ALTERNATE TALES OF THE STAR FORCE
STAR BLAZERS---PASSICAGLIA AND FUGUE IN C MINOR
Being the eighth part of THE RIKASHA INCIDENT--- BY: Frederick P. Kopetz
ACT THREE-- ALISCEA'S
I. COURT-MARTIAL
Port Side Observation
Deck
Space Battleship Argo
Saturday, February 27,
2202
1130 Hours: Spacetime
After having given his
testimony about Lieutenant Bryan Hartcliffe's insubordination about half an
hour ago, Captain Derek Wildstar quietly made his way back onto the observation
deck where Hartcliffe's special court-martial was still in progress.
"Most of the Tigers
are still here, huh?" whispered Derek as he looked at Conroy.
Conroy nodded. "Yeah. All except for the squadron out on patrol that
Lubyanska's leading. "
Derek looked around; not
much had changed. Twenty of the Black Tigers sat watching in folding chairs set
out for them, along with a few Space Marines and Combat Group members not on
watch now. The crowd watching the trial was about thirty-five.
There was a chair in front
of a set of messhall tables, front and center. Bryan Hartcliffe stood at
attention before that chair in his blue peacoat and Black Tiger uniform,
guarded by two Space Marines. Another chair, to its right, for witnesses, was
empty, now, since the military lawyers for both sides were performing final
summations. But, Derek remembered his time in that chair.
He hadn't thought that as
Captain of a ship, it would be so tough to give testimony. But, it had been.
After he had been sworn on a Bible, Captain Wildstar had been asked tons of
questions by the prosecutor, Lieutenant Todd Voorhees. The former JAG officer
had been tough and thorough in establishing that Derek had given Hartcliffe a
direct order not to cause any more trouble after his Captain's Mast on February
the 11th. Yet, it was clear that he had violated that order.
As he gave testimony for
the prosecution, Wildstar had occassionally been
grilled by the Court; Dash, sitting front and center behind that long table in
his navy blue peacoat as President of the Court hadn't asked that much, but
Hardy, to his right in his peacoat, had asked plenty of questions.
The third member of the
Court, Nova, resplendent in her white peacoat and scarlet scarf, had asked only
one question, but it was a tough one. "Captain, please define 'insubordination.'"
Derek, after he had thought about it, remembered his Military Law course at the
Space Fighters' Training School, and had come forth with a good definition of
'insubordination' as per military regulations. Then, after Voorhees was done,
there had been the cross-examination by the Defense.
Hartcliffe's defense
attorney was Lieutenant Greenberg, the ship's Chaplain, who had been a former
attorney once. After Voorhees and Wildstar had laid
out what insubordination was and that Hartcliffe had violated a direct order,
Greenberg spent ten long minutes trying to rip the heart out of Derek's
testimony, just as he had done with Conroy's earlier. When Wildstar had left
the stand, one glance at the Court, deep in thought, showed him that maybe
Greenberg's idea in convincing Hartcliffe not to be his own attorney might
work. Maybe the miserable creep might actually beat one or both of the
charges of Insubordination and Striking a Superior Officer, Wildstar had
thought in sullen silence after he had left the stand.
Now, Voorhees paced the
deck (in his peacoat) in front of the table, ringing out his final arguments in
a loud, clear voice.
"Ladies and gentlemen
of this Court, you have never heard such a clear-cut case of violation of a
Captain's orders as we have heard today. And, we have never heard, established
by four witnesses including the ship's Surgeon, a more convincing case that
Mister Hartcliffe struck his Group Leader than we have heard today. I
recommend, in the name of order and decency, as well as in the name of military
discipline, that you find the accused guilty of both counts and impose the
maximum sentence. Thank you."
"You may stand
down," said Dash as Voorhees returned to his table, which was in front of
the bench. "Defense Counsel?"
Greenberg stood up.
"Ladies and Gentlemen of the Court, I think there is reasonable doubt as
to whether or not this man had the necessary and requisite frame of mind to be willfully
insubordinate. The man has been driven by his emotions and by extreme stress
over the past few weeks. He clearly took the irrational course of attempting to
do harm to himself a few days ago while confined.
Therefore, I would ask you to dismiss the charge of insubordination, and to
give the man an appropriate warning should you find him guilty of the charge of
striking a superior officer. In the name of human decency, I ask this. Please
don't let this be another Dreyfuss trial;
another drumhead example of military justice at its worst. You are honorable
men and women, all of you. I therefore submit that my client may well stand
guilty of striking a superior officer, but he is clearly not guilty of willful
insubordination, as I established in cross-examining the Captain."
I gave the man a direct
order, what more do you want? thought Derek irritably.
"I therefore ask you,
ladies and gentlemen, to judge fairly. Thank you."
Dash rang the bell before
him three times with a small hammer. "This Court will now adjourn to
consider its findings and sentence, should the accused be found guilty."
"All rise!"
yelled the Marine who was serving as bailiff. Everyone stood as Hardy, Dash,
and Lieutenant Wildstar stood, about-faced, and walked off together to a small
room off the observation deck where they would share some coffee and
deliberate.
When they left, Angie was
allowed to approach the defense table as
"
"Why's that,
luv?"
"They can throw you
out of the service for this! The future of your career now depends upon those
three in that room. Two men, and one woman who you had
to feel up in public like an animal. She'll nail you to the cross,
"Yeah, I did. Kind of."
"You'd better pray
those two men in there are reasonable. You could be out of the service...in
prison for a year....or maybe even sentenced to death! Oh,
They held hands for a
moment.
In the deliberation room,
Hardy pointed his finger at the court. "Clearest case of disregardin' orduhs and punchin' out a superior outside of the movies, guys,"
he said while sipping at some coffee. "Nail him to the cross on both
offenses. Jail for a year and a Bad Conduct Discharge.
If it had been in battle, I'd ask for a death sentence."
"I agree with you on
the striking a superior officer charge, Jeff," said Nova. "His
Defense may have a point on the insubordination charge, though. You know
he's been under stress! Dash?"
"I agree with you on
the striking a superior officer charge, Nova," said Dash. "Conroy's
nose is still kinda swollen, for God's sakes. I'll let you two argue it out on
the other charge. I haven't made up my mind yet. Remember, 2 to 1
convicts."
"Why do ya wanna give
that sewuh rat any kind a' clemency, Nova?" said
Hardy.
"His wife was
raped," said Nova. "That can generate a lot of stress in a man, or in
a relationship. I'm speaking from personal experience."
"Did you ever get
raped?" said Dash.
"No,
not exactly.
But, I had a bad experience with my aunt when I was small," said Nova.
"And you two know about
"He's an animal,"
said Hardy. "That varmint knew damn well what he was doing. I'm convicting
him, an' ah want him to rot in jail foh a yeah."
Dash sat in silence for a
moment. "I'm sorry, Nova," said Dash. "I'm convicting. Looks like we're unanimous on the conviction on the fighting charge
and 2-1 on the insubordination charge."
"Let's give him a
little break on the sentence, then,' said Nova.
"BCD," said Hardy.
"Bad Conduct Discharge. Drum the son-of-a-bitch
out of the EDF. Have him sit in jail for a yeah, too."
"Boy, you're
quick," said Nova. "I'd propose three more weeks in the brig and kick
him down to Ensign. Keep him in the service for his wife's sake."
Dash sat quiet again.
"We could kick him out," he said. "But, seeing the way Angie
looked, let's not. Let's go with Nova's suggestion. Three and a kick downwards
in rank should hit him hard enough. Hardy?"
Hardy nodded after a moment
in thought. "Let's get out there and tell them our decision. This coffee
stinks, Nova. You make it?"
She just smiled and shook
her head. "Don't blame all Navy Brew on me, Jeff!"
They laughed to relieve the
tension.
Back out in the observation
deck. Dash looked at Hartcliffe and said, "Would the accused please
rise?"
Hartcliffe stood up, hoping
that under his glasses, no one could see the tears in his eyes.
"Lieutenant Bryan
Hartcliffe," said Dash. "This court has found you guilty of striking a
superior officer. The verdict was unanimous, 3-0. You have also been found
guilty of insubordination; with a 2-1 verdict. These are serious crimes you
have been convicted of. They will reflect adversely upon you at your next
review and may keep you from re-enlisting in the Service."
Hartcliffe stood there with
his head bowed. "We will now pronounce our sentences upon you for these
offenses. For the charge of striking a superior officer, the Court sentences
you to three weeks in the brig and loss of all pay and allowances for that
period. For the charge of insubordination, you are reduced to the rank of
Ensign. You will be taken forth from this courtroom to begin serving your
sentence. These proceedings are now concluded."
Dash rang the bell, and
Hartcliffe was taken away with a stricken look on his face after he squeezed
Angie's hand.
"Well, that's
it," said Hardy. "Do you think we did a good job?"
"Yeah," said
Dash.
"No," said Nova.
"We did what we had to do. I...I don't know what good is going to come out
of this. Excuse me, please." At that, she left.
"Do you understand
women?" said Dash.
Hardy shook his head.
Hartcliffe sat back in his
cell, bummed over his loss of rank, bummed over the next three weeks he'd have
to spend locked up, but relieved that he wasn't out of the EDF over this.
Well, some things can be
bad, others good,
he thought. Guess another three weeks worth of bein' bloody bored ain't so
bad, since I'll be back with the squadron by then...
So
much to do.
Just a lot of time to wait.
II. FAMILY LIFE
Earth
The Forrester Family
Residence
Saturday, February 27,
2202
2330 Hours: Spacetime
The front door to the
Forrester family home was kicked open by its owner late at night. There was a
good reason why Karl Forrester had to kick the door open. He was in a tux, and
he had his laughing wife Teri in his arms in an evening gown and heels. They
had been to a concert that night, and had gone out for dinner and a few drinks
afterwards. Teri had had more to drink than Karl. As a result, the laughing
woman sounded twenty years younger than her true age of forty-three.
"What's on your
mind?" asked Karl as Teri struggled out of her evening sandals.
"I'm not sure how to
put this in words, so let me put it like this..." said Teri.
"Yes?"
Teri came up to her
husband, hugged him, and began to undo his bow tie. "That orchestra did
quite a job...I was so moved tonight. And you were looking at me that way all
throughout dinner, Karl."
"So, you'd like
to...uh...get a bit steamy?" he said after they kissed.
"Uh-huh," said
Teri.
"Where?"
"In front of the
fireplace would be nice," said Teri. "And you made sure a real fire
was in here for once. Good."
"It matches how I
feel, Teri. God...you in that dress...you're setting me on fire," said
Karl.
The Earth Defense Forces
Scout Ship Pioneer sat in a dock at the EDF Base on one of the moons of
Uranus.
Lieutenant Mio Hoshiyama,
the ship's Survey Group Leader, had been summoned into a side office on the
base.
"Admiral Parker, sir,
what do you need to tell me?"
"I have bad news,
Lieutenant. Make sure you're sitting down."
"Yes."
"It's about your
father and the special task group that was beginning an investigation of the
edge of the solar system."
"My God...did
something happen to Daddy?"
Parker nodded his head.
"His task group was attacked by the Rikashans. Your father went down at
his post on the Cassiopeia. No survivors. At least the flight recorders
we recovered indicated that he went down fighting. I'm so sorry,
Lieutenant."
"Did they destroy the
whole task force?" asked Mio through her tears.
"Yes, Lieutenant, they
did. If you need leave time..."
"I'll gladly take
it!" said Hoshiyama. "I..."
Mio had nothing else to
say; she just threw her head down on Admiral Parker's desk and began to wail.
Parker tried to comfort her with a hug. He didn't know if it would do any good
or not.
III. LORD ZADEN'S DEMAND
Earth
The Great Megalopolis
Earth Defense
Headquarters
Monday, March 1, 2202
1030 Hours: Spacetime
"This is not a
conventional war, gentlemen!" yelled Piper Sandberg in the main chamber of
the Earth Defense Council. "How do you think it can be won by conventional
means?"
"We need a working
fleet to be able to meet such a threat, Sandberg," retorted General
Weller. "Luckily, our new Fleet Construction Program is maybe a month and
a half away from completion. When the new fleet is built, we'll have the same
strength we had in the fall of 2201. We were able to stop the Comet Empire's
advance fleet at Titan with such a fleet."
"But what happened
when the Comet itself showed up?" retorted Sandberg. "Here, we're
facing something far worse than a Goddamn Comet!"
"Doctor Sandberg, please
refrain from the profanity," said Commanding General Singleton at the head
of the table. He had his eyes closed, and looked rather disgusted.
"My
apologies, sir."
"We were hearing from
you, General Camacho," said Singleton. "Go on. Not counting our
recent losses, what is the current composition of the Fleet?"
"This is how far we've
come," said Camacho. He stood and a graphic came up on the screen.
"At the current time, due to the loss of the Cassiopeia, which I
must take into account, we have four space battleships of the Andromeda
class in commission. We begin with the new Andromeda herself, in command
of the Combined Fleet and in command of First Fleet. Then, there is the Perseus,
in command of Second Fleet, the Aphrodite, in command of Third Fleet,
and the Cepheus, in command of Fourth Fleet. Fifth Fleet is currently
being commanded from the Hermes, our sole remaining spacecraft carrier
thanks to the loss of the Akagi.
"You had other
carriers in construction?" asked Stone.
"Yes; the new
spacecraft carriers
"These are all
Camacho nodded. "The
planned Forrestal class is still on the
drawing board, unfortunately. That class, and the planned
"What's the status of
the building program on those
Camacho changed a graphic.
"The
"I'd propose it,"
said Singleton. The motion was laid out to build two more
"Thank you. Camacho,
how much should we have in commission by April the first?"
"In
commission? The following, sir. Let me put up this graphic."
A moment later, a list came
up. It read the following:
2202 Emergency Fleet
Replenishment Program: Projected Goals, April 2202.
Andromeda Class SBB: 5 (pending completion of
SBB Scorpio)
Argo Class SBB: 1 (on active patrol)
Amazon Class SCR (Patrol Cruisers): 26
(pending completion of 6 units)
Sun H'tsu Class SFF (Space Frigates): 96 (pending completion of 20
units)
Valkyrie Class SGB (Space Gunboats): 120
(pending completion of 60 units)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL Warships in
Commission as of 15 April 2202: 744
"So, we're supposed to
stop the Rikashans with seven hundred and forty-four ships?" said
Sandberg.
"It's going to be more
than we had in commission to fight the Comet Empire, Sandberg," said
Singleton. "And, Captain Wildstar reported to us that Gamilon might be
able to spare a task force of four or five hundred ships to assist us."
The table filled up with
hubbub over this development.
"When did Wildstar
sign a treaty with Desslok? We didn't authorize that?" said Stone.
"We're allied with the
people who were our mortal enemies a few months ago?" said Weller in
disbelief.
"Are we expected to
help Desslok conquer other worlds, now?" said Weiner.
"We have no protocol for this!" said
Sandberg in a disdainful voice. His sallow face looked ugly in the light, and
wasn't helped by the appearance of his fawn-colored jacket with gold epaulets
as he gestured. "We might as well be signing a treaty with the Devil!"
Two seats down, Weiner
looked at his friend and grinned a little. Good job, Piper, he thought. We
have an agenda here. Can't let their defense efforts go too far now, can we?
"Gentlemen," said
Singleton. "There's no formal treaty. There may not be for quite some
time."
"Then why's Desslok
doin' this?" said Sandberg.
"Because the enemy
threatens his people, as well as our own," said Singleton. "Right
now, the Gamilons have most of their active fleet in the Sanzar System guarding
Iscandar and the ruined hulk of Gamilon to help Aliscea and the Star Force stop the Dark Lord Ekogaru himself. We can thank God that
the main battle of this war is apparently going to be fought 148,000 lightyears
away, rather than right here in our solar system. Yet, if Ekogaru isn't stopped
here, he will arrive in a few weeks, along with the major part of the Rikashan
Fleet. Then, we will face an onslaught...that'll be something I don't even want
to think about."
"I know how bad it
is," said Sandberg. "We picked up a message from the Rikashans one
day ago. We've just finished translating it. May I share it with the Defense
Council? It's text only."
"Granted," said
Singleton.
A moment later, a brief
text message appeared on the main screen. It read:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
To: The Dishonorable
Scum of Planet Earth
From: T'Grish Zaden, Sublime Ruler and Lord of the
Rikashan/R'Khell Grand Union
Subject: Surrender,
Scum!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I am the Lord Zaden
the Great, the ruler of the Rikashan and R'Khell People and a faithful
worshipper and servant of the Grand Lord Ekogaru, the God of War, the strongest
of the Gods, the Prime God, the Great God of the Universe. Ekogaru is our God,
may His Name be Blessed Forever, Serrah!
Ekogaru has ordered
me to turn our probing raids of your pitiable world into a general Holy War or Ji'Had to His Glory. He plans to come to our Galaxy soon.
In the name of mercy and kindness, I give you one last chance to surrender to
us before the onslaught comes. I can marshal over a thousand starships to fight
you. Your resistance would be hopeless, fruitless, and might lead to the loss
of your race, you scum, should you persist in your
stiff-necked opposition of our Lord Ekogaru, since He would crush you.
Convey your surrender
to Baron Anton Cha'rif, who waits outside your solar system on my orders for
three of your days. Otherwise, you shall face death rather than merciful slavery.
You will not live. You will not live. You will die. You will die. You will DIE!
Surrender if you wish
to live, scum!
In Friendly Warning,
Lord T'Grish Zaden
Sublime Ruler and
Lord of the Rikashan/R'Khell Grand
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Well, that's a subtle
message," snorted Weller over nervous laughter.
"Gentlemen," said
Sandberg. "I suggest we listen to them. We should consider their demand.
We should surrender."
"Sandberg, I don't
want to hear that from you," said Singleton. "Take back those words.
We're not going to surrender to this sort of terrorism."
"But, General,"
said Sandberg. "It's the only rational course."
"Not as long as we
have a Fleet. Not as long as we still have...the Argo and the Star
Force," said the Commander.
"Are you so
convinced?" said Sandberg. He stood up and pushed in his chair.
"Doctor Sandberg, I
didn't give you permission to leave!" barked Singleton.
"So?" said
Sandberg. "I'm leaving anyway. This is a pointless discussion."
Sandberg walked out.
"Damn defeatist,"
said Weller
I agree with you,
although not quite in those words, thought Singleton.
Later on, Sandberg and
Weiner met some people in the former Earth Defense Forces headquarters in the
underground city beneath the Megalopolis.
"How is the
demoralization effort going?" asked a figure in a brown sackcloth robe,
who was surrounded by a few treasonous members of the EDF.
"It's going well,
Joshua," said Weiner with an evil smile. "Have you been in touch with
the Prophetess?"
"Yes. She has been in
touch with me. The Lord has given Yvona great power, and she approves of our
efforts in her name. Granted, the cult has had to...pardon the pun...go ever
deeper underground, but we are making our plans to help the Rikashans and the
Elevated Ones in Lord Ekogaru's ranks so that this sinful world shall fall
right into our hands."
"How goes the effort
with the Star Force?" asked Sandberg.
"Unfortunately, Mister
Parmon, the man that His Lordship had chosen to turn against them, has been
killed in battle. He died before His Lordship could even contact him,"
said Joshua.
"We are not
pleased with this development," said a rather deep voice.
The treasonous EDF troops
turned around, noticing that two more figures had entered the room. One was
obviously Rikashan; he wore a grey tunic, black pants, and high black boots.
The other one, if possible looked even worse; he wore a black cowl from head to
foot, and carried a large, evil-looking scimitar. His lean, hawk-like face
showed through his cowl, along with his messy dark brown hair. The look in his
glowing green eyes was ominous.
Artwork-
"Illegal Meeting of Conspirators" Based upon original artwork from
Yamato-Computer-altered by Frederick P. Kopetz
"We have met some of
you before, but not face-to-face," said the deep voice. "This is the
first time I have personally been to Earth, and it shall, I pray, be the first
of many times I visit here. I am Baron Anton Cha'rif, commander of an advance strike
force given the mission of finishing off the Argo and of subverting
Earth prior to our invasion. This man here is Ter'garv, my second. And this man
sitting to my far left is Kelzart, a Gamilon general whom I captured in battle
who has seen fit to join our Cause. So? You have sworn
loyalty to us?"
"Youah
bringing Gamilons down here?" said Sandberg.
"You have something
against Gamilons?" yelled Kelzart.
"Peace,"
said Cha'rif ominously. "I supervised the disguise. I made us look like
mere Terran maintenance workers. We shall again assume that guise when we
return to the Rikashan dimensional sub that is waiting to take us off this
world. I understand that you and Weiner serve us."
"We do, Lord,"
said Weiner with a bow. "We have been trying to subvert the defense of
Earth. And, we have the following information to give you. The
composition of the Earth Defense Fleet, and one of our military ciphers; Code
Delta."
"Excellent," said
Cha'rif as he accepted a small message capsule from Weiner. "Why have you
turned traitor?"
"We are Josiahites,
like our brothers here in brown," said Sandberg. "We believe in the
inevitability of your victory, and wish to help bring it about, Lord. In
return, we should like the power, women, and riches that Joshua and the Prophetess
Yvona have promised us for aiding them. It is supposedly the will of Ekogaru
that we help bring this rotten government down."
"It is His will,"
smiled Cha'rif. "I am pleased. I cannot linger here for long, you
understand. Continue your efforts. When we win in a few weeks, you shall be
richly rewarded. Come, Ter'garv, come, Kelzart. Again, thank you, Joshua, and
thank you, Weiner, for your aid. I even thank you, Sandberg."
The Rikashans left.
"What of the rest of
us, sir?" said Captain Borland, the Captain of the EDF Patrol Cruiser Mogami.
He was a young man, and he was standing to the far left of Sandberg,
leaning against a disused console in his blue and red peacoat over his uniform.
"Falsify the reports
from your sector, Borland," said General Weiner with a grin. "If
Rikashans show up there, Singleton, Stone, and the others need not know about
it. Tell those under you that you have received special orders."
"Of course," said
the young Captain with an evil grin. "I will avenge the brave patriots who
took over the Potemkin and died serving the Cause."
"Could we take the Potemkin
back?" asked Dr. Sandberg.
"Probably not; she's
too well-guarded now," said Weiner. "We can consider this meeting
adjourned. All of you, please leave the way you came.
Sandberg and I shall speak by ourselves."
Joshua and his fellow robed
cultist left, slipping into the crevices of the underground city. Captain
Borland led away the members of his crew loyal to his cause, along with the
other EDF officers who had joined this conspiracy.
"Now, what do we need
to do?" asked Sandberg.
"Find some way to get
rid of General Singleton," said Weiner. "Murder, kidnapping, give him
a drug that will drive him out of his mind, discredit him and let him be
arrested...so he can fall into the hands of my security forces...oh, I can do a
lot. You be careful about what you say in Council until then, you idiot!"
said Weiner. "I think he is beginning to suspect us."
"He'd better not
be..." said Sandberg as he began to have a smoke.
A moment later, they heard
footsteps. The men tensed; only Weiner had a weapon.
Weiner's hand went to his
sidearm, but, instead, conditioned by military reflexes, it came up in a
salute.
Their lone visitor was the
Commander himself!
"What are you two
doing down here?" asked Singleton.
"Sir...we...came down
here to think," said Weiner. "I was trying to convince my colleague
here that we shouldn't give up so easily. The Rikashan Empire is beatable; and
we've been through far worse than their planned invasion. This place underground
is mute testimony to that fact, sir."
"Good, Weiner. I was
wondering about your loyalty. I'm not sure about yours, Doctor Sandberg. I was
going to ask you for your resignation, Piper. But, since I note that General
Weiner might be bringing you around, you shall have one last chance. But,
anything else as demoralizing as your outburst today... and you are off the
Defense Council. Do I make myself clear?"
"Yessir, you do,"
said Doctor Sandberg.
Singleton looked carefully
at Weiner and then at Sandberg. At random, he walked over to one of the
consoles on which Cha'rif had been sitting a few minutes ago. Noticing some
black fibers, he picked them up. "Was anyone else down here with you
men?"
"No, sir," said
Weiner with a suddenly dry throat. "No one except maintenance
workers."
"Thank you," said
Singleton. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have other things to see to. Thank you for this talk, gentlemen."
Then, the Commander turned
his back to Sandberg and Weiner and slowly walked out of the abandoned command
center.
Behind his back, Sandberg
gestured to Weiner. He refused.
Finally, Sandberg
whispered, "Why the hell didn't you shoot him when he had his back
turned?"
"He's my commanding
officer, and he's a good man," said Weiner. "You can't shoot a decent
man like that in cold blood, Sandberg. I won't, anyway. We have to find another
way of ridding ourselves of him."
"Any
ideas?"
"Not yet, but give me
time. After all, it is getting close to the Ides of March." Weiner smiled.
"And, I think it may be possible for us to rid ourselves of our
Caesar another way. We're a little more refined these days."
At that, both men laughed.
IV. TRAINING
Space Battleship Argo
Tuesday, March 2, 2202
1030 Hours: Spacetime
The Argo was about two
hundred megameters away from Iscandar. The red alert klaxons were blowing, and
the Black Tigers were on patrol ahead of the ship.
"Captain, we've heard
from Conroy," said Homer. "He's reporting enemy fighter contact at
RX-211. He said he's engaging the enemy now."
"Good," said
Yamazaki, who was acting as Officer of the Deck on this exercise. "Any radar contacts?"
"Radar contact to
starboard at ninety-nine degrees," said Nova from her post. "Range,
eighteen megameters, speed twenty space knots. It looks like a battleship
squadron; one battleships, two carriers, five
cruisers, and fifteen destroyers. Putting it up on the video
panel."
"Gamilons!"
hissed Venture.
"I'm getting word from
the enemy commander," said Homer.
He changed the screen, and
Lysis appeared again on the Argo's main video screen. He was snarling,
and he looked suitably menacing, almost as if he was a real enemy again rather
than a wargames opponent as Desslok had arranged.
"You can't continue
your hold on this space," said Lysis. "One way or the other, I'm
going to dislodge you. My fighters are blowing yours out of the sky..."
Homer listened and reported
to Yamazaki. "Actually, Conroy reports that we're winning."
"The battle's not
going the way you expected, Lysis," said Yamazaki. "We hear that
you're losing..."
"Damn you...we'll blow
you to pieces!" said Lysis. The "enemy" general then cut off. A
moment later, fire from his fleet, at practice intensity, began to roar in
towards the Argo.
"Return fire!"
said Yamazaki.
"Opening main guns, target,
Gamilon fleet," said Dash. "FIRE!"
The Argo's main guns
went off, firing practice rounds at the Gamilons.
"We've taken some
damage," said Sandor. "Royster, get a damage control party to the
galley!"
"Yessir," said
Royster from his post in the Mechanical Block.
"We've taken out six
of their ships," reported Nova as the colors of the blips on her radar
screen changed; the Gamilon ships which had taken "fatal hits" were
obligated to stop dead in space and retire from the game as if they had been
destroyed. "That's four destroyers and two cruisers."
Up in the Captain's
Quarters, Captain Wildstar sat drinking tea as he listened to the results of
the mock battle on the intercom. Not bad, he thought. You guys are still
a little slow on the guns, but, so far, we're winning. Sounds good for our
rematch this evening when it's Nova's turn in the Captain's chair....
On Iscandar, Jonathan
Hartnell-Iiyama was playing by himself on a beach. He had changed into a
swimsuit.
He was busy throwing
pebbles into the surf when he observed a young woman sitting in the sand in a
string bikini.
"Excuse me, are you
all right?" he asked.
Aliscea of Pellias looked
up at Jonathan and gave a wan smile. "You'll get sunburned like
that."
"So will you," he
retorted. "What'cha doing?'
"Meditating. He's getting closer. He...will
arrive here in two days."
"Who? Ekogaru?"
Aliscea nodded sadly.
Jonathan noticed that she looked so vulnerable that she may as well have been
naked. "I've told Paul already. He says he doesn't know what else he can
do for me now. Indeed, nobody knows what they can do."
"Do you know what
you're gonna do?"
"I have some idea of
how to stop him; I don't know if it's going to work or not. It all depends upon
me. Me, me, me. I wish I didn't have this curse. I
wish I didn't have this destiny. I just...want to lie here and think of nothing
at all and get sunburned. I wish I could relax."
"Swimming might
help," said Jonathan. "The water's nice and warm, and it feels really
good."
"Sure you know
how?" he said as they ran into the surf.
"Of course I do. Used
to do it all the time on Pellias...like this!" she yelled over the surf,
Aliscea ran into the ocean and began to swim along, getting a kick out of it.
Jonathan followed her, smiling.
He was surprised, though. It was the first time he had ever seen Aliscea of
Pellias smiling.
Maybe I just did us some
good? he thought. Maybe we can win if she relaxes?
"So that's our
greatest foe?" said Yvona as she stood beside Ekogaru and Gralnacz on the
Technomugar Fortress. "That slip of a girl with
hardly any clothes on?"
"Yes, that is
her," said Gralnacz. "My daughter. She looks
delicious," he said, licking his lips with obscene joy. "Soon, she
shall be in my clutches."
"Maybe she will be, maybe
the counterattack I shall launch shall destroy her," said Ekogaru. "Vergar. What sort of fleet do we have ready?"
"A
hundred battleships, a hundred and fifty cruisers, five hundred escorts. You're sure you don't want any
Goraizu Fortresses?"
"I don't," said
Ekogaru. "I want to give them the illusion that they can win. Then, when I
warp in myself, Yvona and I shall dispel that illusion."
The view on the screen
changed. "Which of the planets are we attacking first?" said Vergar.
"Gamilon," said
Ekogaru. "You know my plans for Gamilon already, so I need not repeat them
again. As for Iscandar, after we scan it, and after we send a landing party
down to raid the libraries...I want it destroyed. I also want captives. Am I
clear?"
"You are,
Lordship," said Vergar. Gralnacz and Yvona also bowed.
Ekogaru said, "We
shall send the fleet ahead of us. We will warp to the edge of the Sanzar System
in nineteen hours. The fleet is to begin its attack in twenty hours. In
twenty-four hours, I expect to be melting down Gamilon, preferably in a star
system filled with the burning ruins of the Gamilon Fleet. I believe we all
know what we must do. Leave me and see to it!"
Ekogaru's lieutenants bowed
and then left the Dark Lord alone.
Later, Yvona took Gralnacz
to a bizarre complex deep in the Fortress; a complex of labs and torture
chambers known as Joy Suite Number 66.
“I have been working with
some technicians,” said Yvona. “First, I need to swear you to secrecy.”
“For what reason?” said Gralnacz.
“His Lordship would not like
this. I serve him, but I am hoping for even more.”
“Explain,” said Gralnacz as
the two of them walked towards a capsule covered with lights. Two Technomugar
technicians in white coats were working on it.
“Ladyship,” said one of
them. “The growth of the material that we took from your brain tissue has
reached the first stage. We can soon establish the mental uplink again.”
“Do you have brain waves
from it?” said Yvona.
“It?” said Gralnacz. “This
sounds like fun. Activate the mental blockers. We don’t want his Lordship
hearing this.”
“Of course,” said the tech.
He flipped a switch. “You have some confidentiality, Lady Yvona, Lord Gralnacz.
Ten minutes’ worth.”
“Good. Open it,” said
Yvona.
The chamber was opened, and
a young girl of who seemed to be about ten years old opened her eyes and sat
up. She wore nothing but a cloth over her loins, and she was wet.
“Hello there, you thing,” said Yvona.
The little girl, who looked
much like Yvona, smiled and said. “Greetings. Mother.”
“What?” said Gralnacz. “His Lordship got you pregnant…The little rat
looks just like you!!”
“No,” said Yvona. “It is a
clone. A clone of myself. Of course, His Lordship does
not know that it exists.”
“Let me out of here, or I
swear, I shall murder you…Mother,”
said Yvona’s clone with an acid smile that was terrifying on such a young
child; even a young child created by horrifying, unnatural means.
“You have no right to speak
to me like that!” yelled Yvona as she struck her own clone across the face. “I
don’t even know if you have a soul or not, you little snot.”
“I have foreseen
something,” said the clone with a sick grin.
“What?” said Yvona.
“She is going to kill you,”
sang the clone. “The little blonde whore from the Argo is going to run you through like a sausage one day, Mother. Then I will surpass you. Mother, dear. Your plot to grab power
from Ekogaru shall fail, because the power, Mother,
shall be mine. Mine!”
“If she kills me, you don’t
get to live,” hissed Yvona.
“Why not, now?” said the
clone.
“I will force you to grow
up in there,” said Yvona. “When you are old enough,
and I have uploaded enough of my memories into you, your body will die, but
your brain will live. The brain will then go into me, and with a younger
organic brain and more psychic power and a greater link with Below,
then I will have enough power to bring down even His Lordship. Then people will
worship me. Do you know why?”
“Why?” said the clone.
“Because
I will have a young brain. A brain ripped from your skull, and I shall be more
powerful than Ekogaru.”
“No, I’ll be,” sang the
clone. “You’ll die, Yvona. I’ve foreseen it! Then I’ll be the new you! Hee hee hee hee hee hee hee…”
“This sounds like fun,”
said Gralnacz. “What do I get out of this?”
“Her,” said Yvona.
“Can I have her now?” said
Gralnacz with a sick, twisted grin.
“Not yet,” said Yvona.
Yvona shoved down her clone and hit a button on the capsule. It closed, and
even as the clone cursed and banged on the window, a gas filled the sick
artificial womb and put the poor, misbegotten monster to sleep. “She has to
grow a bit more, first. But, maybe we can arrange something before the
operation, my dear Gralnacz,” said Yvona as she ran her tongue over the balding
cyborg’s cheek in a whorish manner.
“Wonderful,” said Gralnacz.
“Turn off the blocking mechanism now, Maza!”
“Yes, Lord,” said one of
the techs.
“After all, we don’t want
Ekogaru to know I’ve been unfaithful,” said Yvona.
“No…we do not,” said
Gralnacz with a sick, sick grin.
Much later that day, the Argo
was "under attack" again, this time, by a Gamilon force of cruisers
and destroyers led by General Fraken. For the Gamilons, it was a "commerce
raiding" mission, while, for the Star Force, it was a "blockade
running" mission.
This time, Nova was in the hot seat, sitting in the
Captain's chair as Officer of the Deck.
"Enemy spotted,
ma'am," said Raiden from the Cosmo-Radar. "Range, ten megameters,
speed, twenty-three space knots; they're coming from port, 195 degrees, and
starboard, at 92 degrees. These guys are coming in fast."
"Venture, match their
speed," ordered Nova. "Then, port, ninety degrees."
"Increase speed to
twenty-six space knots," he ordered. "Port, ninety
degrees."
"You know we've got
their "T" crossed, ma'am," said Dash.
"Oh, I know,"
sang Nova. "All guns, open fire! Target, enemy
fleet!"
The Argo's guns went
off, still at practice intensity, "taking out" ship after ship on the
Gamilon side.
"Good job,
Rosstowski," said Dash.
Shoving his worries about
Aliscea out of his mind, Paul smiled and got back to his job, taking out some
more Gamilon ships at practice intensity.
We beat Lysis in the
last exercise,
thought Paul. I hope we can make it two in a row here with this Fraken guy.
"Oh, no!" yelled
Parsons from her post. "One of the ships has broken formation! He's trying
a ramming manuever!"
He wouldn't really hurt
us, but we don't need to be knocked out of action with a simulated ram and
board, thought
Nova. "Venture, turn the ship! Dash! Fire all bow missiles! Take him
out!"
"Roger," said
Venture.
"The engine room's
taken some damage; our speed is dropping," said Yamazaki.
"In position to fire
missiles!" said Dash.
"Fire," ordered
Nova.
"FIRE!" yelled
Dash.
The Argo fired some
practice missiles right at Fraken's flagship. The simulated explosions went
off, and before Fraken could react, his ship was "finished."
Dash then finished off the
raiders with another main gun barrage.
Finally, the Argo
cruised up alongside Fraken's cruiser.
"Lieutenant, tell them that they did a good
job," said Fraken as he wrote on a padd with a stylus. "Send the
Terrans this message of congratulations.
"Uh...all of it,
sir?" said the Lieutenant.
"Yes, Hanzel, all of
it," said Fraken with a grin.
"Yessir!"
"We've received a
message from the Gamilons," said Homer.
"Read it," said
Nova.
"To Lieutenant
Wildstar: The Lone Wolf of the Cosmic Depths congratulates you on your
accomplishments. Now let's hope we can work together when the real threat
comes. Also, if we win, and there is a victory ball, may I have a dance with
you? Regards, General Fraken, Gamilon Fleet."
Nova giggled a little at
the end of the message. "Homer, send this to General Fraken. Thank you;
you made a great opponent. You're a great fighter; I'm sure we can fight
together when the real battle comes up. As for that dance, we have to survive,
first. Then, you have to ask my husband. Regards, Lieutenant
Nova Wildstar, Earth Defense Forces."
V. ALISCEA'S BREATH
BEFORE THE PLUNGE
Planet Iscandar
A Beach
Tuesday, March 2, 2202
1900 Hours: Spacetime
"Yaaaah!" yelled
Nova, focusing her ki as she swung her dueling foil at her opponent on
the wet sand on a lonely Iscandarian beach.
Behind his dueling mask,
Derek Wildstar laughed for a moment and then swung again, parrying his wife's
blow. He was in a martial-arts gi and screened dueling mask, swinging a
dueling foil of his own. The wet sand and surf had stained the cuffs of his
loose training pants, but he didn't mind much. Although, he had to admit,
Nova's impulsive move of stripping down to just her gi top and bikini bottoms
seemed to make some sense as she splashed bare-legged in the surf with her
sword.
Nova came at Derek again,
but Derek knocked away her sword and thrust towards her chest. She just barely
avoided the "killing" blow and spun around barefoot in the wet sand
to attack her husband from another angle.
She feinted, and then got a
blow up under Derek's arms. He yelled, and slipped onto his butt on the wet
sand, falling down as Nova playfully put a victor's foot on his chest.
"This time, I
won!" she laughed as she threw off her mask.
"Yeah, that was
good," said Derek. "You're getting better at this."
"Thanks," said
Nova as she caught her breath. Finally, she said, "Your pants are
wet."
"Yeah, better get out
of them," he said. Derek stripped off his martial-arts pants, followed by
his top. He then stood there in only his swimsuit. Then, he smiled wickedly and
opened Nova's gi.
"Derek!" she
cried, in a tone of voice halfway between a giggle and an indignant whine.
"Nobody's
looking," he replied with a grin.
"You know I have only
a bikini top on under this," she said.
"That's why I'm taking
this off you, dearest. Probably a good thing; you're sweating like a
horse."
Nova exhaled at her
husband. "Ladies don't sweat, they perspire, Derek."
Both lovers temporarily discarded
their workout clothes and foils and equipment in the beach grass after they
packed up their foils and masks in bags. Then, they walked along the shore,
laughing now and then as the water went around their feet. They stopped and
looked at the Iscandarian sunset.
"So, Aliscea said that
he will definitely arrive tomorrow?" said Derek.
"Yes, Derek, she did.
That was the last thing we spoke of when I saw her before."
"Where is she
now?"
"Paul said she's
stopped meditating. He said she's walking along the beach now, trying to gather
her thoughts; trying to gather her courage."
"Just like us,"
sighed Derek. He stopped to fling a pebble in the water. "You know, this
could be the last sunset we ever see."
"Yes, but it's so
beautiful, Derek."
"Would you like to...?"
he asked as he embraced her.
"Not here," said
Nova softly. "I'd rather do it on the ship tonight, with the starlight
shining in through the canopy in our cabin. But, I don't mind a kiss."
"Me, neither,"
said Derek. At that, they shared a long and searching kiss, lightly clad and
comfortable against each other.
They finally broke the
kiss, and noticed a pair running up against the sunset. Nova, almost with a
reflex action, covered her barely clad breasts with her arms, but she relaxed a
little when she saw that the newcomers seemed to only be a young woman and a
boy.
As they drew closer, she
saw that the boy was in only a swimsuit and the young woman was clad the same
way; it happened to be Jonathan and Aliscea. "Well, what are we
doing?" asked Aliscea.
"Enjoying the sun, I
think," said Nova. She looked at Jonathan and said, "How old are
you?"
"I just turned nine!"
"And? I note you're looking at Aliscea
and I. Noticing girls yet?" teased Nova.
"Just
started to.
Trying to figure out which one of you is cuter."
"Silly!" laughed
Nova as she swatted Jonathan on his swimsuit-clad tush.
"Well, you asked if I
was noticing girls yet," said Jonathan.
"He has a point,
Nova," said Derek.
"Have you started noticing girls yet,
Derek?" she teased.
"Yeah. You. And
only you, tenshi,” said Derek with a
sweet smile.
"Good boy," she
said as she patted him on the head.
"You're awfully
lighthearted when we might be dead this time tomorrow," said Aliscea.
"Life is
precious," said Nova. "As long as you have it, you'd better darn well
enjoy every minute you've got. How's the meditation going?"
"I've topped,"
said Aliscea. "I can't meditate any more. I've done all I can. The test is
ahead of us."
"It's like the
maneuvers we've been through the past few days," said Derek. "We've
trained and trained and trained. I think we've trained enough...or the crew
has. I don't know if I have yet."
"I know what you
mean," said Nova. "It's like cramming for an exam in college. You've
crammed and crammed and crammed until you can't look at the book any longer.
All you can do then is just close the book, eat, and
do the test in the morning. It's like that with this battle. All we can do now
is fight. How far is he?"
"I don't want to think
about it," said Aliscea. "All right...I'm dying to know, too."
Aliscea stood with her eyes closed for a minute, staring towards the darkening
East. "He's fifteen thousand lightyears away now," she said in a
pained voice. "He's just warped again. Two more warps, and he'll be at the
edge of this system in the morning. Nova...can you see to it that Jonathan
finds his clothes and gets back to his foster parents? I'm going back to my
tower with Paul for the night. I'll be meeting Starsha before dawn."
"Where's your
clothes?" said Nova.
"The same place his
things are," said Aliscea. "Guess I'll need them to go back to
"You can come with
us," said Derek.
"No. It's best I go
back alone," she said as they walked along together. As they walked, Derek
compared Aliscea's build to Nova's; Nova was slender, but she at least had some
lean, well-toned musculature on her flanks and looked slender but
well-nourished. In contrast, Aliscea had very little muscle covering her rib
cage; Derek thought she looked almost painfully thin.
The girl needs to eat
better, thought
Derek in pity. She's just sacrificing herself for us. Is that the way
Trelaina looked? Barely eating? I need to tell Paul to tell her to eat better.
Derek could tell that Nova
had been thinking the same thing, because she said, "Aliscea, come back to
the ship with us for tonight. I'll cook you a good meal. You'll need your
strength to fight Ekogaru."
"No, Nova...I don't
want anything," said Aliscea sadly.
"Aliscea, I can see
your hipbones," said Nova as they approached the patch of beach grass
where her things lay next to Jonathan's warm-weather clothes. She looked at
Derek and Jonathan and said. "Could you two please turn your heads for a
minute? I'm going to help her get dressed."
Derek understood what Nova
meant when he saw Aliscea's underwear in a little pile beside her dress.
"C'mon Jonathan...don't look," he whispered. He ushered Jonathan away
for a bit.
Nova helped Aliscea out of
her bikini bottoms, and then, to Aliscea's surprise, Nova undressed herself for
a moment. She then stood naked before Aliscea. "This is the way your hips
should look," said Nova softly. "Touch them...go ahead...see? You can
just barely feel the pelvis? Yours sticks out too much to be healthy,"
said Nova as she ran her hands over Aliscea's body for a minute. "What do
you eat?"
"I'm a
vegetarian."
"I'm not. But, you
need protein. Soybeans, tofu, nuts...I can make up a proper diet for you on the
ship later on tonight."
"Thanks. My stomach is
so thin," said Aliscea in a sad voice.
"That stomach...does
it hurt you to be with Paul? I mean...when he lays on
top of you?"
"A little," said
Aliscea with a trembling lip. "I've gotten thinner since I've married
him."
"Well, I'd eat better,
and see if you can lay on your side or lie on top when
you're alone with him," said Nova quietly. "Uh...Derek and
I...experiment with different positions."
"You love him a lot,
don't you?" said Aliscea softly. "You're blushing...just talking
about him. And I can tell..."
"Well, don't let our
men know that!" whispered Nova. "C'mon. Let me get you into your
clothes."
"What about
yours?"
"They're some distance
away; I'm okay in this for now, given our current audience," said Nova as
she gathered up her swimsuit. Nova dressed, and then she helped Aliscea back
into her underwear and dress. "No sandals today?"
"I left them back in
my tower. You don't need shoes on in the sand."
"Good point,"
said Nova. "I have boots, but they're back with my uniform. Sure you don't
need them?"
Aliscea shook her head.
"I'm okay like this," she said as Nova helped her close her black
dress from behind. "My ladies in waiting used to help me like this,"
she said sadly. "I'm still having a hard time learning to do some things
for myself. I'm sorry, Nova."
"It's all right. You
must be suffering from quite some culture shock."
"I am," said
Aliscea as she stood there while Nova helped Jonathan back into his clothes.
"Maybe that's why I'm throwing myself into this so much."
"I think I understand
you," said Derek. "Better than you think."
"C'mon, Derek...let's
go," said Nova. "We'll find our uniforms and get back to the
ship."
Aliscea stood there with
Jonathan as Derek and Nova walked off hand-in-hand. Finally, after thinking for
a while, she said, "Jonathan, let me take you back to Conor and Astra.
Then, I'll go find Paul on the ship."
"Okay," he said.
"Thanks for the walk, Aliscea." He buckled his sandals and then
skipped off towards the boat.
"Don't mention
it," said Aliscea sadly as the wind blew through her hair.
Later on that night, Nova awoke from a fitful sleep
on the Argo. She had gone to sleep in the nude, expecting that Derek
would soon be in beside her. He never came, so she had thrown on a nightgown
when she had awakened once; without him, the Captain's Quarters could be cold.
Where is he? she
thought as she looked around the dark cabin. It's oh-one hundred on the
third already. He said he'd be here! Jeepers! He can't be doing work at this
hour, can he? Damnit, sometimes the man is so obsessed.
Nova got up, stepped into
her shower thongs, and made herself some jasmine tea. Then, she sat in Derek's
work chair, sipping at the tea as she watched the stars. Eventually, she got
relaxed, kicked off her slippers, and put her bare feet up on the console that
held some of Derek's shipboard instruments. Then, she waited.
Where is he? He promised
me we'd have this night together before the battle. Did he stand me up? What
can he be doing? Where can he be? What is on his...?
Some time passed. It was
about a half an hour. Then, Nova kicked on her shoes, stood, and flung open his
locker. His gunbelt and astro-automatic were missing.
"Of course," she
said out loud. "Girl, how could you have been so stupid? If he knows we
have a big battle coming up...he's practicing. Well, I can't run around the
ship like this, so..."
Nova then shut her
husband's locker and opened her own. Shivering against the cold, the nightgown
came off, and she reached for fresh undergarments and a fresh uniform....
Captain Wildstar was working out, alone, in the Argo's
Combat Simulation Room near the target range. He had set the robotic arms for a
particularly vicious firing pattern, and he jumped back as he just barely
dodged the fire. He fired a few practice rounds at the arms, wincing as one
practice-intensity bolt hit him. But, he just somersaulted and fired again and
again, catching his breath in the near-darkness as the simulated battle
continued.
The arms fired yet again,
but Derek gritted his teeth and fired a pattern at the arms. He thought, Ten, twenty shots...how much ammo do I have left
in this pack...? I have to be able to fight if we get boarded for real in that
battle. I can't let them take the crew; the ship...Nova. Damnit, they'd better
not hurt a hair on her head! I hope she understands why I'm doing this before
bed...I've got to be ready. I just have to be!
Derek fired again, but his
eyes were dazzled as the lights suddenly came up.
He blinked, looking at the
slender form silhouetted in the suddenly bright light.
"Derek," said his
wife's familiar voice in a tone between anger and pleading. "It's almost
0200 Hours. Are you ever coming to bed tonight?"
"Hold," barked
Derek to the computer console. One of the arms stopped. He looked at the clock,
and at Nova, and sighed. "I'm sorry. I forgot the time. I was just working
out."
"For
what reason?
You're just going to work yourself to death!"
"So?" he said as
he pulled his shirt off and threw a towel over his shoulders. "You were
down here today with your astro-automatic before we hit the beach."
"Yes, but I know when
to rest," she said as she put a hand on his shoulders. "Don't you
know that with Rosstowski on Iscandar with Aliscea, that
you'll have to sit in the Combat station again in this battle?"
"I know that. That's
why I'm practicing."
"Derek, you can't practice
yourself into exhaustion. And...well...you promised
that we'd be together tonight," she whispered. "We may never have
another opportunity, Derek."
"Nova...I'm...I'm
sorry..." he said. He sighed and shut off the computer. "C'mon. Let's
go."
"Thanks," she
said softly.
Later, it was 0310.
They had enjoyed their
private lovemaking, and all of the tenderness that followed. Nova lay innocent,
naked, and asleep on Derek's bare chest as he lay there in their cabin looking
out at the stars.
I envy you, Nova, thought Derek in silence. You
can turn it on and turn it off so easily and just go to sleep. Not like me. I'm
an insomniac when I get tense.
Nova then twitched a little
in his arms and cried out in her sleep "Derek! Derek? Protect me...protect
me...from...her..."
"Nova?"
She awakened and looked at
him with bleary eyes with drying tears and sleep caught in the corners.
"Derek? I'm sorry. Just a bad dream. Yvona
was...torturing me again. Will we win?"
"I hope so," said
Derek softly as he stroked her hair. "C'mon...go back to sleep."
"Now you're telling me
to sleep. What a switch," she said in a slurred voice. She grabbed his
hand. "C'mon...Derek, let's both get to sleep. Let's both wish..."
"...on a star?'
Nova nodded.
"sounds
like a great idea," mumbled Derek. "Because, at
this point, I'm not sure what else to do."
"Tomorrow is it,"
said Nova.
"Yes," he said.
"Tomorrow is...it..."
TO BE CONTINUED WITH ACT
FOUR: "The Crucible"
THERE ARE NOW 85 DAYS
TO THE ARRIVAL OF EKOGARU IN EARTH'S SOLAR SYSTEM
To return to the Introduction to the Rikasha Incident please click here