Previously on LICC;

Taconator was defeated.

The O'kak clones and the Drones are in disarry and vulnerable to retaliation from the Earth resistance.

Another emergency has arisen, not giving the crew of the Spidership III a chance to rest.

Meanwhile in an underground bunker on Earth, a lost resistance, believed dead, is gathering. Their leader stpes onto a makeshift stage. "Gentlemen, we are at a crossroads here. We have been shown once again that aliens cannot be trusted. All those inhuman monsters out there seek to destroy. Either they are upfront about it like O'Kak, or they try to destabilize us from within like that freak Adon. And sympathizers from within our own species are doing all they can to help them! We should be dominating them, not the other way around!" The crowd's cheers begin to reach a crescendo. "We must take back Earth, Mars, Ganamede, ALL OUR COLONIES, FOR OURSELVES!"

Not the "keep earth human leauge", again.

Sarek: Who?

You rang?

Adon wandered into the transporter room and beamed down to the wreck of the Spidership II.

He materialized in a corridor near his quarters. Since that part of the ship was upside down, he appeared on the ceiling. Adon walked the short distance toward his old door, and forced it open. Once inside, he unhooked a small, silver disk from his belt, near his back.

The first thing he did was walk over to a pile of book that had spilled out of the bookcase. He touched the disk to the books, and they disappeared with a crackle of white lightning. Once any valuables were picked up, Adon did a flip and landed on the former floor. He then picked up the bookshelf, the desk, and several other pieces of furniture that were attached the the floor or wall. Once everything was picked up, he beamed back to the spidership.

When he materialized on the pad, he was standing on the ceiling pad instead of the floor. With another flip, Adon was right side up and making his way to his new quarters to drop off everything that he had just picked up.

These infinite pockets are all too useful.

Uh, I think we skipped a chapter.

No...they're just killin' time until the action starts...or until someone realizes that the spidership needs to go to Rigel IV!

No wait. I realize what happened! There is no Chapter XV! *insert Twilight Zone theme* And Chapter XII is missing the XII! *insert X-Files theme here*

Well since I'm Unranked Personnel I can't get a field promotion. But, I would like to have a Field Commission please. If that's okay with you Captain.

I posted this on the other board by accident. So I'm reposting here.

I hearby commission you....you're a field!

I'll be back later; just have an epic space battle; the spidership gets attacked by strange white and navy blue ships (about the size of Colonial Vipers from Battlestar Galactica) while travelling to Rigel IV. I'll have the spidership hook up with the Condimental when I post again....probably around 11:00 am...maybe later. Blow up as many ships as you want....there's plenty more where those came from (or is it will come from?)!

Oh,yeah....will someone who's in contact with Padawan and knows about Green Lantern please explain to him just what a power ring does?! He told me he's never heard of the character, and its gonna be awful hard for PD Insane to use the ring under those circumstances. No 24 hour time limit, weak against blue instead of yellow.

Later!

Kiehart, go help the resistance round up the last of the O'kaks and drones.
Jadlad, you're hearby promoted to Lieutenant, j.g.
Helm, set a course for Rigel IV, best speed.
When we get back, we'll go through the wreck of the Spidership II and see what's salvagable. The last time, we were in a bit of a hurry...

I know I saw the tank, Captain. I'm at a loss to explain this. Perhaps I should call Colanator to repair the bridge before we leave the atmosphere.

Ummmm.....Observer, you must be nodding off on the job! The bridge looks fine to me!

Hmm... a bit of damage to a few consoles, but that's about all I see...

[Author's note:*sigh* It looks like no one's gonna get this show on the road, so I guess I'll have to do it....]

After the bridge consoles are fixed, which happens remarkably fast, the spidership gets underway and heads for Rigel IV at warp 4. About three light years from the planet, the spidership is attacked by several dozen starfighters. These ships are white with navy trim. The starfighters fire their turbolasers, which bounce harmlessly off the spidership's hull.

I don't know who's attacking us, but I'm not even going to bother taking the SnowCrane out to face them. They seem unable to even make a dent in our defenses!

Suddenly a formation of six starfighters heads toward the spidership. Before it even gets near the ship, a large, bright yellow-white beam pierces the veil and hits the starfighters, atomizing them!

The spidership is hailed; the viewscreen switches to show the Lord of the Hamburgers, standing on the bridge of the Condimental. He has brown hair and eyes and is wearing a brown shirt with a picture of a hamburger on it, an orange cape with designs on it that resemble sesame seeds and a clasp resembling a pickle slice, an orange belt, yellow, red and green wristbands, and brown pants (he can't be seen below the knees)

Ah, it looks like King Rominaius and the WK decided to attack both our ships at about the same time! Don't worry; these are their advance forces; harmless, really....to us anyway. Ignore them if you want, kill them if you want. Doesn't really matter. Proceed to Rigel IV and orbit the planet. Me and my crew will beam over so we can discuss the situation in person. If that's alright with you, Captain. Or would you rather visit our ship?

I don't think it matters. We both seem to have good ships to talk on.
Helm, when we get to Rigel IV, go into standard orbit.

(In a cloaked ship off the starboard engines)

Heh, heh, heh. It looks like they will fall victem to the bait. The King will be pleased.

After Rikard had diffused (sp?) the bomb, he had recovered his fighter, landed in the Spidership's bay, headed to his quarters, showered, slept, gone to the Holodeck to learn some more stuff from a Yoda hologram, and finally went to the Bridge.

Well, where are we going now?

By the way, the nanites did a good job in their quick repair of the forward viewscreen...

[Author's note: Oh, great! Someone's playing a villain working for or with my villains, and they haven't consulted me yet! I'm not Commander Velvetta (is that supposed to be Velveeta?), and I have no idea who is!]

If I'm not mistaken, they even improved the picture clarity! (He pauses) I wonder why LotH picked Rigel IV for a meeting place. Isn't the planet uninhabitable? I seem to recall an asteroid destroyed the two colonies there over twenty years ago.

RR, remember, you introduce things here. Others are free to grab them and run...

In a dramatic shoot out comparable to the end of High Noon, Kiehart brings down a barage of Drones guarding a P.O.W. camp. He waves to the Earth resistance fighters that were hiding in the background. "Go! Get them out! I can hold off any reinforcements if they were able to get a call off!"

The spidership gets to Rigel IV without any other problems. The Condimental is already in orbit around the planet. The spidership goes into orbit as well. Soon afterward, the ship is hailed

LotH: Glad you made it. If you don't mind, we'll come over to your ship; ours is a little crowded. Roughly 70 percent of our interior is equipment!

Suddenly the Lord of the Hamburgers, Blotzus, and Bigg M.A.K.K. appear on the bridge. Blotzus is about four feet tall, and appears to be a cross between a spider monkey and a lizard-man, with blue fur and scales, wearing a black vest and wristbands, and green cargo pants, which have a hole that lets his tail through. Bigg M.A.K.K. is a cyborg, about eight feet tall; he has a human face, but the rest of his head is a blue metal, and his eyes are red (like the Terminator's). In addition, he has four arms, all made of metal. He is wearing clothing similar to Blotzus' but he has on a black muscle shirt instead of a vest, and he also has on black combat boots.

LotH:Ah...much better. We have no time for pleasantries, Captain. This is my engineer Blotzus, and my tactical officer\second-in-command Bigg M.A.K.K. The WK are out to destroy anyone who doesn't believe in the same philosophy they do and anyone who refuses to bow down and follow their ruler, King Rominaius.

Bigg M.A.K.K.:We've fed the data on the WK....or Whyte Kastles, as they call themselves, onto this disk....(He pulls out a data disk and hands it to Tacoman) I suggest you review it as soon as possible.

LotH:The WK were once benevolent, but something happened long ago that changed all that; King Rominaius' father, King Halronius, was a wise and gentle ruler over the people of the planet Quarmarius III, until something happened; no one knows what it was, but it is believed that it had something to do with aliens that had visited the planet recently. Unfortunately, those aliens are now extinct, so no can be sure. The King, and his people, became evil; they developed highly advanced technology and began travelling the universe, adding those who agreed to follow them to their ranks, destroying those who did not!

Interesting. I wonder what could have caused such a radical shift in the population.

By the way, is anyone else hungry after all that?

Adon walks over to the replicator and gets a ham sandwich.

(Lord of the Hamburgers catches his breath and continues:)

This greatly upset billions of billions of people, because the Quarmariusans were known as one of the most honorable, peacable races in the galactic order! A great war was about to brew between the Whyte Kastles, as King Halronius and his allies called themselves, and several other races who formed an alliance to stop him. However, the Free Organization Of Defenders put a stop to the Whyte Kastles; this was shortly before Jadlad left the team...about a year before he joined LICC, if I remember correctly. King Halronius died, and the Whyte Kastles' power along with it. Little did anyone know his son Rominaius would inherit his evil and reform the alliance! If only F.O.O.D. hadn't disbanded....
The Whyte Kastles believe in a demented version of chivalry. They also subsist on a diet of only two things; Beer and Hamburgers...even their children begin to drink beer when they are only a few years old!
So far, the newly reformed Whyte Kastles have taken over or destroyed at least 23 worlds! I shudder to think how many have died at their hands so far! My crew and I travelled to meet with Rominaius in hopes of ending this madness, but to no avail. We were forced to flee, our ship badly damaged! It has taken us several weeks to reach you....will you help us stop the Whyte Kastles once and for all?!

[Author's note: In case you can't tell, I want this adventure to be a little more humorous; start thinking up hamburger-related jokes and double-entendres! ]

You know... I bet we could use Hamburger Pattie right about now...
Say, there used to be a hero called Hamburgermeister around here at one point... was he part of your organization?

No....never heard of him. Anyway, our other crew member Onion Ringster is on board the Condimental right now. He stayed behind to monitor the sensors. Its just as well; he was injured while escaping from the WK, and the Heal-o-Matic has had some...side effects. For some reason, his speech is.....different. He told me to tell Jadlad hello, by the way. (He pauses and looks at Jadlad) That reminds me....I saw the Hot Chocolate Hottie on Nymorak a few months ago. She's retired from crime-fighting and opened up a ski shop, of all things!

Blotzus: Uh...I hate to ask this, Captain, but do you think your engineering department could spare a Verteron particle booster and a flange accelerator? Our engines have been kinda testy lately, and I want to see if I can fix them before we go anywhere else.

I'll have to check, Blotzus.
Tacoman to Engineering, I need somebody to come up and speak to Mr. Blotzus of the Condiimental about some parts.
Also, somebody, and I don't care who, please review this disk. Once it happens, we can hold a confrence to see what to do next.
I apologize for not responding to your earlier emergencies, but we were sort of busy saving our home planet.

I understand completely. (LotH looks at Rocket Ranger and notices the space marshal's badge on his jacket) A space marshal? Are you here as a special liason, or is LICC handing over a prisoner to you?

RR: Neither. I was stationed on Saturn, but I decided to come and join the team since nothing much ever happens on Saturn. My bosses agreed, but I have to report in every so often. I'm the chief gadgeteer. My name is Rocket Ranger, but you can call me Quincy.

Bigg M.A.K.K. (to LotH): Don't you think you had better tell them?

LotH: *sigh* One of the members of your crew is in grave peril! King Rominauis has heard about his exploits and his formidable abilities, and plans to `convert' him into an ally. Through what means he plans to do this, I do not know.

RR: And who is this crew member?

LotH: I believe he is called.......Adon.

Tacoman glances over at Adon
Adon, did you hear that? Of course, you've proven that you can take on the most formidable foe...

I don't think that Adon would ever turn against us. He's a Wanderer. His morals are too high for that.

The same was said of King Halronius, and look what happened to him. Halronius was a true paragon of virtue and justice before he became corrupted. And....there is a Wanderer among the Whyte Kastles right now...a female known only as the Silver Maiden. She appears to have great mental powers, but the full extent of her abilities have not been confirmed.

Adon, do you know anything about this Silver Maiden?

It seems that just about every evil leader wants at least one of us on their side. As for a Wanderer being on their side already, that will need some looking into, excuse me.

Adon turned and left the bridge.

I think I've heard legends and stories about the MicDonnels people...

Captain, library records show that the leader of the MicDonnels people has bright red hair, a white face, and huge feet.

The MicDonnels aren't part of the Whyte Kastle alliance. When Rominaius first began his attacks, Ron Al took his people and went into hiding. I know their location, but I have sworn to never reveal that information unless the Whyte Kastles are destroyed for good. (He turns to Blotzus) Blotzus, return to the Condimental and check on the status of the engine's cheese-crystals. I'll have the equipment sent to you if these good people see fit to give it us. (Blotzus gives a slight smile and a salute. He then transports back to the Condimental) We have computer-chips imbedded into our skulls; we can activate the ship's transporters cybernetically. (He pauses and clears his throat) I have a theory as to why the Whyte Kastles want Adon on their side. Unfortunately, he left before I could explain it to him....

The intercom crackles to life...
I have been listening to you discussions over the intercom. So, unless you need me there for your theories, please feel free to explain away.

[Author's note: I have two different ways to go with this; I need to talk to Jason in Pestichat first, to see which one he wants to go with. Make a post over in LICC Discussion 5 telling me when we can talk.]

I think its best that I discuss this with you in private.

Rocket Ranger walks over to Lord of the Hamburgers

RR: You said Ron Al's people were safe. What about King Bur-garr and his people? Do you have news of them?

LotH (with a grim look on his face): Bur-garr and his entire planet have been destroyed. They refused to bow down and submit to the Whyte Kastles. Since their world was the only inhabited planet in their solar system, the Whyte Kastles used a weapon that made the sun go supernova.

What of the Jakan d'Bokks? Our records show that they were part of that alliance, too.

Awakes in his new quarters and starts to sing a song about beer in a foreign language:

"Bier her, Bier her oder ich fall um!"

It sounds even stranger than rtsp://195.82.89.226:7070/tvt/sendungen/051/best_of_03.smi - copy that URL into your RealPlayer and hear the Chancellor sing.

Lord of the Hamburgers was suddenly engulfed in a transporter beam. He materialized in Adon's quarters. Adon stood up from his chair behind his desk. There were oak bookcases on the walls and piles of books on the floor. There were other bits and pieces from Adon's old set of quarters, some set up, others in piles around the room.

I apologize for the mess and for the sudden beaming. This is about as private as you can get on this ship.

Adon motioned for the Lord of the Hamburgers to sit and offered a glass of hot, apple cider. Then Adon sat down behind the desk with his own glass.

Now, what did you wish to tell me?

Rominaius is creating a clone of himself to take over the leadership of the Whyte Kastles if anything happens to himself....at least that's what he wants anyone who finds out about it to believe. We had a spy in the WK, now dead, who found out the truth.....Rominaius has found a way to steal the abilities of Wanderers and transfer to someone else. He wants to take your powers and the Silver Maiden's, transfer them into the clone, then place his mind into the clone's body! Funny thing is, she seems to be aware of this and is even helping him accomplish this!

Meanwhile, on another planet.....

Bombs are exploding all over a city, destroying buildings and causing fires all over the place. Several men, dressed in white and navy armor that resembles those worn by medieval knights, are attacking the terrified citizens....

Knight: You must pay the price for refusing to follow our noble leader, King Rominaius! (He draws his sword and starts to attack and old woman, but suddenly....)

Woman's voice, off screen:KAMEHAMEHA!!!! (a bolt of blue energy strikes the knight, knocking him to the ground and smashing a hole in his armor's chestplate!)

Adon leaned back into his chair and pondered what the Lord of the Hamburgers had just told him. After a few moments, he stood up, LotH followed suit.

This could cause some problems. We should keep an eye out for any attempts to abduct me. Thank you for the heads up.

Adon tapped a control on his desk and the Lord of the Hamburgers was beamed back to the bridge. Seconds later, the computer beeped. It had finished searching for the Silver Maiden's records.

Now, lets see what you can do.

The only information on the Silver Maiden that the computer records has follows:

The Silver Maiden first appeared approximately four months ago, at the side of King Rominaius during an attempt to convert the people of Palos Prime. She appears to possess great telepathic and telekinetic abilities, but it is not known if these are true psionic abilities, or something else. She has silver hair and green eyes, but always dresses in black robes with silver piping on the sleeves. Nothing else in known about her; its is as if she didn't exist before she appeared with Rominaius.

That record appears to be incomplete! During our...`visit' to King Rominaius, she demonstrated the ability to teleport, although this may have in fact been a form of psionic invisibility. One minute she wasn't there; the next she was by Rominaius' side!

(Bigg M.A.K.K. interrupts.)

I believe she has teleportation abilities; if it was psionic invisibility, it would not have affected me; my visual sensors would have recorded it, even if I didn't see it when it actually happened. I played back our meeting with Rominaius several hours later, and saw nothing different.

Moments later, Adon enters the bridge.

Well, that was fun. The person that I'm most worried about is the Silver Maiden. The database on her is vastly incomplete, which worries me. It looks like most her her earlier files have been deleted, but they were part of the Wanderer database. If she could cause those records to be altered, then we may be in some serious trouble. She is also telepathic, making her even more dangerous.

To answer Quantum Man's earlier question, Jakan d'Bokks is indeed with the Whyte Kastles. In fact, he is one of Rominaius' top advisors and even performs a field commander on occasion.

We also have information that the infamous female space pirate Wheyn Dhee has allied with the Whyte Kastles. A surprising turn of events, considering
Halronius' mission, before he was corrupted, was to wipe out any and all space pirates he encountered! He brother, Arr Bhee, has not made his allegience known yet!

[Author's note: Yes, I know Arby's is a roast beef sandwich place, but what the hey... Any Jack In The Box related jokes will go over my head; no JITBs here where I live]

You forgot to mention Wheyn Dhee's other brother, Harr Dhee. He was with the Whyte Kastles, but it is believed that he was killed during a failed attack on Rominaius' flagship. He has not been seen since. However, I err on the side of caution. Until I see a corpse, I will not believe he is dead; he's supposedly been killed before, only to resurface weeks later. Arr Bhee may not be a willing ally of the Whyte Kastles. He never did get along with his siblings. Probably because he was the only one of the three who ever thought about going straight, and he's the only one who doesn't seem to be bloodthirsty.

For some reason, after watching this, I'm really hungry. I think I'll go out to General Martok's and get me a taco!

Captain, in light of the Whyte Castle situation, I would recommend we go to red alert.

Good idea Inspector. Red Alert!
Isn't there also a Jucken McNuggit somewhere too?
My god... Jadlad, do you have contact with Pa'pa Joh'hn, Piezza Hu'tt, or the Dom Enos?

Captain,

We are receiving a distress call from Kahrl the Younger. Apparently his planet is also under attack from the Whyte Kastles.

Back on Earth, Kiehart watches as resistance soldiers carry rescued prisoners and wounded soldiers back to their secret base in Denver. He turns back to the rear of the line and squints to see as far as he can. So far it appears that the O'kak clones and drones haven't followed him. Of course he expected that. He was sure that the few he didn't kill himself the boys manged to get. There were three guys in particular he was interested in. Possibly as additions to the Spidership III's security force.

Alan Stankowski, an expert sniper. 29, married with a daughter, Sharon. His wife was killed by O'kak himself early during the occupation. Sharon's fate is unknown, as are the fates of all the Academy pilots that disappeared during the occupation. Many have claimed spotting the White Bishop squadron flying over minor enemy installations as diversions for ground attacks, but no one has confirmed it.

Peter Frazier. 19, athlete. Joined the resistance when his hometown was occupied. He's not a very good target shooter, but he is an excellent tactician. All those years playing American style football gave him an insticnt for knowing what tactics the enemy may attempt.

Dylan Wolfe. 34, a military intelligence officer. Dylan is an expert in silent combat, and can sneak up on almost anyone.

The three men stand alongside Kiehart. He turns to them. "They aren't following. It's safe. But we should try to get underground before nightfall." He sighs then stares towards the sky. "I wonder what Tacoman and the others are up to." He turns again and walks towards the group. "Dylan, I want you to track down as many cell leaders as you can, and bring them to the Brown Palace hotel in Denver. Most of the clones have retreated after O'kak was kakked by Commander Adon, but the drones are still causing trouble. If we can organize a strike on their production facilities, it should be no problem getting them off Earth alltogether."

Kahrl the Younger? I thought his people got wiped out from that mysterious illness a few years ago....

Rocket, Quantum, I don't think I've heard of Kahrl the Younger. what do you know about him and his people?

Lord of the Hamburgers, get back to your ship and head for Kahrl's planet. We'll catch up to you later. Whether it's a job we'll relish or not, and whether we can even cut the mustard is something we'll have to see about...

Captain, apparently Kahrl the Younger wanted something to be "all over the place". Looks like he got the wrong thing all over to me.

Kiehart stands up on the makeshift stage the resistance people puyt together and looked into the crowd. Most of the cell leaders were there. The only ones who weren't, according to Dylan, were on attack runs. But that wasn't really a problem. The attacks were concentrated on the other side of the world, and kept the bulk of Drone forces away from them. Kiehart stepped up to the mike and tapped it. "Hello. Ladies and gents of the resistance, my name is Kiehart. I came here from the Spidership III." That stirred up soem conversation amongst the crowd. "CaptaiNT acoman sent me here to pull the resistance cells together. Working seperatley they were barely holding their own aginst the enemy. We've driven most of the O'kak clones away, but those drones are still causing trouble. What I want is for all cell leaders presnet to prepare their cells for an assault on the key drone proiduction facility." The reaction from the crowd was loud and quick. He heard someone shout, "That's insane!" He let them yell for a few more minutes until they calmed down. "It can and must be done people. The primary facility is in Iceland. Most of the cells here have access to armed boats. They will be the first wave assault. Behind them will be submerisble tropp carriers. My cell was able to capture one from the Drones. The same kind they used to attack submerisble bases in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The two remaining cells, those from the west coast, just yesterday re-took an air base. They now have regained control of most the western seaboard. We'll need them to hit a secondary facility in Montana at the same time in order to distract all their North American reinforcements. Cause if they manage to pin us in on Iceland, we're boned. Mr. Frazier here has already drawn up a plan of attack that has been reviewd and approved by Mr. Durgin there." He pointed to an old man up front. He was the leader of the South American cells, which had already aligned themselves weeks before. Durgin got up on stage and took the microphone from Kiehart. "The plan is sound. But there is one flaw. If so much as one cell backs out, the plan will be worthless. The South American cell group has already thrown it's support to Mr. Kiehart. What I want is for you other cell leards out there in the crowd to confer with those whose council you hold, and come back in no more than one hour with your answer."

Lord of the Hamburgers looks at Captain Tacoman

*Sigh* If I must, but I suggest we use protective suits if we actually beam to the planet's surface. Whatever the illness was that affected the people could still be there. (He activates the transporter cybernetically and beams back to his ship)

I've been trying to contact them ever since Lord of the Hamburgers came aboard Captain. No one except Piezza Hu'tt has replied. He's on his way. As for the others, I fear the worst.

I still can't believe F.O.O.D. disbanded. When I left it looked like they were stronger than ever.

I'm lucky they phased the Lieutenant, j.g. rank back in before you gave it to me Captain.

My cybernetics protect me from all diseases. I won't need a protective suit. (He pauses, then looks at Jadlad) Lieutenant, j.g.? I did not know that the Lieutenant junior-grade rank had been phased out! (He transports back to the Condimental.)

Rocket Ranger walks over to Captain Tacoman

I'm afraid I can't add much more to the information you already have on Kahrl the Younger, except......rumor is, the `mysterious illness' may have been an...artificially created illness. Not a biochemical weapon or germ warfare, but an illness created for research that somehow got loose on the public....but that's just a rumor.

I should be fine. Wanderers are naturally immune to nearly every disease in the multiverse, except for those that are found in our home dimension. It comes from encountering many diseases during our travels and it prevents spreading an extradimensional disease to another culture.

I'm not glad they did, Jadlad. It means PD Insane now outranks me! Well, at least I'm a goldshirt.

Meanwhile, on the planet we saw a glimpse of before, the bombings continue. However, both sides have deployed troops.....

Whyte Kastle Commander: Either we take this planet, or we destroy it! I want divisions Lettuce and Pickle to take up positions to the north, and Onion to the south. All other units...divide up between the east and west! Move out!

Our communcations officer has just intercepted a message from the other side.....divisions 1 & 2, hold the Pickle. Divisions 3 & 4, hold the Lettuce. Everyone else...move out! We have to deploy and defend!

Lieutenant Frankovsky, It's my understanding that everyone who was made full Lieutenant when they phased Lieutenant, j.g. out got to retain their new rank when it was phased back in.

Sir.

Oh, that's OK, then. But I'm assorted operations so I suppose he "outranks" me anyway. Actually, I'm a tactical technician usually.

Rocket Ranger turns to Captain Tacoman

Sir, if we do send a team down to the planet, I recommend that Adon stays here. The Whyte Kastles could have a trap set up there. I also think Insane should go down to the planet; that power ring might come in handy if we run into any problems.

Thanks for putting in the suggestion, Rocket. I didn't have much to do on this mission besides monitor tactical.

Ok... I get the picture With that, Tacoman smiles Jadlad, I hearby promote you to FULL Lieutenant.
Tacoman to the crew, I want everybody who's going down to fight the Whyte Kastles to put on protective suits and arm themselves...
Quartermaster, put in a quick order for a few dozen redshirts to accompany us to the surface. Make sure they get here in an hour or so...
My suit should be able to filter out the disease in question... But just to be on the safe side, I'll get a protective suit of my own and get the Doctor to round up some innoculations.

In the holodeck, Rikard is running a program with a Yoda hologram.

Holo-Yoda: Why are you here? Why recently so much?
Rikard: We're about to go on another dangerous mission. This time, we might have to go against a Wanderer.
Yoda: Ahh, Wanderers. Powerful creatures they are.
Rikard: You know about them?
Yoda: Long ago, I met one. While Jedi protect the galaxy, it seems they protect every Universe. It may be for your team too much.
Rikard: Actually, one of our members is a Wanderer. Well, two now. But one of them isn't around right now. Supposedly, whoever we're fighting wants Adon, the Wanderer on our team, to join them.
Yoda: Caution you I must. If that happens, it may be the end of your LICC.

Rikard deactivates his lightsaber and looks at the hologram of the long dead Master. Tacoman's voice comes in over the comm.

Tacoman: Josh, report to the Bridge. We're departing soon.
Rikard: Computer, end program.

He exits and takes a turbolift to the Bridge.

PD Insane puts on his helmet, and his power ring, and clips his lightsabre to his belt.

Barvaria: Uber is sneaking up upon a Clone force, in which he with the local army. They win. They find a control base where the drones are being controled from.

"Ve vill bomb unst center und end unst drones. Get me the C-10."

Kiehart sits in the room provided him by the hotel's owner, a member of his resistance cell. He lays in the bed trying to get a little sleep, but it's no use. By the time he finally starts to feel tired Dyaln Wolfe knocks on his door. He walks in with a note. "It's a joint statement from the remaining cell leaders sir." Kiehart takes the note and looks it over. He reads it a second to be sure. He looks up and smiles. "Tell the others. We begin the operation tomorrow."

Tacoman starts to feel tired. His eyes feel heavy. He decides to go to his quarters for a brief nap. He tells Adon to wake him up in an hour or so. He is asleep before his head even hits the pillow.

He finds himself on the bridge of the Spidership. Standing in his pajamas. He notices himself sitting in the captain's chair. All appears to be silent on the bridge. No one appears to be speaking. Then he sees Adon's lips moving. After a moment he realizes he can't hear a thing. He's deaf. He walks around the bridge, through and around people who don't acknowledge his presence. He turns to look at the turbolift, feeling like something is about to happen. It does. It opens and Lt PD Insane exits. Tacoman feels something nagging at him. He walks up closer to Insane to see that his eyes are a different color. Yellow. He suddenly realizes that this isn't Insane. He tries to shout a warning to the bridge crew, but no noise comes out of his mouth. The next few minutes appear to move in slow motiuon, taking an eternity. Insane walks right up to Commander Adon, places a hand at the back of his head and appears to laugh. He sees Adon start to turn his head, then a splatter blood slamming hard against the console he was stnading by. The other crew members turn and draw their weapons. Then "Insane" changes shape. He now appears in a black and yellow body suit with a face mask. A line of wire extends from the hand he had against Adon's head. Tacoman sees that on the other end of the line a spear that plowed through Adon's head. "Insane" raises his other hand and shoots another spear-like extension through Rikard's heart. The other Tacoman and the others open fire on this creature with their weapons, bruning him down on the spot. The other lift opens to reveal a pale white monster with squid like tentacles coming from his mouth, crimson eyes, and a purple robe. The tentacles latch themselves to Jadlad. Tacoman sees Jadlad scream in terror, then watches in horor as he collapses to the floor, his skull caved in.The monster has grey matter dripping out it's mouth. It walks towards where the other Tacoman is standing. Tacoman himself swings hard at the monster but his hand floats right through. The monster is cut down in his tracks by the weaponry of the other crew members, but not before it hurled a gray ball at Tacoman. Tacoman spins around, dazed. Then he looks up with an evil look in his face. he begins shooting the other crew members, firing wildly. He turns to face Tacoman. "Welcome to your nightmare!" He howls, then turns his weapons on Tacoman.

Tacoman wakes up in a cold sweat, hyperventilating and shivering. He knows deep down that the dreams will only get worse.

Adon stood in a corner on the bridge with his head bowed, his arms crossed, and his eyes closed.

I feel them. Everyone stopped what they were doing at looked at Adon.

I know where she is, and she knows where I am.

Adon visibly tensed, and a trickle of sweat ran down the side of his face. Everyone could feel a tingle in the air as the battle between Adon and the unseen foe continued. As people watched, Adon's hair began to stand on end. Suddenly, Adon's head snapped up.

GET OUT OF MY HEAD!

At that moment, everything stilled. Adon seemed to be himself again as everything returned to normal. Adon sighed.

They're preparing for our assault. They also seem to be preparing for me.

Meanwhile, The Silver Maiden gasped. Adon had given her more resistance than she expected.

I understand sir,

I will summon my henchmen. The Limburger gang!

Normally, I wouldn't go down to the planet, but as a space marshal, I feel it is my duty to do so. A normal protective suit would prevent me from using my powers. I've modified one of my suits of armor; its weapons systems have been removed, and more biological-filtering systems put inside. I must caution you, however.....if I have to do my duty as a space marshal and it conflicts with my duties as a member of LICC....being a space marshal comes first!

Back on the Condimental.....

LotH: Blotzus, get us out of here....maximum warp to Kahrl the Younger's planet.

Blotzus: Sorry, but LICC forgot to give the equipment I asked for, so I can only reach warp 8.5.

LotH: Fine. Go to Warp 8.5, then.

Sgt. Fortesky and Onion Ringster enter the bridge. Fortesky is yawning.

Sgt. Fortesky:*Yawn* I was asleep in my quarters. Have I missed anything?

Onion Ringer: Bienvenidos, mi amigos. Domo arigato, mine herr!

LotH: Well, Milos, we finally found the spidership. Blotzus, Bigg M.A.K.K. and myself beamed over and talked to them. Captain Tacoman asked us to proceed to the planet of Kahrl the Younger, and we're on our way there now. (He looks at Onion Ringster) Onion, until the side effects of the Heal-o-Matic wear off, its best that you remain quiet.

Onion Ringster frowns, but gives the `okay' sign and takes a seat at tactical

Sgt. Fortesky: Did you give them the data disk?

Bigg M.A.K.K.: Affirmative. I just hope they have time to read it fully before we proceed any further!

Tacoman wanders up to the bridge, looking like he had a bad nap. He exits the turbolift as Rocket is giving his speech
I understand Rocket. yawning I'm sorry... I was having really terrible nightmares while I was sleeping...
Helm, set a course for Kahrl the Younger's planet, maximum warp. I want to get there before the Lord of the Hamburgers to check out the situation myself.

You want fries with that?

Hmmm, Hamburger with fries. Sounds good.

What did we find on the disk that the Lord of the Hamburgers gave us?

Well Captain, It shows the location of several key Whyte Kastle outposts....all well defended, a list of known WK allies, and has information on the history of the Whyte Kastles, taken from various databases, including F.O.O.D.'s. It also has biographical information on Kings Halronius and Rominaius. The only thing it has on Silver Maiden is a head-shot picture.

Also, I wasn't fishing for a promotion Taco. But thank you anyway.

Jadlad starts recieveing a distress call from Piezza Hu'tt.

Captain! Piezza Hu'tt's under attack!

Jadlad puts him on the main viewscreen. Before Piezza Hu'tt can say a word his ship explodes and the screen goes to static.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!! FATHER!!

Everyone looks at Jadlad. They are shocked

Piezza Hu'tt was your father?! (He looks at the sensors, a grim visage on his face) I'm sorry, Jadlad. No sign of life. Anyone on-board didn't make it out before the ship exploded.

(Rocket Ranger looks at the screen and salutes) Farewell, Piezza. May you find peace in the afterlife. I didn't know you, but from what I kew about you, I respected you. He stops saluting and turns to Jadlad So....is your real name Piezza Hu'tt Jr?

No, it isn't. It's Jaad' Lad Hu'tt. I was named after my uncle.

Jadlad falls over onto the bridge floor from where he's sitting. He's sent to sickbay. It turns out he's in severe shock. (Apparently from seeing his father die.). The Doctor doesn't know for sure when he'll recover.

Tacoman sits in his chair, a look of anger on his face and a strange glow in his eyes
Inspector, who did this to Piezza Hu'tt? Nobody kills relatives of my crew members and gets away with it. NOBODY!
With that, Tacoman's eyes stop glowing and he calms down
I apologize for the outburst... It was just seeing that senseless death... and my lack of sleep from nightmares...

Author's note regarding Tacoman: Someone please call an exorcist! )

Oh, no! I hope Jadlad put that time-sphere in a secure place before this happened! Can someone send security to check his quarters or something?

A redshirt on the bridge steps forward.

I'll go look....The redshirt leaves the bridge

A few minutes later, Rocket Ranger gets antsy I'd better go look myself. These redshirts are too klutzy....He leaves the bridge, then proceeds to go to Jadlad's quarters. He walks in as the redshirt reaches for the time-sphere

Redshirt:I'd better put this somewhere secure. Can't just leave it lying around....(He touches the time-sphere with his bare hand, a BIG no-no! Before RR's eyes, the redshirt ages rapidly, eventually turning into a skeleton, then into a pile of dust!

Rocket Ranger:*sigh* I should have warned him....I'd better hold onto this myself until Jadlad recovers. He picks up the time-sphere (with gloves on) and places it in a storage pod on his belt, then closes the pod and walks out of Jadlad's quarters

Dear ACME Redshirt Supply Company,

As our Redshirt Replicator is still inactive, we would like to place an order for 120 Redshirts.

Place it on our account.

Thank you,

The League of Intergalactic Cosmic Champions

On-board the Condimental, LotH and Sgt. Fortesky are on the bridge.....

LotH: My god! Jadlad will be devastated! His father!!... (He switches on the comm-system) Lord of the Hamburgers to LICC; We saw what happened but were unable to intervene! Did Jadlad see it? Is he okay?

King Rominaius is sitting on his throne, which is at the top of a long set of stairs, enabling him to look down upon the whole command room. There are doorways on either side of him. Rominaius is in his mid-30's, with shoulder-length black hair and a goatee. He is wearing a silver crown with sapphires in it, and is dressed in white and navy blue robes. Suddenly a WK officer comes up the stairs to report...

King Rominaius: What is it, Captain Miller?

Captain Miller: The bug we planted in the Lord of the Hamburger's cape-clasp is working. We just received some interesting information....

King Rominaius: Go on....

Captain Miller: As you know, Sir Jakkan d'Bokks had Piezza the Hu'tt's ship destroyed. Well, it seems that Piezza's son is a member of LICC!

King Rominaius (smiling):Excellent.

Captain Miller: Didn't you hear what I said?! Now the League of Intergalactic Cosmic Champions are going to be against us! We're screwed!

Voice, from the shadows: I find your lack of faith disturbing, Captain! (A hand, covered in black and purple, appears from the doorway. It clenches into a fist, and Captain Miller begins to choke. Rominaius holds up his own hand, and Miller stops choking)

King Rominaius: Question our strength again, Captain, and next time you will die! Begone! (Captain Miller composes himself and runs down the stairs) We are on a most holy mission, and no one can overcome our faith....isn't that right.....Darth Tantrum?

Yes, Lord of the Hamburgers, unfortunatly, Jadlad was on the bridge at the time of the...destruction... He's currently in our sickbay in a state of severe shock. I would imagine that anybody would be if they saw Tacoman's face takes on a look of rage and his eyes begin glowing just a bit their father's ship...destroyed...by enemy forces! And I Will personally hunt down whoever did this!
Tacoman's eyes stop glowing and his face returns to normal
What just happened?

Geez, Captain. What did you dream about?

I was afraid it would hit Jadlad pretty hard; they were close, even though I believe it had been several years since Jadlad and Piezza actually met in person. (He pauses) Captain, I believe you might want to have your ship's holodoc check you out. You might have been exposed to the Goldeneye virus. Just in case you have, I believe the cure is cataloged as serum #JB007. We were exposed to the virus once....nasty stuff. Almost killed Blotzus! (He pauses again) We should be at Karhl the Younger's planet in about half an hour. When should we expect you to join us?

Rocket Ranger enters the bridge just in time to see Tacoman's eyes glow and stop. After Lord of the Hamburgers has stopped talking, RR puts his hand on Tacoman's shoulder

Sir, I know I you're in command of the ship, so I can't pull rank on you, especially being non-ranked personnel, but as a space marshal, I must insist that you go to sickbay for a check-up! We should arrive at the planet about the time the Holodoc is through with you!

Tacomans suddenly falls out of his chair, passed out.

He opens his eyes to see Six people standing in a circle, battered, bruised, holding onto consciousness. He recognizes Kiehart and Adon, and the woman who had appeared briefly towards the end of the Taconator battle. He looks up to see gloating figures smiling down on the six warriors. He recognizes Radagast, Jake Grey, and Taconator. Darth Mortis steps out of the shadows, and next to Grey is a strange green creature he doesn't recognize. They are al smiling evil victorious smiles. Taconator steps up. "So now there are six. The last six Wanderers in exsistence. Even your beloved Captains won't be able to save you, Kiehart, Adon, Red Hawk, Journik, Ahz, Donna. It is all over for you and your kind!" The floor begins to shake and sink. The evil ones above are appear further and further away. They're all laughing. The floor stops. And the walls begin closing in. Adon and Donna attempt to fly up but hit an invisble sheild that sends thousands of volts pouring through them, sending them falling back to the floor. Kiehart whips out his guns, and with bloodshot eyes fires blindly into the sheild. The bullets bounce off it. The walls get closer, and closer. The Wanderers gather close together, weak, and tired. They try with all their might to stop the crushing force of the walls from ending them. The walss get closer. Closer.

Tacoman howls in pain, feeling as though a massive weight is crushing him. He opens his eyes and through the pain he sees Adon and Rikard hovering over him, looking paniced.

Back on Earth, Kiehart, his three protoges, and the other cell leaders stand on top of a large wall of ice, looking down on the Drone complex. It is heavily defended from the ground, and has some minor air defenses as well. But nothing can protetc the proximity defense sheild from an avalanche. It would open a hole large enough for all the ground troops to enter the complex. Kiehart turns to Stankowski. "Use the rifle. Send the signal. We blow this wall as soon as were down." The man nods at him, then rasies his laser rifle, sets it to minimum spread, and fires. On minimum spread only an infrared sensor can detect the beam. Stankowski fires into the air. Three times. The signal. Kiehart and the others climb down the other side, using the explosives they planted as foot and hand holds. They slide the rest of the way once they see the encampment. Kiehart enters the heavily sheilded tent. "Set them off. Now."

RR: Not one word, Captain! You're going to sickbay...NOW! (RR activates the inter-ship comm) Transporter room, there's something wrong with the Captain! Beam him to sickbay immediately! (RR turns off the inter-shop comm and turns around a few seconds later, Tacoman is transported to sickbay. He materializes on a bed, and the Holodoc walks over)

Holodoc:Greetings, Captain. What seems to be the problem?

Well, it looks like I am now in command.
Adon sat down in the Captain's Chair, leaned back and closed his eyes for a moment. Then he opened his eyes.

I don't like this. Someone or something is slowly wearing down our numbers. First Jadlad, now Tacoman. I don't like this at... AAAAHHH!!!!!

Adon doubled over in the chair. His left hand gripped the armrest, and he spread the fingers of his right hand over his forehead and temple. He quivered for a moment, and a small crimson trickle came out of his nose. Then, as soon as it had begun, the spell passed. Adon sat up, gasping for breath.

Computer: D-Link! Connect me with the Conclave.

The computer beeped and a shadowy figure appeared on screen. The only detail that everyone could be certain of was it had glowing eyes.

Enderi, we may have a rogue Wanderer over here.

The Figure: "We are aware of your situation. That universe currently has some sort of artificial barrier. We cannot interfere until the barrier is removed."

Very well... I will proceed with caution.

Adon bowed and the figure on the screen vanished.
I'm going to report to sickbay in case I get another attack comes on.
Adon gets up and leaves the bridge. The left armrest of the Captain's chair had an impression of Adon's hand sunk into the metal.

Taocman opens his eyes. He's satnding on the bridge of the Archangel again. But this bridge is darker than the last one he was on. He feels a sense of evil. He sees his clone on his knees. Crying. Tacoman goes over to him. The clone bolts him and points an accusing finger at Tacoman. "YOU! You monster! You betrayed me! You turned them on me to save your own ass!" "What are you talking about?" "Your nightmares! You came, and you gave me your nightmares because you wanted to keep fighting those White Kastle creatures or whatever the hell you called them. I agreed, stupidly, because I wanted to be my own man. I wanted to perform my own heroic deeds rather than just be given credit for yours. You told me that you had a cure but you've have to finish your battle first. You never came back you bastard! And now look!" He points to a mass of organic matter on the floor in front of the Captain's chair. "That was Rita. And over there is our father and Keith. Carrie was wiped, Hudzen shot into space, and Ahz. Ahz, he deserved better. He entered my head to try and stop what your nightmares had done to me. Now he's trapped in there, living over and over again the image you had of his death. The others got away mercifully, but not before they hurled this ship into the black hole. Now I am forced to relive the precise moment of MY death over and over as well! The ship starts to trmble." The ship begins to tremble. "Then the front section rips off, and alrams start firing off. The viewscreen tears open and..."

Taocman a3wakes in sickbay, sweating coldly. Tears streaming down his cheeks. The Holodoc stares at him with concern. "Another nightmare sir?"

Tacoman to Rocket Ranger, please report to sickbay.
After several minutes, Rocket enters sickbay and sees Tacoman in bad shape.
Rocket: What's the matter?
Tacoman then goes on to relate every dream he's had recently to Adon, Rocket, and the Doctor
...and they all started HERE, in sickbay... right after my enounter with the living mustard ga....s... Rocket, Doctor, check my files of when I was brought in here. See if you can find anything strange.
Suddenly, Tacoman's face contorts in not only rage, but madness. His eyes glow in a strange mustard color. He gets up from the bed and picks up a phaser. He begins shooting various pieces of equipment and aims his phaser at Rocket...

[Author's note: Okay, for those of you who were wondering exactly what Rocket Ranger's true powers are....this one's for you! (This is just a taste)]

Before Tacoman can fire, Rocket Ranger raises his hand and a ball of solid blue-white light forms around the hand holding the phaser

Calm down, sir! I don't know what's happening to you, but I wouldn't fire if I were you...that light-sphere around your hand will cause the beam to reflect back, and you'll just end up needing a new appendage! (He pauses) Holodoc, tranquilize and restrain him, then run a full spectrum scan on him! I'll be in my lab. Let me know if you find anything.

Rocket Ranger:Also, keep anyone who comes in for treatment on the other side of the room. This may be contagious, and they don't need to be exposed!

Holodoc: Affirmative.

Rocket Ranger leaves sickbay as the Holodoc tranquilizes the captain. RR activates the communicator built into his space marshal's badge.

This is Rocket Ranger. I just left sickbay; the captain seems to be suffering from some form of madness. When it comes on, his eyes begin to glow. During one of his periods of normalcy, he told me to check the records from his trip to sickbay after the mustard gas blob attacked him some time back. This...`thing' may have infected him. Anyone who is on the bridge...please stay away from the Command chair....we don't know if the `problem' that is affecting Tacoman is contagious or not, so its better to err on the side of caution! I'll be in my lab reviewing the captain's medical records and the ship's log of the attack on the captain if anyone needs me.

Rikard was sitting in the chair when he got the message.

You have got to be kidding. Tacoman's down, no Milkshake, Adon's gone, Jadlad's in shock, and now I have to go to Sickbay. Plus none of the Wanderers can help us. Insane or Quantum, or even Colanator if he's available. You guys have the bridge. I'll be in Sickbay.

Rikard leaves the bridge and goes to Sickbay.

Tacoman wakes up on the biobed after being tranqualized and looks around
Doctor? What happened?
Doctor: Don't you remember? You briefly went mad and began shooting things. You almost shot Rocket Ranger, but we were able to stop you in time.
Odd... I don't remember that... The last thing I remember is asking you and Rocket to examine my medical files... Contact Greymoran and explain to him what's happening. If anybody would know what's happening, he would...

Adon sat on the biobed in sickbay playing his small clay flute. Tacoman seemed reletively normal during the small recital. Finally, Adon finished playing and put the small instrument down.

Music always helps me relax. Do you play anything captain?

At that moment, another attack came on as Adon doubled over in pain, toppeling off of the biobed. Holodoc ran over and began preforming scans on Adon. This went on for several seconds before Adon returned to normal.

The Silver Maiden is a telepath, and she's trying to get into my head. The first time she tryed, I gave more resistance then she expected. Her tactics have changed, and now she is forcefully attempting to read my mind. I don't know if she has read anyone else's minds or not. Is there any way we can block a telepathic scan?

Adon starts to shake. Suddenly an image appears before Adon. He can tell that it is only happening in his mind. The image is that of the most beautiful woman he has ever seen. She has long silver hair and violet eyes. Only her head can be seen. The head speaks

You will soon be mine, Adon! Do not resist your fate! (The head fades out of existence. However, Adon cannot stop shaking!)

Tacoman looks over at Adon with concern
Are you sure you're alright Commander?
I did enjoy your recital, by the way.
As for whether I play anything... I've always been partial to the kazoo...and maybe the guitar...
Of course, when I was younger, I liked to play the radio...

Tacoman falls asleep again. This time he sees Jake Grey smiling and laughing. They are back in the cave in Nashkel.

"The final step. I designed the curse from a piece of skin you left behind on one of your previous mission. Adding that piece of skin back to your body is the only other way to cure this diesease of yours. Of course, the other way is by killing me, but that won't happen. The reason you are seeing me now is because you are about to enter the next stage. If you fall asleep one more time, you will wake up an unstoppable killing machine. You will feel the uncontrollable urge to smash EVERYTHING in sight! I only wish I could be there to see that happen. A portion of the curse, the perputual sleepiness has ended. You may now take stpes to awake. But you can't stay awake forever Captain. And don't even think about going into suspended animation. There is an addition I made to the curse before I sent that jelly to get you. One of my allies pointed out you might atempt that. So, if you enter into suspended animation, the curse turns into a contagious spore that will infect anyone who gets near you."

Jake Grey gets up from the block he was sitting on. Tacoman realizes that it has Sith markings on it.

"Well, I bid you adieu Captain. Better stock up on No-Doze!"

Rocket Ranger is in his lab, examining footage of the mustard gas blob's attack on Tacoman.

Well, this isn't that helpful. I don't see anything extraordinary about this, except for the creature itself.....(He pauses) Wait a minute! I froze one of those creatures and sent it for analysis! The data has to be around here somewhere! Computer, show me the analysis of the mustard gas blob! (The data comes up on the computer's screen. RR reads it for several minutes, then smiles) How interesting....(He activates his badge-comm) Bridge, how soon until we reach Karhl the Younger's planet?

On the next biobed from where Tacoman is lying, Commander Milkshake, sans armor, is comatose. He has been barely breathing for the last 3 days, but his brainwave activity is nearly off the scale. The Holodoc moves to check on him again, when the furiously spiking indicators on Milkshake's readout drop to normal, and his eyes open.

Oh, what a headache.

Milkshake sits up, and looks around.

Hello Adon. How long have I been asleep? Who's that on the other...Captain! What's wrong with the Captain?

Captain Tacoman has been behaving strangely. His eyes would glow and then he would act strange. You've been asleep for several days, and I've been getting psychic attacks.

Adon fills Commander Milkshake in on what's been happening the past few days. As soon as he's finished, Adon flinches and presses his fingertips to his forehead but that is all.

It would seem that we are in orbit. There are two powerful forces on the planet below. Both are very close together.

Very well. I'll be on the bridge. Keep me informed of the Captain's condition.

Milkshake attempts to get off the biobed, but is blocked by the Holodoc.

"I don't think so, Commander. You are obviously in no condition to run the ship. You were comatose for three days and I still can't figure out..."

Go away.

Adon's eyes widen as Milkshake speaks those two words, but the EMH does not disappear. It continues to harass Milkshake.

Computer, deactivate the EMH.

In the middle of a nag, Holodoc disappears.

Turn him back on after I leave, will ya?

With that, Milkshake marches out of sickbay.

Tacoman wakes up just as Milkshake leaves. He sighs and says Computer, reactivate EMH.
With that, the Doctor reappears
Doctor, Rocket, Adon, I just had the most disturbing dream yet...
He goes on to detail his dream encounter with Jake Grey
...so I need something to keep me awake for now! We also need to find that piece of skin...
Promise me this... If I should fall asleep during the battle with the Whyte Kastles, put me and a battle suit at the point of the battle. Chances are my abilities as an "unstoppable killing machine" should come in handy at that point. If I fall asleep at another time...good luck. You may have to kill me.

"Commander, I just received a communication from Earth. The Drones and O'kak clones have been kicked off! Earth is free!"

There is a flash of bright, teal-colored light underneath the door to sickbay. A second or two later, it opens and Rocket Ranger walks in, smiling.

Guess what? Whatever Grey used on the Captain is a variation of the Goldeneye virus! The bad news is, the JB007 serum will not cure it, but it will temporarily suppress it! The Captain is right...we do have to get that piece of skin back. It can be used to create a counter-agent and....waitaminute....are there any samples of the Captain's genetic material from before he was infected on file? If there is, we won't need to get that piece of skin back!

[Author's note: About that last post, RR said it so only Adon and the Holodoc could hear him.]

Captain, you may be cured sooner than you know it! (He walks out of sickbay, and activates his badge-comm) This is Rocket Ranger. You left before I could talk to you, Commander Milkshake. Could you, PD Insane, and Quantum Man please meet me in Ops? I have something important that I need to discuss with you.

RR: Let me re-post the message.

By Plot Complication on Monday, February 05, 2001 - 07:35 pm:


Tacoman falls asleep again. This time he sees Jake Grey smiling and laughing. They are back in the cave in Nashkel.

"The final step. I designed the curse from a piece of skin you left behind on one of your previous mission. Adding that piece of skin back to your body is the only other way to cure this diesease of yours. Of course, the other way is by killing me, but that won't happen. The reason you are seeing me now is because you are about to enter the next stage. If you fall asleep one more time, you will wake up an unstoppable killing machine. You will feel the uncontrollable urge to smash EVERYTHING in sight! I only wish I could be there to see that happen. A portion of the curse, the perputual sleepiness has ended. You may now take stpes to awake. But you can't stay awake forever Captain. And don't even think about going into suspended animation. There is an addition I made to the curse before I sent that jelly to get you. One of my allies pointed out you might atempt that. So, if you enter into suspended animation, the curse turns into a contagious spore that will infect anyone who gets near you."

Jake Grey gets up from the block he was sitting on. Tacoman realizes that it has Sith markings on it.

"Well, I bid you adieu Captain. Better stock up on No-Doze!"

Now, in case you missed it, it's NOT a virus, it's a curse. and the only TWO ways to remove it are to get back that piece of skin, or kill Jake Grey. Thankfully, i dropped a few subtle clues as to where Grey got this piece of skin.

Note to the FAKE Plot Monitor (Webber, I assume?): I know its not a virus! Rocket Ranger isn't perfect, and I just thought it would be interesting to have him be wrong, okay? BTW, the plan RR is working on has nothing to do with the cure.

On my way, Rocket Ranger. Wait, where's Ops? I'm on the Bridge.

By the way, excellent news about Earth. Perhaps we should schedule a victory party.

BF: Oh. OK. Sorry.

-

Redshirt: I agree Commander. I think it's just awesome that a former Redshirt led the way.

[Author's note to Webber: Go over to LICC Discussion 5; you need to read something.]

Rocket Ranger is talking to Commander Milkshake on his badge-comm

You're the second-in-command, and you don't know where Ops is?! Its on deck six, right across from my lab!

Tacoman to bridge, someone contact Kiehart and ask him to check the Sith Ship in the ruins of the previous Spidership. Ask him to look for that piece of my skin. Odd how strange that sounds...
The Holodoc comes over and hyposprays Tacoman
Doc: This should keep you awake for awhile. I also want you to wear a cordical monitor for the time being.
Tacoman: Alright. I don't mind.

Oh Yes... Tacoman to bridge, prepare to head for the next board.

Adon was sitting on the biobed playing his flute. Suddenly he stopped and sat up.

Computer: Erect a level 10 forcefield around this biobed.

The computer beeped and a force field appeared, trapping Adon on the bed.

Good. Now, transfer this forcefield's deactivation functions into isolinear chip 47-beta.

The computer beeped, and Adon opened a small panel in the wall, and on his side of the force field, and pulled out a single chip.

We wouldn't want someone on the planet below beaming me off the ship.

A few moments later, a redshirt entered Sickbay. The Holodoc asked what the medical emergency was, but the redshirt more or less ignored him. The redshirt when strait to the bulkhead that contained the plasma conduit that powered Sickbay.

Before anyone could stop him, the redshirt pulled out a phaser and fired at the conduit. Just before he was consumed by the explosion, the expression on his face changed from a blank look to one of panic. The explosion temporaraly knocked Sickbay's power offline. It was only for a moment, but when power was restored, Adon was no where to be found.

The spidership arrives at Karhl the Younger's planet and enters orbit near the Condimental. The Condimental contacts the spidership soon afterward.

Lord of the Hamburgers: Ah, glad you could make it. We've just completed a scan of the planet, and something is seriously wrong. It's hard to explain, but I think we should beam down and investigate. Due to the environment, and the fact that the mysterious illness may still be there, protective suits are a must!

On board the spidership......

Rocket Ranger: Very well. Due to the circumstances on-board, I'm using my powers as a space marshal to determine the landing party, but I won't be leading the mission. We'll be down in a few minutes! Spidership out!

Several minutes later, Rocket Ranger, PD Insane, Lt. Commander Rikard, and three redshirts beam down, all wearing protective suits, except RR; he is wearing a modified version of one of his armors (no weapons, extra environmental systems). The planet is in ruins; most of the buildings are either burning or reduced to rubble. Lord of the Hamburgers and Bigg M.A.K.K. beam down a few seconds later. LotH is also wearing a protective suit. The helmet looks like a hamburger with a crown on it.

Tacoman to bridge, I think Adon has been kidnapped...
Tacoman explains what happens. His face begins to contort again and his eyes begin to glow And I want the person responsible to PAY for what they've done!
Just as suddenly, Tacoman returns to normal
Wow... any more of those, and I think I could be dangerous...

Adon wakes up, with a splitting headache, and looks around. He is lying on a silver pallet, his arms and legs bound by Plotonium shackles & chains. The room he is in appears to be dimly lit with purple lights, and is roughly the size of a basketball court, with the pallet in the middle of the room. From the far end of the room, behind him, he hears sinister laughing. It is a female voice.....

Well, the good news is the doctor ran a few tests and I checked out so I can be on this away mission. The bad news is, the only Wanderer on our team that was within a few days is now gone.

Back on the spidership......


Captain Tacoman is still worried about what is happening to him. Suddenly, the Silver Maiden appears to him in his mind , as she did to Adon.

We have the one called Adon, Captain. I know what is happening to you, and I have the power to reverse its effects! All you have to do is convince Adon to join us, and you shall be cured!

Okay, Commander, what do we do first? Do we look for survivors, or do we search for clues?

Tactical, raise shields and set to modulating frequencies. I want structual forcefields activated as well, I'm not going to let another crewman be kidnapped on my watch. Quantum, have your scientists reasearch something to block psionic impulses. Insane, Quantum, lets get to Ops. Colanator, you have the bridge.

Affirmative.

While walking down the corridor on Deck 6

Insane, I want a security team investigate Adon's disappearance. Search sensor logs for information on the type of transporter beam and if you can, it's origin. I also want all phasers not belonging to the senior staff or Security locked. Now...

The door hisses open and the three walk into Ops.

It looks like we need to split our forces, Hamburger. We need Adon and the Captain back and in full health but rescuing any survivors are more important. Have your men search the planet and we will look for information.

As Commander Milkshake and Quantum enter Ops, a voice plays over the room's speakers. It is Rocket Ranger's voice, and it is a recording:

Welcome to the Operations room. I noticed that the spidership was lacking one, so I used my equipment, and an unused supply room, to create it. You will find advanced telemetry data, as well as a link to tactical and sensors, here, as well as access to other information databases as you need them. At the head of the table, you will find a control panel that controls the room's systems. Enjoy!


[Note to Jake: Insane is on the planet...read the previous posts, for cryin' out loud!]

With them on the away team does this mean I have the bridge?