Chapter 13

Introductions

Commander Rimmer hadn't been revived as a, free standing soft light hologram, a mere five minutes when Lister barged in the Science Room tears in his eyes, pain in his heart and accusation on his lips.

"They're Gone!" was precisely what he shouted as he crashed through the doors, his hands smeared with red paint.
He made a bee line for Kryten.

"They're gone," he repeated in a catatonic trance, as he approached
and hugged the mechanoid. Kryten's clumsy hands made comforting gestures as Lister stared off repeating the two words again.

"Who's gone?" asked a familiar yet strange voice.
The unfamiliarity of the voice caused Listers eyebrows to meet quite low on his brow, quite quickly.

As Lister released Kryten from his security embrace and turned towards the unfamiliar voice, Spanners approached him and put an arm on his doubles' shoulder.

"Davie what's the matter? What's happened man?"
Lister shrugged off his double's arm and zombie like approached the
newly revived female Ace.

"Who the smeg is she?"

"She's me" said Rimmer. Finally starting to grasp it.

"No. I mean what's her name. What's she called?"

"Well no need to be a fuss bucket about it miladdo. Introductions all
in good time. The way I'm guessing it is you're an alternative version
of my pal Spanners over there. And I'm an alternative version of his
Rimmer, who consequently is an alternative version of your bunkmate,
Arnold over here."
Rimmer threw Lister a goofy smile that gleamed.

Lister wasn't smiling.

"I'm gonna ask one more time. What's your name."

"No secret there my old jelly roll. My name is Rimmer.
Arnie J. Rimmer. Friends call me Ace."

Unable to shake Lister's hand the commander instead cocked her hip to the right, places her hand on it and threw Lister what could have easily been misconstrued as a provocative smile.

"That's all I wanted to know." Said Lister before going straight for her light bee.

Only minutes earlier Arnie Ace Rimmer materialized in this dimension
for the second time this very day. Once was hard enough.

And once so was she.

Now she had been resurrected as a creature composed solely of light.
Still Dimension jumping, materializing, being killed and then resurrected,
can take it's toll on a girl. Still getting used to the idea that she would soon be resurrected, still while in her light bee, trapped with the fused shut black box was difficult. Then the adjustment that she materialized in a, male- dominated universe. How precocious. And this dimension's Rimmer a mealy mouthed male version of myself. Enough to make a girls stockings run.

Strangely enough, as well was the news that she could only touch herself,
or another soft light hologram, which essentially was herself, was somewhat disconcerting. But after all she was Ace Rimmer. This little inconvenience would prove little more than a crushing bore. A slight nuisance.
As long as she could think, she could act, function.

That is of course until a psychopathically deranged male version of one of your best mates, who seems to have misplaced his offspring and is currently attacking the small physical presence you now possess. In some kind of mad raving idea that you are the very culprit that transpired this very scheme.

"Easy now there miladdo, let's not get our wire crossed on our first meeting. Look, we're alternative versions from various dimensions all
here and all now, doesn't the very grandeur of it compel you to listen?"

Lister paused for a second, scanned the room, and picked something up off the floor. It was a cricket bat. He swung it down in the general vicinity of Ace's head.

"No it doesn't. Now, where are my boys?" Lister asked holding the bat in a threatening manner.

"Look, I don't know what makes you think I would know. Ask your mates,
I haven't been on line for more than a few minutes. How could I have anything to do with it?"

" All I know is what I saw."

"What did you see Davie?" Asked Spanner who was now standing right beside him.

"This," and he held up his hand.

"Red paint?" Rimmer questioned snidely.

"Not the paint. The symbol. An uppercase A, in red paint, right next to the smashed stasis booths. The booths that I left Jim and Bexly in,"
was all Lister could get out before a renewed burst of tears made their way past his eye ducts.

Spanner put an arm around Lister and it was shrugged off.

"Explain the mark lady!" Lister shouted with tears in his eyes. "Come on, Explain it!"

"Sorry old friend." Ace said. "I can't."

Later Arnie Rimmer would reflect on this conversation and surmise that her explanation had left a tad to be desired. But at the actual time of the so
called explanation, she was too distracted to react accordingly.
You see Ace knew who had kidnapped the babies.

"Ace, where you going?"

"No time Spanners my old fruit cake. Gotta Run."
Ace redoubled the speed of her long strides, back to the landing bay.
So much in fact that LIster practically had to run the last hundred yard, just to meet her at the cargo bay entrance.

"Ace, Ace! Will you wait up." As he punched a button on the console and sprayed Holly's screen with coffee based spittle and panic stricken words.

"Holly have Lister and Kryten meet us in the cargo bay, Pronto!"

"No can do old banana cream pie," she said not turning to face him while opening the voice activated doors. "Important business I've got to attend to."

Somehow Spanners had convinced the other to leave him alone with Ace,
with the hopes of getting something out of her. Privately he explained to Lister his plan to get information from Ace.

But it was Ace who managed the information from Spanners, and learned about his semi functional ship. Then Ace acted like, well Ace.
When she reached cargo bay Kryten and a quiet Lister were waiting.

"Well me old Buckaroos seems like I'm not going to get away without a lot of chin wagging, so I guess I'll have to face the bright lights and tell you chaps what the fireworks are all about.

"You see this wristwatch," said Ace pulling up her sleeve over her muscular left arm.

"It has more than one function, let's just say a good number of them.
But none more important than this illuminated pulsing green button."
The others squinted, but when in focus there it was.

"What does it mean Ace Ma'am?" Asked Kryten.

"Yea," interjected Spanners. "Your laundry done or something?"
Trying to lighten up the mood.

"I wish it were that mundane my masculine friend. This is a warning signal. You see I didn't just pop into this diminution haphazardly at random. I'm here on a mission."
With this last sentence Rimmer walked up.

"Well whatever happens to Ms. Rimmer," his snideness on full alert, "I hope it happens a long way off. I for one do not need the assistance of a reject from a roller disco."

"Arnie old blub, you may have hit the proverbial nail on the head, you're absolutely correct. What's going to happen involving me in the next few hours is my responsibility and none other. And that's how I'm going to deal with it."

Finally the wind was enough back in Lister's sails to ask the question he had been attempting to ask since the start of this not so merry chase.

"What's so important? What's going on?''

"The female Ace put down her flight helmet, and looked around at the three sets of eyes questioning her. There was no way around, she had to tell them the truth.

"What I'm about to tell you is under strict confidentiality. On a need to know basis."

"What is?" Questioned Arnold.
Looking into Rimmer's eyes Aces full lips parted and the words seemed to drip out.

"It's the story of another Ace."

"Another Ace?" questioned Lister.

"Great," said Arnold, "so now your telling me there are more of you
guys."

"Arnie your mind moves as swift as a nuns first currie." Ace parried.

"So where did he come from, your dimension?"

"Hardly. I'm the only one from my dimension, that I know of. Where he
comes from I know not. Truth to tell the only thing I absolutely know
about the gent is his handle."

"And what would that be Ms. Ace Mum?" Quarried Kryten.
Ace turned to meet his gaze head on, this is what she had hoped to avoid.
With this little piece of information, none would ever fully trust either Arnold or herself ever again.

"The rogues name is Ace."

"Ace?" all three said in unison

"Yes. Ace."

"The Ace of Black Heart's Rimmer"