixie in a growling, sleepy voice. "That's the last time that I take you somewhere without enough diapers. Good thing Doctor Sane had some, and it's a good thing it's still on you, if you take my..."

Then, she ran right into "Balda" and "Rabin." "Well, you guys are still up. Nice. Spotted Snake Oiler yet?"

"Oh, we have," said "Balda".

"But you will not like where he is," said "Rabin" as he pulled a device out of his pocket and pushed a button.

"Wait a minute," said Trixie as Chim-Chim chattered. "Blood on the floor? Nova's shoe?" Trixie picked up the sandal with a free hand. "Where's my friend?"

"She's drunk," said "Rabin" happily. "She passed out and fell down the hatch. Can I have your monkey for a moment, honey?"

"Never," said Trixie.

"Let us have him," said "Balda" happily.

Trixie spied Nova's gun on the floor and dropped Nova's shoe and scooped up the gun. "Never!" she yelled. "You're after it, aren't you? Where's Snake?"

"Balda" and "Rabin" dropped their disguises again as a strange noise resounded behind Trixie.

"Where is Snake?" demanded Trixie.

The door to the Master's TARDIS opened as soon as it materialized.

"Snake is right here," snapped Snake Oiler as he bounded out of the TARDIS and caught Trixie in a headlock.

Trixie struggled hard as Viggatz and Ratzen wet their rag and fed Trixie some of the deadly medication.

"What is...happening...to...me?" asked Trixie as Chim-Chim screamed. He bit Ratzen, but the R'Khell ignored the pain as he fed Chim-Chim some of the medication. As the monkey began to grow woozy, Ratzen ripped Chim-Chim's overalls open, exposing the dreaded globe to their mocking, gloating eyes. The monkey soon weakened and passed out

"You, my dear, are about to be abducted," said the Master as he, Snake, and Karnaz emerged. "And, by the way, thank you...for this," he said as he took the glowing sphere. "It will be very useful."

Trixie, ignoring the danger, reached for it again. Snake got a forearm around her neck and squeezed. As the drug took hold, Trixie felt herself being strangled.

"Good work," said the Master. "How many are dead, Viggatz?"

"The real Balda and Rabin. We killed them. And the twenty-third century Earth woman who killed Lady Yvona. She is dying in that locker from an overdose. Should we slaughter the dark-haired one?"

"No, bring her with us to El Tigre," said Snake.

"Why is that?" asked Karnaz.

"Easy. She will be the perfect bait... for Speed," hissed Snake as he stroked Trixie's cheek. "In the meantime, maybe I can have some fun with her? Like that, girlie?"

At that, Karnaz laughed like a maniac, as the Master let him touch the sacred globe; the globe that was back in R'Khell hands again at last.

It would be the beginning of the end for Earth.

Is this it?

Is it the end?

Not yet, luckily.

Stay tuned for Chapter Twelve: "El Tigre: Darkness in the Jungle"

TO BE CONTINUED....

To Return to the Introduction for "Attack and Counterattack" click here