Zaruthustran
The tingling means it’s working!
Dun-dun DUN!
-z
ps: nice writing!
-z
ps: nice writing!
[Spaceship Zero] Q-Ship (actually updated 19 May 2007)
Capellan
Explorer
"Venusian Christmas Carol" - Part 5
John Fury didn't become a war hero by freezing in a crisis. He spins and slams the heads of his two guards together, knocking both unconscious. Then as squawks of outrage and distress rise behind him, he races out of the room -
- and we cut to Gustav and Larathra as they hurry down a corridor. S'Ondra follows a few paces behind them, a suspicious frown on her face. It is clear she still does not trust these strange humans.
"Must protect Alois Gustav." Archie intones from off-screen.
"Yes Archie, you're doing a fine job." Gustav soothes the unseen robot, "Now, just lead us to ze location of Q Branch in zis complex."
"Q Branch?" S'Ondra asks suspiciously.
"Ze Research division." Gustav explains, "Zat is where we vill find ze items taken from Larathra and myself. We need ze RIDE device to get home."
"Why not just use a spaceship?"
"Doctor Gustav and I are not from this reality." Larathra explains, "We come from a reality where you and he are friends."
"Friends? With a human?" S'Ondra looks scornful at the ridiculous notion.
"It is true leibchen." Gustav assures her, "You and I and Archie and ze Captain."
"Captain?"
"Captain Fury, of course."
"Jonathon Fury?" for a moment S'Ondra looks wistful, then her features harden in outrage, "The man is a monster! He's killed dozens of my people! There's no way he could ever be my friend!"
Klaxons blare, drowning out any answer Gustav may have made, and Darla Gregg's voice comes over the base loudspeakers.
"Commander Jonathon Fury is hereby stripped of his rank and a warrant issued for his capture. Fury is accused of treason against the United Earth Government, and for collusion in the escape of three prisoners from Cell Block H. The prisoners have been identified as Doctor Alois Gustav, a suspected saboteur; the self-styled 'Venusian Princess' S'Ondra, a known terrorist ringleader; and Larathra, a blue skinned humanoid of unclear origin. The three may be accompanied by a rogue robot of the R-CHI classification. Deadly force is authorised in the pursuit of Fury and the escapees."
"I knew we could count on ze Captain!" Gustav exults, "Quickly now Archie! Get us to Q Branch so we can gather our belongings."
"Destination achieved." Archie's voice floats back from off-screen. Then the shot changes to a door, which bursts off its hinges as the robot barrels through without pause. The camera pans around to show a high tech workshop of some kink. The room is fitted out with dozens of huge computers, their large tape drives whirring. Lights blink on several consoles, and there are a number of tables, each strewn with various odds and ends of strange equipment. Behind one of the tables is a plump, grey-haired man in a stained white lab coat.
"What is the meaning of this intrusion?" the man asks, his face a mixture of anger and apprehension, "I am attempting to conduct important research here, you can't just come barging in!"
"Barzolomew, is zat you? Out of ze way Archie, zere's a good chap." Gustav steps around the robot and peers at the man, "Ja, it is you!"
"Gustav?" the man looks stunned, then sneers, "You crank! What are you doing here, interrupting real science? Got another crazy theory you're trying to prove?" As he speaks, the plump scientist's hand inches toward a large red button on the desk beside him.
"Barzolomew!" Gustav looks a little sad, "My wife always said you vere a nasty, jealous little man, but I never believed her until now."
"Wife? What woman would be crazy enough to marry you?" Bartholomew's hand reaches the button.
His fingers rise up to press it -
"Don't even think about it, human." S'Ondra grabs Bartholomew's wrist and twists it behind him. The scientist squeals like a little girl. The Princess snorts derisively and slams him in the side of the head with her elbow. Bartholomew collapses silently.
Larathra looks pained.
"Was violence really necessary?"
"Yes." S'Ondra is emphatic, "It's the only language these humans understand."
"How fortunate you're so fluent in it."
The Princess gives Larathra a flinty stare. Larathra looks mildly back.
"Ladies, please!" Gustav is the voice of reason: that's a scary concept. "Ve have to find ze equipment and escape."
"I have everything I need." S'Ondra picks up a heat lance from a rack marked Venusian Weapons Study.
"I have the RIDE, my Omnitool, and all the parts necessary to complete repairs." As Larathra speaks, she feeds various bits of machinery into the silvery globe of the Omnitool. Each part vanishes inside, despite the fact that several of them are longer than the Omnitool's diameter.
"Excellent." Gustav turns to Archie, "Archie! Take us to ze Helipad by ze most direct route possible."
"Follow me." Archie wheels ninety degrees and smashes through a wall, showering plaster and bits of polystyrene rubble in all directions.
"Zat was a little more literal zan I intended." Gustav shrugs off the thought, and follows in the robot's wake. Larathra follows him. That leaves S'Ondra alone in the room. She pauses for a moment, eyes flicking back and forth between the others and the door through which they all entered. She takes a half step toward the door, as if planning to strike out on her own, then gives a half-snarl of frustration and dives through the hole after the others.
WHAM
S'Ondra bursts into the corridor just as John Fury comes sprinting around the corner. The pair collide and crash to the ground. Within moments, both roll up to crouching positions, weapons raised and ready.
"Drop the weapon, Venusian!"
"Don't move, human scum!"
John Fury didn't become a war hero by freezing in a crisis. He spins and slams the heads of his two guards together, knocking both unconscious. Then as squawks of outrage and distress rise behind him, he races out of the room -
- and we cut to Gustav and Larathra as they hurry down a corridor. S'Ondra follows a few paces behind them, a suspicious frown on her face. It is clear she still does not trust these strange humans.
"Must protect Alois Gustav." Archie intones from off-screen.
"Yes Archie, you're doing a fine job." Gustav soothes the unseen robot, "Now, just lead us to ze location of Q Branch in zis complex."
"Q Branch?" S'Ondra asks suspiciously.
"Ze Research division." Gustav explains, "Zat is where we vill find ze items taken from Larathra and myself. We need ze RIDE device to get home."
"Why not just use a spaceship?"
"Doctor Gustav and I are not from this reality." Larathra explains, "We come from a reality where you and he are friends."
"Friends? With a human?" S'Ondra looks scornful at the ridiculous notion.
"It is true leibchen." Gustav assures her, "You and I and Archie and ze Captain."
"Captain?"
"Captain Fury, of course."
"Jonathon Fury?" for a moment S'Ondra looks wistful, then her features harden in outrage, "The man is a monster! He's killed dozens of my people! There's no way he could ever be my friend!"
Klaxons blare, drowning out any answer Gustav may have made, and Darla Gregg's voice comes over the base loudspeakers.
"Commander Jonathon Fury is hereby stripped of his rank and a warrant issued for his capture. Fury is accused of treason against the United Earth Government, and for collusion in the escape of three prisoners from Cell Block H. The prisoners have been identified as Doctor Alois Gustav, a suspected saboteur; the self-styled 'Venusian Princess' S'Ondra, a known terrorist ringleader; and Larathra, a blue skinned humanoid of unclear origin. The three may be accompanied by a rogue robot of the R-CHI classification. Deadly force is authorised in the pursuit of Fury and the escapees."
"I knew we could count on ze Captain!" Gustav exults, "Quickly now Archie! Get us to Q Branch so we can gather our belongings."
"Destination achieved." Archie's voice floats back from off-screen. Then the shot changes to a door, which bursts off its hinges as the robot barrels through without pause. The camera pans around to show a high tech workshop of some kink. The room is fitted out with dozens of huge computers, their large tape drives whirring. Lights blink on several consoles, and there are a number of tables, each strewn with various odds and ends of strange equipment. Behind one of the tables is a plump, grey-haired man in a stained white lab coat.
"What is the meaning of this intrusion?" the man asks, his face a mixture of anger and apprehension, "I am attempting to conduct important research here, you can't just come barging in!"
"Barzolomew, is zat you? Out of ze way Archie, zere's a good chap." Gustav steps around the robot and peers at the man, "Ja, it is you!"
"Gustav?" the man looks stunned, then sneers, "You crank! What are you doing here, interrupting real science? Got another crazy theory you're trying to prove?" As he speaks, the plump scientist's hand inches toward a large red button on the desk beside him.
"Barzolomew!" Gustav looks a little sad, "My wife always said you vere a nasty, jealous little man, but I never believed her until now."
"Wife? What woman would be crazy enough to marry you?" Bartholomew's hand reaches the button.
His fingers rise up to press it -
"Don't even think about it, human." S'Ondra grabs Bartholomew's wrist and twists it behind him. The scientist squeals like a little girl. The Princess snorts derisively and slams him in the side of the head with her elbow. Bartholomew collapses silently.
Larathra looks pained.
"Was violence really necessary?"
"Yes." S'Ondra is emphatic, "It's the only language these humans understand."
"How fortunate you're so fluent in it."
The Princess gives Larathra a flinty stare. Larathra looks mildly back.
"Ladies, please!" Gustav is the voice of reason: that's a scary concept. "Ve have to find ze equipment and escape."
"I have everything I need." S'Ondra picks up a heat lance from a rack marked Venusian Weapons Study.
"I have the RIDE, my Omnitool, and all the parts necessary to complete repairs." As Larathra speaks, she feeds various bits of machinery into the silvery globe of the Omnitool. Each part vanishes inside, despite the fact that several of them are longer than the Omnitool's diameter.
"Excellent." Gustav turns to Archie, "Archie! Take us to ze Helipad by ze most direct route possible."
"Follow me." Archie wheels ninety degrees and smashes through a wall, showering plaster and bits of polystyrene rubble in all directions.
"Zat was a little more literal zan I intended." Gustav shrugs off the thought, and follows in the robot's wake. Larathra follows him. That leaves S'Ondra alone in the room. She pauses for a moment, eyes flicking back and forth between the others and the door through which they all entered. She takes a half step toward the door, as if planning to strike out on her own, then gives a half-snarl of frustration and dives through the hole after the others.
WHAM
S'Ondra bursts into the corridor just as John Fury comes sprinting around the corner. The pair collide and crash to the ground. Within moments, both roll up to crouching positions, weapons raised and ready.
"Drop the weapon, Venusian!"
"Don't move, human scum!"
Capellan
Explorer
Some time ago, I posted a link to a special thread that players aren't allowed to look at. I head home to Australia in 4 weeks, which means I will be able to put the plans of that thread into action. If you'd like to add something to the process, now's the time to do it 
Capellan
Explorer
"Venusian Christmas Carol" - Part 6
"Drop the spear or I shoot!" Fury barks the order again,
"Fire and die with me, invader." S'Ondra snarls back.
The two tense, eyes narrowing as each waits for the other's move.
"Fury! Good chap!" Gustav convivially slaps the Commander on the shoulder, "I knew you'd come around! But no time to chat now, we need to escape." With that, the Doctor bustles off after Archie and Larathra, who have already sped out of shot.
Fury and S'Ondra share a moment of "What the hell?", before the Princess tightens her jaw and makes a short motion with the tip of her heat lance,
"What did you do to make them hate you?" she snaps, "It must have been vile, even for a murderous invader like you. You have no right to be on my planet!"
"No right?" Fury glares, "You gave us the right when you blew up Mission City!"
"What are you babbling about, human?" S'Ondra spits the last word as if it is the most heinous curse she can imagine.
Whatever response Fury might have made is cut short by a thunderous stampede of running boots. It sounds like the whole Venusian Expeditionary Force is charging along the corridors toward them.
"We'll settle this later!" he snaps, in lieu of his original response, and sprints off down the corridor. S'Ondra scowls, but then races after him.
Moments later, the five fugitives burst out onto a helicopter pad atop the building's roof.
"Quick! Into the 'copter!" Fury shouts. S'Ondra immediately bristles.
"I don't take orders from humans!"
"Lady, if you can flap your arms and soar up into the Starwind, you're welcome to." Fury gestures at the sky, "Otherwise, you need a chopper to get out of here, which means you need me to fly it for you."
"Leibchen! We must leave!" Gustav agrees.
The helicopter roars into the air, swooping low over the sprawling buildings a military camp, then skims over the treetops of a dense Venusian jungle.
"We've got company!" Fury yells, and wrenches at the chopper's controls. Bright purple light flashes outside the cockpit window. "Two pursuit craft! Someone man the guns and try to get them off our tail."
Presented with the opportunity to shoot at humans, S'Ondra does not object to following this order. She quickly snaps herself into the gunner's harness and spins the chopper's ball turret to fire back at the pursuing vehicles. As she presses the firing studs, Fury jinks to the left. S'Ondra's bolts fly wide of the mark.
"Hold the craft steady!" she yells into the intercom. "I can't get a clear shot!"
"If I hold it steady we'll give them a clear shot!" Fury shouts back, and throws the chopper into a tight right turn. Despite his efforts, energy bolts blister the helicopter's side. The whole craft shudders and several green lights in the cockpit turn amber.
S'Ondra swears under her breath in Venusian and stabs the firing studs once more. Green energy bolts sear into one of the pursuing craft, as she swoops in exultation as it lurches in mid-air, black smoke billowing out of the impact zone. Unfortunately the undamaged craft responds in kind, its blasts slamming into the fleeing chopper's side.
Sparks fly in the interior of the craft, sending Gustav scurrying for a fire extinguisher, Fury curses as he sees the amber lights turn red.
"You! Blue chick!" he shouts at Larathra, "Know anything about machinery? The left power inductor's out and I need it fixed! Now!"
"I will endeavour to effect the repairs." Larathra promises, "But have you considered explaining our situation to your misguided comrades? Surely they will respond sensibly to a logical explanation of the circumstances surrounding these events."
"Lady, I'm in the middle of it, and I don't believe you have a logical explanation for this situation!" Fury snaps back, "Fix the power inductor, or we'll be sitting ducks!"
"The pursuers are gaining on us." S'Ondra reports as she fires once more. Behind her, Gustav runs too and fro, dousing small fires.
"Thrusters are damaged." Fury muses to himself, "I'm only getting seventy percent of top speed. No way to outrun them, so the only option is to out-fly them." He considers this for a moment, then grins suddenly. "Hang on tight! I'm heading for the Badlands!"
"Drop the spear or I shoot!" Fury barks the order again,
"Fire and die with me, invader." S'Ondra snarls back.
The two tense, eyes narrowing as each waits for the other's move.
"Fury! Good chap!" Gustav convivially slaps the Commander on the shoulder, "I knew you'd come around! But no time to chat now, we need to escape." With that, the Doctor bustles off after Archie and Larathra, who have already sped out of shot.
Fury and S'Ondra share a moment of "What the hell?", before the Princess tightens her jaw and makes a short motion with the tip of her heat lance,
"What did you do to make them hate you?" she snaps, "It must have been vile, even for a murderous invader like you. You have no right to be on my planet!"
"No right?" Fury glares, "You gave us the right when you blew up Mission City!"
"What are you babbling about, human?" S'Ondra spits the last word as if it is the most heinous curse she can imagine.
Whatever response Fury might have made is cut short by a thunderous stampede of running boots. It sounds like the whole Venusian Expeditionary Force is charging along the corridors toward them.
"We'll settle this later!" he snaps, in lieu of his original response, and sprints off down the corridor. S'Ondra scowls, but then races after him.
Moments later, the five fugitives burst out onto a helicopter pad atop the building's roof.
"Quick! Into the 'copter!" Fury shouts. S'Ondra immediately bristles.
"I don't take orders from humans!"
"Lady, if you can flap your arms and soar up into the Starwind, you're welcome to." Fury gestures at the sky, "Otherwise, you need a chopper to get out of here, which means you need me to fly it for you."
"Leibchen! We must leave!" Gustav agrees.
The helicopter roars into the air, swooping low over the sprawling buildings a military camp, then skims over the treetops of a dense Venusian jungle.
"We've got company!" Fury yells, and wrenches at the chopper's controls. Bright purple light flashes outside the cockpit window. "Two pursuit craft! Someone man the guns and try to get them off our tail."
Presented with the opportunity to shoot at humans, S'Ondra does not object to following this order. She quickly snaps herself into the gunner's harness and spins the chopper's ball turret to fire back at the pursuing vehicles. As she presses the firing studs, Fury jinks to the left. S'Ondra's bolts fly wide of the mark.
"Hold the craft steady!" she yells into the intercom. "I can't get a clear shot!"
"If I hold it steady we'll give them a clear shot!" Fury shouts back, and throws the chopper into a tight right turn. Despite his efforts, energy bolts blister the helicopter's side. The whole craft shudders and several green lights in the cockpit turn amber.
S'Ondra swears under her breath in Venusian and stabs the firing studs once more. Green energy bolts sear into one of the pursuing craft, as she swoops in exultation as it lurches in mid-air, black smoke billowing out of the impact zone. Unfortunately the undamaged craft responds in kind, its blasts slamming into the fleeing chopper's side.
Sparks fly in the interior of the craft, sending Gustav scurrying for a fire extinguisher, Fury curses as he sees the amber lights turn red.
"You! Blue chick!" he shouts at Larathra, "Know anything about machinery? The left power inductor's out and I need it fixed! Now!"
"I will endeavour to effect the repairs." Larathra promises, "But have you considered explaining our situation to your misguided comrades? Surely they will respond sensibly to a logical explanation of the circumstances surrounding these events."
"Lady, I'm in the middle of it, and I don't believe you have a logical explanation for this situation!" Fury snaps back, "Fix the power inductor, or we'll be sitting ducks!"
"The pursuers are gaining on us." S'Ondra reports as she fires once more. Behind her, Gustav runs too and fro, dousing small fires.
"Thrusters are damaged." Fury muses to himself, "I'm only getting seventy percent of top speed. No way to outrun them, so the only option is to out-fly them." He considers this for a moment, then grins suddenly. "Hang on tight! I'm heading for the Badlands!"
Capellan
Explorer
"Venusian Christmas Carol" - Part 7
The chopper races through a series of narrow rock canyons. White smoke pours from one side of the craft as it manoeuvres, but there's little risk of a crash with Fury's deft hands at the controls.
The pursuing Space Force crew are not so lucky: the undamaged machine just avoids a fatal crash, but the second chopper ploughs straight into one of the canyon walls, exploding in an impressive display of the BBC model shop's technical expertise.
The interior of the fugitive vehicle is starting to fill with smoke. Gustav blunders out of the swirling mist, shouting to Fury so he can be heard over the whine of emergency alarms,
"Larathra haz fixed ze thrusters, be she reports ze fuel lines are damaged. Ve haf only a few more minutes before ve vill be forced to land."
"Got it." Fury's attention does not flicker from the controls as he throws the chopper into a tight turn round a canyon bend. He straightens the vehicle out for a moment, then suddenly sideslips left, sending Gustav staggering across the chopper's interior.
"Ach! Mein head!"
"Sorry, old man." Fury doesn't sound too contrite, "But if I'm right … yes, they fell for it!"
We cut to an exterior shot, which shows the pursuing Earthforce shopper come roaring around the canyon bend and rush out of shot. Moments later, Fury nurses his own vehicle out of a narrow, near invisible side canyon.
"Work every time." The Commander muses smugly, "If you're chasing someone and you come round a corner and can't see them, but there's only one obvious way forward, the natural instinct is to speed up. People never stop to think that maybe there's something not so obvious –" he breaks off as a light begins flashing urgently on the control console.
"Is zat bad?"
"Fuel warning. Your friend was right on the mark about how fast we're running out." Fury twists the chopper back into the side canyon, dropping altitude as fast as he can. "I'm going to try to nurse out far enough to get out of sight, and then put her down. Let the others know our landing could be a bit rough."
'Rough' is an understatement. Fury makes his landing approach faster than normal as he tries to eke a few more yards out of the chopper, and the engines cut out while the craft is still a few feet in the air. The undercarriage snaps as the chopper – with all the aerodynamics of a brick – makes an abrupt landing, and the vehicles skids and bounces over several rocks before finally coming to a smoking rest in a Venusian canyon that looks a lot like a quarry in Surrey..
"Everybody OK?" Fury shouts, peering into the rear of the 'copter.
"Fine." S'Ondra frostily replies.
"A little shaken but ozzerwise unharmed." Gustav reports on himself and Larathra.
"Great. Then everybody out." The Commander waves towards the door. "I'm going to set the engines to overload. In their current state that shouldn't take long, so you have about two minutes to get to cover."
"Is this pursuit of wanton destruction a common human trait?" Larathra wonders.
"Yes." S'Ondra nods.
Fury sighs,
"Sooner or later the people chasing us will realise we're not in front of them and come back and they'll find the chopper. I'm hoping that if they find a crater instead, they'll figure we were killed in a crash."
"We nearly were." S'Ondra mutters.
The others pile out of the vehicle as Fury sets to work. The canyon is flooded with red light as the sun sinks over the horizon.
"Zere." Gustav points out several large boulders. He, Archie and the two women run across shot, taking cover behind the large stones. As soon as they do so, S'Ondra turns toward the Doctor with a scowl.
"Quick, before the butcher of my people gets here – tell me how you knew who I was!"
Gustav opens his mouth to answer, but it is Larathra who speaks first.
"Quantum theory posits the existence of multiple realities, each slightly different from the next, due to specific events occurring slightly differently in each reality. Terchett, a scholar of my people, once wrote a fascinating explanation of the phenomenon using the example of putting on your trousers in the morning. Right leg first or left? Not that such a minor event would create a new reality, but it is an excellent example of theoretical discuss-mmph."
Gustav, hand clamped over Larathra's mouth to keep her from speaking, interrupts.
"Ve come from anozzer universe, one in which you and I are –" he considers giving a specific description and decides against it, "- friends. Ve came here by accident, using a machine of Larathra's, but it is now damaged, and ve cannot return until she fixes it."
Seeing the sceptical look on the Princess's face, Gustav shrugs his shoulders.
"I know you find zis hard to believe, but it is true. I haf known you since you were a little girl. When I first met you, you had a pet slargbeast named Ob'zix."
S'Ondra looks startled.
"Ob'zix ... I had almost forgotten him. He died –"
"In ze rebellion, ja?" Gustav nods at S'Ondra's stifled exclamation of surprise, "A shot which narrowly missed you. In my universe, it was soon after zis zat I helped you escape. In zis universe, I must not haf been zere. You must believe me, S'Ondra -"
"S'Ondra! I knew it!" Fury appears suddenly from behind the boulder, "I knew you were lying about who you were!"
S'Ondra snarls at the thought of the Commander knowing her identity, then shrugs as a thought occurs to her,
"Much good it will do you with your own people trying to kill you." She reminds him. Fury acknowledges the point with a nod.
"Well now we know how you know her." he says to Gustav, "How do you know me?" Before Gustav can speak, he raises a finger, "Actually, before you answer that, cover your ears for a few seconds."
BOOM! A gout of flame and smoke bursts upward from behind the boulder as the chopper explodes.
"In my reality ze three of us are comrades." Gustav explains after his ears have stopped ringing.
"Impossible!" S'Ondra interrupts, "I would never befriend a murderous human!"
"Murderous? You're a fine one to talk." Fury snaps back, "It was your people that started this!"
"Us? You are the invaders here!"
"Because you attacked us!"
"We did no such thing!"
Fury looks grim.
"I was there, Princess. The Kelvor had sent an ambassador to Mission City to request our aid in finding a diplomatic solution to their war with you. Your people planted a bomb to kill him, and blew a hole in the Mission City dome. Thousands of civilians dies."
S'Ondra stares at Fury as if he has grown a second head.
"We did no such thing! The deaths of those people were a tragedy, but it was not one of our making."
"Well of course you would deny it."
"If leib – if ze Princess says zat her people did not do it, zen I believe her." Gustav muses, "Which makes me ask: who else vould profit from such an explosion?"
"The Kelvor!" S'Ondra exclaims.
"What would they get out of killing their own Ambassador?" asks Larathra, whose mouth has finally been uncovered. The Princess shrugs.
"If there's someone up to something sneaky, who else would it be?"
"Actually, it does make a twisted kind of sense." Fury admits, "They kill their own ambassador, and his entourage ... perhaps a dozen people in all ... in exchange for our aid in the war. Damn them!" he swears, fists clenched, "If this is true, and thousands of human men and women have died for no reason ..."
"If it is true, ve vill need proof." Gustav points out, then looks a little startled at himself for acting as the voice of reason.
"There may be records in the secure files at the Venusian Government Building." Fury ponders, "An operation like that needs agents to be employed. That means orders, going through handlers. They couldn't have killed everyone involved. And information like that is too useful for blackmail not to keep some kind of proof, if you think it's well hidden enough."
"So ve haf to make it to the capital."
Fury nods,
"But first we should get under cover, in case –"
"You're not going anywhere, human scum." Another voice breaks in. The camera pans backwards, and we find that the five adventurers are surrounded by a ring of more than twenty Venusians, each of whom has a heat lance at the ready.
The chopper races through a series of narrow rock canyons. White smoke pours from one side of the craft as it manoeuvres, but there's little risk of a crash with Fury's deft hands at the controls.
The pursuing Space Force crew are not so lucky: the undamaged machine just avoids a fatal crash, but the second chopper ploughs straight into one of the canyon walls, exploding in an impressive display of the BBC model shop's technical expertise.
The interior of the fugitive vehicle is starting to fill with smoke. Gustav blunders out of the swirling mist, shouting to Fury so he can be heard over the whine of emergency alarms,
"Larathra haz fixed ze thrusters, be she reports ze fuel lines are damaged. Ve haf only a few more minutes before ve vill be forced to land."
"Got it." Fury's attention does not flicker from the controls as he throws the chopper into a tight turn round a canyon bend. He straightens the vehicle out for a moment, then suddenly sideslips left, sending Gustav staggering across the chopper's interior.
"Ach! Mein head!"
"Sorry, old man." Fury doesn't sound too contrite, "But if I'm right … yes, they fell for it!"
We cut to an exterior shot, which shows the pursuing Earthforce shopper come roaring around the canyon bend and rush out of shot. Moments later, Fury nurses his own vehicle out of a narrow, near invisible side canyon.
"Work every time." The Commander muses smugly, "If you're chasing someone and you come round a corner and can't see them, but there's only one obvious way forward, the natural instinct is to speed up. People never stop to think that maybe there's something not so obvious –" he breaks off as a light begins flashing urgently on the control console.
"Is zat bad?"
"Fuel warning. Your friend was right on the mark about how fast we're running out." Fury twists the chopper back into the side canyon, dropping altitude as fast as he can. "I'm going to try to nurse out far enough to get out of sight, and then put her down. Let the others know our landing could be a bit rough."
'Rough' is an understatement. Fury makes his landing approach faster than normal as he tries to eke a few more yards out of the chopper, and the engines cut out while the craft is still a few feet in the air. The undercarriage snaps as the chopper – with all the aerodynamics of a brick – makes an abrupt landing, and the vehicles skids and bounces over several rocks before finally coming to a smoking rest in a Venusian canyon that looks a lot like a quarry in Surrey..
"Everybody OK?" Fury shouts, peering into the rear of the 'copter.
"Fine." S'Ondra frostily replies.
"A little shaken but ozzerwise unharmed." Gustav reports on himself and Larathra.
"Great. Then everybody out." The Commander waves towards the door. "I'm going to set the engines to overload. In their current state that shouldn't take long, so you have about two minutes to get to cover."
"Is this pursuit of wanton destruction a common human trait?" Larathra wonders.
"Yes." S'Ondra nods.
Fury sighs,
"Sooner or later the people chasing us will realise we're not in front of them and come back and they'll find the chopper. I'm hoping that if they find a crater instead, they'll figure we were killed in a crash."
"We nearly were." S'Ondra mutters.
The others pile out of the vehicle as Fury sets to work. The canyon is flooded with red light as the sun sinks over the horizon.
"Zere." Gustav points out several large boulders. He, Archie and the two women run across shot, taking cover behind the large stones. As soon as they do so, S'Ondra turns toward the Doctor with a scowl.
"Quick, before the butcher of my people gets here – tell me how you knew who I was!"
Gustav opens his mouth to answer, but it is Larathra who speaks first.
"Quantum theory posits the existence of multiple realities, each slightly different from the next, due to specific events occurring slightly differently in each reality. Terchett, a scholar of my people, once wrote a fascinating explanation of the phenomenon using the example of putting on your trousers in the morning. Right leg first or left? Not that such a minor event would create a new reality, but it is an excellent example of theoretical discuss-mmph."
Gustav, hand clamped over Larathra's mouth to keep her from speaking, interrupts.
"Ve come from anozzer universe, one in which you and I are –" he considers giving a specific description and decides against it, "- friends. Ve came here by accident, using a machine of Larathra's, but it is now damaged, and ve cannot return until she fixes it."
Seeing the sceptical look on the Princess's face, Gustav shrugs his shoulders.
"I know you find zis hard to believe, but it is true. I haf known you since you were a little girl. When I first met you, you had a pet slargbeast named Ob'zix."
S'Ondra looks startled.
"Ob'zix ... I had almost forgotten him. He died –"
"In ze rebellion, ja?" Gustav nods at S'Ondra's stifled exclamation of surprise, "A shot which narrowly missed you. In my universe, it was soon after zis zat I helped you escape. In zis universe, I must not haf been zere. You must believe me, S'Ondra -"
"S'Ondra! I knew it!" Fury appears suddenly from behind the boulder, "I knew you were lying about who you were!"
S'Ondra snarls at the thought of the Commander knowing her identity, then shrugs as a thought occurs to her,
"Much good it will do you with your own people trying to kill you." She reminds him. Fury acknowledges the point with a nod.
"Well now we know how you know her." he says to Gustav, "How do you know me?" Before Gustav can speak, he raises a finger, "Actually, before you answer that, cover your ears for a few seconds."
BOOM! A gout of flame and smoke bursts upward from behind the boulder as the chopper explodes.
"In my reality ze three of us are comrades." Gustav explains after his ears have stopped ringing.
"Impossible!" S'Ondra interrupts, "I would never befriend a murderous human!"
"Murderous? You're a fine one to talk." Fury snaps back, "It was your people that started this!"
"Us? You are the invaders here!"
"Because you attacked us!"
"We did no such thing!"
Fury looks grim.
"I was there, Princess. The Kelvor had sent an ambassador to Mission City to request our aid in finding a diplomatic solution to their war with you. Your people planted a bomb to kill him, and blew a hole in the Mission City dome. Thousands of civilians dies."
S'Ondra stares at Fury as if he has grown a second head.
"We did no such thing! The deaths of those people were a tragedy, but it was not one of our making."
"Well of course you would deny it."
"If leib – if ze Princess says zat her people did not do it, zen I believe her." Gustav muses, "Which makes me ask: who else vould profit from such an explosion?"
"The Kelvor!" S'Ondra exclaims.
"What would they get out of killing their own Ambassador?" asks Larathra, whose mouth has finally been uncovered. The Princess shrugs.
"If there's someone up to something sneaky, who else would it be?"
"Actually, it does make a twisted kind of sense." Fury admits, "They kill their own ambassador, and his entourage ... perhaps a dozen people in all ... in exchange for our aid in the war. Damn them!" he swears, fists clenched, "If this is true, and thousands of human men and women have died for no reason ..."
"If it is true, ve vill need proof." Gustav points out, then looks a little startled at himself for acting as the voice of reason.
"There may be records in the secure files at the Venusian Government Building." Fury ponders, "An operation like that needs agents to be employed. That means orders, going through handlers. They couldn't have killed everyone involved. And information like that is too useful for blackmail not to keep some kind of proof, if you think it's well hidden enough."
"So ve haf to make it to the capital."
Fury nods,
"But first we should get under cover, in case –"
"You're not going anywhere, human scum." Another voice breaks in. The camera pans backwards, and we find that the five adventurers are surrounded by a ring of more than twenty Venusians, each of whom has a heat lance at the ready.
Capellan
Explorer
"Venusian Christmas Carol" - Part 8
Fury's hand leaps toward his atomic pistol, but S'Ondra grabs his arm.
"Keep your weapon holstered, Earthling."
"She's told you that in my reality too." Gustav tells Fury.
The leader of the Venusians steps forward, eyeing the group suspiciously.
"Are you well, Princess?"
S'Ondra nods,
"Yes, we escaped."
"We?" The Venusian stares doubtfully, "These are humans, Princess. They should be killed before they can betray our location to their forces."
"No!" S'Ondra's voice cracks as she objects. She reddens and clears her throat before continuing, resolutely not looking at the man whose arm she still grasps, "No. They aided my escape. Either they are truly friends, in which case we must help them in turn, or they are spies who must be interrogated. Either way, I forbid them to be killed at this time."
The Venusian's expression suggests he doesn't respect S'Ondra's forbiddance as much as she might like, but at last he nods.
"Very well, but they must be blindfolded and disarmed, and the robot deactivated."
"Not a h—aaargh!" Fury yelps as S'Ondra twists his arm up behind his back.
"Do as they say, Commander." She whispers, "Or they will kill you all."
Out loud, S'Ondra says:
"Of course. We must ensure the safety of our base."
The miracle of television whisks us immediately to a dimly lit cave, where Gustav, Larathra and Fury stare out from a primitive cell that looks exactly like the one the Targ Scientist was in at the start of the episode.
"I preferred it vhen I vas on ze ozzer side of ze bars." Gustav opines.
S'Ondra comes into shot, now dressed in diaphanous Venusian silks rather than the grubby prisoner's smock she wore before. Fury's eyes widen. Archie, were he not deactivated, would worry about her getting a chill.
Remembering that he is supposed to be upset at S'Ondra, Fury does his best to glare at her.
"Come to gloat over your prisoners, Princess?"
"I've been summoned before the war council of my people." S'Ondra explains, "I will tell them how you all helped me escape. I will tell them what you told me about your human city. I will tell them you are ..." she pauses, as if she cannot believe what she is saying, "... friends."
"Will zey believe you?"
"I'll make them believe me."
Another scene change, and we find ourselves in a vast cavern. S'Ondra stands at the centre, beneath a flickering torch. Around her loom several high crags of rock, from which shadowy figures look down upon her. Venusian war banners flutter against the walls. It's so eerily like the Space Force disciplinary hearing that clearly the re-use of sets in this episode isn't just fiscally responsible: it's art!
A voice speaks in the darkness,
"Princess S'Ondra, thank you for attending this meeting of the War Council. We are pleased to see you safe and well after your recent imprisonment." Despite its words, the voice is cool, even unfriendly, in tone. "The Council would appreciate it if you explained the circumstances of your escape."
"I was being held in their base. I gave them a false name, so they would not know who I really was. Two new prisoners were brought into my cell: a blue-skinned alien, and a human who seemed to know me."
"How can this be, if you gave them a false name?"
Wisely, S'Ondra makes no attempt to explain the concept of alternate realities.
"He was on Venus just before the Kelvor uprising. He saw me then as a child, and recognized me today as an adult."
"Impressive." The voice says dryly, "And this man helped you escape?"
"Yes. Well, his robot did. It smashed down the door of the cell."
"This is the same Heavy Incendiary robot you had with you when our patrol found you?"
"Yes."
"You don't think it suspicious that a helpful human would have control of a major military weapon such as that?"
"Of course I was suspicious!" S'Ondra snaps, clearly having lost patience with the voice's rather condescending tone, "I've been fighting this war my whole life, and I am not a fool!" She pauses and takes a breath, "But there has been nothing since to confirm my suspicions. I believe these people to be our friends."
The last word provokes a squawk of outrage.
"Friends? One of them is from Space Force!"
S'Ondra shakes her head,
"Not any more. They are hunting him now."
"So you would trust a traitor?"
The Princess stops for a moment as she considers the question. Finally, she nods.
"Yes. He is an honest man."
There is a murmur of disquiet from the Council benches.
"I think your judgement may be impaired, Princess." The voice speaks at last, "Perhaps the humans drugged you without your knowledge. However –" the speaker hurriedly continues so as to head off S'Ondra's explosive rejoinder, "- we are aware of all you have sacrificed in this war, and are willing to investigate this matter further as recognition for those sacrifices. Guards, bring forth the prisoners so they can be questioned!"
Fury's hand leaps toward his atomic pistol, but S'Ondra grabs his arm.
"Keep your weapon holstered, Earthling."
"She's told you that in my reality too." Gustav tells Fury.
The leader of the Venusians steps forward, eyeing the group suspiciously.
"Are you well, Princess?"
S'Ondra nods,
"Yes, we escaped."
"We?" The Venusian stares doubtfully, "These are humans, Princess. They should be killed before they can betray our location to their forces."
"No!" S'Ondra's voice cracks as she objects. She reddens and clears her throat before continuing, resolutely not looking at the man whose arm she still grasps, "No. They aided my escape. Either they are truly friends, in which case we must help them in turn, or they are spies who must be interrogated. Either way, I forbid them to be killed at this time."
The Venusian's expression suggests he doesn't respect S'Ondra's forbiddance as much as she might like, but at last he nods.
"Very well, but they must be blindfolded and disarmed, and the robot deactivated."
"Not a h—aaargh!" Fury yelps as S'Ondra twists his arm up behind his back.
"Do as they say, Commander." She whispers, "Or they will kill you all."
Out loud, S'Ondra says:
"Of course. We must ensure the safety of our base."
The miracle of television whisks us immediately to a dimly lit cave, where Gustav, Larathra and Fury stare out from a primitive cell that looks exactly like the one the Targ Scientist was in at the start of the episode.
"I preferred it vhen I vas on ze ozzer side of ze bars." Gustav opines.
S'Ondra comes into shot, now dressed in diaphanous Venusian silks rather than the grubby prisoner's smock she wore before. Fury's eyes widen. Archie, were he not deactivated, would worry about her getting a chill.
Remembering that he is supposed to be upset at S'Ondra, Fury does his best to glare at her.
"Come to gloat over your prisoners, Princess?"
"I've been summoned before the war council of my people." S'Ondra explains, "I will tell them how you all helped me escape. I will tell them what you told me about your human city. I will tell them you are ..." she pauses, as if she cannot believe what she is saying, "... friends."
"Will zey believe you?"
"I'll make them believe me."
Another scene change, and we find ourselves in a vast cavern. S'Ondra stands at the centre, beneath a flickering torch. Around her loom several high crags of rock, from which shadowy figures look down upon her. Venusian war banners flutter against the walls. It's so eerily like the Space Force disciplinary hearing that clearly the re-use of sets in this episode isn't just fiscally responsible: it's art!
A voice speaks in the darkness,
"Princess S'Ondra, thank you for attending this meeting of the War Council. We are pleased to see you safe and well after your recent imprisonment." Despite its words, the voice is cool, even unfriendly, in tone. "The Council would appreciate it if you explained the circumstances of your escape."
"I was being held in their base. I gave them a false name, so they would not know who I really was. Two new prisoners were brought into my cell: a blue-skinned alien, and a human who seemed to know me."
"How can this be, if you gave them a false name?"
Wisely, S'Ondra makes no attempt to explain the concept of alternate realities.
"He was on Venus just before the Kelvor uprising. He saw me then as a child, and recognized me today as an adult."
"Impressive." The voice says dryly, "And this man helped you escape?"
"Yes. Well, his robot did. It smashed down the door of the cell."
"This is the same Heavy Incendiary robot you had with you when our patrol found you?"
"Yes."
"You don't think it suspicious that a helpful human would have control of a major military weapon such as that?"
"Of course I was suspicious!" S'Ondra snaps, clearly having lost patience with the voice's rather condescending tone, "I've been fighting this war my whole life, and I am not a fool!" She pauses and takes a breath, "But there has been nothing since to confirm my suspicions. I believe these people to be our friends."
The last word provokes a squawk of outrage.
"Friends? One of them is from Space Force!"
S'Ondra shakes her head,
"Not any more. They are hunting him now."
"So you would trust a traitor?"
The Princess stops for a moment as she considers the question. Finally, she nods.
"Yes. He is an honest man."
There is a murmur of disquiet from the Council benches.
"I think your judgement may be impaired, Princess." The voice speaks at last, "Perhaps the humans drugged you without your knowledge. However –" the speaker hurriedly continues so as to head off S'Ondra's explosive rejoinder, "- we are aware of all you have sacrificed in this war, and are willing to investigate this matter further as recognition for those sacrifices. Guards, bring forth the prisoners so they can be questioned!"
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