Part Seven: Renegade

Chapter One:

"I grew up on a steady diet of SF/Fantasy movies and books; most of us who volunteered for the REF did. It was like a strange sense of life imitating art, being trapped on Praxis during its self-destruction; only we had no hope of commandeering a Klingon bird of prey to escape in."

- Scott Freeman, in interview, 2045.

13 February, 2023*

Four months passed on Praxis, with little hope of rescue. Suddenly, the outlook changed, if only barely. The drive module of what had been the Spheresian ship-section of the Farrago was detected in a decaying orbit a little over a thousand miles up. Unfortunately, there was no way to reach it.

"Are you sure there's no way to combine what fuel we have left to get a Veritech up there?" Scott asked Rick.

"Positive - Reaching escape velocity is too fuel-consuming for a Legios, and the one Valkyrie we have is a one-seater, and no one we have here knows how to fly both it and the module. The Valkyrie has more than enough fuel - Lang's crew who designed them on the SDF-1 made it only necessary to refuel one every ten years or so, and this one was built during the last uprising, but there's no way to transfer its fuel to a Legios."

"Wait a second. Do you know whose VT that is?"

"Lt. Ellison, er.. Freeman, or whatever she's calling herself nowadays. Your niece."

"Exactly. She can teleport, and it shouldn't be too difficult a jump, considering that she covered a larger distance to join us."

"I've already thought of that," Karen said, interrupting them from the doorway of the ops area. "However, the section that survived wasn't the section I'd been on before. I have to have a target to home in on, whether it be a visual image of my destination or the mind of someone I know. It would take a miracle for me to get the coordinates right without reappearing inside a solid object."

"How can you make a jump using a mind as a focus? Wouldn't it be just as blind?"

"Only if the person is. I can read their visual input and their short-term memory to find a save location to materialize. However, if we could get someone up there, I could join them easily."

"But that doesn't help us right now." Rick was interrupted by another one of Praxis' tremors. "And time appears to be running short, if what Scott remembers is correct."

"It is correct, I can sense it, somehow. The Regis did something to this planet, something that destabilized it. Something involving evolution."

Scott and Rick looked at each other, getting strange looks on their faces, "Karen, you didn't fall asleep last night watching my old Star Trek vids again, did you?"

"No, I didn't. But there are similarities to Star Trek III, though, now that you mention it. We can't expect the Invid to fall for the same trick as the Klingons did, even if any showed up, which they won't. I stopped by to tell you two that supper's ready, so let's go eat, THEN try to save the world."

"Come on, Rick. We worked through lunch, and I'm hungry enough to eat the Regent right now. Besides, Lisa might do something nasty to you if you're late. She hasn't been working out with the Praxians to become a lady wrestler, you know."

"If you put it that way, I'm right behind you. Which reminds me, is there any chance you can teach Lisa and me how to use those transformable bikes you gave us as wedding presents? Vince has had them in the GMU all this time, but was too busy to think about them, considering you two, Marie and Sgt. Sessom are the only ones qualified to use them right now."

"I left mine and Marie's in a bunker on Earth, as gifts for Noel and Dana when they're old enough to use them, but I think Scott and Marie still have the two in their Legios, or what's left of it," Karen said, referring to her uncle's emergency landing in a forested area after running out of fuel in the last battle.

"I'll go get them after we're through eating, Rick, and I'll start you off in the morning. How does that sound?"

"Great. I'll ask Lisa to start tomorrow as well. Now let's get back to town and eat; I'm starved."

They hadn't been eating long when Jack Baker and company came screaming back into camp, yelling about discovering something in a cave in the hills. Two hours later, they were in the cave, with the Haydonites communicating to the strange, floating globes that Jack's party had discovered.

"Do they understand what we're asking of them? - The specifics I mean." Rick asked.

"The mecha should lift off under its own power," Sarna replied. "After that, Veidt and I will be able to head the orbs into place."

"How many orbs do you think it will take to lift a Legios?"

"We'll find out when you do, Scott. Baker, call the GMU. Tell Vince to round up every body. We've got to move fast and assemble a crew for the module."

"Will we be heading back to base?"

"No, Give Vince our position, and tell him what we've learned. I want the base to come to us. You can get your stuff from the camp tomorrow."

It took almost a full day for the GMU to arrive, due to the deteriorating condition of the planet. In the meantime, the others went back and retrieved their gear and Skull and the Wolfe Pack went around salvaging the inoperable mecha to use as ferries to the module.

The problem now was choosing the first crew to send up. Sarna was automatic, as she was needed to control the orbs enough to allow the altitude needed for the first trip. Janice was picked to pilot the Beta, and to try to activate the module. This was mostly due to her knowledge of drive systems she had acquired aboard the Farrago, as she had been acting as an observer for Dr. Lang in that regard (and while no one yet suspected her true nature, she was considered to be part of the good doctor's clique, and everyone in it seemed to have a lot more technical knowledge than they let on). Next was choosing the Alpha pilot, the hardest choice.

"Well, I think I'm the most qualified," Rick started, only to be interrupted by half the persons present.

"It's too risky," both Max and Scott said, and Scott managed to wave off Max before he could continue. "Max, you're too invaluable to risk as well. I would go, but Marie would kill me if I tried. Most of us who can pilot an Alpha are not in a position to go. The person should not have any personal ties to anyone here, for one thing. That leaves out the Hunters, the Sterlings and my whole squad. Most of the GMU personnel aren't Alpha qualified, and the same goes for the Sentinels. There's only one person I can think of who fits the profile, but I can't speak for him. Colonel Wolfe?"

"Thank you, Scott, for that lead-in; I couldn't have said it better. With Vince and Max, we'll still have our defenses intact. One less tanker isn't going to influence things one way or another. Any future Invid attack will involve air combat and only the GMU will have the range of any the ground forces to have an impact in the battle."

"All right, you've got it. After all, you're used to doing things with Alphas that have never been done before," Rick said referring to the Wolfe Pack's role in the testing of all the REF's Veritech mecha, both ground and air.

Before the conversation could turn to the two auxiliary slots, Tesla forced his way into the arena, and offered himself as a candidate. Remarkably, Rick allowed him and Burak to round out the mission.

"Rick are you su- " Scott started to ask, when Karen nudged him. "Karen, what is it?"

"Trust me Scott, they HAVE to go. I've foreseen it. I don't trust them any more than you do, but it's vital that they be on the first trip up."

"If anyone else told me, I wouldn't believe them; but if you're convinced, you must know what you're doing."

"Actually, I don't know what they're up to, but the path is clear. Now let's stop debating, the matter's settled."

"Everything checks out fine so far," Wolfe was saying to Vince over the tac net. "It's like an elevator ride to the stars."

"Jon, this is Rick. I just got back to the command center. Does Sarna think you'll have any problems disengaging from those floating balls?"

"She says no problem."

"And Janice?"

"Here, Rick. We're doing all right, although it's a little crowded in here."

"Sit tight, Janice. You're almost there. Jon, save your power. Don't call us again till you get on board, or if you have trouble boarding."

"Wilco, Admiral. See you in a little while. Wolfe out."

"Well, Vince, what's their ETA at the module?"

"Twenty minutes. Uh, wait a second, something's wrong!"

"What's wrong?"

"The Beta just separated from the Alpha, and is picking up speed."

"Jon, do you read me? What happened?"

"We're not exactly sure, Sarna was just passing along final instructions to the globes, then all of a sudden the Beta broke away. We're way off course. Can you give us a new heading?"

"Coming up. Have you heard from Janice?"

"No. Whatever separated us must have done something to here radio as well."

"Keep trying. Your new heading should be coming up right n-"

"Admiral Hunter!" Janet burst out as she burst into the room. "We've got trouble, sir!"

"I'm already aware of it."

"No, sir, in the caves. We're under attack."

"Attack? From what?"

"Would you believe giant spiders?" Rick just looked at her funnily. "I'm serious, sir."

"Damn. Scott, monitor the Veritechs. I'm going to find out what's happening in the caves."

"Roger, Admiral." Scott said, releasing a long breath after Rick had left. "Karen, get in here!" he yelled, causing the others there to stare at him, as Karen was nowhere near, being in the crew of the second Legios. Karen quickly obliged, to the shock of the techs, teleporting into the small room.

"What is it?"

"Something's happened to the Legios up there. The Beta's broke off and went ahead of the module. Is there anything you can do to find out what's going on aboard it?"

"Not until it reaches the module, when I can get a better fix on them."

"Okay, We'll wait until then."

Then next five minutes were tense, as the Beta arrived at the module, then entered. Karen went into one of her trances for a minute, then awoke.

"I've got them. Tell Wolfe not to bother trying to remote the airlock; the code's been changed."

"The code's been changed? How?"

"That's not important, what's his ETA?"

"Four minutes. What do you have planned?"

"Just a little assistance, but it'll have to be subdued, tell him to wait for the doors to open." She turned and went into the interior of the GMU.

"I don't like this," a tech spoke up.

"I don't either, but do we have any choice? Where is she?"

"She's in the armory."

"Great. Let's hope she doesn't blow the ship up trying to save it."

"Sir! She just disappeared from the scanners!"

"Then she's on her way upstairs. Jon, have you been listening to all of this?"

"Yeah. Do you have any idea what's going on?"

"We think either Burak or Tesla, maybe even both of them, have done something to Janice, and are hijacking the module as we speak."

"Damn! Well, there's the door opening. How is she opening it, anyway? If she doesn't have a space suit, she's..."

"I know. I think I know why she stopped in the armory now. She's in one of the wedding present Cyclones."

"You're right, I see her now. I'll call you back when we've retaken the ship."

"Wolfe, dammit, wait for backup!"

"We don't have the time, and you know it. Besides, I outrank you, Freeman. You can't tell me what not to do. See you later, when we're through." Wolfe signed off.

"Damn! Damn! Damn! The idiot's gonna get himself killed!"

"Vince, Scott, What's going on?" Rick panted as he entered the room, having run back from the caves.

"All hell's breaking loose, both VTs are aboard, now, mainly due to Karen's teleporting into the module to open the doors for the Alpha."

"Uh, Rick, Scott, I think you should see this," Vince interrupted. "The module's left orbit, and it's building power." The blip on the canner brightened, then disappeared.

"Oh, shit."

"Vince, tell me that wasn't what I thought it was," Rick asked.

"They folded. The module's gone."

"How are we going to explain this to Lisa?" Rick said, deadpan.

"Whaddya mean 'we', kemosabe?" Scott replied, holding his head in his hands. "I'm gonna have my hands full telling Shannon and Kayra."

Chapter Two:

"I knew I had to go back to Tyrol; I even had an inkling why I had to go. I just couldn't figure out HOW I knew I had to go back. It wasn't even precognition, just a gut feeling."

— Karen Freeman, debriefing en route to Garuda

"Welcome aboard, Colonel."

"I thought you said you needed a reference point to get here?"

"I did, I picked up a stray thought from Janice," Karen lied. The stray thought was actually Burak's, but she thought it unwise to admit she had known what was happening all along.

"Nice suit."

"I borrowed it back from Aunt Lisa. Excuse me while I go back to Motorcycle mode, and you go on to the crew lounge."

"The lounge? Why not the bridge?" Wolfe asked, just as the main engines came on line.

"We're preparing to fold," Sarna said.

"Exactly," Karen replied. "If we don't get strapped in, we'll be tossed around like rag dolls when we accelerate." The Cyclone was back as a motorcycle, and she wheeled it into a small closet. "We'll have to run if we expect to have any leeway."

"What about the VTs?"

"The hangar'll take care of them with mini tractor fields. Hurry up, Colonel."

"All right, all right."

They had barely gotten strapped in when the ship folded. The fold was short, and both Karen and Jon were on their feet before the fold was completely over. Sarna and Jon went on to the bridge while Karen went back to the hangar for the Cyclone. She finally caught up, but not before the bridge had been liberated.

"They were in it together -" Janice was saying.

"Liar!" Burak butted in.

"- but they couldn't seem to agree on a destination," Janice continued, ignoring the Perytonian. "So I made the decision for them."

"Where are we?" Wolfe asked.

"Fantoma," both Karen and Janice said as Tesla fainted.

"I can't go with you," Karen said to Wolfe, as the module was entering the SDF-3's docking bay.

"What do you mean, 'can't'?"

"I mean, I can't. I went AWOL to join the Sentinels, remember? If I'm caught, I could be tried for desertion."

"You have a point; but what will you do?"

"You know about my powers; people here don't. I have ways of keeping out of sight. In fact, I'll probably be better off than you will."

"Just keep you eyes and ears open. Something funny's going on here."

"I know. I'll watch as long as I can from the control room, then teleport to Lang's area. I should be safe there," Karen said as the module touched down. "Now go, and the five of you please remember I'm not to be mentioned."

Karen sat and watched the others leave, and be greeted by Dr. Lang and Exedore. As the others left the bay, Karen contacted Lang telepathically.

"Emil, it's Karen."

"Where are you?" he thought back.

"Aboard the Module. When you and Wolfe are through, I'll be in Isle's quarters. He does still live where he did when the Sentinels left?"

"Yes. But it will be a while, we have much to discuss."

"See you then, I'm gone," she thought, then she teleported.

Kyle was stepping out of the shower when she arrived. "Jesus Christ! Lady, don't you ever knock?"

"Only when I use doors."

"Where have you been? There's actually been a manhunt for you!"

"I went with the Sentinels; what did you think I'd do?"

"And went AWOL? That's stupid!"

"I had to go. In fact, the Hunters were glad I went."

"Are they OK? We had reports that the Farrago was destroyed."

"It was. Most of the Sentinels were killed. The survivors are mostly REF, as we landed on Praxis with the GMU just prior to the massacre. Our losses were limited to about a quarter of our VT pilots and the auxiliary bridge crew we left on the Farrago."

"How did it happen? Surely, they weren't stupid enough to try a frontal assault on the planet, and left the ship unprotected."

"The planet had been abandoned, by both the natives and the Invid, when we arrived. We landed the GMU to investigate, then shut it down as we searched the city on foot. That was the only thing that saved us. The Invid arrived, blew up the ship, and left; probably after failing to detect any more protoculture."

"They just arrived and attacked? I'm no Henry Gloval, but that sounds very strange to me. They had to have known you were going to be there. Could there have been any spies in the Sentinels?"

"Not a chance. They were too dedicated to their cause to betray it to the Invid."

"What about in the human contingent, then?"

"How? None of the REF personnel had any exposure to the Invid, except a few of us in the staff. And I would have known in that case."

"Who else knew your destination from Karbarra?"

"We sent a message back here, telling our next destination... Oh, God! You don't think -"

"I'm afraid so. There are persons on the council who might just be willing to betray the Hunters to the Invid, just to get rid of them. Humans are the only race that would do itself in for revenge."

"Who do you think it is?"

"Stinson, maybe Longchamps, possibly even Riley."

"Riley? What's he doing on the council?"

"They finally tried and demoted Benson for the seizure of the Southern Cross mecha to reinforce our own. It cost him two grades and Adams one. Riley was promoted into command of Ghost, and was given the corresponding council seat."

"Wolfe's in council right now, trying to get a rescue mission organized."

"God help him, then. If I'm right, there's no chance he'll get one."

"Then God help the others, too, because Praxis is literally falling apart, and could blow up any day. It sure won't last out the month."

"Are you sure?"

"The air was almost unbreathable when I left, and there were earthquakes almost constantly, that even the GMU's shock absorbers can't fully handle. It's like walking on a waterbed." Karen started to stagger a bit, then sat down on the bed.

"Lay down and get some rest, Karen. I'll get you up when the meeting is over."

"Thank you, Kyle. I could use a little rest..." She fell asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow.

"Karen, wake up!" Janice said, shaking her friend. "It's time to go."

"Huh?"

"Lt. Isle let you sleep, on Dr. Lang's orders. Emil even managed to transfer you to the Sentinels, so you're not on the run anymore."

"How long have I been asleep?"

"Six hours. Do you think you can read from Jon's mind what we have planned, from here?"

"Yeah; I see. Did Linc tell them of our suspicions?"

"He did, but there's nothing Lang and Forsythe can do without more proof. Do you need to do anything before we have to leave?"

"I don't think so. When are we leaving?"

"In a half-hour."

"Good. I think I might have something to do after all. Go on ahead; I'll meet you in the shuttle bay." Karen started to stand, then sat back down.

"Are you OK?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Go on, I'll be there."

"If you say so," Janice said, then she turned and left the room.

Karen almost couldn't hold it in. Carpenter's going to Earth! She knew her place was out here, but it seemed more and more obvious that it would be a long time before they would return to earth. She had had a vision of Marie and herself, no, DANA and NOEL, in Southern Cross armor, piloting Hovertanks. She knew what she had to do. She pulled the holo locket out of her pocket, the one that she and Marie had been recording on Praxis, to be launched in a message buoy in case they weren't able to make it off in time. She opened it, then watched the introduction they had recorded on Praxis. When it ended, she thumbed the record button, sat it down, and stepped back into the recording area. When the timer sounded, she began her message.

"Noel, my sister; regardless of the outcome of the events here, I sense our part of the play is left to you..."

Chapter Three:

"You don't think you could have cut it any closer do you?"

- Scott Freeman to Jonathan Wolfe

12 March, 2023*

Karen closed the locket, and went to the wall comm unit. She punched in the code for shipboard information.

"Information; how may I help you, ma'am?"

"Do you have a current location for Major John Carpenter?"

"His last reported location was on the Robotechnology level, in Dr. Lang's quarters."

"Thank you corporal." Karen teleported into Dr. Lang's library, then exited into the lounge area, where Dr. Burke and Carpenter were talking.

"Hello, Dr. Burke, Major Carpenter," she called out from the balcony.

"Ah, yes; hello, Karen, Emil told me to expect you," Burke replied. "You know the Major?"

"I participated in some of the conferences with the colonial support fleets. How many of the support fleets have made it here, so far?"

"Just part of Carpenter's, and their chronometers were a bit out of sync from our own. We're still looking for the reason. We're hoping that other fleets are on their way, with other travel delays. All three escort fleets were supposed to leave at the same time, but only a few ships from Eden have made it so far. No sign yet of the fleets from the Alpha-C colonies or Valhalla."

"Major, as you should know by now, I have to return to Praxis within the hour, so could you do me a favor?"

"I know, I pray you make it back in time. What do you want me to do, Lieutenant Ellison?"

"Take this locket back to Earth when your mission leaves. I need to get it to someone. Her name is Noel Freeman; she's one of the Chief of Staff Rolf Emerson's wards, along with Dana Sterling and Vince Grant's son."

"Why is it so important?"

"That's classified. However, Emil will vouch for my need to have it delivered. The information in it could be vital to Earth's survival, but it can only be used through the girl."

"I can't even pretend to understand, but I'll do it for you, if it's that important."

"Thank you, Major. I have to go now. Whatever you do, don't forget the locket." She saluted him, then turned and ran out of the apartment. She made her way down the hall to the labs, then ducked into the women's restroom. She teleported to the shuttle from there. Janice and the others were boarding as she arrived.

"Hi Jan; I told you I'd be here on time."

"Some people can't teleport."

"I won't hold that against you," Karen said, grinning. "The engines are warming up, and we can leave as Jon gets up here."

"Then let's leave," Wolfe said, interrupting them as he entered the pilot's area. "Janice, take the command console; Karen, you'll be my co-pilot. Open the bay doors and launch as soon as we can fit through them."

"Roger, Colonel. Launch in fifteen seconds," Janice replied as Wolfe took his seat.

The shuttle cleared the bay with only about a meter's clearance on each side through the blast doors. No sooner had they engaged main thrusters, than orders started coming in for them to return.

"Let's make it look good," Wolfe said to the others.

"I have two gunships coming at us from our rear," Janice called out.

"Don't worry about them; by the time they can get close enough to target us, we'll be at our destination. Any word from the cruiser?"

"Negative. They're not even responding to the SDF-3 bridge."

"Good," Wolfe replied, then was cut off by a warning klaxon. "What is it, Karen?"

"We're being targeted by the cruiser."

"Ignore it. They should be firing a warning shot to make it look good."

A laser turret from the cruiser flared, striking the communications package on the hull above the shuttle's bridge.

"Why do I get the feeling that was planned?" Karen said to Janice.

"Now we couldn't reply, even if we wanted to," Wolfe said, breaking into a grin. "Remind me to commend their gunner when we get aboard."

"The cruiser's docking bay is opening. Their bridge is patching into our guidance system. The SDF-3 thinks they're assisting in our capture," Janice said, condensing what she heard over the backup receiver.

"Let them take us in."

"The fortress is repeating the warning. Admiral Forsythe -"

"- Has to make it look good, so he doesn't get suspected in allowing our escape. It doesn't matter, now. The docking bay should be pressurized in twenty seconds. Let's go meet our crew."

The four ranking officers of the ship's skeleton crew, a lieutenant, two JG's, and an ensign, were waiting for them as they exited the shuttle.

"We were attached to Major Carpenter's command," the lieutenant explained to Wolfe and Karen. "Welcome aboard, sir, ma'am."

"You must be extremely loyal to the Hunters to volunteer for this mission instead of returning to Earth," Karen said to one of the JG's.

"We can't stand what is going on here, ma'am. If we can't get the Hunters back to stop it, it may spread back to Earth."

"I know; I've seen it myself. One thing though, from now on, ignore our ranks if we're not on the bridge. After all, we're not part of the REF anymore are we?"

"Understood. My name is Michael Stearns. My friends call me Sterno."

"Karen Freeman. I used to go by the name Ellison."

"You're the singer? I thought you were a sergeant."

"I was, until we left Earth. You see, I'm one of Lang's special projects." She looked down to Stearn's sidearm, then teleported it out of his holster into her hand.

"How'd you do that?" he gasped.

"Ancient Jedi mind trick. Actually, would you believe I'm a five year old half-Zentraedi mutant? Believe whichever one you want."

"Forget I asked. Our course is already set for Praxis, so all we have to do is go to the bridge in order to leave."

"What's our ETA?" Janice asked.

"Two days relative," the lieutenant talking to Wolfe answered. We've made some improvements since you left."

"I guess you have," Wolfe replied. "We haven't any time to waste. Let's get underway."

When they entered the bridge, Karen went immediately to the sensor console, and Janice to the communications. Five seconds after Wolfe took his seat in the command chair, space seemed to turn inside out, then they were back over Praxis.

"Jon, I have a large object exiting the atmosphere... it's the GMU!"

"Thank you, Karen. Janice, contact them."

"Yes, Major; I'm hailing them now," She said hitting the transmit key. "GMU, this is ..." She covered the mike and turned to the others. "What the hell is this ship's name?"

"It doesn't have one. It hasn't been dedicated yet."

"Great," she muttered as she rethumbed the mike, "GMU, this is the Heart of Gold. Do you wish to unload any hitch hikers and former galactic presidents?"

"Janice, I never knew you read any Douglas Adams." Karen said smiling.

"Doctor Lang's library isn't all technical manuals, Karen. He has a huge library of classic science fiction. Where do you think he got the ideas for some of the mecha?"

"Janice, is that you?" Rick's voice came over the comm net.

"Yes, Admiral. The cavalry has arrived."

"Admiral, this is Karen. I suggest that you abandon the GMU immediately. The sensor readings I'm getting of the planet suggests it will self destruct in less than 60 minutes but no sooner than 30 minutes."

"Understood. We'll be aboard as soon as possible."

The next half-hour was filled with rushed transfers from the GMU to the SDF-7, assisted by the skeleton crew of the latter. They were barely a million miles out when the planet blew, with the Admirals now on the bridge as well as the other Sentinel leaders.

"We are homeless," Bela cried.

"Admiral Hunter, they aren't the only ones," Karen said quietly to Rick. "There have been some setbacks on Tyrol."

"Setbacks?"

"Colonel Wolfe will explain; you need to call a council meeting as soon as possible to hear him." Her voice told Rick that something was terribly wrong.

"I will, right now. I'm sure you can handle the bridge without us."

"I can. Thank you, sir."

Chapter Four:

"All I need is the air that I breathe..." — 20th century song lyrics

13 April, 2023*

The small council meeting grew into a conference including all of the crew in one of the inner holds. The same story Wolfe told the Sentinel leaders was repeated to them, and a vote taken, the mission being a democracy, to decide whether to return to Tyrol or continue on to Garuda. Overwhelmingly, the decision was for Garuda.

Karen Freeman, as usual, abstained from the actual voting. Although officially part of the Sentinels now, she still didn't feel like it was her place to do anything except advise. Even as the Ark Angel defolded in the far reaches of the Rhestad system, she found herself at an isolated observation window, scanning the distance for the blue-white point of light that was Garuda.

"Penny for your thoughts, Karen?"

"Uncle Scott; I should have known you'd come looking for me. I'm looking for Garuda. It's strange, but I have this feeling as if I'm coming home."

"In a way, you are. It was on that other Garuda that your mother was exposed to the hin; it was that exposure that was responsible for a good deal of your powers, at least according to Dr. Lang."

"I know. It's like the planet is calling out to me, calling me back home."

"If you were anyone else, I'd say you were imagining things. However, with you, anything's possible."

"I'm not quite that powerful — look!" She suddenly changed the subject, pointing to the turquoise star that was slowly resolving into a disc. "There it is. It's beautiful."

"It brings back memories of when your parents were a pair of scared newlyweds and oxygen was scarcer than members of the York chapter of the Khyron fan club. I didn't have time to take in the view then." Scott stopped, the spectres of the hin-produced nightmares of that other time/place working their way out of the deepest recesses of his mind.

"Uncle Scott, the Admirals are looking for you. They chose you and Marie to be shuttle escorts on the trip down."

"I knew they'd choose me, but I'm not sure I want to. Not all of my memories from Garuda are pleasant."

"I know; but you can't rid yourself of them unless you face them. Come on, we have to go to the bridge now."

"As always, you're right, Karen, but it's easier said than done. I feel almost helpless against fate. So much has happened to me, that I have had no control over."

"You're only as helpless as you choose to be, at least while I'm around," Karen said, stepping into the hallway. "We are not bound to a finite set of pathways, no matter how cut-and-dried the situation may seem. There is always another way."

They sat down outside Kami and Learna's village, at a distance they thought would allow them some time to organize themselves before a welcoming committee of either natives or Invid troops could arrive. However, they were surrounded by Garudans and Tyrolean Bioroids before the shuttle could come to a stop.

"Your people are punctual, aren't they?" Scott called over the net from his Alpha to Kami on the shuttle.

"The hin allows many things. They sensed our arrival in the atmosphere, and knew where we would land as soon as we did."

"Where did the Bioroids come from?"

"They were stranded here by the Invid attack, so we took them in."

"Took them in?"

"Into our tribe. Speaking of which, don't leave your Veritech until Learna and I signal you to."

"If you say so." Scott and the others watched as the two Garudans left the shuttle. They were soon surrounded by their tribe mates, and the all-clear sign was given. Scott and Marie sat down quickly, then jumped out in their CVR to join the festivities. Within an hour, the Sentinels contingent was conferring with the tribal leaders.

"What's the situation here? Do the Invid run patrols through this sector?" Rick asked the chief.

"Their Inorganics patrol, but only when there is need to intimidate or gather more laborers for the farms. They don't seem to regard us or our clone comrades as a threat," the chief replied. "But I assure you that all Garuda is ripe for rebellion."

"They're using your people on the farms?"

"Lately, yes. And in the labor camps near them."

"So much for surgical strikes from the ship," Max chimed in.

"What about mecha?" Lisa asked. "Scouts, Shock Troopers?"

"Only a few are here when the transports are gone, mostly the higher evolved types; Enforcers and the Regis command unit mecha that watch over individual camps."

"Lisa," Scott cut in, "I remember that when I crashed with the Korra'ti, we were first attacked by about a dozen Scouts and Shock Troopers. They won't have it as a distraction this time, so they should be counted on as well."

"You have been on Garuda before?" the chief asked Scott.

"Yes and no. Years ago, my squad had a fold accident that sent us into another universe, one almost identical to our own. My ship crashed on that other universe's Garuda, on the far side from here. The date was tomorrow there. I would have died, had we not been rescued by our other-dimensional counterparts, who had just defeated the Invid. By that time, however, half of us were in the throes of severe hin poisoning, as we were low on air before the crash, and had no way of reprocessing your air for our use."

"How did you get back to our reality?"

"As many we have met have said, the Shapings move in mysterious ways. We had another accident in our renovated ship after participating in an attack on the Regent at Optera. Something in the trip back caused us to forget what we saw, but we have been remembering more and more as our lives begin to parallel our previous experiences."

"Back to the Invid," Rick said, resuming control of the conversation. "You said that there were large numbers of Invid mecha here only when there were transports picking up the nutrient shipments for Optera. How often are the shipments, and when was the last one?"

After some discussion, Kami replied for the chief. "The shipments are about every three months; and the last shipment left a month ago."

"That means that we're in the clear for the moment," Rick said, his grin nearly breaking the seal of his mask. "It'll take at least a couple of weeks for reinforcements to arrive."

"The closest farm is about one hundred miles from here," Learna added. "Kami and I know that area well."

"An aerial recon," Max suggested.

"No," Rick countered. "We can't show our hand just yet. Stealth is the best method. We'll take hover cycles first; and take a quick look around before we plan of assault. Just because mecha haven't been observed doesn't mean they're not in there. Lisa and I will go along with Penn, Baker, Rem, and Kami as our guide. We'll leave before first light."

"If you say so, Rick," Scott added. "But I've got that sinking feeling again that we're forgetting something again."

Chapter Five:

"Open your eyes, and see the world that stands before you now."

- 20th century song lyrics

The Hunters and their recon group had been gone three hours when Scott and Marie were gotten up by an incoming call from the Ark Angel.

"Commander Freeman," Karen said officiously to her uncle over the net, "I request permission to come ashore."

"Permission granted. When can you come down?"

"I'm right behind you," she said teleporting in behind her uncle and best friend inside the bomb/cargo compartment of the Beta, converted to a sleeping cubicle by the addition of an air mattress and a couple blankets.

"Wha — Warn me before you do that!" Scott yelped, turning off the transceiver as he turned around.

"Sorry, Scott. I was bored topside. When's breakfast?"

"In an hour, so you've got time to look around if you want. There's spare gear in the cockpit. Don't forget to seal it off before you go out, though. I had enough of the hin six years ago." Karen didn't have to read his mind to understand his hints to leave the two alone.

"Right. See you in an hour." She stepped up the conduit and closed the two seals behind her. After they heard the cockpit open and close, Scott and Marie fell back into bed (or what passed for one) and attempted to make the most of the hour.

They were disturbed less than a half-hour later by alarms going off in the encampment. They dressed hurriedly and went to the Beta's cockpit for their transpirators.

"Scott?"

"What is it?"

"Weren't there only three sets of gear up here?"

"Yeah, why?"

"There still are."

"Omigod. You don't think Karen -"

"She had to have." Neither said another word as they tested their transpirators, then exited the Veritech. They reached the longhouse, that was the village's heart to find Karen completely alive and sane, despite her constant exposure to the hin, and Jack Baker nearly out of breath, recounting the story of the Hunters' capture.

"Damn, I knew I had forgotten something! This happened on the other Garuda as well," Scott half-screamed at himself.

"It's not your fault, uncle," Karen said to him. "Only the one who messed with your memories is responsible."

"Karen, how did the Invid know they were there?"

"The Invid have Protoculture sensors in their mecha and Inorganics; why not in their defensive systems as well?"

"But they didn't have anything powered by Protoculture, except their weapons, which they would have activated only if they were attacked first."

"Are you sure? Go over to the terminal and access the data on their hovercycles."

"Hover bikes aren't Protoculture powered!"

"Most aren't some of the first were, however. Check the serial numbers; what are the first five digits in each one?"

"One begins with SC-HC4; the rest are SC-HC2."

"Check the bike Jack came back on. Is it the HC4?"

"How did you know?"

"I spent a lot of time with Lang in the labs, remember? The first production run of Hovercycles was Protoculture powered, but it was decided that there were better uses for the Protoculture and the bikes were redesigned to use conventional power sources. The first run was assigned to the REF, along with the first run of the conventional types, to save the ASC's supply of Protoculture. Very few people know the difference existed. In fact, it was only sheer luck that Jack used the one conventional hover bike to come back here on, or he never would have made it."

"Great," Scott muttered. "Max, you and I need to have a talk with Jon and Vince. Karen just pointed out a major screw up in our ground equipment."

"Can you leave in 15 minutes?"

"Huh?" Scott didn't expect to be able to actually meet with the others.

"Would you believe Burak came up with our rescue plan? We're going up to the Ark Angel to pick up Tesla, to use as a prop in a fake exchange."

"Well, I'll be damned."

"We still have to iron it out, and get extra ground forces for a diversion, so I was going up mainly to get Vince and Jon's input."

"I'm game. When will we be coming back down?"

"Probably around night fall. For this to work, our troops have to be in place before dawn."

"Can I go too?" Karen asked.

"Karen, where's your transpirator?" Max asked, almost panicky, remembering how Scott and the others had been affected by their exposure in the incident of years ago.

"I don't need one. I can't describe the sensation. It's like I've been sleepwalking my whole life, and here only now opened my eyes. It's incredible."

"How long has she been out here, Scott?"

"Almost an hour. If she was going to be hurt by the exposure, she would have already been affected."

"Good. But next time, Karen, warn your superiors before you try anything like this. You could have given me a heart attack."

"Yes, sir. But can I go?"

"Yes, you can come with us. We may need you to help 'convince' Tesla to go along with our plans."

"Understood."

"Max; like I was about to say, we'll meet you at the shuttle. I've got to tell Marie where were going."

"I understand. Tell here that Mir's been looking for her for some reason or another."

"I will. I get the feeling that they haven't been spending as much time together as they'd like to. After all, they have only been able to have anything resembling a mother-daughter relationship for the last year, since Karen went public."

"I can vouch for that. It was frustrating knowing that she was my daughter, but not being able to acknowledge it. Now get going, we've just wasted five minutes."

"See you in ten, Max."

Karen's theory about the Hovercycles was confirmed by Tesla, and he made it clear that even inactive weapons had a chance to be detected by the hive defense sensors. These were hundreds of times more powerful than mecha sensors, to prevent theft of Protoculture. The conference was reestablished planetside, while Most of the personnel still in orbit shuttled down. It soon became apparent that the only viable weapons for the insertion would be conventional explosives and Karbarran air rifles, which were almost as destructive as the laser pistols used by the Wolfe Pack.

It was with these that the second team went in; L'ron, Crysta, Gnea, Bela, Learna, Jack, Janice, and Karen Freeman. They were dropped off at midnight by Garudan aircraft, twenty miles short of their destination. Four hours later; Skull and Wolfe were ready to deploy.

"Mom, are you OK?" Marie said to Miriya as they approached the row of Veritechs at the edge of the village.

"I'm fine," Miriya replied, forcing a weak smile.

"You don't look fine," Max added, putting his hand on her head. "Maybe you should set this one out."

Miriya laughed at the suggestion. She hadn't been grounded since Dana was born. "Max, I'm just a little tired. Now, I want the two of you to wipe that concerned look off your faces. I'll be all right." She climbed up into the cockpit of her alpha, and closed the hatch.

Max and Marie had no choice but to go on to their own mecha. "Scott, are you ready?" Marie asked, climbing into the Beta.

"As I'll ever be," Scott replied from the Alpha. "I wonder how Karen's doing."

"I'm doing fine thank you." Karen's voice echoed in their head. "We've got a problem, though. I've scanned the hive and I can't find Rem!"

"That'll have to wait, Karen. We'll see you when this is over," Scott thought aloud.

"Good luck, you two. You mean everything to me."

"I think it should be us wishing you luck, Karen. You have the tougher job," Marie said.

"I'll see you soon."

"If you two are through talking to yourselves, you might want to lift off," Max called over the net.

"Sorry, Max. We got a mental update from Karen. Everything's going according to plan except that she can't find Rem."

"Damn. He must have been on that courier ship that left last night."

"What courier ship?" Scott said, throttling the VT up and lifting off.

"It's a small ship, about the size of a Legios and unarmed. As it would take a month for it to bring back help, Wolfe let it go. We never thought it would be carrying one of the prisoners, as it has minimal cargo capacity, maybe enough for one passenger."

"None of us would have done anything different, Max. You know it. We should be able to find out where he was taken when we capture the hive."

"OK, now, we'll be at the target in three minutes," Max said talking now to the entire squadron. As we pass over in formation, drop your plasma neopalm canisters when you receive the go tone, then go ballistic. Remember to keep your wings clear of your wingmates. After reaching 5000, circle back and hit the other farm, Blue and Highlander to the West, Red to the East."

They dove in, dropped the canisters, then shot up to avoid the liquid fire that rained on the farms. The squadron then split up, hitting the farms on the sides of the hive. The second run was interrupted by the appearance of the farm's defenders, dozens of Shock Troopers and Pincers.

"Heads up, Skull Leader," Scott called to Max over the net. "We've got company."

"Roger, Highlander. Coming around to zero one zero. Keep your guard up, you two."

In less than a minute, two score Invid mecha and three Veritechs were smoking ruins. The battle worked its way around the hive dome until the separate groups rejoined. Max was in Battloid mode by this time, as were most of the other pilots. He saw the tandem of Scott and Marie, back to back in their Battloids.

"Ahoy, Skull Leader," Scott called out. "How's the hunting?"

"I guess we succeeded in attracting their attention, huh?" Max replied. "Red Leader, come in. Miriya, come in, where are you?"

"Dad, I see her at your four!" Marie called to her father. "She's kinda too busy to answer you right now."

"Then let's go help her." The watched as she picked off one of the four shock troopers harassing her, only to struggle with the other three. Marie and Scott wasted no time in going to Miriya's assistance, taking out two of the three before they knew what hit them. Max then shot the last one easily as it was distracted by it's companions destruction. Miriya's Battloid seemed to waver on its jets.

"Miriya, what's wrong?" Max gasped. "Miriya!"

"I - I... don't know, Max. I had a dizzy spell."

"I want you to return to base."

"I'll be all right, I feel better now."

"Forget it -"

"Max!" Jon Wolfe suddenly interrupted. "We've got trouble! Inorganics — hundreds of them!"

"Your pack should be able to handle those things."

"It's not us their after. Those sons of bitches have turned them loose on the civilians — they're ripping the Garudans to shreds!"

"Damn! We're coming, Jon. Skull! Converge on the Wolfe Pack! The Inorganics are attacking the slave camps!"

The Veritechs mechamorphed back to Jet mode, and wasted no time reaching the slave camps. Unfortunately, a new wave of piloted Invid mecha from the main hive followed them. Max's blue team dropped down as Battloid as the Wolfe Pack realigned, and they formed a gauntlet of fire that Inorganics would have to pass through to menace the Garudans. Half the Wolfe Pack fell back, and went hand to hand with the Inorganics already through the barrier. Highlander and Skull's red team took care of the aerial defense.

Scott and Marie were back to back; each had already downed a dozen Invid each in the original battle, and were more than halfway there against the second wave.

"Scott, how's your ammo?" Marie asked her husband, as she shattered a Shock Trooper with her guns.

"I've got 26 missiles left, and I'm on my last mag for my cannon. What about you?"

"I've used all my big missiles, and I'm almost out of ammo for my arms -" she stopped for a second, as she blasted another Shock Trooper to bits. "Correction: I AM out of ammo for my arm cannons. However I still have most of my short range missiles left. Any more targets left?"

"Not many. There's four on your mother again... Correction, make that one — What? Omigod!"

"What is it Scott?"

"She's down! I don't know how, but she got hit by a shot Dana could dodge. Max! Miriya's down!"

Chapter Six:

"Pregnant? What does that mean?" — Miriya Sterling, 9/22/11

18 April, 2023*

Max, Marie, and Scott reached Miriya's downed VT at about the same time as four Cougars.

"Max, watch out!" Scott yelled to his father-in-law, as two of the Hellcats that had been clawing at Miriya's Alpha leapt at him.

"I got them," Max called back, fragmenting them as Marie blew apart a third.

"Max, I can't get a clear shot at the last one! It's got a claw through the canopy!"

"I'll get it — Hey!" the cat leaped from Miriya's Alpha to Max's, digging its claws into the Battloid's chest.

"I got it, Dad!" Marie ran her Battloid mode Beta over to her father, and ripped the feline Inorganic off his Veritech. She then tossed it into the air. "Nail it, Scott!"

"My pleasure, hon." Scott fired a two missiles into it, blowing it into smithereens.

Max ran up to Miriya's Alpha, going to guardian mode. He popped out of the cockpit of his Alpha like a hyperactive Jack-in-the-box, running to her cockpit. "Miriya! — No!" He turned to Scott and Marie. "Help me! They tore her mask off!"

Marie transformed back to Jet mode, and ran to her parents. "Dad, help me get her to the Beta. I can put her in the back and flood it with pure oxygen."

"Max hit the emergency canopy release and pulled his wife's limp body from the cockpit. "I've got her. Let's go." As they approached the Beta, Scott rejoined his Alpha to it.

"Marie, stay in back with Miriya. Leave the flying to me. Max, I need to have a word with you."

"What is it, Scott?"

"It's about Miriya. My on-again-off-again memory is acting up again. I know this sounds perverse in our current situation, but - Congratulations. You're about to become a father again. That's why she had the dizzy spells and the like. If you two had told me earlier what her symptoms were, I probably would have remembered then and we could have prevented this."

"She's pregnant. But will the hin affect them like Kayra and Karen?"

Karen was approaching the hive, keeping her air rifle pointed at Tesla, who was walking ten feet ahead of her. Tesla spoke into the voiceprint analyzer next to the portal, and its force field dropped. After passing down a short tunnel, they entered what Tesla identified as the hive's equivalent of a foyer, and gave them the okay to remove their oxygen masks.

"Which way?" Jack demanded, looking at the many passages.

"Up," Tesla replied. "Position yourselves around me."

"Why?" Jack asked, but doing what Tesla asked. Suddenly the ground rushed away from their feet.

"By the Eternal She —" Gnea put her spear against Tesla's neck.

"Please Praxian. I did not mean to startle you. This is simply our elevator system," Tesla gasped, easing up onto his toes to remove the spear point from his neck.

"He's telling the truth," Karen said to the others. "Lang and Fokker encountered similar systems aboard the SDF-1, after it first crashed on Earth. However, they stopped functioning not long afterward." She dropped to one knee, motioning the others to do the same. "We'll have company the second this ride stops."

As the floor reformed beneath them, four Enforcers turned towards them.

"Nail them to the wall!" Karen cried, sending a projectile from her Karbarran rifle cleanly through the lead Enforcer's head, decapitating it. One of the Praxians duplicated the feat with a crossbow bolt, while the last two were dropped by a combination of rockets from Jack and the Karbarrans' grenades.

"You are all barbarians," Tesla said, looking at the remains of the Enforcers.

"Stow it," Jack spat back. "Which way now?" An obnoxious hum filled the chamber.

"An alert," Tesla said, stepping over to a communications sphere. "Seems you've succeeded in attracting attention to yourselves — Ahh, there's the reason they're leaving us alone..." The sphere filled with the images of the Inorganics attacking the natives, then the natives swarming over the Inorganics.

"It's suicide!" Janice cried.

"Then let's make it count for something," Jack said. "Where's the control room?" he asked Tesla while shoving the Invid into motion.

"This way," Tesla said, leading them to another fielded portal, and opening it as he did the first.

A quick search resulted in the discovery of two scientists hiding behind a counter. L'ron picked them up by their neck ridges, then shoved them into the center of the room.

"Tesla!" one of them screamed, followed by a string of sounds that didn't require translations to understand the general meaning. Janice gave a PG-rated translation anyway.

"He called Tesla a traitor. Said it was true what they'd heard about him."

"Meaning what?" Jack asked.

"Why, my leading you here," Tesla answered quickly.

"Not quite, Tesla. I believe they're referring to your attempted murder of the Regent," Karen said, the look of surprise on Tesla's face matching that of the others. "That's right, Tesla; ATTEMPTED murder. You killed a simulagent. The Regent never left Optera."

"You - you've known?"

"All along. You can't hide from a telepath, even if the telepath wasn't 'all there' at the time."

"Huh?" Jack asked. "What do you mean?"

"Jack, surely you've heard the rumors about my split personality? They were true. Exposure to the hin has merged them; I have most of their memories and a power level between theirs. However, most is not all, but what I have tells me that the prisoners are being kept on the lowest level." Karen turned toward the two Invid that had been captured, and said something in the Invid language that made them tremble. "They'll take us to the prisoners now."

"What did you say to them?" Bela asked.

"I told them that I'd teleport them to the Regent and let them explain their failure personally if they didn't obey my every word. They're more scared of him than they are of me," Karen explained, as Tesla snickered (or at least did something that sounded like snickering) in the background.

The scientists led them to the prisoners where, as Karen had said before, it became apparent that Rem was gone.

"What did they do to him?" Janice asked, fear in her voice.

"It was bound to come out sooner or later, so I'll go ahead and tell you. Rem is a clone of Zor, the discoverer of Protoculture. Evidently, the hin brought out memories that belonged to Zor, so they sent him to where they could make the best use of these resources."

"Optera?" Gnea guessed.

"No, Optera's too primitive for that."

"Haydon IV," L'ron stated, no guessing in his voice.

"Yes; and the Regent is on his way there. It is also where we must take Rick, Lisa, and Karen, if we are to save them. We can't waste any time. Uncle Scott, can you hear me?" she said into the air.

"Yes, and could you please use the radio?" Scott's exasperated voice came over their communicators.

"We need to evacuate the prisoners. Kami's recovered, but the others need help bad."

"I remember. We're on our way. By the way, Miriya's in back with Marie now, so it'll be cramped if I come along."

"Don't worry about it. I'll go ahead and teleport back to base, to brief Jean and Cabell on the situation. See ya then. Karen out." Two seconds later she disappeared in a sparkling field of energy.

Chapter Seven:

"Haydon IV is where I discovered our true enemy. It is hard to believe, but the being really responsible for our troubles was worshiped by the very people we were trying to help. Even out own forces were vulnerable to being led on a string by his whims. It's hard being a queen on a massive board of pawns, with the opposing king not even on the board where you can get at him."

Karen Freeman — The Plane Truth

27 May, 2023*

Jean Grant did all she could for the four patients, but 36 hours had not brought any improvement in them. Even Miriya, who had entered the hospital dome under her own power, soon succumbed to her exposure and was in the same condition as the others. There was no other alternative; they had to go to Haydon IV. They left as quickly as they could, putting their patients into emergency hibernation tubes for the trip.

Max was just as distraught as Scott remembered his commander's counterpart to have been, elsewhen. Scott couldn't help but remember his talk he had with Shannon back there, prior to the fold back to this continuum, and drew on it to try to ease Max's concerns, during the descent to Haydon IV's surface. Max was so caught up in caring for his wife, that he hadn't had any sleep since defold, and that was over a day ago.

"Max, Miriya will be fine once we get her to the Haydonite specialists."

"How can you be so sure? And what about the baby? Dana was a handful, as just a normal child. If Karen is any indication of the results of hin exposure, I'm not sure I'll be able to handle a similarly endowed child." Max looked forward to the shuttle's controls. They were entering Haydon IV's atmosphere, and Max seemed to be feeling just as helpless as Scott did, The old "Backseat pilot's" sensation being compounded by worry for the ill.

"Relax, Max. We'll get down OK. After all, Marie's the one flying this thing in your place. She has all the same reasons to be careful as you do."

"Yeah. Scott, I'm not sure I can stand this. Back when she was pregnant with Dana, we were both needed for service, regardless of condition, just because there was almost none who could take our place. We were still flying survey missions two weeks before Dana was born. Back then, before Khyron broke the peace, there was no danger of injury from our missions. Now, though, we are in the middle of a war. I keep wondering if we should retire, and raise this child as we were never able to do with Dana."

"I'm not sure, but I believe your counterpart did just that. I remember hearing the other Rick putting up a fuss about it. I think you should follow your heart. I will help you convince the others whatever decision you make."

"Dad, Scott," Marie called back on the intercom. "We're making our final approach. I suggest you two go back and help Jean and Cabell with the patients."

"Thank you, Scott. Just talking about this has made it easier to handle."

"Someone had to. C'mon, Jean needs us," Scott said, standing. He extended his hand to Max to help him up, as Max hadn't slept in three days. "Everyone needs a hand sometimes."

Their reception from the Haydonites was fairly cold, although they seemed genuinely concerned with the health of the patients. After transporting them to the hospital, Cabell and Veidt were taken to an audience with the Regent, who had arrived on the planet the day before. Max, Marie and Scott had nothing better to do but wait.

Karen Freeman wasn't having a nice day. Her senses, both ordinary and extraordinary, were barely able to handle the input she was receiving. First, their entry into the atmosphere had been rudely interrupted by the planetary defenses. Then the Veritechs were destroyed by snakelike "antibodies" that homed in on Protoculture. They then had to dump most of their weapons to escape on foot. Now this...

"What in the name of Haydon —" L'ron growled, staring at Janice, who was slipping into her android mode, right in front of half the Sentinels.

"Wh-what are you, a zombie?" Jack asked, the sight scaring him into raising his gun at her.

"No; I'm an Artificial Person, built in the Tokyo research megaplex. I've acted as Dr. Lang's eyes and ears on the Sentinels mission."

"I don't like such things — androids running around pretending they are alive," L'ron rumbled back.

"Stop it, both of you," Karen called to the two of them. "First of all, Janice, you were only reconstructed and reprogrammed in Tokyo. Your body is much older. Secondly, she is just as alive as you or me, L'ron. She had no idea she was artificial, I should know; Emil Lang and I were the only two who could access her artificial side. As for her true origin, she was originally built by Zor, based on the Haydonite life form, in a failed effort to recreate his dead lover, my genetic grandmother." The last few revelations put a profound shake in their Invid prisoners' knees. "No, I'm not Zor's granddaughter; his genetic material was never used in the creation of the Zentraedi. However, in many ways, myself, Janice, and Rem, who genetically is a clone of Zor, are his heirs. We have been put in position to further his plans to correct the wrongs of the Robotech Masters and the Invid."

"Karen, I must interface with the awareness of the planet."

"I know, Janice; lead the way."

"Hey, wait a minute!" Jack called out. "I'm supposed to be in command here!"

"Sorry, Jack," Karen replied. "I've finally decided to pull rank on you, just follow us, and watch your back."

Janice led them to a huge techno cavern, walled with instruments of an unknown function. She walked up to one of the consoles, and handed Karen the adaptor. "I am ready now, Karen, could you assist me?"

"Of course." Karen pulled Janice's hair aside, and connected the cable to the instruments, then to Janice, who started glowing. Suddenly Janice began shape shifting, as she had done before on Tyrol, only on a grander scale. For a second, she looked as her old self, then as an android. Through various forms she passed; Karbarran, Praxian, Spheresian, Human, Haydonite, Garudan, Perytonian, Invid, sometimes appearing as someone identifiable. The light grew brighter and brighter and the noises grew louder as the changes quickened. Suddenly, it all stopped, and Janice was in her human form once again, swinging the interface cord around in her hand.

"Are you alright?" Bela asked.

"I'm fine. I found out what we needed to know. Karen, I found out that I have more capabilities and potential than you and Emil could have realized. But that's beside the point now. The others need our help in Glike, above us." She walked over to a column, and opened an elevator there.

At first, everybody seemed rooted to the spot, but Jack finally took the initiative. "Let's move!" he yelled, moving to the elevator. "They need us."

Karen Penn was the last to come out of the hin coma, although Miriya was still being observed and treated. Before much celebrating could take place, word came that the Regent demanded their presence before him to face charges against them. Soon, all of the Sentinels in Glike, save the Haydonites, were gathered in an improvised cell in the Hall of Healing. Cabell was the last to arrive accompanied by Veidt. Shortly thereafter, Cabell was advising them of a forthcoming jailbreak (in pig Latin?!), and things began to happen. Jean monkeyed with the Haydonite medical equipment, causing it to emit all kinds of malfunction alarms. She then started yelling at the guards, saying something about a relapse. After a second or so passed, Karen, Rick, and Lisa started undergoing what appeared to be a cross between an epileptic fit and a horror movie death scene. Even Miriya slumped into a chair and started screaming.

Scott was totally confused, and so were the Invid guards. Then he saw Vince draw back into the shadows, and draw one of his Weasels he had hidden in stealth holsters under his arms. Jean seemed to be luring one of the two enforcers toward one of the consoles.

"What does all this mean? Explain?" the Invid demanded.

"It's all right there on the middle scanner! See?" As the Invid took a closer look, Jean pulled a high voltage power cable loose from the neighboring equipment and stuck it against the Invid's armor, sending it into convulsions. Vince shot the second Invid through the head with the Weasel's explosive bullets, dropping it as well.

"Do you think they got off an alert?" Max asked.

"Probably not, but that doesn't mean we're in the clear," Wolfe replied, grabbing the electrocuted Enforcer's rifle. They had been fortunate that the Regent's Enforcers did not have integral weapons as did those of the Regis, or else they would still be virtually unarmed. Vince tossed his two Weasels to Rick and Scott, taking the rifle off the one he had shot. Lisa grabbed the one handgun carried by the two guards, to Scott's surprise. She had changed dramatically under the tutelage of Bela.

As they rounded the corner, the were met by Veidt, who led them to an awaiting escape carpet and disguises. They flew to a building overlooking one of Glike's main highways. It had been discovered that the Praxians were being used as slaves by the Invid here, and that a group of slaves would be passing by soon.

One of the Praxians refused to reenter the slave area when the group arrived. Normally, their guards would simply activate the recalcitrant slaves headband, incapacitating it. This time, however, the headband didn't work, thanks to other Haydonites who had sided with Veidt. Others joined her, and the Invid raised their weapons to eliminate the troublemakers, Vince, Rick, Lisa, Scott and Jon eliminated them instead.

Meanwhile Jack, Karen Freeman, and the others rose toward the slave pen's command post, mostly unaware of what was occurring outside.

Chapter Eight:

"There are none so blind as those who will not see..."

- Ray Stevens, "Everything is Beautiful"

28 May, 2023*

As the carpet settled toward the ground, Lisa jumped clear, dumping her disguise. She fired her Invid pistol in the air, then announced herself to the Praxians.

"Warriors of Praxis! We are the Sentinels, allies of your great fighter Bela! We've broken free of the Regent and we mean to raise rebellion! Are you with us?" The responding battle cries and cheers needed no translation. "The power to the slave bands is out, but we're not sure how long that will last. We have to strike at once! Your queen and your sisters are right there in the central slave pen."

A quick discussion resulted in a battle plan. They would simply walk right in, and hope none noticed the absence of guards. In the confusion, they made it all the way to the slave pen's armory, where the lead Praxian made short work of the guard, but not before more Enforcers showed up. When the alarms went up, the Sentinels made their move, heading for the guard station that was the first real obstacle to the liberation of the Praxians. They were spotted as they entered the station, but the guards never had a chance.

"We have to disable both this station and the command center if we plan on getting the Praxians out," Veidt said.

"No problem," Wolfe said, pushing the buttons that opened all the blast doors, then frying the controls with Invid rifles.

"Real creative, Jon," Scott said in a sarcastic voice.

That's one problem down, but they'll be sending reinforcements here any time now."

"Then, Lisa, may I suggest we make ourselves scarce?" Scott said, reloading the Weasel with a clip Vince had hidden in his boot.

"Jon, Karen; you two hold off any late arrivals," Rick ordered as he adjusted the shoulder strap of his Invid rifle into something more suited for human use, as what was a light gun for an Enforcer would require considerable bracing for use by a normal human. "Everyone else, follow me. Any objections?"

"We're with you, Rick," Scott replied. "I never thought of you and Lisa as the 'Spartacus' type, though."

"Cute, Scott. Now if you're through with the movie trivia, lets get going."

Jack and his squad opened fire almost as soon as the door opened. The mostly unarmored personnel were quickly disposed of, although one Enforcer was a hard nut to crack with Janice supplying the nutcracker in the form of a LAW.

"Jack," Karen Freeman called to her commander. "I've gotten a telepathic fix on the other groups. They're on their way to Arla-non's location. Jan, can you find us a quick way to the pens?"

"Right here," Janice replied, touching another pillar and revealing yet another secret elevator. "We have to hurry; Invid reinforcements are on their way."

"Then, let's go," Jack said, stepping through the elevator. "And bring our guests along too. They might sill be useful." The Invid they had brought along from Garuda were reluctant but weren't about to do anything rash, being guarded by Gnea and Bela, who probably would have already killed the prisoners had they been commanding. "Jan, it's too bad you weren't functional back in the Macross days; then our trip out here would have never been needed. Your knack for finding things is incredible."

"Flattery will get you nowhere, Baker. Besides, the Protoculture matrix didn't want to be found, so there was no way I could have found it."

"You make it sound as if it had a mind of its own."

"It did, although it wasn't what you would normally consider a mind."

"Forget I brought it up."

Rick's band found Arla-Non and many other Praxians on the third sub-level, in cages suspended from the ceiling. Once freed, the Praxians went about sending squads to release the others. However, as they returned the way they had come, they received bad news. Enforcers both the normal type and the Regent's larger guards, had the exit blocked, and they were sending in the big Inorganics to clean house. Wolfe had to blow the entrance to slow the latter down.

The first Odeons arrived, only to be shattered by the combined forces of the weapons that the retreating Praxians had 'liberated' form the Invid arsenal. A second wave arrived, and as if it fell, a door opened up on a nearby column. The cavalry had arrived, bringing with it an escape route. The wounded and the Sterlings were the first sent up, along with Veidt, who was needed to convince Vowad who was right and who was wrong.

"I guess I don't look like my PR photos, huh?" Janice said to a mildly surprised Rick and Lisa.

"You look pretty damn good to US, Jan. Uh-Oh." Metallic footsteps were closing again. "Get ready, Jan, here we go again."

Karen soon saw that her fighting, while not unneeded, were not as important as caring for the wounded topside. She tossed her RL-6 missile launcher to a Praxian, then teleported to Max and Miriya's location, just as a Crann pulled itself into view.

"Oh, shit! Miriya, get down! I'll protect us," Karen said trying a new aspect of her telekinesis she had discovered while traveling in Haydon IV's underworld. A shimmering hemisphere surrounded them, as Max moved away to attack the Inorganic. The shield wouldn't protect them from a direct hit from the Crann's laser, as she was only able to deflect physical attacks reliably, but the explosions caused by any near misses would have their concussions and shrapnel stopped cold. The shield was unnecessary, though. The Crann ignored the Praxians and humans, turning its fire upon the Haydonites. Sarna knocked her father / creator out of the danger area, only to be caught in the focus of the laser. Karen dropped her shield, and both Max and Miriya ran to Sarna's aid. Karen felt like hitting herself. The secret to defeating the Crann had been staring her in the face, and she didn't see it until now.

"Concentrate your fire on the legs! Stagger it!" She yelled to the Praxians, who lowered their aim. When it started to lose its footing, Karen unleashed a bolt of telekinetic energy at it, knocking the hapless Inorganic clear of the building to fall to its destruction in the street below. Karen now sensed that Sarna was dying and for once she was helpless in the matter.

Then Sarna's agony passed, to be replaced by Vowad's pain and self-incrimination. The truth had dawned on him now, that no creature, no culture, is an island, once it has touched another, and that the suffering of one detracts from all. Reality on the artificial world seemed to shudder, making all pause, then antibodies similar to those of the underworld appeared. These antibodies were different, though. They all had the form of a humanoid, a specific one at that. In order to work on the Invid's deepest fears, the antibodies were the shape of Zor. They set upon the Invid, both alive and unliving, destroying them in contained explosions, almost implosions. The tide turned again with the Sentinels.

Chapter Nine:

"Despite my need to go back with the others, I feel drawn again toward Janice and Rem. They are a part of my life, now; more so than Marie ever was. Jan and I are like two sides of the same coin, both only now learning of our true selves; and neither of us completely understand either ourselves or our feelings toward Rem. Is it love or something more or less different than that emotion? Only time will tell."

— Journal of Karen Freeman

Rick had just sent Jack, Karen Penn, and Veidt out to rescue Rem, and Karen Freeman was fidgeting around, knowing that the rescue was out of her hands. She wandered around almost aimlessly the impromptu command center set up in the former slave pens, accompanied by Janice.

"Karen, I'm scared."

"Don't worry. Rem will be all right."

"How did you know I was referring to him?"

"It's fairly obvious. We don't really know too much about Zor, and almost nothing about Haydon, but in you and the Haydonites they created true life, not just living machines. You love him, and you are afraid he might be..."

"Dead, Karen? You seem to have the same fears. You said that Zor created me in the image of your genetic grandmother, but I'm a shape changer, at least partly, and my human look is partly due to holography. What did she look like? What kind of person was she?"

"She spoke to me only for a while before purging herself from your systems but I also saw images of the real Musica through Rem's latent memories form Zor. She was very beautiful; her hair color was the same as Mom's and she had beautiful violet eyes; those eyes are much the same in your current form, hers perhaps a bit darker. She was a singer, with incredible vocal range and a composer's mind. She was also very brave, and loved Zor very much, and would have followed him anywhere he asked. In the end of her human life, she sacrificed herself to protect Zor. It was her sacrifice that set current events into motion."

"Why was I built?"

"Zor hoped to recreate her, using her history, his memories and the results of a post mortem mind scan done by the Masters as an attempt to discover the extent of the conspiracy against them. Instead, all that resulted was an incompleteness that only served to remind him of his loss, so he shut your body down and stored you in his SDF-1 quarters. It was there that Lang found you in 1999, during the second expedition into the ship. It took 15 years to rebuild you and reactivate you with a new core memory, with Zor's programming present but unbreakable, at least without the password. I discovered it in my probings and used it only for the persona to purge herself after a short conversation. You have no way of recalling that data, but your emotional center is the same as hers; let it be your guide." Their dialogue was interrupted by Lisa calling out to her husband.

"Rick, we've got a problem."

"What is it?"

"We're picking up new deep space blips on the detectors," a Haydonite continued explaining, once Rick had made his way across the room. "We think they're Invid."

"Can't you be more precise?"

"Not until they close to within two light-seconds."

"Admiral," Karen ventured.

"Yes, Karen?" Rick replied.

"I can attempt a mental scan, if you want me to."

"By all means, if it will give us a better idea of what we're up against."

"I reaching out now," Karen said concentrating on the ship's area. "We're not up against anything!"

"Huh?"

"The Regent is! The blips are three ships from Tyrol, one of them commanded by Breetai! They're reinforcements for us, not the Invid."

"Thank God."

"Sir, we're picking up an escape pod launch into space from the last known position of the Regent. He's going to escape sir."

"We'll get him next time. He can't run forever," Rick said mostly to himself. "Try to contact Breetai as soon as possible. We have to be brought up to date on the Tyrol situation. By the way, any word from the rescue mission?"

"They were successful, sir, and on their way to the Halls of Healing."

"Good, Karen, take Janice and go to him. He'll be all right now."