The Summer Vacation
Chapter 23
Written by rachel76m
Edited by Don Kaufman

Wizard Faltner flies through the green room with the knight and dwarf warrior. He flies down the rows of potted plants. They see several people tending to them. They also see the implants on the back of their necks, except one of them does not.

He flies among the rows of small trees. They see a clearing ahead. Once in the clearing they see Iulia standing near a tree.

“Something doesn't look right, Wizard Faltner.”

“I agree, let's take a closer look.”

They see her tied to a tree. She's also wearing a bomb vest, but no hand trigger in her hand. They look around and upward. They see they're under some large windows. They see the starry black night through the glass. Then they see a bomb attached to a window frame up there.

“This is not good. There has to be some triggers nearby. Those other people are acting as if they don't know what's back here.”

They look around some more, especially the perimeter with the trees and the clearing. Then they see more problems.

There are about ten traps hidden among the trees. There are various types of weapons pointed at her and the bomb on the window above.

They see laser and conventional guns, bows, arrows, and a large spear set in a large cross bow.

“We have to find how they are triggered.”

They look at the triggers themselves at the weapons. They see a clear string tied to them. They follow the lines down to the ground.

They see the strings being stretched and pulled in tight in many directions. The string is very low to ground. Most of the strings are covered in leaves to help hide them.

The wizard then flies to Iulia one more time. We look closely to see if there is room for two people to stand near her. We see that there is.

“We've seen enough. It's time to plan this rescue.”

“Yes, Wizard Faltner.”

He flies back to his squad members and appears in a blink of an eye.

“So, what's the situation?”

The three of them explain the set up to the rest of the squad members.

~~~000~~~

Evrat and Hikaru walk down the hallway with their escorts and a wing. They encounter other ship crew members along the way. They get greeted by them and shake hands with the knights. The knights find that to be an odd greeting.

“Thank you for coming.”

“Are we safe yet?”

“No, not yet.”

“It's the General and the Supreme who did this. Let's kill them now!”

“Don't do anything rash. We've encountered various traps and bombs on the star ship.”

“We need to secure and make safe these weapons. If they explode, the star ship will be crippled.”

“Is there a weapon room on this level?”

“If I remember right, there is a locked room or two on each level.”

“The nearest one is down the hallway. It's the fourth door on the left.”

“Thanks. How are the doors locked?”

“It uses a sound key, Evrat.”

“It uses sound? Whom has that key? How is it generated?”

“We don't need a sound key. We can transport inside the room.” He smiles at him.

“That's right. You’re a wizard. Then let's check them out.” He smiles back.

~~~000~~~

On another level a wing approaches the Environmental Control rooms. Then a wizard with a knight and a warrior connected to his shoulder recites the transport spell and they disappear in a blink of an eye.

They fly through the walls to check out the room. They don't see too many people in there, probably five at the most.

They continue looking around. They see control panels in various locations next to large tanks and pipes.

After some time they eventually find Brentann. He's tied up and hanging from a cable tied to a beam above him. He's wearing a bomb vest and has a hand trigger that is not hinged.

“We found Brentann. We need to investigate this space for any surprises. I'll start by blowing some dust.”

The knight holds a bag of dust with his left hand. The dwarf opens it and grabs a pinch of it. He blows it around while the wizard flies around.

Soon they see light beams’ criss crossing the space around him.

Brentann sees it and tries to remain calm by not moving.

They fly around the area some more. They look underneath Brentann and the network of pipes. They find a bomb mounted on a pipe. They see a sensor attached to it with a small light bulb flashing.

They look above Brentann and see how the cable is tied at the beam. They see a triggering device with a flashing light as well.

“We've seen enough. Let's inform the others. Tek and Dar-re need to know as well.”
“Yes sir.”

They fly out of the room and rejoin their wing. They appear in a blink of an eye.
They tell them what the situation is.

“Okay, let's contact Tek and Dar-re.”

~~~000~~~

“Okay, we agree to the plan. We take care of the workers first and put them to sleep. Then we put Iulia to sleep.”

“Right, then we remove the implants from the workers. We wake them up and get them out of the room to safety.”

“We'll blow some dust just to make sure in the clearing.”

“Yes, that must be done.”

“Then we focus on the traps. We freeze the triggers on the weapons. We can remove the arrows and the spear easily.”

“Then we can focus on Iulia. Secure the vest to the tree. Remove the implant behind her neck. Then we can transport her to safety.”

“All right, everyone understands their part?”

“Yes sir!”

~~~000~~~

“We found Brentann, Tek and Captain Dar-re.”

“Where is he, Sir Braxton?”

“He's hanging by a cable in the Environmental Control room. There are various traps around with one bomb underneath the pipes. He's wearing a bomb vest with a hand trigger. The cable above also has a trigger.”

“We also need to repair the control module as well. Apparently the General is trying a double jeopardy scenario.”

“I agree, Captain Dar-re.”

“Can we do two things at once?”

“We'll need at least two or three wings. That should provide enough man power.”

“I agree. We must reduce the pressure in the tanks. The pressure is building as we speak. It is not critical yet.”

“Okay, we agree to the plan. Tek, be careful.”

“I will sirs. As long as I have a wizard and Sir Dareh with me, I'll be fine.”

~~~000~~~

Several wings come together to discuss some options with Richard and the Legion Commanders on their contact crystals.

“What level are we on, Richard? I haven't seen too many people here.”

“You're on Level 10 called Engineering. It has several key rooms. One of the rooms is the repair and manufacturing shops. It's also the level for the ship's main power generation.”

“Is it safe, Richard?”

“They have a lot of safe guards in place to do that. The fuel they use to create the reaction comes from several sources. Those tanks have special colored symbols on them. The colors are red, blue and yellow with other symbols.”

“From the layout on the level, there are only fifty crew members there. There is one that is not moving among the tanks. It could be Geve.”

“Be careful in there. Remove the implants quickly as possible and wake them up. They need to keep the ship functioning.”

“Yes Sir Braxton. Thank you for looking ahead, Richard.”

“We sent five wings to the other levels. If you need any more help contact your Lieutenant Commander.”

“Yes, Sir Krellen.”

Then the images disappear from the top of the crystals. The knights put them in their pockets.

“All right, let's get armed with sleep darts. Wizards, check out the area. See if Geve is in there. Take a knight and a warrior to blow some dust.”

“Yes Sir Norston.”

A knight and a dwarf warrior put hand to shoulder onto a wizard. Three wizards then recite the transport spell. They disappear in a blink of an eye. They fly through the walls and into the rooms one by one.

They see ten people working in the repair shop. They also see that all ten crew members have the implants.

Then they fly into Engineering. They see that they have the implants as well, except for one of them.

“He could be one of the original crew members.”

“It's possible. Let's go through those double doors over there.”

“Okay.”

The three wizards fly through the doors. They see rows and rows of very large tanks. They see the symbols on the tanks that Richard mentioned. Eventually they find Geve.

He too is tied up next to a tank support. He's wearing a bomb vest as the others were.

The knight takes a bag from his pocket and holds it. The dwarf warrior opens it with his other hand carefully. He pinches some dust and begins to blow the dust around the room. They don't see any light beams appearing.

They move in closer to see what Geve's situation is.

They see he's holding a hand trigger in each hand. Both triggers are hinged. He's also struggling to keep them closed. They see there is room around him for a rescue team. They see the implant on the back of his neck like the others.

“Let's go. We need to plan this out fast.”

“Right.”

They fly back to the wings and appear in a blink of an eye with the other squads and wings.

“What's the situation?”

“It is as Richard said it is. We did find Geve. There is also an original crew member in there.”

“Okay, describe in detail what you saw.”

“Yes Sir Lieutenant Commander.”

~~~000~~~

I look at the screens. Changing views among the three locations. Hmm . . . how did he do it? “I wonder . . . ”

“Is there anything on your mind, Richard?”

“These life and death situations seem to be put together very fast by the General.”

“Yes, it seems that way. Our forces should have encountered him at any given time.”

I touch the heel of my right palm to my forehead. “Doh . . . now I remember sirs. They have a transport circle.”

“That's right Richard. See if it can be blocked from future use.”

“Yes Sir Krellen. Computer, did the General use the transport circle since Twainor's forces arrived here?”

“Yes Richard. The General did use it.”

“Can the transport circle be blocked from future use?”

“Yes Richard, even for a specific person.”

“Then block the General and the Supreme from using it.”

“Need Legion Commander password to over ride Supreme's pass code.”

Sir Braxton speaks up, “The password is balaur.”

“Password is accepted. Recognize Sir Braxton's voice. Transport circle now blocks the General and the Supreme throughout the star ship.”

“Where are the General and the Supreme right now?”

“They are on the Nefelim ship.”

“Does the Nefelim ship have a transporter like here in this room where I am at?”

“Yes Richard.”

“Then block the use of the transporter from the Nefelim ship to the star ship here.”

“Need Legion Commander password to over ride Supreme's pass code.”

Sir Braxton speaks up again, “The password is balaur.”

“Password is accepted. Recognize Sir Braxton's voice. Star ship now blocks use of transporter from Nefelim ship by blocking the frequencies they use to get on board.”

“Excellent Richard. Now we can just block the physical entrance from their ship to the star ship.”

“I just thought of one more tactic to bottle them up. Computer, how is the Nefelim ship locked onto the star ship?”

“There are external clamps on the star ship to keep the Nefelim ship docked.”

“Computer, set password for clamp release from the Legion Commanders and Captain Dar-re only. This will be needed to jettison Nefelim ship if it goes to critical mass on that ship.”

“Ready for password.”

Sir Braxton speaks up, “The password is peras.”

“Password is accepted. Recognize Sir Braxton's voice.”

“What's critical mass, Richard?”

“It's the end game scenario if they want to blow up the Nefelim ship through their engines and fuel.”

“I see, Richard. Let's hope it does not come to that. Well done, Richard.”

“How much time has elapsed since you've been on board sirs? I'm just curious.”

“We've been here for three marks so far. Computer, how many implants have been removed and sent outside the star ship?”

“Analyzing data . . . there are one hundred left.”

“Where are they located? Indicate them on the 3-d map of the ship with the color of orange. Remove all other dots temporarily.”

The image of the cargo bay disappears, then the previous images of the star ship levels appear. The dots disappear, then one hundred orange dots are seen. They are scattered throughout the ship in various locations on each floor level.

I reach for my satchel and open it up. I take out a food bag and open it. I retrieve a dried fruit to eat. I close the food bag and put it back in the satchel. I nibble on it to savor its flavor.

Sir Halgren sees what I'm doing. He reaches into my satchel and takes out my water skin and two cups. He fills them with water. He hands the cups to the Sir Braxton and Sir Krellen first.

“Thanks Sir Halgren.”

They take a sip of water.

“This water is good. It’s warm, but good. Where is it from Richard?”

“I filled it from my family's mountain cabin location. If you make it colder, it will taste better, sirs.”

They recite the spell to the water to make it colder. They take another sip.

“Yes, your right Richard. It does taste better.”

“Sir Halgren, see if you can fill that water skin up if you're going to serve everyone else.”

“Yes Richard.”

He puts both his hands on the water skin. He concentrates and recites the spell. He stops the spell when the skin is full. He also recites the spell to make it colder.

Sir Halgren then pours water into the cups for the wizards. The wizards brought their own small cups in their pockets. Finally I get served last.

I drink from the cup and think about home. “Yes, it does have good memories of home, sirs.”

They laugh a bit. “We understand, Richard.”

~~~000~~~

“All right wings, let's do the rescue!”

“Yes sir”

A wizard disappears with two full squads. They fly in and put to sleep the garden workers. Once they're asleep, the wing reappears. The wizards remove the implants and send them outside the ship where they explode.

Another wing flies in. They put to sleep Iulia first. Then one of the knights blows some dust in the clearing. They see a network of light beams intersecting the area.

“We can't walk in that space. Let's concentrate on the weapons first in the trees.”

“Yes sir.”

The wing flies among the trees. They shoot freeze darts at the triggers of the weapons. Then a knight and a dwarf warrior disconnect from a squad member and appear among the trees. They begin to remove the arrows and spears from the bows.

~~~000~~~

A wizard flies in with a squad. They put to sleep all of the workers in the Environmental Control room. They shoot a freeze dart at the hand trigger that Brentann is holding. Then a sleep dart is shot at his arm. He falls asleep.

A wizard appears on the main floor. The wizard removes the implants from the workers in the room. He sends them outside of the star ship to explode.

Then the doors open. Tek walks in with a wizard to the storage shelves. He opens the doors to them and takes out the control module and closes the doors.

They walk down the aisles until Tek sees the control panel that needs repair.

Another squad comes into the room to help remove the workers from the room to safety. Another wizard flies in with a squad. They fly to the walkway above Brentann. They get themselves ready with rope when they appear. They wait until the area is made safe by Tek's repair.

~~~000~~~

Four wings disappear in a flash of light. They fly through the walls. They shoot sleep darts at all of the workers in the Engineering and Repair shop rooms.

Then they appear to remove the implants and revive them. They slowly come around. They begin to understand the situation and how they got here.

One of the men approaches the Lieutenant Commander. “I'm so glad to be free of their mind control. By putting me to sleep that link is now broken. My name is Phy-tar.”

“You're welcome, Phy-tar. Don't enter in that room over there. Geve is in there with a bomb vest on him.”

The ship's crew continues monitoring the ship's energy systems.

“Can you rescue him?”

“Yes we can. We have a plan for that.”

“That's good. We need to get main power on line soon. How much longer do you think, until then?”

“There are three more to rescue. Then there is the encounter with the General and the Supreme.”

“Hmm . . . you have moved very fast. How many troops did you bring on board, commander?”

“There's about thirteen hundred here.”

“Wow, you didn't under estimate what you needed to do.”

“No we didn't. We had help in what to do. You may not know it. We are part of the Local Group, to be part of it we get to receive twelve Outside Helpers from twelve other worlds.”

“Ah, that's how you knew. Wait a moment. You said twelve?”

“That's right, Phy-tar. We sent the call once we sensed the first scout ship near our Twin Moons.”

“We were collecting a bunch of medallions. Are they yours?”

“Yes they are. However, only one answered the call. He showed up and helped us.”

“I must meet him.”

“You will, but not right now.”

“I understand. We must deal with the present situation.”

A wizard approaches the Lieutenant Commander. They both turn to him.

“We are ready to rescue Geve, Sirs.”

“Very good, be careful in there.”

“I have a camera in there. We can view from it here.”

“Please do, Phy-tar.”

Phy-tar pushes a symbol on the glass panel. He adjusts the focus on Geve. “The sad part about this commander, I had no idea he was in there. The Supreme's mind is very powerful. He is able to control the eight of us very easily and not see this.”

“How come you didn't have an implant on you?”

“When they came on board, they took control of the leadership. It was easier for them to control us and direct us where and what to do.”

“So, they forced the change to your original mission.”

“Yes, our people didn't know what was really going on. When the virus invaded us, we were not prepared to fight it. We would have never visited that world if the General and the Supreme were not here.”

“Can you still start over?”

“It will take longer to rebuild our population. It still takes a female womb to develop a proper life. We have the means to do it. We did store some male sperms and female eggs from a good cross-section of our people.”

“Well have hope. Like we have hope that we will win.”

“That's right, commander.”

~~~000~~~

“Arrgh!! I lost another one General. I lost contact with Phy-tar!”

“How many do you still have control of the original crew members?”

“There are four left. They're in the auxiliary rooms.”

“Should we try to escape now?”

“No, when they come here, we'll send our assault on them and the world below.”

“Yes Supreme. Our weapons are ready for them.”

“Hah, hah, hah . . . yes, we're going to get the last laugh here.”

They both start laughing together like last time.

“Hah, hah, hah . . . ”

~~~000~~~

A wizard flies into the area and gets underneath the pipes and finds a safe spot to appear. He faces his palms toward the bombs. He concentrates on them to get an image of them in his mind. He recites the words to freeze the bomb. Then a layer of ice appears on it.

Then he concentrates on the bomb. He recites the transport spell. The bomb disappears. “I've got it. I'm sending it outside the star ship.” He sends the bomb as far as possible where it blows up. The star ship doesn't shake.

~~~000~~~

Tek walks up to the damaged panel. He places the replacement part on the floor. He pushes a red symbol on the panel. The panel powers down. The lights get turned off.
He then pushes two symbols on the glass panel corners. The panel swings open to the left to reveal the connections. He sees no power to the devices and the fiber optic cabling. Sir Dareh is outside the Environmental Room waiting for the good news.

“I want to make sure it's safe to reach in there for the module. It's that black box there with the four connectors.”

“I see it, Tek. Be careful.”

“If the cables were lit up and the box is smoking, then it would be a bigger problem.”

Tek reaches in with both hands disconnect the cables from the black box. He then removes the box and puts it on the floor. He picks up the good one and put it in its location. He then reconnects the connectors to the box.

Tek closes the panel part way. He pushes a green symbol on the glass panel to reboot the panel. The panel lights up in a colorful display. He looks behind the panel to make sure the box is not smoking.

He closes the panel and smiles. “Computer, check control modules and tanks. Is the system working?”

“Measuring ratios and calculating . . . extra element #1 is being routed to element #8 to make water in conversion cells. All ratios are returning to normal. Pressure is decreasing to normal. Tank design held extra pressure. There are no leaks.”

“Very good computer. Continue monitoring environmental control systems. The rescue of hostage Brentann is almost complete.”

“Continuing monitoring systems, Tek.”

Tek and the wizard smile at each other.

“That problem is solved. Let's get to safety.”

“Yes Tek. Let's get to safety.”

They walk out of the Environmental Control room. Tek takes the damaged control module with him. They greet the Lieutenant Commander.

“Well done, Tek.”

“Thank you, sir. This module needs to be taken down to the Repair shop to be repaired Sir.”

“It's not clear down there. Geve has not been rescued yet.”

“I understand. I would like to wait until Brentann is brought out.”

“That's no problem, Tek.”

~~~000~~~

A wizard appears next to Iulia. He stands behind her to the left. He looks at the implant. He puts his left palm above it. He recites the transport spell to remove it. He sends it outside the star ship where it explodes.

“It's done. Thank the Maker. She doesn't have a hand switch.”

~~~000~~~

“All right, let's take a look inside this room Evrat.”

Evrat puts his hand on the wizard's shoulder.

The wizard recites the transport spell. They disappear in a blink of an eye. They fly through the door. They get a big surprise when they appear inside the room.

They see empty shelves.

“If this is a weapon room. Then where are the weapons, Evrat?”

“I don't know wizard. We better do a quick report to Sir Braxton. He needs to see
this.”

“I agree. We must investigate all of the weapon rooms. If they’re all empty, then the General and the Supreme must have taken them for another purpose.”

He takes out his contact crystal. He contacts Sir Braxton. Then an image appears above the crystal.

“Greetings Sir Braxton.”

“Greetings Evrat and Wizard Crisson. Did you find a weapon room?”

“Yes we did sir. However, it's empty. See for yourself.”

The wizard moves the crystal around the room and they show empty shelves.

“This is not good. Check the other weapon rooms immediately. We must know where they are now.”

“I agree sir. It's a good possibility the General and Supreme have taken them after they came on board. He could have used the bombs for the vests on the hostages and the control implants.”

“It's possible Evrat. Go and check all of the weapon rooms. I'll contact Captain Dar-re and let him know.”

“Yes sir, we'll do that.”

“Be careful. The star ship is still not fully secured.”

“We'll be careful, Sir Braxton.”

Then the image of Sir Braxton disappears above the crystal. Evrat puts his hand on the wizard's shoulder. He recites the transport spell. They both disappear in a blink of an eye. They reappear back in the hallway.

“Well, what did you find in there?”

“Nothing my friends. The room is empty.”

“What?” The others look at him with astonishment.

“It's true. Sir Braxton knows it as well. We've been instructed to check out all of the weapon rooms.”

“Yes, you better do that. We'll continue making safe this level.”

“See you later, Hikaru.”

“See you later, Evrat.”

They put a hand onto each other shoulder and smile at each other.

Evrat then puts his hand back onto the wizard's shoulder. He recites the transport spell. They both disappear in a blink of an eye.

“That shouldn't take too long for them.”

They continue walking down the hallways checking each room.

~~~000~~~

A wizard and a dwarf warrior are lowered down ropes carefully.

“Stop.”

The knights on the overhead walkway secure the ropes.

The wizard puts his hand above the implant on Brentann's neck. He concentrates, then he removes the implant with the transport spell. He sends it outside the star ship where it explodes.

“The implant is gone, send down the rope.”

A rope is lowered down. The dwarf and wizard thread the rope carefully so that it's under the arms and the vest. Then the knot is tied above his head.

They hear a cracking sound. “Craa—ack!” The latch mechanism breaks.

“Look out.” Someone yells above them.

The cable falls and hangs from Brentann. It does not cross the light beams. Brentann swings a bit. The wizard and the dwarf warrior reach for Brentann and stop his swinging.

“That was close. Get that trigger free from his hands.”

“Right.”

The dwarf looks at the trigger. He takes a freeze dart from his gauntlet and touches the switch carefully. It gets coated with a layer of thin ice crystals. He puts it back on his gauntlet.

He then carefully removes Brentann's fingers from the trigger. Then he pulls his palm free.

“That's it. His hand is free.”

“Good job. Let's get this vest out of here.” The wizard concentrates on the vest. He then recites the transport spell. It disappears in a blink of an eye. He then sends it far from the star ship where it explodes like the other vests.

“That's it. He's safe to bring up.”

The knights bring up Brentann first to the overhead walkway, then the dwarf warrior and the wizard.

~~~000~~~

Wizard Lakene takes a knight and flies up to the glass windows. He shoots a freeze dart at the bombs mounted there. They get covered in ice frost. Wizard Lakene leaves with the knight to get two full squads ready for the next part.

“Okay, we'll drop some knights in front of Iulia with their shields out to protect her. I don't think we got all of the weapons in the trees.”

“I'll set a barrier shield up there just in case.”

“Yes, we need to do that first, Wizard Halsten.”

“Okay.”

Wizard Halsten stands behind the tree near Iulia. He looks at the glass panels above. He puts his palms toward the glass panels. He concentrates and recites the spell.

They see a glitter effect up there, then it disappears.

“It's all set. I have to stay here and hold it.”

“Right. Wizard Lakene, are the squads ready?”

“Yes they are Sir. I'm transporting right now.” Wizard Lakene recites the transport spell. They disappear in a flash of light. The two squads have their shields out and ready when they disconnect from Wizard Lakene.

Wizard Lakene flies into position in the clearing.

“Are you ready?”

“Yes Wizard, shields are up.”

They disconnect from Wizard Lakene. They appear in a flash of light. Then the next instant more weapons are shot at the Iulia and the bomb on the window frames.

There are little explosions from the arrows when it hits the barrier shield. The laser weapons did not fire. These weapons come from higher in the trees.

Everyone is able to block the arrows, a spear or any other weapon shot at them. The barrier shield held, blocking the arrows from hitting the bomb. After awhile, no more weapons are shot at them.

“Very good men. Go and take those weapons down, while we free Iulia.

“Yes sir!”

While the squads deal with that, the others free Iulia. The wizard removes the implant and the bomb vest and sends it outside the star ship to blow up.

They untie Iulia and lay her on the ground. A wizard bends over and checks her out. He puts a hand on her forehead. He concentrates on it. He also updates Twainor's language in her as well.

“She's fine. You all did good work.”

“Look. She’s coming around.” Speaks a knight.

“Oh my head . . . it hurts.”

“How does it hurt, Iulia?”

“That voice sounds familiar.”

“I hope so Iulia. It's your escort, Sir Calder.”

She opens her eyes, “Sir Calder!” She brings her arms around her neck and squeezes it tight. “You're here!”

“Yes I'm here.”

The others smile and cheer.

She relaxes and looks at him. “If you're here, then we must be near Twainor.”

“Yes we are.”

“Then how did you get up here?”

“Well, it's a bit of a long story. It will take seven or ten days to tell you.” He smiles at her.

He helps her to stand up. They see the knights and dwarves in the trees.

“We'll need a ladder to get them down, including the bomb up there. They are too high for us to reach.”

“A bomb is here?” She looks up. “There's a ladder on that far wall over there.” She points to it.

“Thanks Iulia.” Some knights walk over to the wall and retrieve the ladder. They bring it into the open space and use it.

“You better leave this green room while they take care of it.”

“That sounds like a good idea, Sir Calder.”

They both walk out of the Green Room together.

She then puts her hand to her chest. “Where's my medallion?”

“The General and Supreme have it.”

“We must get it back.”

“We will, Iulia. You may not realize this, they took you and ten Outside Helpers before the star ship came here.”

“If there are eleven of us here. Who is the other one?”

“We sensed their scout ship behind the Twin Moons. We sent the call out quickly. Only one of you showed up. Richard was the only one who showed up on Twainor.”

“That's great Sir Calder. Did he help you get up here?”

“Yes he did, Iulia. He's here on the star ship right now helping us. Come, we need to get to Health Ward #2. Alia is there. Ariella is there as well recovering.”

“Is she hurt?”

“No, she was put in a life and death situation like you. However, she was wide awake the entire time near some cargo bay doors.”

“She must be exhausted.”

“Yes she is, Iulia.”

Some knights come near them. “The bomb has been removed from the Green Room, Sir Calder. It's safe now.”

“Thanks.”

“You're welcome.”

Then another woman approaches them.

“Thank you for coming to rescue us. You have freed me from their mind control.
My name is Lyl-na. I'm an original crew member.”

“It's an honor to meet you Lyl-na. I've just been informed before I came here, that we have one more Outside Helper to rescue.”

Another knight steps forward. “I'm Lieutenant Commander Greyshon. We're almost done in removing the implants from the entire crew Lyl-na.”

“Control implants, who did that?”

“The General and the Supreme did that, Lyl-na. This was after the original crew population was decimated by a virus.”

“I remember that now. It took everything with our resources to stop it. Now, I'm curious about something commander.”

“What is it?”

“We had to treat all new crew members with the virus killer. You should be convulsing in pain by now.”

“Hmm . . . that's a good observation. We'll have to think on that for a bit. If we do start doing that, you'll have to treat us. I know we don't have the means yet on our world for something that devastating.”

“I guess we will.”

“Let's go see Alia in Health Ward #2.”

~~~000~~~

Brentann wakes up on the floor of the walkway. He sees a familiar face smiling at him. “Sir Eamon, you're here. Did you get caught?”

“No Brentann, we've come to rescue you.”

“Rescue me? How did you get here?”

“It's a long story. Come, let's leave this room. You have a friend waiting for you outside the room.”

“Who is it?”

“You'll see.”

The squads, wizards, Brentann and Sir Eamon walk down the aisles and exit the doors to the Environmental Control room. Brentann sees him smiling.

“Tek! It's good to see you !”

“It's good to see you too. Come, we must get ready to meet the General and the Supreme.”

“What can we do? They're giants.”

“I don't know Brentann. We’ll think of something.”

“We'll tell you both, once all twelve Outside Helpers are together.”

“Okay, we can wait Sir Eamon.”

They walk down the hallways until they reach a carriage transport. The wings stay on the floor level while Brentann, Tek, Sir Dareh and Sir Eamon get on the carriage. They go to the Repair Shop first.

~~~000~~~

“Okay, are we ready to rescue Geve?”

“We are Lieutenant Commander Rhaston.”

“Okay, let's do this right. I was just informed, he's the last one to rescue.”

“Yes Sir!”

The knights and dwarf warriors connect to the wizards. The two wizards recite the transport spell. They disappear in a blink of an eye.

“Wow! That's amazing to see. Even though it would be nice to do that. I can see problems if it falls into the wrong hands.”

“I agree Phy-tar. When we are done here, we'll make sure that doesn't happen.”

“Let's look on the monitors to see how the rescue is going.”

They watch the monitors while the rescue proceeds.

~~~000~~~

The wizards fly in, the knights take aim at the vest fabric. They shoot the freeze
darts. The ice frost spreads and covers the vest, the cables and the hand switches.

~~~000~~~

“What's this? How is this happening?” Wonders Geve.

~~~000~~~

Then another dart is shot a Geve's shoulder. He falls asleep. Then they appear next to him.

“Quickly, get those switches secured.”

“Yes sir.”

Two knights take out a spool of thread from their pockets. They're glad that Richard brought two spools with him. News travels fast on the success with it in rescuing Ariella.

A wizard gets near Geve. He puts his hand above it and concentrates. He recites the spell to remove the implant. He then sends it outside where it explodes.

~~~000~~~

“I heard that. That implant had an explosive in it, right?”

“All of the implants do, Phy-tar.”

“Ooh . . . that makes me mad. How dare they do that to endanger the crew and ship?!”

~~~000~~~

They carefully loop and tie the hand switches.

They continue to put loops around the hand switches. They tie knots from time to time to make sure it stays closed. They don't hear any clicking noises while they're doing that. They cut the threads to finish it off. They see there is still more thread on the spools. They put it in their pockets.

“Good, its holding knights. Now take the rope and tie that vest to a support beam above him.”

“Yes sir.”

A knight is boosted up by his fellow knight. He takes the rope end and ties it to the bracket securely. He is then let down. The two knights then tie the other end of the rope to the vest.

“Okay it's done.”

“Okay, hand to shoulder knights with Geve.”

They put their hands onto the wizard’s shoulder. They put their other hand on Geve's shoulder. He recites the spell and all four disappear in a blink of an eye. Then they reappear in Engineering near Phy-tar and the Lieutenant Commander.

They lay Geve down on the floor. A wizard puts his hand on his forehead and concentrates. He recites the spell to wake him up.

“He's fine. He'll come to in a bit.”

“That's good. We need to dispose of the bomb vest. It's still active. The freeze darts just slows down the timer and the reaction.”

“Yes sir.”

Two wizards disappear in a blink of an eye after reciting the transport spell. They enter the tank room. One concentrates on the vest. The other wizard is there just in case something goes wrong.

The wizard concentrates on the vest and recites the transport spell for the vest. It disappears, then the rope hangs.

The wizard then sends it outside the star ship as far as he can. The bomb vest then explodes.

~~~000~~~

They look at the monitors in Engineering.

“It's safe now. You can retrieve the rope now.”

~~~000~~~

“Yes sir. We'll be right back.”

~~~000~~~

The carriage stops. The doors open on Engineering deck. Tek, Brentann and their escorts exit the carriage. They walk down the hallway to the repair shop.

They see a squad standing guard near it.

“Greetings knight and dwarf warriors of Twainor.”

“Greetings, Tek and Brentann. Are you well?”

“We are for the most part. I need to drop off this control module to be repaired.”

“You can enter the repair shop. It's secured.”

“Thank you. Then from here we're going to see Geve.”

“He was just rescued. It's safe to go in Engineering.”

“That's good to hear. See you later.”

“See you later.”

The four men walk inside into the Repair Shop. They are greeted by a tech.

“How can I help you?”

“This control module needs to be repaired. The General sabotaged it in Environmental Control. It caused element #1 to be out of balance. I was able to replace it with the spare module located in the storage room near it.”

“That wasn't nice of him to do that. We'll get it repaired. We are getting low on certain elements. I'll have to check our inventory, Tek.”

“I understand. Perhaps there is a solution on the planet below.”

“Perhaps, Tek. Since the implants have been removed, I will feel very guilty if we take some of their resources.”

“I would too. There could be another solution. Well, we'll give it some thought.”

“That we will. See you later, Tek.”

“See you later, Barset.”

Tek, Brentann and their escorts leave the repair shop together. They walk down the hallway until they come to a pair of doors. They slide open when they get close. They are greeted by several people in there.

“Tek and Brentann, it's good to see you again.”

“Same here Lieutenant Commander. It's good to see you as well. I see Geve laying on the floor. Is he all right?”

“He's a bit exhausted from the ordeal. He had to hold onto two hand switches. Both of them were spring loaded.”

“I would be exhausted too. We should take him to a Health Ward.”

“I would too, Tek.”

“Tek and Brentann, this is Phy-tar. He's one of the original crew members.”

“It's an honor to meet you, Phy-tar.”

They shake hands together and smile at each other. The knights see the odd greeting between the two.

“Likewise Phy-tar.”

“It's my honor. I'm glad we now have a chance to reclaim the star ship.”

“I do too, sir. But, until the General and the Supreme are dealt with, it's not safe yet.”

“I agree Lieutenant Commander. You better get Geve to the Health Ward now. He's still unconscious.”

“Use a wizard to get him there. It will be faster.”

“Yes it is Brentann.”

Then Sir Neron who is Geve's escort, Tek Brentann and their escorts all link together with Geve to a wizard.

“Are you ready?”

“Yes,” they all respond at the same time.

The wizard recites the transport spell. They all disappear in a flash of light.

~~~000~~~

“This makes the tenth weapon room Evrat like the others.”

“Yes, there are no hand-held weapons or explosive arsenals. How many are left?”

“There are four levels left Evrat.”

“We must investigate them all.”

“Yes we must.”

Evrat puts his hand on the wizard's shoulder.

The wizard recites the transport spell. They disappear in a blink of an eye.

~~~000~~~

“We've lost another contact with an original crew General. They will pay! This world will pay with fear!”

“Yes they will Supreme!”

The two Nefelim men laugh again as they continuing making their plans.

~~~000~~~

“Sir Krellen, I'm still seeing some crew members gathered together in certain areas.”

“So do I.”

“Computer, where are these crew members gathered together?”

“They are located in hidden auxiliary control rooms.”

We all laugh together.

“Heh, heh . . . you warned us about these rooms, Richard.”

“I guess we forgot.”

“Then you better find them, Sir Braxton. The day is not done yet, Sirs.”

“Yes, Richard.”

They contact the Lieutenant Commanders to tell them of the new situation.

Then my contact crystal glows. I put my hand above it and concentrate. Then the image of Evrat appears above it.

“Evrat, what's the report?”

“All of the weapon rooms are empty.”

“All of them?”

“Yes sir. Apparently the General and the Supreme took them so that they feel safe.”

“Hmm . . . that is a point to take notice of. Lieutenant Commanders when you check the hidden rooms, be careful in there. We have no account of the loss of hand-held weapons and arsenal on the star ship.”

“We will sirs. If there are none, we'll let you know either way.”

“Captain Dar-re needs to know the situation too, sirs.”

“Thank you for the reminder Evrat. Evrat, we need to get all of the Outside Helpers together soon.”

“Where can we meet to do that?”

Sir Braxton looks at me, “Richard, if you please.”

“Yes sir. Computer, where is a meeting room for about fifty people?”

“There is a meeting room on the second level toward the bow.”

“Did you hear that Evrat?”

“Yes I did Sir Braxton. I'll spread the news. When should it be held?”

“I don't know yet. Not until the last one hundred are found.”

“I understand sir.”

“Okay, Lieutenant Commanders, you have your orders for these hidden rooms. For Twainor!”

“For Twainor!” They all shout together.

Then the image disappears above the crystal. I push a symbol on the glass panel to reach the bridge. The image of Captain Dar-re appears.

“What's the update, Sir Braxton?”

“All of the weapon rooms on each level are empty.”

“They're empty? That's not good news at all. The computer should be able to find them and make an inventory count. They have a unique signature to locate them. They must be found.”

“I agree, let's both do it and confirm their presence.”

“Captain, we also found one hundred crew members hidden in what's called auxiliary rooms.”

“Yes, they are used for situations like this. Have your forces be extra careful. If the systems get damaged, we'll be here for a while making repairs. We might need some resources from your world.”

“I understand. What if we collect the damaged air fighters? We can bring them up here for your use.”

“That's an excellent idea. It will save time on processing. I'll need to do an inventory check on our resources to be sure. How many elements have you discovered so far?”

“We found about fifty-five so far.”

“That's a good start.”

“We are aware there are ninety-two basic elements. We don't have the knowledge to detect the difficult ones that Richard has mentioned.”

“I understand. We'll do a thorough examination to make sure. It's possible the gases we need could be on your gas giant planets.”

“Either way captain, I'll inform the kingdoms on Twainor of your situation. Once the wrecks are gathered. We'll use our wizards to transport them to your cargo bays.”

“That's great Sir Braxton. Put the small pieces into crates. Any fuel tanks or glowing energy sources you find can be put into steel bins. They should be covered and sealed. The larger frame pieces should all be put on the ninth and tenth level storage bays.”

“That we can do. Don't send any scout ships down here. Our atmosphere is highly unstable. They are prone to heavy lightning on a clear day, besides our regular storms. We'll deliver the scout ships back up here when we get the chance as well.”

“That would be great, Sir Braxton. Thanks for all of your help.”

“You’re welcome, Captain. We need to meet soon in the meeting room on the second floor. We need to make plans for the General and the Supreme.”

“I agree, Sir Braxton. Be safe until we meet.”

“You be safe as well.”

The image disappears from the monitor.

“All right Richard, let's see if the computer can find the missing weapons.”

“Yes Sir Krellen. Computer, use the ship's sensors to detect new location of explosive hand-held weapons on the star ship. Display the locations in the color white. Turn off the color for the medallions.”

“Using sensors, conducting sweeps of star ship . . . analyzing . . . found explosives . . . displaying locations.”

The locations for the medallions are turned off. Then the locations for the explosives show up.

We look very sad once we see where they are located. Some are near the support trusses for the propulsion tubes on the main hull. Some are located under the combustion chamber in Engineering.

There are two hidden on the bridge. There is one located in each Health Ward and the Repair Shop. There is also one located in each of the hidden auxiliary rooms where the last one hundred crew members are.

“They really out did themselves, sirs.”

“Yes they did Sir Halgren. Computer, have any orders taken place to replace the explosives?”

“No Richard.”

“When was the last explosive made?”

“Before the arrival of the General and the Supreme, Richard.”

“You know what means, sirs.”

“Yes Richard. This has been planned if things don't go right for them.”

“Computer, check inventory for hand-held weapons. Where are they?”

“Checking inventory . . . hand-held light weapons are found . . . displaying location.”

The locations of the hand-held light weapons are displayed.

“I'm not surprised Richard. There are very few on the star ship. I count about twenty hand-held weapons. It's a good thing they're not working.”

“Yes sir, let's see if Captain Dar-re agrees with the assessment.”

“Yes Richard.”

I push a symbol on the panel again. Captain Dar-re appears.

“From the expression on our faces Captain, we know where the explosives are.”

“Yes we do, sirs. Curse those two. Can your forces remove them?”

“We should be able to after what we have encountered so far. We also checked the inventory. None have been made since those two took the star ship, Captain.”

“I'm not surprised by that tactic. I doubt they can be turned off. Send them far from the star ship. The ship must be saved.”

“I agree, Captain. We'll inform our forces. We'll also contact the kingdoms about collecting the wreckage.”

“Let's hope we don't become a wreckage ourselves.”

“Let's think positive thoughts, Captain. The Maker brought you here for reason and this situation. Those two giants have a history with Richard's home world.”

“I see. Then let's hope for the best. May the Master of the Universe give us the edge we need to defeat them.”

“Then let us hope. Be safe Captain.”

“You do as well sirs. We'll keep watch here. I see that Tek has solved the Environmental Control problem for now.”

“Yes he did.”

They smile at each other, then the image disappears from the monitor.

“Well, let's relay some news, Sir Braxton.”

“You inform the forces here, Sir Krellen. I'll contact the kingdoms down below.”

“Yes sir.”

Sir Halgren and I look at each other.

“We’re getting there Richard.”

“Yes, the day is not done yet.”