This chapter was edited by Shadowmane2001 and Grammarly. Thanks to both for the help! Especially Shadowmane2001 for helping keep this cohesive and on track. And for David.

Shadowmane readjusted himself in the command chair in the center of the bridge of the Zelgadis. He watched the streaks of lights shorten back into the distinct pinpoints of stars when his ship exited the final Hyperspace corridor to this star system. A red planet - the fourth out from the core star - came into view on the main screen. Though hundreds of thousands of kilometers distant, it loomed largely and blotted out the nearby stars. He stretched in his chair just as the voice of the AI, ATAC, piped up.

"Welcome to Bumfuck, el Capitan!" the voice chirped. "I won't bother with shopping destinations. As for food, well, stay out of any lit cauldrons…."

"That's enough." ATAC had always been verbose. Thanks to his exposure to the Thunderians that comprised a part of his crew over the past five years. It had led to experiments in expression, which ran the gamut from humorous to irritating with a sprinkling of profanity. He suspected the last came from his engineer, the talented (and irascible) Tygress Polgara. She lovingly maintained the engine core and related systems of the Zelgadis yet had a slightly troubling habit of thinking of said space and systems as her personal domain. She did such excellent work (ATAC's assistance notwithstanding). This led him to allow it alongside the fact that the term territorial did not do her adequate justice.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"That converter is still bothering me," Polgara said from her position before the main control panel of the engine room. All about her was the low hum of the central engine core. The actual chamber that generated all the power that ran the Zelgadis's various systems was sealed behind several layers of robust shielding, both physical and energy.

"For the love of crap, Pol," ATAC's voice replied, "we've been over this!" A sound like frustration escaped the embedded speakers through which the AI spoke. "We're talking about a margin of 0.0007 percent reduction in turbulence in shifting back into real space."

"And I know I can reduce that."

"Why?!" ATAC pleaded. "My systems are beyond peak efficiency… Thanks to you, of course."

"You're welcome." She tucked a lock of her shoulder-length hair - striped orange and black - behind her left ear. She was small for her clan - topping off at just over one and a half meters - with all of it being wiry muscle and bone and little in the way of feminine curves. Her clothing was slightly baggy by necessity, needing numerous pockets for the gear she always kept on hand. This almost matched the grease stains that dotted said overalls from her time in maintenance tubes. It was, in fact, rare to see her occupying her seat in the engine room before the console, which displayed every readout of every system. The fact that ATAC could contact her anywhere on the ship made for ease in her chosen profession. However, she had ensured that his inputs were limited in private quarters.

"Look, Pol," he - she had always given the AI a male pronoun based on his voice and mannerisms - said, "he's gonna get his socks knocked off."

"What?"

"Me intelligent system. Me perform billions of operations and linear calculations per second. Me also hear you go on and on about Panthro."

"Me can reprogram you with big hammer," she snarled.

"I love it when you talk dirty," ATAC quipped at her empty threat. "Seriously, Pol, you're putting yourself under too much stress over this. I get he's an engineering titan, but you're not a slouch yourself." A pause. "Who better to say that than me, for crying out loud?"

"Okay, so what do you think I should do?"

"Switching to decaf comes to mind."

"Where did I put that hammer again?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

I think you're ready for more responsibility, Kat.

Those words echoed in his mind as he stood in the Control Center. Lion-O had said them to him in the Throne Room not even a day prior.

Cheetara had said that you've shown maturity these past years, and we're long overdue recognizing it.

The stations were manned by Mandora on the main Ops console before the main screen, with Torr at the Braille Board. Currently set to visual input for when Lynx-O was not on duty and the young Lynxran at the Comms station to his left rear.

I had to fiddle with the duty roster Tygra had added, but I've placed you in command of the following afternoon watch. If that is, you're interested.

"Status?" he asked.

"Course and speed unchanged," Torr replied. "Still, no shields and weapons aren't charged. I'm not picking up any other ships."

"Cloaked ships aren't likely," Mandora offered. "The technology is limited and expensive. Even the best pirate fleets can't deploy large amounts of them." She brought up twin displays on the main screen. On the left was a diagram of a cloaking field with callouts that seemed like techno gibberish to him. The right showed an empty space in the ship's vicinity, indicated with a white dot. Though well within sensor range, the expanse of space was enormous, and spotting one ship visually at a distance of hundreds of thousands of kilometers was near impossible. Kat had a nagging suspicion that Lion-O or Cheetara had instructed them to go easy on him. Given that this was his first time out, they knew full well what was happening here.

"If they come in hot, we can reply in kind," he said, "but let's not make assumptions." He had learned that much from Tygra. He also knew how ships much larger than the one on approach fared against megasmashers, and at least two were on deck. Though Cheetara had not chopped them to him, Kat knew that if worse came to worst, she would order them without hesitation and that they would respond with gusto.

Minutes crawled into an hour, then two, and his patience was stretched thin. Kat strode to stand near Mandora's console, his left hand resting on the edge. He knew this would not make the unnamed ship approach any faster, but he could not help himself. This was his first test in anything like command and…

"Kat," Mandora said with gentle insistence. He glanced down as his fingers were about to drum the surface again. He flashed back to the last time he had tapped his claws while on watch.

"Sorry." She turned with a look and a grin.

"I remember my first time," she said. "I was nervous, too." Lights on her console then came to life. "I have visual," Mandora noted before selecting a section of the right display. The ship was of an elegant design, its lines curved and leading backward for a descent into an atmosphere. "I don't believe it."

"What?"

"I know that ship!" she exclaimed. "I recommend we call in the others. They'll want to see this."

"I need more," he said tersely.

"That ship belongs to someone I know well," Mandora said.

"Given your last career, that's not very reassuring," Torr replied.

"Just trust me on this. He wouldn't be here without good reason. Besides, I didn't spend all my time with villains and rogues." She shrugged her shoulders. "There were exceptions."

Kat knew he had to decide and fast. "Are you sure about the crew on that ship?"

"Signal coming in," Torr said. "Binary code only. It's asking permission to land. Also… Asking if a bar called Dr. Unk's was ever repaired and… fuck me…."

"What?" Kat snapped.

"So, know why this ship is calling for Panthro specifically?"

"Command to Panthro," Kat said, fighting to keep his voice calm.

"Go ahead."

"We're patching you into our feed," he said. "This ship is asking for you."

"Gimme a few… what…?" Silence stretched out for several moments. "An Edean ship?"

"It's asking for you," Kat said, "personally."

"Guide it down, my authority," Panthro responded. "I don't believe this…" he muttered before the channel closed.

"Guide them down to grid square 54/90," Kat said. It was a reasonable distance outside the colony proper in a recently cleared and isolated grassland sector.

"Team Four is mobilized," Torr said. A rookie platoon made up of humans and Thunderians under the command of an officer rescued from the Vertis.

"Kat to Lisker, come in."

"We've got an eye on this," Lisker said from his position in what was informally known as G Corps. Even if Cheetara was not present, someone would always be on duty. "I can be airborne in no time. Sho as well."

"Understood," Kat replied. What the hell? Kat thought. "Your take?"

"Above my paygrade," Lisker said.

"Pretend I just gave you a raise." He noted the quick look of humor in the eyes of the human's image.

"One of us in the air, the other on the ground," Lisker said just as another screen popped into life.

"Agreed," Sho said from the image on the screen. "I'll go low, and he'll go high."

"Cheetara hasn't given any orders," he said. It was both a play for time and an artful dodge. "Remain on standby until further notice." On receiving their acknowledgments, he ordered a channel to the throne room barely half a second before it opened on its own.

"We're monitoring the situation," Cheetara said. "You're doing fine, Kat," she said with a warm grin before the channel closed.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"It can't be," Panthro muttered as he charged to the waiting ThunderTank. A single leap carried him into its cockpit, with Sho leaping into the passenger seat before the engine roared into life. The hangar door to the depot had barely opened sufficiently before the rear treads spun on the concrete and gained traction a second later. "It can't be," he said again.

"I can't help but notice you're taking Sho with you," Cheetara said as her face appeared on the small comm screen in the tank's instrument panel. The background behind her was now that of G-Corps.

"Might as well," he replied offhandedly.

"General Order One is still in effect," Cheetara said, mainly to Sho. With the establishment of G-Corps, she had wasted no time establishing procedures. The chain of command, however, was as obvious as it was ironclad.

"Understood." Sho reached down to touch the hilts of the tonfas strapped to each thigh. Each ended in tips shaped like curled cats' claws and carried electrodes. They could deliver a debilitating shock with a press of a hidden button at the tips of the crosswise handles. They erupted into the sunlight at speed, angling to the dedicated exit route faster than strictly necessary. "So you know this person?"

"Yep."

"Friend of yours?"

"A long time ago."

"So why are you bringing me?"

"You jumped in the tank, Sho." The open countryside beyond the development of New Thundera rocketed toward them. Rough earth replaced smooth paving, and the tank's stabilizers quickly compensated for the harsher terrain.

"I took a look at the comm log before we left," Sho said mildly. Panthro grunted. "So, what's up with this Dr. Unk's place?"

"Do you want to do pushups with me sitting on your back?"

Sho wisely chose not to reply.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"It's Edean, awright," Bluegrass said from the cockpit of the Miraj. "But what the hell's it doin' here?"

"Still no read on the cargo?" Quicksilver's voice asked.

"Big ole blank," he said before leaning back into his seat. "But a fair haul of more of them cat-folk."

"That ship belongs to a known smuggler," Steelheart chimed in. "One the PGF turned a blind eye to more than once." The ship's registry and its captain files appeared on Bluegrass' screen.

"Tough customer," Kidd said in his whistling language.

"Edean ships ain't nothin' to take lightly," Bluegrass admitted. While they had not gone out of their way to gain the notice of the PGF, their capabilities were well known. Edea rested outside the borders of the Pan-Galactic Federation. Still, their captains had ventured into the territory on merchant and mercy missions multiple times. Though they had also cemented their prowess in hunting pirates, slavers, and rogues in the outer regions. Their relationship with the governing body of the PGF had been cordial, if somewhat distant. Several independent captains had made business inroads into the PGF - and had paid their taxes accordingly - but open diplomatic relations had never been fostered. As such, said captains were under a constant cloud of suspicion. That none had ever been caught in genuine wrongdoing was endless speculation.

"Wait until it lands, then send a signal to Thorson," Quicksilver said. "He'll want to know about this."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The ship's progress through the atmosphere was marked by a fire trail in the sky as it passed through the ever-thicker layers of air. What had begun as a bright red dot had resolved into a sleekly lined ship that had come to a hover above the specified landing area. Panthro could make out the circular discs along the keel as they lit up to counteract the planet's gravity. Strong enough to hold it in place with maneuvering thrusters that shot out plumes of opaque gas as the engine noise reduced to silence. The ship settled into position before making its final descent with barely a puff of wind. It set down on the soil as landing rails emerged from the underside. It settled on its landing gear a moment before a hatch on the side slid open, and a ramp appeared. Sho glanced at the gathered men and women of the newly constituted Royal Guard, each standing at attention. While no weapons were drawn, hands twitched near them, and each eye was locked onto the open entrance to the unknown ship. The unease was palpable; each person was torn between the willingness to unleash violence and the hope that it would not come to pass. Some had seen action at Fortress Plun-Darr. Others had either been rescued from the Vertis or were non-Thunderians who had joined on coming to New Thundera.

Panthro stiffened as the strange man emerged from the ship. The ThunderCat remained stiff at the edge of the ramp while the lupine man sauntered down. The pants and shirt stretched over taut muscle and had seen some hard use, and his bearing was ramrod straight as he walked down. The unknown wolf-like man reached the bottom of the ramp and stood on the grass mere feet from Panthro, and his eyes flickered over the gathered throng before returning to Panthro.

"You always kept good company," he said.

"Then why the hell did I hang out with you?" Panthro replied.

"I've asked myself that more than once." The silence grew taut between them before they rushed each other…

And collided in an embrace.

None of the gathered Royal Guard quite knew what to make of it.

"You son of a bitch!" Panthro exclaimed just as they parted.

"Do I talk like that about your mother?" the other said with a hearty laugh. Sho relaxed slightly as Panthro guided the other man away from the edge of the ramp, only for the stranger to lock eyes with him.

"Welcome to New Thundera," Sho said in his best diplomatic voice. First, those cyborgs, then David, and now this. Not for the first time, he wondered if the universe took some perverse pleasure in throwing him curveballs. Before any more words could be said, three others emerged. Sho had no clue who the insectoid with the pincer hands was. The mostly cybernetic man was another stranger. The third, however, was one he did know.

"Nice to see you again!" Corman shouted as the three departed the ship.

"I'll explain later," the captain, who then introduced himself as Shadowmane, said. "Trust me, there's a lot I have to tell you."

"Just can't stay outta trouble, can you?" Panthro asked with a knowing look.

"Lead me not into temptation. In fact, follow me. I know a shortcut." It was then that another surprise emerged.

Several Thunderians, led by what appeared to be a Tygress who was all wiry muscle and wearing a pair of the baggiest overalls Sho had ever seen. Their appearance stunned everyone who saw them.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Thank you for joining us, Doctor," Ratar-O said. Gireg stood before the captain and Meliz in the reduced lighting of the cabin, said ship having been placed on lockdown on detecting the approach of the Edean vessel. Aptom/Gireg nearly smiled at it all. Strange visitor notwithstanding, things were proceeding almost exactly as he'd planned. Still, the drama needed to be played out, and he checked to ensure the pieces were in place.

For his part, Ratar-O also knew it was a drama that must be played out. The only question was who would act first.

"The research is proceeding on pace," Aptom said in Gireg's guise. "There have been difficulties, but I can deliver what you need soon." It wasn't even a lie. Converting Mutants into Zoanoids was simple though it would take more effort than optimizing humans. He could not guarantee the ultimate result, and Ratar-O had not provided much genetic material. "I have four possible processes to attempt; I am sure one will work at least."

Not that said genetic material had been top tier, to begin with. Whatever these Mutants were, they were a far cry from the material Kronos had been able to wield. Some genotypes were possible, but the more powerful ones were beyond Ratar-O's grasp without unpolluted samples and the proper equipment, not to mention the technology and research.

In all truth, most would be sacrificial lambs. Meant for consumption and to be blamed on errors in the process. The last he would give to Ratar-O as a sop to his ego.

At first, Aptom had seen Ratar-O's aims as far too lofty. After months of pretending to be his top scientist and assimilating more of his crew, he had learned a disappointing truth. Ratar-O only wanted the basics while hoping to develop his own advanced models.

Aptom had almost laughed at the stupidity but had then wondered if the rat-like alien might have had a point. Given his assessments of Mutantkind, he had come to a clear realization. They only needed the basics.

A Gregore would be like a tank to him, a Vamore like an artillery division. Despite their many flaws, he could make those basic units. From there, the possibilities only became more nightmarish. While Plun-Darr genetic material was not as suited to Zoaforms as humans, they could still be enough.

Aptom could not allow it.

"A wise decision, clamping down like this," he said through Gireg's… beak. "Our position here is somewhat tenuous. They'll leave soon enough, though." It also put a dent in his plans, but he had plenty of backups. Throughout his time in the form of Gireg, Aptom learned a lot from the recovered data files past, matching those facts with his own memory. Sho was alive and well with a colony of feline aliens. Lisker was active again, apparently allied with them, and David had been revived. He had a slight chance of warning someone of this oncoming nightmare who had a genuine chance of kicking it in the nuts.

Aptom then took his leave, and as the door closed behind him, he reviewed his escape procedures again.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Your thoughts?" Ratar-O asked.

"My original thought would have been that he was trying to usurp the research, but now…." He recalled seeing the image of that… thing… consuming Gireg. "But from what you showed me, this is a serious security breach. This thing must be stopped. Now."

"You still don't know what it is," Ratar-O said.

"Forgive me, Father," he replied. "I admit, I am casting in the dark here."

"Explain." The flat tone of command could not have been more clear.

"Segments from Gireg's logs are missing," Meliz went on, "and they correspond with his recent change in attitude. Also, with several disappearances from the pens. It's flimsy, I know, but it's still disturbing." Meliz took a breath of the increasingly stale air. "Another thing is that visits among the females have dropped somewhat."

"Small details," Ratar-O said, this time with a hint of approval.

"This has spread," Meliz said. "I have noticed a drop in visits to the females by several key officers. This alone would not be a cause for alarm, but many have… specific tastes and an appetite for them. For this to vanish would seem insignificant, but…."

"But you saw it. Go on."

"Whatever this is has spread."

"You're certain." It was not a question.

"Father, it fits. Even if it doesn't make sense." Ratar-O quirked an eyebrow. "We're dealing with things no Mutant has ever encountered before," Meliz said. "You gave me free rein on this investigation. I assumed nothing was off the table."

"And you were correct," Ratar-O replied. "Gireg is no longer Gireg, and his influence is spreading."

"You're allowing this," Meliz said as conclusions dawned on him. "You're using him."

"A bit late to the party, but he arrives," Ratar-O said with approval. "Indeed."

"You're letting him play so that he can reveal what you need."

"You continue to impress me, son." Ratar-O nodded.

"Father, I must advise caution. This…"

"I'm aware of what it did," he said, his tone abrupt. "It posed as Gireg to get others on its side."

"You know which ones."

"Some, yes. But, they will still look out for themselves in the end."

XXXXXXXXXXX

Aptom watched the record from the bug one of his copies had managed to plant into Ratar-O's chambers. Just as tricky as the placement had been, routing the signal through unimportant and overlooked subsystems. This was to hide the path of the feed and the rerouting of others to boost its gain just enough so that only minimal power was needed. It had proven to be a godsend, considering rat-in-chief had cut damn near all power once that spacecraft had arrived. Aptom knew nothing about it or its' crew, but if Ratar-O was spooked, that was enough for him. He closed his eyes for a moment as he sent the order. His time on the Warhammer was done.

Ratar-O mainly had guessed right but had been wrong on the most salient points. That, however, did not concern Aptom at the moment. Once he screwed over Ratar-O - and he would - his main problem would be getting to where he needed to be. It would be an arduous journey and one he might not survive. Though he had assimilated a small portion of the Mutant crew, it was not enough to truly empower him. Non-Zoanoids simply did not give him the energy needed to use his powers to their fullest. DNA rewriting had been about the limit. Of course, knowing how they would react when he exposed what his clones could do would cause severe panic in the ranks.

It had been Gireg who had been his undoing on that.

On taking in Mutant DNA, he had curtailed his own recovery. It had polluted him somehow, made him less than he was.

You are what you eat, he thought with a humorless chuckle. Had Gireg not tried to analyze his sample, he would have reconstituted to full strength. Now he was… limited.

Aptom reviewed the plan in his own head, one that he had never committed to writing or data lest that bastard Meliz find it. There were facilities he could check out to see if they still had the body vats. Kronos had spawned test bodies once technology had advanced to the point where kidnapping people en masse had become problematic. Alcoholics and drug addicts would never be missed, but they had provided subpar experimental material. Growing Blanks - humans whose sole existence had been for Zoaform experimentation. This took up the slack and allowed for better prototypes and experimentation despite some setbacks. Blanks had been… well… blank and, as such, could not be used in battle unless under a Zoalord's influence. They also lacked the genetic diversity from humans breeding for hundreds of thousands of years.

Enough of this, he thought as he sent the mental command to his copies strewn about the Warhammer. It was time for this game to end.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The arrival of Shadowmane, his ship, and his crew/passengers had blown the daily routine to a fare-thee-well. Given the lack of time to prepare, Lion-O had chosen to eschew any formalities of the Throne Chamber and had given orders for the assembled party to assemble in the Council Chamber. He sat at the head of the suddenly crowded table with his own ThunderCats arrayed about him with Shadowmane and those he had chosen about its opposite side. Most of the Thunderians who landed with him were about twenty in number. Their ages ranged from early teens to middle age with various professions. They had elected to remain with the Zelgadis, which were now surrounded by a company of Royal Guards. In fact, the only Thunderian among the said crew was the wiry Tygress which the lupine captain had introduced as his chief engineer, Polgara. Among him was the human who had tried to seduce Sho away from Third Earth not long before, as well as Quickpick and the still unnamed cyborg. Sho had volunteered to remain with the Zelgadis, which Cheetara and Claudis had endorsed.

"Let's dispense with the formalities," Lion-O said before Tygra could call the session to order. As king, it was his right to short-circuit procedure, and now seemed a good time to do so.

"Fine with me," Shadowmane replied with an appraising look Lion-O was not sure he liked. "There's a lot we need to discuss, and if you'll pardon my coarse language, not a hell of a lot of time to do it.

"First, I request permission to offload my cargo into your most secure areas." The wolf said, sliding a datapad across the table to Panthro

"What cargo?" Mandora asked before Panthro could.

"Trust us, Ceres," Corman said, which caused her head to whip about, her face a mask of surprise at the use of her given name. "Pick over here called in a ton of favors to get this to you."

"I know we have never been the best of friends," Quickpick said, "but I would not have done this if it were not for the greater good. Something you taught me once upon a time."

"What Greater Good is this?" Claudis asked.

"Third Earth is in the PGF's crosshairs," Corman said. "Well, in one man's, actually."

"His name's Sven Thorson," the cyborg, who then introduced himself as Stargazer, added. "You've weathered his first shot."

"The cyborgs," Kat said.

"Quite correct," Quickpick replied. "Since the downfall of CONTROL, things within the PGF have become… skewed."

"The military took over things it should never have," Lion-O said.

"Putting it mildly, yes," Stargazer said. "Now, don't ask me how or what led to this. That story's too long even for an archive. The short form is that Thorson saw an opportunity and a threat and that you're wrapped up in both."

"The Vertis," Tygra hissed.

"Pretty much," Stargazer replied. "You got power, he wants it, and he'll try to get it. Those birds he made were supposed to test it out." Stargazer shrugged. "Hate to say, but you fell right smart into that one."

"By the way," Mandora said, "how does any of that explain you, Stargazer?"

"We don't…."

"We do," she stated. "I know what limits were put on cybernetics. Those cyborgs were in clear violation, and so are you."

"And you've noticed just how old my cyber parts are?" Mandora nodded. "It figures they'd try to erase it.

"Over three centuries ago, a new threat emerged, MonStarr. The PGF and CONTROL were reeling; the guy was everywhere. A new measure was needed, and that was me. I gave up my human body to take that monster down. I succeeded. Mostly."

"Mostly?" Tygra asked.

"I was able to bring him down, but I couldn't kill him. God knows I tried, but it just didn't happen. The only way to deal with him then was to seal him away; we did that for over three centuries. But, then, there were politics.

"The PGF didn't want that tech to spread, and I understand. I mean, with people able to upgrade themselves to damn near any limit? It would have been a disaster. After that thing was locked away, I knew I was next."

"You mean you took this MonStarr down all by yourself?" Kit asked, clearly not believing it.

"Hell no. I had a team. The SilverHawks. That team you met? They're based on that. Hell, even the body types are similar," Stargazer spat. "We had that creature cornered, we hit him with all we had, but it almost fell through. I was the last." A single tear leaked from Stargazer's human eye, and he wiped it away. "The PGF loved that he was caught but didn't want the methods known." He paused for a moment. "I saw it coming," Stargazer said. "I hacked into the PGF data files and erased Hawk Haven. Then I made it vanish but not before I put a few trap doors into the system. I knew this might happen again." He wiped his organic hand down his face. "Thorson was lazy."

"How?"

"The control system," Stargazer said just before a loud buzz sounded from his cybernetic shoulder. "Sorry."

"You want me to tune that up for you?" Panthro asked.

"Let me finish first," Stargazer said. "You saw that bird they had with them?" The rest nodded. "It's a control system. It's meant to keep them subservient while assisting their coordination."

"And you know this how?" Pumyra asked.

"We had something similar," he said, "but not as invasive. Our TallyHawk helped coordinate us in a fight, but there's no way Thorson stopped there. If I was a betting man, I'd wager these didn't undergo the process willingly like my team, and I did." Stargazer took a deep breath. "I know you think I'm being biased, but it's true. I and mine made one hell of a sacrifice. These people probably didn't, and that raises another question. That being, what are you going to do about them?" Stargazer then went on. "If you wanna save them, I can help. But it might be best to destroy them. Hear me out," he said at the looks on their faces. "It might be a mercy. None of them asked for this fight or this life. I don't know if it's even possible to help them."

"Kill them just because it's easier?" Cheetara asked, clearly outraged.

"If we can help them, I'm all for it, but what if we can't? Neither changes what's going to come here in the end."

"The PGF is going to come here in force," Claudis said.

"Not the PGF," Corman spoke up. "At least, not officially. Remember, things are all kinds of screwed now. Long story short, he has a lot of leeway to act on his own, and he's damn sure gonna use it. We're just not sure how."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sven Thorson reclined in his seat. His outwardly calm visage hid the maelstrom of misgivings within. He knew well about the Edean ship, and its captain, not to mention how the rogue state had skirted the laws of the PGF. Both friend and foe, selective on which side of the law it came down upon. An independent territory he had long wished to bring to heel. One that he would have were it not for his political masters.

But, they had begun to lose that grip. The proper entity of the PGF was now taking hold, and the times, they were a-changin'.

It was a gamble, as all such things were, but one he felt he would win. What had started with a new generation of SilverHawks would kick open the door to total domination of the fleet and the replacement of command in the positions currently held by the soft and the weak. Positions of power would be filled by those who knew what to do and had the balls to do it. It did not matter what the Edean captain had brought to this New Thundera. After all, a pretext was a pretext, and he had the one he needed. Convincing the Commissioners, the ruling council was already guaranteed. He just needed to activate his trump card.

"Computer," he said, " activate Code: Leviathan."

"Authorization," it said.

"Alpha Two Two Seven Gorun Nova."

"Authorization accepted. Beginning adjustment process. Integrating new data." The voice vanished for several seconds. "Caution," the slightly feminine voice said, "several data points unknown. Compensating." At this point, an image of the green Guyver from that battle appeared. Then there was the third Guyver, who was clad in gold. Lastly was the teal one, the monster which had smashed the Vertis. The one who had first captured his attention. A triumvirate of weapons that could rewrite what had held things together for so long. "Compensation complete. Reprocessing data." Then after a moment, "Analysis complete. Attention, Estimated power requirements increased by five hundred percent based upon analysis. Proceed?"

"Yes."

"Acknowledged. Total construction is estimated at eighteen weeks. Proceed?"

"Yes."

"Please confirm. Construction estimate is not concrete."

"Confirm. Begin at once."

"Acknowledged.

Thorson poured a measure of single malt into a glass, which he raised in anticipation. At last, this portion of the galaxy would assume its proper shape.