Author's Note: *sigh* I hate myself and this accursed procrastination problem… I know I say this at the beginning of almost every chapter but I'm so, so, so, so, so sorry guys for making you wait this long! I am! Really! Forgive meeeeeeee! *sniff* Okay..I think I'm better now…

Kay, this may be a bit confusing. I'm switching from Orion & Shadow's point of view. I'll be sure to put in where the POV changes Ex: ~Shadow's POV~ or **Orion's POV** Get it? Good. Oh! And all of the Space Farm Commando characters belong to NightW2, not me. So don't sue me I have no money, if I did I could buy pretty nice things. Here we go then, c ya at the end of the chapter!

"It is a matter of life and death, a road either to safety or to ruin." - Sun Tzu, the Art of War

**Orion's POV**

I sat in the crimson sea the Nostalgic Novas, the ship of the Space Farm commandos in awe. By all laws of science, or even science fiction for that matter, this didn't seem possible, which was saying a lot coming from someone who constantly insisted there were ghosts in the toaster. But no, here it was, as real as anything could ever be. This place was real, and I was the fairy tale. My feline heart pounded wildly in my ribs like a bird in a cage trying to grasp freedom. It was as if this majestic sea of stars was waiting, calling for me and I felt more at home here than I ever did back on Earth. I could now see why Isis liked this universe so much for even if it was in ruin, it was more stunning than mine could ever be. But that may have come from the fact that I was an out-worlder here. If Shadow, Paris, or anyone else was dropped in my universe, they might have been just as amazed…or maybe not. But then that's just me. It was around midnight at the time and mostly everyone was asleep except for me and to tell the truth I liked it that way. Not that I disliked my new shipmates, it was just that I almost never really got time to myself to simply think and do nothing. At home I usually watched TV over my human's shoulder, organized my collections, or talked with one of the dogs in the ranch. Isis and her nephew Othello, who also lived with us, was asleep in the day except for the morning and evening. At night my time was spent looking for UFOs on the roof, talking (or more likely arguing) with Isis about something or other or doing something else…like sleeping. So I much enjoyed this time to be with only myself, the ship, and the endless sea of stars in the endless realm of space. But there was no time to dwell on that. There was a task ahead...or at least there would be if we had a mission. Apparently so far the Commandos had been working on the dimension portals, helping out refugees, etcetera.

I leaned back in the chair again and stared out at the sea of stars outside the circular window beside me. I was in my quarters at the time, a average sized room, not very big, but not to small either, but it was better than under a computer desk with half devoured pie and a very grouchy roach (it's a long, LONG story). The room itself consisted of a bed of course, a telliscreen( which served as a computer, television, video phone, and disk player), a hanging lamp, and such.

I got up and glanced outside of my door and began to walk down the living corridors and noticed the leader of the Space Farm Commandos, Orsolon reading a novel of some sorts in the room across from me, and very into it at that. How on earth he could manage to find the time to read while also commanding a rebellion was beyond me. Orsolon was a young pig, about the age of 24 I was guessing and he was about a few inches shorter than I was..but then again I was kinda tall. He wore a black body suit of cybernetic armor that gave him incredible physical strength, a very powerful force-field, the power of hypersonic flight and a pair of high-powered wrist-lasers that he can activated by thought, a bit like my own outfit. He also had the ability of super-intelligence and some skills in the use of sorcery (skills he focused with the aid of his ever present book of spells).

As I continued down the hallway. In the room next to him were the siblings Lanaius and Bo-Star (awesome name, like something I would go by in my kitten hood…*nostalgic sigh*) both fast asleep in bunk-beds, under cotton sheets . Lanaius was the charter member and also the only female member of the Commando that I'd seen so far. I can remember saying as a kid that my sister Vela was the most difficult girl in the history of girls. Later, I said the same thing about Isis, then Isis' tutor Lady Amalthia. Lanaius made them all look like an agreeable puppy. This sheep can argue with anyone about anything, anybody, at any place, at any time and win despite how inane or sensible the subject is. If you can actually manage to win an argument with her then…you're some kind of god or something. While technically super-strength, unbreakable willpower and the ability to emit hypersonic blasts from her vocal cords were her official powers, I personally consider her power to as good as any super abilities. That's because if in a fight you manage to either confuse, frustrate, or rally, really anger your opponent they don't think clearly, which means one can overpower them and win easily.

Her brother Bo-Star was a bit more easy to hang out with.

He was a laid back guy, very mellow, and nothing really got to him. Which I suppose was necessary if you had a sister like he did…but then I wasn't one to judge.

The room next to them was a bit odd, it was painted a fiery orange, with a few lava lamps on the shelves and a rather large sculpture of an ear of corn made out of aluminum I the center. In the corner slept a rooster swinging gently in a hammock. This was Royidra, and out of all the Commandos, I think I liked him the most. I'd already had a few friendly conversations with him. He was a cocky fellow, with a rather large ego, full of mischief and trickery. He had moxie, that guy. His powers included invisibility, high-level telekinesis and limited mind-reading abilities.

In the room across from his, was a place almost the exact opposite. Painted a serene blue, with a bonsai tree on a shelf beside his bed was a duck sleeping on a waterbed, still dressed in his black bodysuit, gloves folded and placed upon a hovering blue inner tube beside his bed. His boots rested under them with a crimson cape hanging in on a hook nearby. He was what I would call a worry-wart, from when I first met him he was glancing around nervously. Fro what I understood, he had many, many phobias but that never stopped him from doing what needed to be done, which was something to be admired. He was able to pass through solid matter at will, sort of like a ghost and had the ability to make an opponent to experience ultra-realistic illusions reflecting what they feared the most magnified by 1, 000, 000. He shifted in his sleep and mumbled something about "evil rakes".

I twitched my whiskers once again, still trying to get a good feel for the Novas and continued down the halls of the ship. I slowed as I approached the last room down the hall. The door opened automatically as I poked my head in. Inside was a small chick (don't tell him I called him small…he'd kill me) his feathers a downy yellow sleeping in the top bunk of a bunk bed wearing a dark gray T-shirt with some rips in the front and back. This was Bookzooka, the youngest member of the Commandos. A black eye-patch was over his left eyes, as a result with a run-in with a soldier of Vetvix. There was a story behind this I knew, but when I had a feeling that that incident held some memories that he may not want to face and I decided to find out when the he or the others found it necessary. A navy blue cape hung on a rack on the door along with matching gloves and boots. To tell the truth, I think he was my favorite of the Nostalgic Novas to be around. He reminded me so much of Isis' nephew Othello, who was staying with us indefinitely. He had the same glint in his eyes as Bookzooka did when he spoke of adventuring. Wild, youthful, bright, hardheaded, and innocent, in spite of the terror the universe had in store. But I think this liking must have also been because he reminded me of home; I couldn't believe that I missed it already. I'd only left tonight and with the rip between this and my home dimension, I could spend years here and only be gone a few weeks there. I guess Isis was right..time is but an opinion. A second can seem like a thousand years and vice versa. I leaned on the doorway as I thought of all that awaited me back home. I can't believe I miss it already. Already I'm longing for Isis, Othello, Lila, and my small group of paranormal friends… "But most of all, I miss you Marina…."

"Who's Marina"? asked someone behind me. I swear, must have jumped like five feet in the air. "Shelldronis...I didn't know you were still awake..you nearly scared my out of my skin, you know?" "I did? Cool, I've never really scared anyone before." I nodded and took my fuzzed up tail in my gloved paws and attempted to straighten it out. "So" said Shelldronis, taking a seat in a nearby chair "Who's this Marina you mentioned?" I gave him a small grin "Marina's a very, very close friends back home. She's a pureblood Balinese that lives in the neighboring farmhouse. I've only been here a few hours, and I know that's not even three seconds back home, but I miss her like crazy already. I miss everything about her, the way she talks, the way she moves, the way the autumn wind blows calmly through her soft, ice colored fur, and the way her azure eyes light up whenever we see each other" "So then you love her?" "Well, I honestly don't know if I do or not, I've never really been in love before. I remember once I asked Isis if I was or not. I came up to her one night when she was on the roof and I said 'Isis, I've come to ask you about something. When I'm around Marina, my heart beats like a rabbit's, my entire aura seems to race inside my body, I feel like running away, like it's something you're not supposed to do, but at the same time I feel a sense of serene calm and happiness. Is that love?' and she gave me a philosophical answer I didn't understand at all." I let go of my tail and let it settle around my legs as I sat on the armrest beside the youth. "But personally, I think that she meant to give me some deep answer that she knew I wouldn't understand. That I had to find it out for myself. That maybe…ah, forget it. I don't like to brood on things. Besides, I'm sure you don't wanna hear some old guy talk about his past anyway." "Well, actually, I find it rather interesting." "Really?" "Yeah. Besides, I've nothing better to do. I can't sleep, Bookzooka won't stop snoring or talking in his sleep." "I see. Well, back home, it's like this…

~Shadow's POV~

"Hey Shadow?" I lifted my head and turned to K-Niner with bright and curious eyes. It must have been at least four in the morning and didn't expect me to still he up. He was sitting several feet away from me, his helmet shining dully in the dark room. "Yeah?" "Do you mind if I ask you something?" "Of course" "Why is it you fight? I mean, I know it's for freedom and restoring order and all that, but I'm positive there's something else too. Something need to fuel the fire for revolution, we've all lost something in particular, some are out for revenge, like Shiva, and others are just longing for yesterday. What are you looking for, what do you look to accomplish?"

I was fully awake now and I stared at him, then turned away, and was suddenly glad that he couldn't see the way my tail was suddenly leashing with discomfort "Besides freedom for the universe, what do I fight for? I fight for him. I fight for my mate, Kaleo. He was taken from me, and I intend to get him back" "You do know that if he's been in her clutches for this long, there is a very good chance he is not in his mind any longer, or if he still lives at all" The fur on my back raised a bit as I turned back to face him, my eyes glowing brightly in the dim light "Don't you think I know that? I constantly ask myself what the use if of breaking my back for someone that may not even remember who I am? For someone who means everything to me, but may not feel the same way and now drained, emotionless, and practically a dead, empty shell. But even if he is a mindless slave, I still love him all the same. After all these years I think more than ever, and my heart yearns for him to still feel the same that it feel like it's screaming and I almost start running into the sea of stars to find him myself, although I have no idea what awaits me: a minion or my mate and I don't know where he even is. I honestly don't know. But I will tell you one thing that I do know for certain: my tom still lives. I don't know how, or by what standard, but I do know that he lives. If he wasn't, I would have felt it, and vice versa, whether he still knew me or not., for although that tyrant can take one's mind, the ka (AN: ka meaning spirit or soul in feline tongue) cannot be enslaved. We're bonded, and we will stay bonded until either one of us dies or decided to no longer be bonded."

K-Niner nodded "And what about you?" I asked him "What drives you?" "Me? I'm driving to find out what I drive for. Everyone's here for some reason, and I'm trying to figure out what that is. At first I thought it was simply to assist Vetvix and earn my placer in the universe. Now I simply don't know what my purpose is. But then I don't think anyone really knows what we're here for. We have to go on life's journey and find it all out for ourselves. If we knew what out destiny was, there would be no life at all, and all that makes living exciting, weather good or bad is suddenly no longer a surprise and thus wouldn't be much to live for now would it?" He gave a small laugh "I'm afraid I'm not making any sense am I?" I grinned a bit "No, I understand, and I think you've got it right. We can't really brood on the past and the future and keep focused on the future. Besides, you can't really have a future if you refuse to leave the past."

"Shadow!!" The shrill cry cut through the eerily calm air like a hot knife through butter. I was instantly on my feet with my ears forward. "It's Shiva" said K-Niner softly. I didn't bother to answer him, but my paws raced beneath me as I made a mad dash to the courtyard, by the track to where Shiva's cry had originated with the Doberman not far behind. It was obviously urgent, and I was more than a little bit frightened. Shiva never called out like that..never unless she was extremely angered, or upset or.. " 'Suït?! Where the hell are you?!" My sprint faltered a bit at the call and barely managed a responsive yowl. Now I really was afraid. 'Suït. My soul name, the name hidden deep within the regions of the heart and spirit, and by the ancient laws of mau not to be spoken aloud, except for immediate family, life mates, and very close friends, and even thin in privacy. To speak it aloud, and at that volume… And was that fear I head in Shiva's voice?

I came into the courtyard violently, sliding as my claws desperately trying to get a grip on the slippery grass. I finally found my footing just as I was about to trip on the slippery lawn and ricocheted from a stone bench and came to Shiva's side. The cat was sitting in the wet grass, her damp gray fur reflecting the florescent lights that hummed softly above. She turned her face to mine , her amber eyes ablaze with panic. "What? What is it?!" Shiva seemed to calm a bit as she motioned to a figure a few feet from her. The form was long and slim, a softly shining reddish white in a section of a section of grass of a darker hue. As I approached closer, my eyes amplified, filled with disbelief. It was Paris. Laid out in the soft earth stretched out with his eyes closed and his tail laid out in a straight line behind him, silent as his sides rose and fell delicately, shuddering a bit as they came down again. And in the light I could now see that the dampness around Paris' body and the courtyard was not dew. It shone with a dull reddish-pinkish radiance. It was blood. He looked eerily beautiful like that. Beautiful..and yet horribly unsettling. It sent a horrible surge of terror through me and I felt a thin line of fur rise along my spine. The area around him crackled with an invisible aura of violent agony, and it caused a brutal surge of pain through my body as I passed through it and came to his side. This scene has horribly familiar to me. I'd seen this before, I was sure of it.

"Well? What's wrong with him?" Shiva was beside me now giving me a look of helplessness as a new-eyed kitten would give it's mother when it strays too far from the litter. I gulped "I-I'm not sure. But I know for sure that something's seriously wrong with his ka, and it's affecting his body dreadfully." Shiva's terrified eyes sparked for a moment "I knew that! I want to know why." I ignored her comment and moved closer to the ferret and laid beside him, turning my head so that my eyes aligned with his and stayed like that for a while. Suddenly I leapt away from him, pelt now damp from Paris' once white fur and the surrounding grass. "Well?" I walked away from Paris, a few feet away beside a lawn chair where the grass was still dry, drying my fur with closed eyes, trying to regain calm. Shiva stared expectantly. "I may know..but I want a second opinion. Get Miaka in here. My friend gave a quick nod and kicked a button under the landscape.

In minutes the dachshund was at the scene, her eyes still a bit heavy with sleep. "Miaka, come over to Paris and tell me if I'm crazy." She obeyed and I followed slowly behind. She stared into the ferret's eyes for a second, then jumped away, and shook herself dry, although she wasn't that wet at all. "So? Is Shadow crazy?" asked Shiva. "No. She's not." Miaka's body was shaking a little.

I nodded. That seals it then. "What is it already!?" demanded the other cat. "Our friend Paris" I began "Has fallen victim to a psyrus. It's like a deadly virus that attacks the inner ka, the equivalent of someone slicing your body almost in half, and a flash-eating virus devour you at the same time. And it's killing him; slowly and painfully. That blood around us isn't actually blood from the body, but more a result of the ka's peril. It sort of races around the victim's mind and entire being, crashing and clawing desperately in a blind attempt to somehow escape the torment plaguing it. As a result, it bleeds and seeps though the body as you can plainly see. The disease is more serious depending on how powerful the victim's ka is, the stronger the ka, the faster it speads. And Paris' ka is very strong. From a quick analysis, I'd say he's got about five and a half days. Any longer and he'll be beyond help"

"Is there a cure?" asked K-Niner quietly. I hadn't noticed he was there. "There is. There is an object called the Orb of Curine, it used to be very easy to possess one after it became an outbreak on the planet Psychi. But now" I shook my head "I doubt it even one exists." Shiva whispered something to Miaka, who vanished from the courtyard, instantly Garland was in her place, still in his red and greed striped nightclothes holding a laptop wearing his glasses lopsided and looking very tired, but ready. He sat and began typing furiously, looking for info on the Orb apparently. His tinted glasses flashed as he relaxed and straightened them. "Okay, do you want the good news or the bad news first?" "Good" said Shiva. "The good news is that there is one left. Except that it's broken in half." K-Niner made a quiet grumble in his throat "and that's not even the bad news. The bad news is that one half is halfway across the universe, on the planet of Funlandia. But, there is a bit of good news. The other half is on this planet, the other side of the planet that is, in the desert of Narle." "It that all you can tell us Gar?" asked Shiva "I'm afraid so" he said, taking off his glasses rubbing his sinuses tiredly. "So apparently, someone here's going to have to go to Narle and someone else will have to go to Funlandia.' "But it's halfway 'cross the universe! Not even out fastest ships can go there and back in time." "That's why I'm enlisting help from one of out allies" responded the human. I jumped to Garland's shoulder as the transition screen appeared and a familiar Siamese face appeared on screen with Shelldronis looking on beside him. "Hey Orion, you're up I see. Where's everyone else?" "They're asleep, what's up?" Gar quickly informed the out-worlder of the situation at hand. The cat nodded "I got you. I'll be sure to tell the crew, so we can get on it." "Good luck waking them up" cut in his companion.

"Thank you Orion, and good luck." "Ditto. Nostalgic Novas out."

"So we've got that settled. Now we need to form a party go get the other half. I'll go of course, we're gonna need someone who knows the place, who else is coming? We can't have more than five or we'll attract attention." "Well I'm going" I said. "So am I' said K-Niner. "And you can certainly count me in" chimed in Kitaro (who had apparently been sleeping in the shadows). "Anyone else No? Good, that makes four of us. Get a lot a bit of sleep guys, we leave in 3 hours."