This story is set after Rimmer Re Born and before Back to earth. I have tried to give a more classic feel to this story. Hope you like it. Reviews welcome.

Rimmer sat inside Red Dwarfs examination class room on level 4b, he was sitting the Astro Navigation exam for the fifteenth time. He looked down at the four sheets of questions, pages of complex questions all neatly set out before him. He looked up at the clock on the wall monitor, 20 minutes had passed and he had written Arnold on the top of the paper and nothing else.

Hollys image faded into view, replacing the clock. "Alright Arnold, how's it going?" he asked

Rimmer looked up, a scowl spread across his face. "Holly, I am trying to sit a very complex and brain stretching exam here, you interrupting me is not helping. What do you want?"

Hollys face looked vacant for a second and then seemed to recall what it was he wanted.

"There is a message for you Arn, do you want to hear it?"

Rimmer sighed. "This better not be Listers idea of a joke, and your about to pass on the message that I'm a total smeghead."

Holly replied. "No Arnold this is from outside the ship."

Rimmer sat up. "Aliens?" his voice raising in excitement.

Holly rolled his eyes. "No, it's from Ace."

Rimmer slummed back into his seat, what did he want? Lister had told him all about the last time Ace turned up and asked the last hologram version of him to be Ace, If it was this then he could take his floppy hair and frankly smoke his own smegging kipper.

He however resided that he better here what captain fantastic was doing now. "Ok, well I guess I better hear it."

Hollys face faded from view and shortly after was replaced by the chiseled features of Ace Rimmer. The recording began and Aces smooth confidant tones filled the airwaves.

"This is a message for Arnold J Rimmer of the Mining ship Red Dwarf dimension 45565. Arnold, old son I've got into a spot of bother in dimension 32345. I have very little time to explain using quite a lot of power to get this message through to you."

The image seemed to fizzle at this point and then stabilize.

"Listen, it seems that I may have damaged this dimensions time line when I jumped into it, and now I can't seem to leave. That would not be a huge problem apart from I am meant to be having sex in three other dimensions this afternoon. Basically I can't seem to get a fix on any other dimension apart from yours and that signal is too weak to jump too. There is a risk that I might end up spreading my love spuds all over the fourth dimension if I risk it. This is where I need your help, if you could setup an inter-stella micron radio wave that broadcasts your holographic signal I might be able to latch onto it and come through. Look I know you owe me nothing but I need you to come through for me Arn or its kippers for me."

The image of Ace glances down at his watch.

"By my calculations I have got 10 days before the window is shut forever and I am stuck here with the Zillian Sisters!"

The tone in Ace's voice lead Rimmer to deduce that the Zillian sisters were not a pair of lovely ladies but rather a pair you might run and hide from.

Ace continued.

"Look, I know you don't like me, dam when I was you I didn't like me but I've changed and so can you."

'This was it.' Rimmer thought. 'This was the bit about, you can be me crap' Well he liked being him and had no plans to change.

The message had continued and Rimmer caught the last word 'Danger'. He called to Holly.

"Err Holly can you play that last bit again please?"

The message did a rapid rewind and restarted.

"Arn, you and the other chaps there are in danger, something is coming something bad. You need to."

The message stopped and the screen went black. Rimmer called Holly.

"Holly, what happened to the rest of the message? Bring it back, play the rest of it."

Holly appeared on the screen. "That's all there is Arnold, it stops mid sentence. Pretty ironic really, him about to tell you what to do, to avoid the impending danger. Now you will never know how to avoid it and live in fear for the rest of your days."

Rimmer snarled at Holly. "I don't need your conjecture, thank you very much Holly."

"Just saying it sounds like its curtains for you mate." Said Holly smugly.

"Actually he said others, not just me, that could include you Holly." Said Rimmer equally as smugly.

Holly thought about it. "Oh yeah, I did not think of that. Oh well I've had a pretty good life can't complain. Do you want me to restart the exam Arnold?"

Rimmer snapped back at him. "NO, can't you see I have more important things to be doing now, for one thing I have to find out what the smeg an Inter-Stella micron radio wave is."

Holly looked pleased. "Oh I can tell you that one, that's easy."

Rimmer sighed. "Holly, if you are about to tell me that an Inter-Stella micron radio wave is your basic radio wave that is a micron with Inter-Sella, then no thanks."

Holly looked surprised. "I though you said you didn't know what one was."

Rimmer got up; leaving his pencils neatly arranged on the desk and walked out shacking his head.

Lister was in his room, he was using the newly installed VR machine that Kryten had brought on board from Starbug. Rimmer walked in and looked at the pathetic form that stood thumping bits of body in all directions. Rimmer causally went up to the VR console and pressed the shutdown key, he loved his hard light bee it gave him new powers over Lister.

Lister stopped thrusting in all directions and fiddled with the back of the VR helmet and pulled it off his head. He turned and saw Rimmer grinning at him.

"Hey what the smeg did you do that for Rimmer? I was enjoying that VR table tennis."

Rimmer walked over to the table and sat down. "I bet you where Listy, I am surprised you where not going for the world record in groinal thrusts, not sure how that features in table tennis mind you."

Lister detached the rest of the VR hear and walked over to Rimmer. "I'll have you know that I am very good at table tennis."

Rimmer smirked up at him. "Sure Listy, good at table tennis or at inter VR relations, I see your playing that Japanese girl again, the one with the really big bats!"

Lister slumped down onto the chair opposite Rimmer and cracked open a can of larger. "Look man, I don't interfere with your evenings with Rachel so don't interfere with mine. Anyway Holly says you have had a message from Ace."

Rimmers nostrils flared at least twice the normal amount. "Really, that message was private. Holly had no place telling you about it."

Lister carried on. "Well he says that he needs our help, stuck in some sort of dimension and apparently we might be in mortal danger."

"He wanted my help Lister, not yours!" said Rimmer his tone raised a bar or two.

Lister held up his hands. "OK OK chill out man, whatever. Is there anything I can do?"

Rimmer thought about it. "Yes, you can go find Kryten and meet me in the drive room. Ten Minutes, got that?"

Lister stood up and did a mock Rimmer full sault. "Yes Sir, Mr Rimmer Sir!"

Rimmer left the room. As he walked down the corridor he wondered what the smeg he was going to do, he had no ideas, and no ideas when you are facing a smeg load of unknown danger was not good in his books.

Lister and Kryten walked into the drive room. Kryten immediately turned to Rimmer. "Mr Rimmer, is it true, is Mr Ace in some sort of mortal danger?" his face showing that he had clearly gone into worry mode.

Rimmer sighed. "Do I not get any respect around here, it was my message I should of briefed Kryten."

Kryten looked went from worry to guilty mode. "I'm sorry sir, Mr Lister was insistent that I ask him about the message."

"Whatever, look we need to locate something called an Inter-Stella micron radio transmitter. Do we have one on Red Dwarf?"

"Have you asked Holly?" asked Kryten.

"No, but I guess it's worth a very long shot. Holly, do we have one of these things?" Rimmer asked.

Holly appeared on the monitor. "I've checked all my records, including my junior radio club book and I can confirm that we do not have one."

Rimmer rolled his eyes. "See that is why I didn't bother, we are still stuck millions of years in space with a useless computer."

Lister who was now sitting across the room drinking some sort of curry coffee had an idea. "What about scanning the records from the last ships we encountered on Starbug, maybe there was one of these things on board one of them."

"Good idea Mr Lister." Said Kryten. "Holly can you do a cross check against the Starbug log please?" said Kryten.

Holly tutted. "Do I look like a glorified data processing unit?"

Rimmer interjected. "Holly just get on with it!"

Holly receded. "OK, alright hang on a tick, this might take a min."

The three of them stood there while Holly ran the check. Listers patience finally got the better of him. "How long now Holly, it's been twenty minutes?"

Holly reappeared on the screen. "Right got it, our best option of finding this thing is at this location." With that his image was replaced with a region of space and an X marking the spot.

Kryten looked closely at the coordinates. "Holly, are you sure?" he asked his voice slightly showing a nervous strain.

"Yep, 110% Bobs you aunt, Fannys your uncle I am."

Rimmer looked at the screen. "Why, where is it Kryten, what's wrong?"

Kryten checked its internal database, and he was sure he was right. "Sirs, this location is where we encountered Legion."

Lister looked up from his coffee. "What that weird bloke that wanted to kidnap us and treat us in luxury until our dying days. The one that was made up of all four of us?"

Kryten looked worried. "Yep, that very one Sir. But there maybe a way we can avoid the same situation as before."

Rimmer addressed Holly again. "Holly, how far is it to the space research centre from here?"

Hollys image repaired replacing the stella map. "Oh, we are in luck about 6000 clicks away should take about 5 days if we leave straight away on Starbug."

Rimmer looked pleased. "5 days that's excellent that would give us 5 further days to sort out this mess."

Lister held up his hand. "Hang on there space duke, put those space puppies back in the stable. We ain't leaving the Dwarf again, not so soon after we just got it back. Hol, how long if we take Red Dwarf instead?"

Holly did some head banging, and said "Nine days Dave."

Rimmer whistled. "Nine days, that does not give us much time. We have to take the bug."

Lister stood up. "No smegging way man. No one is taking no smegging starbug, we go togther on Red Dwarf. Got it!"

Rimmer looked at Listers face, he wasn't going to budge, but nine days that left them no time. Who was he kidding he didn't even like this Ace smegger, if Lister wanted to endanger himself to rescue him then so be it.

"OK Lister you want to do it that way fine. You help out ace, I have other plans."

A frown crossed Listers brow. "Like what Rimmer?"

Rimmer placed his hands in front of him and rocked on his heels. "I have a very important survey that needs completing. I can't possibly be distracted from it."

"What survey Rimmer?" asked Lister.

"Nothing that you need worry about Lister, now I really must be going." With that he walked about of the drive room.

Lister looked to Kryten and then to Holly. "Hol, do you know what survey he is on about?"

"Beats me Dave, no one tells me anything around here." Said Holly looking rather put out.

"Sir we made very well need Mr Rimmers help with this, from what I understand from Aces instructions we need his holographic bee to complete the signal." Said Kryten.

Lister sighed resolute that he again would have to go once more and get Rimmer to help Ace. "OK Kryters leave Rimmer to me. You and Holly try and get us to that space station."

Lister found Rimmer in his room. He was re-arranging his sock draw with such precision that it almost scarred Lister.

"Rimmer, why are you such a smeghead?"

Rimmer turned around to see Lister leaning against the doorway. "What Lister?"

Lister went on. "You heard me, you always run away from things and never face up to the moment. Ace really needs you. That's why he sent you the message and not me."

Rimmer closed the draw. "Ace does not need me, anyway if he wants to go swaning around dimensions on a sex tour and getting himself stuck with the Zillion sisters that's his own smegging fault."

Lister went over to the table and chairs in the middle of the room and sat down. "Whatever man, but you and he are the same."

Rimmer snapped. "No Lister we are not. He's out there being all brave and Mr horny pants and I am stuck here with you."

"Yeah, that's true, but you are cut from the same hologram the same original Rimmer. He's almost like your brother."

Rimmers nostrils fleered and Lister thought 'Oh smeg here we go.'

"Let me tell you about my brothers. My brothers did unspeakable things to me. You know once they used me as a stool just so they could reach the Jam on the top shelf. Then when they had that pot they took me outside and buried me up to me neck in sand and smeared Jam all over my face. I still have nightmares about ants."

Lister sighed. "Look man, he's not like that, he's different."

"How Lister, he's just using me to get what he wants. How is that different from them?"

Lister got up and went to the door. "Look man I am just saying if it was you out there in that dimension trapped, I'd help you out." With that he left Rimmer standing looking unsure.

Halfway down the corridor Lister head Rimmer call his name. "Lister, OK I'll help but don't think for a minute this means I like you Listy."

Lister smiled. "Whatever Rimmer whatever."