To Lyger 0: That is very true!

To Butterfly: So it would seem. There are some definite commonalities between how Victor fights and the way someone like Volpina would fight.

To StarDaPanda225: That is a definite possibility…

To yellow 14: True, but there is such a thing as "looking threatening." A terrestrial Panamax container ship doesn't exactly look like an aircraft carrier, even if they're the same rough size and shape.

Pegasus stared up in awe at the enormous vessel that had just appeared in the sky directly above the Eiffel Tower, the screwdriver with which he had repaired the transmitter hanging limply in his hand. Jets scattered across the underside of the ship held it in a hover at least three kilometers above the ground. Interspersed with the jets were rounded protrusions that broke up the otherwise smooth surface – a cursory analysis would suggest they could be either detachable storage containers or sensor arrays. From below, the dark hull appeared oblong, flared out near one end and coming to a narrow point on the other end. Although he could not determine a frame of reference given the ship's altitude, from the way it appeared to cover half the Champ de Mars he estimated the length to be close to 500 meters, with a width of 400 meters at the widest point.

"Are you recording this?" he finally managed, not taking his eyes off the ship.

"Affirmative, Pegasus!" Turing reported beside him excitedly, turning to point his cameras upward. "Although it appears visually, the craft must have some form of heat shielding – it does not appear on infrared."

Pegasus furrowed his brows. The level of technology to mask the extreme heat doubtless being put out by the engines visible on the ship's underside was far beyond terrestrial capabilities – even with Hugo's assistance, he had no idea if it was possible to override the laws of thermodynamics in that way! Without taking his eyes off the ship, he fumbled around for his horseshoe and pressed a couple buttons to focus the transmitter on the downturned front end that probability indicated would house the cockpit/bridge. Another command sent the pre-planned text message requesting acknowledgement. Finally he tore his gaze away from the alien ship to consult the horseshoe. "There is no response to our hail!" he called into his communicator.

"Let me try it!" instructed Hugo from the far side of the Champ.

Pegasus glanced over to where the other four were to find Le Tirreur, Rena Rouge, and the other alien all staring up at the ship, while Hugo was watching him. Catching Hugo's eye, Pegasus threw his horseshoe to the alien, who caught it deftly with one hand and began typing quickly on the screen in the center of the horseshoe. Turing dropped down a screen to display the message. "Can you translate it?" Pegasus asked the robot.

The robot bobbed in affirmation as French text appeared below the alien language. "While developing the transmitter schematic I analyzed Hugo's textual notes," he explained. "Based on that analysis I can extrapolate probable meanings to fill in the rest of his language. Consequently, my translation is accurate within a 13% margin of error."

Pegasus nodded and quickly read the message. His blood ran cold.

"This is Captain, Scout Ship 1143. Planet ready for assimilation."

"'Assimilation?" Pegasus' eyes shot wide open.

Turing chirped. "Based on the phraseology of his schematic for the laser emitter array of the transmitter, that is correct within–"

Pegasus tuned out the robot's analysis and looked up to find Hugo staring at the horseshoe as though waiting for a response. The ship above their heads hung motionless in the sky. But suddenly his analysis of the protrusions on the bottom of the ship had to change with this new information – weapons emplacements, dozens of them. The shape resembled nothing so much as a giant bird of prey… He found Rena Rouge next to the new alien, still staring into the sky at the alien ship. "Rena! Hugo played us!" he shouted. "It is an invasion!"

Hugo looked up from the horseshoe and met Pegasus' eye. His lip curled up into an approximation of a sneer. Rena Rouge looked over at Pegasus, her jaw dropping open in shock. She gave Le Tirreur a glance and bobbed her head at him before racing toward Hugo.

"Send the SOS!" Pegasus ordered Turing, eyes wide. "Deploy drones! Target Hugo, Override Code Pegasus-1!" The top of the drone carrying case flew open automatically, knocking the transmitter to the ground, and the three new drones he had finished constructing that afternoon lifted off instantly. As they cleared the carrying case each drone deployed the two miniature energy cannons mounted on the bottom side and turned in the direction of Hugo under Turing's instructions. Satisfied, Pegasus looked up to find the alien ship and started searching its underside for a weak spot. If only he had not used his Voyage to get them there…

The searing energy blasts to his side caught him completely off-guard.

The first salvo from two of the drones' energy cannons struck him just under his armpit and knocked him to his hands and knees. Turing spun wildly out of control, a high-pitched mechanical whine coming from the rotor's melted servo, the blades having been sheared clean off by an energy pulse from the third drone. Pegasus lunged forward, caught the robot centimeters from the ground, cradled him gently to his chest, and turned his forward momentum into a somersault as the second salvo from all three drones hit him squarely in the back along his shoulder blades. He fell forward, catching himself with one hand on the ground.

"Pegasus?" asked Turing, fear in his voice and confusion visible in his eye display for the first time since Pegasus had activated him. "What happened? I–I have no control of the drones! I can't fly – my rotor does not respond!"

Pegasus squeezed his eyes shut in anger, forcing back the tears of pain that sprang into them and blocking out the heat of the drones' energy blasts still pounding his back. Although his miraculous suit was impervious to penetrating weapons, it did little against the heat and kinetic energy imparted by energy attacks. Again and again the drone shot. He could feel the heat burning the skin underneath his suit. The drones' carrying case was right in front of him, and he reached out one hand to slide Turing inside, shutting the lid. "Stay here, buddy," he told him, throwing a glare over his shoulder at the drones, running through calculations in his head. "I will take care of this!"

Pegasus shoved the drone case away from himself in the direction of the Eiffel Tower, where it came to rest just behind the closest support leg. In the same motion he kicked off into the air, spinning around into a back-flip that carried him above the drones' firing range in a parabolic arc. The drones dipped at the rear to follow him, still firing, some of their misses peppering the Eiffel Tower's legs without causing more than cosmetic damage.

Near the apex of his jump, Pegasus flipped the screwdriver around in his grip and reached out to grab the nearest drone by one of its four rotor struts. The drone managed another shot, catching him in the arm, before he jammed his screwdriver into the mechanism and pried out the wires connecting the battery to the motor. Still in the air, he threw the now-inert drone to collide with the next-closest drone. The second drone's next shot struck its sister's battery pack, detonating it centimeters away. The fireball consumed both drones, which fell to the ground in a pile of molten plastic and metal. Pegasus landed on his feet half a meter from the third drone and spun around to avoid its follow-up volley. He ducked underneath it and drove the screwdriver up into one of the drone's rotors, sending it into an uncontrolled fall as it attempted to correct its flight less than two meters from the ground. The drone flipped upside-down before slamming into the ground, the energy cannons spinning around in a vain search for their target. Pegasus brought his foot down on it, smashing the drone to pieces. He dropped to his knees, panting, and put a hand on his side where he had been shot the first time. The skin felt hot through his suit.

He groaned: he might have stopped his out-of-control drones, but there was still an alien invasion. And he had just lost one of his newest and best weapons.

Pegasus glanced up into the sky, only for the alien ship to blink out of existence.

Hugo wore an expression of shock and confusion on his face as the ship disappeared. The other alien collapsed to his hands and knees, gasping and wheezing. Hugo whipped around to glare at him. "You!" he shouted, charging, his arms spread wide and talons extended.

Rena Rouge and Le Tirreur stepped in front of the other alien to protect him from Hugo. Rena Rouge dropped to the ground and swept Hugo's legs out from under him just before Le Tirreur tackled him to the ground. Hugo pushed Le Tirreur off of himself and swiped at him with his talons. Le Tirreur caught the talons on his baton and redirected them away from his chest. Rena Rouge pounced on him, but Hugo rolled away and sprang to his feet. He took one look at his two assailants and then past them at Pegasus before turning on his heel and running away.

Pegasus stumbled to his feet to reclaim the drone case. Too weak to pick it up, he slid it across the pavement with his foot until it rested beside the fallen transmitter. He collapsed to the ground and leaned back against the Eiffel Tower's support strut, closing his eyes. He heard Turing push the case open with his manipulating arm and poke his head out.

"Pegasus? What happened?" asked the robot, sounding confused.

"I would like to know the same thing," Pegasus observed, not opening his eyes as Rena Rouge and Le Tirreur approached, supporting the other alien between them.