Part IV

"I told you we'd get out of that mess," Nimrod said happily as he and Reggit made their way through a garden near the palace. "We were able to cut our ropes and escape."

"Only because everyone else was so distracted by all those senators trying to beat up Wheiner!" Reggit snapped. "I can't believe this! Now I am a fugitive! Wonderful! Once again you have ruined my life! Thanks a lot! I only hope whatever it is you're trying to get on this stupid trip is worth it!"

"I always thought you were worth any hassle," Nimrod said.

"WHAT?" Reggit turned on him.

"The truth is I can get gold and jewels and all that other stuff any time," Nimrod shrugged. "But a partner to share them with is valuable beyond compare!"

"You unbelievable…" Reggit fumed. "AAAAAAAAHHHHH!"

"I take it you are a bit confused," Nimrod blinked.

"Confused? No," Reggit glared at him. "Annoyed beyond belief? YES! You ruined my life because you were lonely?"

"Hey! Being on the run from the Galaxy Rangers isn't exactly the best way to start a committed relationship," Nimrod said.

"Someone should commit you to an insane asylum!" Reggit snapped. "Don't you understand that I am an ambassador? Or I was until you've shown up! I work in an office now! A big one! With a corner window and everything! I get to go to parties where the majority of the guests are not criminals or lunatics. Okay some of them are politicians but…"

"But are you happy?" Nimrod asked. "That's the sixty four credit question here."

"That is not the point," Reggit snapped.

"I think it is," Nimrod said. "Admit it Reggie. You're trying to be something you're not and you're miserable! I can tell by the crease lines in your face."

"Nice try but I moisturize," Reggit snapped. "I am going home and try to salvage what is left of my career. Maybe if I throw myself on the mercy of the Court they'll let me off with a brief jail stint in some fun little white collar prison? You do remember the Royal Decree, am I right? You know the one your father passed after you pulled that stunt at your sister's wedding and tried to steal her presents?"

"So he got a little ticked off because I wanted to play with a few of my big sister's baubles?" Nimrod waved.

"You tried to steal the royal jewels including the Crown of MaCavity!" Reggit snapped. "The most important and valuable royal artifact and symbol of power in the history of our people! Oh and you totally wrecked the wedding and blew up the wedding cake!"

"Like I said, picky, picky…" Nimrod sniffed.

"Yeah well that little incident couple along with a half dozen others made it a crime for anyone to even associate with you!" Reggit snapped. "The only reason I got off was because my mother had a good lawyer and she was sleeping with the judge at the same time! This is so typical! You always think about yourself! You never stop to wonder how your actions affect others! You certainly didn't think of it back then and you haven't changed a bit now!"

"But I have changed!" Nimrod followed him. "Really!"

"I hope you are referring to something other than your hairstyle because quite frankly that's the only difference I see!" Reggit huffed, folded his arms and closed his eyes.

"Well uh how about feasting your eyes on this?" Nimrod took out a blue crystal on a cold chain with some writing inscribed on it and held it out under Reggit's nose.

"What? This is my family heirloom!" Reggit was stunned as he took it. "My father had to give it to Lord Siam to pay his gambling debts! How did you ever get it back?"

"I stole it," Nimrod said cheerfully.

"Okay so you got back a family heirloom from a dangerous powerful lunatic," Reggit stiffened. "That still doesn't prove anything. Not even the fact that I'm keeping it." He stuffed it in his robe.

"Come on Reggie, you know you were never cut out for this stuffy diplomat lifestyle," Nimrod made sad kitty eyes at him. "Where's the wild carefree cat that used to dance on the high wires and swipe the cream from the mouths of fat lazy cats?"

"He retired to the islands and is enjoying the odd game of shuffleboard," Reggit told him.

"I don't think so," Nimrod smiled. "Admit it Reggie, you and I were the perfect pair! The perfect partners in crime! Even my most carefully thought out plans and most cunning schemes couldn't hold a candle to some of your most casual plots of purloin."

"True," Reggit thought. "They're still talking about who had the nerve and the audacity to switch the heads of all seventy five gods of the royal family and replace them with cartoon characters. Some priests still believe it was a case of divine intervention."

"And don't forget the fun we had at Risa Four," Nimrod purred.

"Yes that was right before Delos Five where you cheated on me!" Reggit snapped.

"We all make mistakes! That was mine and becoming respectable was yours," Nimrod told him.

"The only mistake I made was not screaming for every Galaxy Ranger and security guard from here to the end of the universe!" Reggit snapped.

"But you didn't!"

"I should have."

"You still didn't," Nimrod grinned. "Which means you still care! Come on you know you still love me! All you need is love…"

"Oh great now we're singing copy written material," Reggit groaned. "Just add to the list why don't you?"

"I was made for loving you Reggie you were made for loving me!" Nimrod danced around.

"No I wasn't! And stop singing!" Reggit snapped. He jumped the nearest tree to escape.

"You can't get away from me baby even if you climb a tree," Nimrod climbed after him on a nearby separate tree.

"That's right our species can climb trees," Reggit groaned as he climbed higher. "What was I thinking?"

"Our love is lifting me higher!" Nimrod sang off key.

"Get away from me before I set your tree on fire!" Reggit snapped in an off key tone of his own. "Great now I'm doing it!"

"You never could resist a musical duet," Nimrod grinned. "Love lift us up where we belong! Where the kitties cry on a tree that's really high!"

"Nimrod you're nothing but a complete fool! You threw your chance away for a quick lay!" Reggit snapped.

"We could be partners! Just like the old days!" Nimrod sang as he chased Reggit through the branches as the trees intertwined.

"NO! You…You'll hurt me! Again!" Reggit ran off.

"No I won't!" Nimrod chased after him.

"Oh yes you will! And I'll…I go back to my life…My boring little life…" Reggit stopped. "Gods I hate my life…"

"You'll be respected and you'll get fat," Nimrod taunted.

"Oh no I can't do that," Reggit shuddered. "Well the fat part anyway. No, no…I can't do this again. There's nothing that will…Forget it! I am not singing anymore! Okay, no more singing! This is like some bad parody of a movie that came out ages ago!"

"Come on Reggie you love this!" Nimrod called out. "Just one more chance, that's all I ask!"

"Yes one more chance to throw away my future!" Reggit snapped at him.

"Is that a future you really want?" Nimrod asked. "To stand around feeding your face listening to boring stuffed shirts all day? Reggie you were the best sneak thief our planet ever had!"

"That's because no one knew about half the stuff I did!" Reggit snapped. "Stuff you talked me into!"

"But you loved it didn't you? Admit it! Come on Reggie! You said so yourself they were going to throw the book at you anyway! Why not come back to the job you love best?" Nimrod asked. "And you didn't answer my question, do you or do you not want to be a diplomat all your life?"

"Not really…" Reggit admitted. "Okay so what if I do miss a little of the old life? I can't trust you!"

"So we'll get counseling! I can do that!" Nimrod said. "We could go to therapy…"

"I guess I could do that…" Reggit softened. "I was happy…When we were together…We were fearless…And we were bold…"

"I was reckless, when I treated you so cold…" Nimrod sang, "It was a mistake…I'll always regret…Just please don't say it's over yet…Because I-I-I will always love you!"

"I-I-I will always love you!" Reggit sang back as they scampered to the top of the tree and started caterwauling together. "Oh I never stopped loving you Darling! But I was so hurt!"

"Never again! I swear! I am now a one man cat!" Nimrod happily clasped hands with Reggit.

"To hell with my job! Let's go out and steal something!" Reggit beamed happily. "I hated dressing in these damned robes anyway! But one thing…I am serious about the couple's counseling."

"I have the numbers of two very good specialists to choose from," Nimrod said cheerfully. "A Harvard and a Yale graduate. One of each!"

"Ooh I love to pick!" Reggit grinned. "Let's go! Look out universe! Nimrod the Cat and Reggit the Tiger are back!"

"And now Reggieeeeeeeee's back in towwwwwwwnnnnnn!" Nimrod sang as they scampered through the trees.

"Look out old Reggie is back!" Reggit whooped.

This was all witnessed by a very confused Shane and Niko who stood there on the ground stunned as the two cat men scampered off together. "Is there something in the water on this planet or what?" Niko asked.

"How the hell did we end up in some kind of warped romantic comedy?" Shane blinked. "Should we go after them?"

"I'm too tired and confused," Niko admitted. "Let 'em go. Odds are they'll probably run into trouble anyway as crazy as this place is."

"Tell me about it," Shane sighed. He looked at her. There was an awkward silence between the two of them.

"I'm sorry," Both of them said at the same time.

"Look Shane I…" Niko fidgeted for a moment with her hair. "Damn it why the hell do I feel like I teenage kid who hasn't a clue how to act?"

"At least you were able to be a teenager," Shane let out a breath. "All this feeling stuff and relationship crap wasn't exactly encouraged during my formative years. We were taught to work together but not to like each other. It was like we were always in some kind of competition. Actually…For some reason most of the other Supertroopers acted like they were in competition with me. As hard as I tried to be like them it seemed that most of them were convinced I could never be one of them. And I guess they were right."

"This isn't about that, you know?" Niko said.

"No but you can see where I'm coming from. Things didn't change that much after Wolf Den on that aspect. It's just easier to play a role and hide behind what people expect of you," Shane sighed. "So I flirt a little…Okay a lot but that doesn't mean anything. If I don't take things seriously…"

"Then you can't get hurt," Niko looked at him.

"More likely I can't hurt someone else," Shane told her. "We both know no one in their right minds would ever allow a Supertrooper to date."

"Since when do you let anyone allow you to do anything?" Niko raised an eyebrow.

"You're different," Shane admitted. "When I'm with you I feel…I don't know what I feel. Less alone. I don't have to impress you. You make me feel like smiling even though I don't know why. All sorts of things."

"Kind of feel that way around you too," Niko let out a breath. "I guess that's why I get so jealous when you pay attention to other women. Even though I don't have a right to."

"Uh well," Shane admitted. "Sometimes I do it on purpose. Just a little. Only to get you back."

"Get me back? For what?"

"For driving me crazy!" Shane turned on her. "Stars Niko you have to know how you…I mean…Damn it…You affect me okay?"

"I affect you?" Niko raised an eyebrow. "What does that mean?"

"Just what it means," Shane was frustrated. "I'm not supposed to be affected but I am!"

"You're attracted to me," Niko deciphered.

"In a way little more than that," Shane said. "You know how my senses are a bit sharper than most humans right? It's not always your scent that does it. It's how I see you…Sometimes when the light is right I can see this aura around you. It must be a psychic thing but when I look at it…It's like a moth is attracted to a flame."

"You can see auras?" Niko was surprised.

"Only yours," Shane admitted. "Well and that Lady of Light but that was an exception. It was different. Yours is silver with some blue mixed in."

"Oh…" Niko blinked. "Uh anything else?"

"Well now that you mention it…" Shane scratched his head. "This is gonna sound crazy but sometimes I swear I can see stars in it."

"Stars?" Niko was really shocked.

"Yeah why?" Shane asked. "You seem really surprised."

"Oh no, it's nothing," Niko quickly dismissed it.

"No it's something," Shane realized. "Tell me."

"It's really silly," Niko fidgeted nervously.

"So has been the past twelve hours," Shane gave her a look. "Go on. Tell me. What does it mean?"

"What makes you think it means anything?"

"You're stalling again. Tell me."

"Oh all right," Niko played with her hair. "It's something I heard when I was a child. It's a little superstition. Harmless fun really."

"What?" Shane asked.

"According to the legend if you see stars in someone's aura," Niko told him. "It means…It means that you're soul mates and you're destined to be together forever."

Both looked at each other for a moment. "Real silly huh?" Niko laughed nervously.

"Oh yeah, ridiculous," Shane nervously laughed back. "You had me worried there for a moment. For a minute I thought it was something bad. Like the Black Plague."

"I know. I was seven when I heard that story," Niko waved her arm. "It's just a fairy tale."

Both chuckled a little bit. Then they stopped laughing and looked at the sky above them. "Wow…You know as weird as this place is…It's really beautiful," Shane looked around. "Do…Do you just want to take a look around the garden. I mean while we're out here and have some time to kill?"

"Sure, no problem. There is one thing I don't understand," Niko asked as they walked away. "How did you ever learn to act like a pick up artist when you've never been on a real date?"

"You'd be surprised at what you'd learn watching Tri-D," Shane told her. "Niko, uh…Thanks for not giving me a hard time. You know about the whole…dating…thing. I guess it's easier for women to understand than guys. You know since I guess you…"

"Who said I was a virgin, Shane?" Niko gave him a sly look and walked ahead.

"Huh?" Shane did a double take. "Hey wait up!" He followed her.

Both Doc and Maya saw them walk off. "It's about time those two got together," Maya smirked.

"Admit it, you liked to flirt with Goose because it drove her crazy," Doc grinned.

"That and he is a great piece of eye candy," Maya smiled.

"Oh well that makes me feel all warm inside," Doc huffed.

"Not that you don't have your good qualities," Maya gave him a look.

"Such as?"

"Modesty and humility," She gave him a look.

"True," Doc grinned as he took her arm. "And now that Tarkon is part of the League you get to see more of me."

"If my father doesn't run away screaming," Maya groaned. "I must admit this League of yours is anything but boring."

"We have our moments," Doc told her. "And speaking of moments…"

"Goose! Goose wait up!" Tiko called out as he ran. Both Doc and Maya had to jump out of the way as he passed through.

"Tiko! Tiko come back here it's past your bedtime!" Sophipo ran through as well.

"Why does my alone time get interrupted?" Doc grumbled.

"Goose!" Tiko happily caught up with Shane and Niko. "Hi! Want to play?"

"Tiko it's past your bedtime and you shouldn't bother Gooseman," Sophipo chased after him.

"It's okay," Shane waved. "I don't mind."

"I know it's all pretend but I'm kind of glad you're going to be my brother for a little bit," Tiko said happily. "It gets kind of crazy being surrounded by girls all the time."

"Oh I don't know," Doc grinned as he and Maya walked up to them. "Sometimes that has it's advantages."

"GET AWAY FROM ME YOU LUNATICS!" Zach was heard shouting. The Mutant Witch Triplets were heard squealing with delight.

"On the other hand…" Doc groaned.

"Not again!" Sophipo snarled. She and the others ran to assist Zach. He was cornered by a short white wall covered in crystals. Lindsey was there using her butterflies to try to hold the sisters back with very little success.

"Help me here! I can't hold back your insane siblings forever!" Lindsey shouted.

"Aw come on at least let me get his shirt off!" Blancipo giggled. "SHIRT STRIP!"

"Oh no!" Zach ducked at the last minute. The blast hit one of the crystals on the wall and it was knocked off.

"OH NO!" Sophipo shouted. Fortunately Zach grabbed the crystal before it hit the ground. "BLANCIPO YOU MORON LOOK WHAT YOU ALMOST DID!"

"How was I supposed to know he was gonna move?" She replied innocently.

"Phew! That was close…" Zach groaned. Then he got a closer look at the object he held. "Wait a minute…This can't be what I think it is!"

"What?" Shane asked. Then he looked at the wall and the other crystals on it. "Holy…"

"These things look like…" Niko gasped.

"Psychocrystals," Zach growled. "This wall is covered with psychocrystals!"

"What's a psychocrystal?" Rosipo asked.

"This thing right here!" Zach picked up the crystal and showed them. An image of a Po Mutant could be seen.

"Yeah it's blue but it's definitely a psychocrystal," Shane remarked.

"No, that's a soul crystal," Sophipo told them. She took the crystal and used her powers to put it back in it's place.

"Soul crystal?" Niko asked.

"Yes when a Po Mutant is about to die, they transfer either some or all of their life force into a crystal so that they can watch over their families," Doripo explained.

"Come on I'll show you," Tiko took Niko and Shane by the hand. They all followed the boy to the center of the garden with several pristine white walls and columns. All of them had several crystals on them.

"Look at all the crystals," Doc looked around. "There must be thousands of them!"

"This the Royal Courtyard," Sophipo explained. "But we have places like this all over Po Atlantis."

"Good Evening Ancestors!" Tiko called out, making a respectful bow. "Come on out and meet our friends!"

The crystals began to shine and glow. Ethereal figures of humanoids appeared. "Captain…I'm sensing life force…" Niko staggered. "A huge amount of it."

"You should because these crystals have the life force of all our relatives," Rosipo told her.

"What?" Zach was stunned. "That's horrible!"

"No. They all willingly gave of themselves for this. It is an act of pure love and unselfishness," Sophipo explained. The forms of thousands of Po Mutants appeared and mingled around them. They were all smiling and at peace.

"Wow it's a family reunion," Bubblehead chirped. "Which one's Uncle Bob?"

"I dunno I think its the fat one," Ditzy said. "Do we even have an Uncle Bob?"

"No, we don't," Bubblehead thought. "I think…"

"Our ancestors watch over us and protect us always so we are never alone," Tiko told them. "Come on!" He took Shane by the hand, leading them to a regal pair of Po Mutants. "Mother, Father! We've come to visit you. And look! I made a new friend! His name's Goose! He's a mutant too. Not a Po Mutant but a mutant still. Say Hi Goose!"

"Uh hi…" Shane was at a loss for words. The two figures smiled kindly at him.

"Oh goody…Now we get to meet the family," Doc gulped nervously. "And they're all ghosts…"

"Not quite…This is almost exactly like the Slaver Lords, I'm sure of it," Niko said. "These are definitely psychocrystals only…The feeling I get from them is not half as cold."

"Have you noticed something else?" Doc said. "I mean look at them all. Don't they remind you of someone?"

"They look a lot like the Queen…" Niko realized.

"What Queen?" Lindsey asked.

"The Queen of the Crown," Zach's eyes narrowed. "Same purple skin, memory birds and now these crystals! It's all the same! Which means…"

"The Queen is a Po Mutant," Niko finished the sentence.

"Will somebody please explain to us what Queen you are talking about?" Sophipo stamped her foot.

Suddenly the crystals stopped shining and the figures disappeared back into the crystals. "Your majesty!" Rain the guard woman ran up. "There's a huge fleet of ships off our starboard side!"

"What?" Zach looked upwards. Through the transparent dome of the city they could see a huge fleet of Crown Warships above them.

"Is that the Queen you were talking about?" Sophipo asked.

"That's the Queen we're talking about…" Doc gulped. "Great! Like we didn't have enough problems here!"

Next: The insane conclusion! Not that there wasn't an insane beginning and middle…