The following is a work of fiction created and written by Jim Robert Bader, with ideas and suggestions provided by my good friends, Bill Guiroff and Kate Norcross (the REAL-life Katie). No other persons living or dead are intended to be reflected here (save for purposes of obvious parody and/or social commentary), and any resemblance to other creations of popular fiction are purely coincidental. This property is the work of Jim Robert Bader and is a rough draft copy, to be revised and altered should I one day find a friendly publisher willing to help me out. It is presented here for the express purpose of gaining friendly recognition and/or creative commentary and may not be duplicated or published elsewhere without express permission of the author. Mar-Sa The Ultra-Girl Book One/Part Two The Girl of Tungsten Steel by Jim Robert Bader September 4, 2001 (First Copyrights Only) 00000000 000 000 000 vvvvvvv 000 000VVVVVVVVVVVVVV000 000 VVVVVVVVVV 000 000 VVVVVV 000 000 VVVV 000 000 VV 000 00000000 Mar-Sa, The Ultra-Girl by Jim Robert Bader Book One/Part Two The Girl of Tungsten Steel Chapter Eighteen. The Challenge "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT???" Gabrielle demanded once she and Raphael had managed to stay on board their nearly-capsized speedboat. "It moved like a guided missile," Raphael sputtered, his hair and beard as much dripping wet as the rest of them while they attempted to make sense of what had just happened, "It passed very near to us, but I do not believe that we were the target." "No, that's pretty obvious," Gabrielle said, then she paused to glance down, taking notice of where the man's hands were placed while she had been holding on for dear life to the dashboard railing. Raphael noticed the pause and---more importantly---realized where his hands were resting, and automatically let her go before Gabrielle could make an issue of their "unfortunate" placement. He raised his hands defensively with a pleading expression on his face and was momentarily glad that all loose objects had been washed overboard or else she might have thrown anything within reach in his direction. "Effendi, I did not mean...!" he started to say. "You had better mean it the next time you do that, Raffee," Gabrielle growled, but she was smiling and frowning at him as she said that, and Raphael was unsure which was the more frightening, "Let's just stick to the mission for now, and we can 'discuss' this when things calm down a bit. Now, where is that varmint that nearly sideswiped us?" Raphael gratefully murmured a prayer of relief for the change of subject, only to have that prayer turn into an oath, "Beard of the Prophet..." "Wha--?" Gabrielle followed the direction of his gaze then sucked in an oath of her own as she saw the glowing metal ball menacing the Ambercastle... "What the hell is that?" Katie cried as Phoebe simultaneously called out, "Marsha!" "It came out of no where and attacked her," Cathy declared as if stating the obvious would make it any more comprehensible, "She never even had a chance..." "Did Mar-Sa survive?" Heather asked, glancing at the surface of the ocean where the golden woman had abruptly vanished, hoping that this was the case as without her around they had no way to deal with the glowing ball now hovering off their port bow. Even as she thought this she wondered what it was and who might have sent it, because it certainly did not appear to be of any Earthly manufacture... "What happened?" Dar-Kem asked, "Why did it attack her? It was programmed to capture and retrieve..." "I-I cannot explain it, Eminence," Gas-Ton replied, "Except to suggest that it somehow perceived Apprentice Technician Mar-Sa as a threat and reacted with defensive programs..." "It attacked without fully assessing the situation," Kas-Par frowned, "But what was it reading as so threatening that it would justify such a harsh reaction?" "Um...apparently...it was Apprentice Mar-Sa herself," Gas-Ton answered as he stared disbelieving at his control console, "These Bio-readings taken before the incident...they cannot be right...there must be a calibration error..." "Is the rebel dead?" Jon-Hul asked. "She must be," Che-Ne replied, "No way could anyone survive a charged plasma burst at such close range..." "Might I draw the attention of my fellow Councilors to something a bit more striking that should have, by now, come to their attention?" Has-Tur asked, "Observe the floating craft just below the visual scans that we are receiving. Have the probe vary the scope of its scans to include them." "As you command, your Eminence," Gas-Ton replied as he hastily directed his technicians to carry out the "suggestion." Everyone was silent as the visual displays took in the group of nervous, confused expressions huddled together on the deck of said ship and gazing back at the probe with clear apprehension of their impending fate, which hovered just above them like a sword ready to descend. It was Has-Tur who broke the ensuing silence, "They look...almost human..." "But so pale...and the women are almost...naked," Jon-Hul swallowed. Dar-Kem shook off his own astonishment and said, "It does not matter what they look like, they are clearly in the way, destroy them!" "No, wait!" Kas-Par countermanded. "What?" Dar-Kem turned to the security man. "You Eminence," Kas-Par said firmly, "We must not act rashly or in haste. These are denizens of the world where the rebel has taken refuge, they represent a heretofore unknown form of life that closely resembles our own, and us such we ought to study them before determining their threat potential." "They are aliens!" Dar-Kem declared, "That is all we need to know! Anything else is sacrilege..." "By whose measurement?" Jon-Hul countered. "Commander Kas-Par raises an excellent point," Che-Ne agreed, "This is an enormous opportunity to learn what the residents of their other world are like. Technician Gas-Ton, what can sensor readings make of these creatures?" "Ah...your Eminence," Gas-Ton replied, "What we are receiving...it does not make sense..." "In what way?" Has-Tur asked him. "They...they are lighter bodied," Dar-Kem replied, "Half the molecular density, a slightly different arrangement of internal anatomy, but otherwise...nearly identical to our own genetic matrix." "What?" Jon-Hul replied. "Impossible!" Che-Ne declared. "Heresy!" Dar-Kem unflinchingly stated. "Nearly identical, you say?" Has-Tur asked, "By how much of a deviation?" "A...so small it barely warrants mention," Gas-Ton swallowed, "Point-oh-oh- three-seven percent..." The room was silent for a very long moment until Kas-Par murmured aloud, "Exactly as he predicted." "What was that?" Jon-Hul asked. "Pardon, your Eminence," Kas-Par replied, "I was simply thinking aloud. It was in the reports that I have been studying of the rebel Kar-Tor. It was exactly as predicted by his late colleague, the traitor, Mar-Tan, who said that there would be life on other worlds that closely resembled our own because..." "That is enough!" Dar-Kem declared, "Mar-Tan's heresy must not be spoken of again! To do more would be to lend credence to his preposterous suggestions!" "But it would only make sense if what Mar-Tan said was the truth," Has-Tur stared at the images once again, "And these people are the proof of his theories..." "Perhaps we were a bit hasty in sanctioning his termination," Che-Ne reasoned. "A common ancestry?" Jon-Hul remarked, "Of course...the Teleporter itself is proof enough that Mar-Tan was on to something revolutionary! Perhaps our ancestors did come to this world after having been modified for our planetary conditions, and the planet itself was modified thousands of cycles ago to accommodate our form of life..." "If what you say is true, Eminence," Kas-Par observed, "Then what we are gazing up on would be representative of our distant cousin-race, and that would mean that we have a potential first contact situation here..." "First contact?" Che-Ne said, "What does that mean?" "It means that we could have dealings with these people, perhaps even open up communications between our two worlds," Has-Tur smiled, "So perhaps it would be rash to kill them. I think studying them would be more advantageous." "You are all violating the protocols of the Council's sacred charter!" Dar-Kem declared in outrage, "To exploit the technology of the Heretic for purposes other than to contain further heresy, and to actually propose contaminating ourselves with these...inferior life forms...!" His fellow Councilors looked pityingly upon the man while Kas-Par frowned even more intently than before, and Gas-Ton looked on uncertainly, not sure what orders to relay to the probe, which remained in a hovering motion. But then something else registered upon his sensors, and in dismay Gas-Ton took in the new readings, saying aloud, "Your Eminences...!" Mar-Sa did not know what a mule was, had never seen one, only read about them in a book somewhere, but now she had a good idea of what it was like to be kicked by one as she was knocked end over end by the plasma burst, hitting the ocean water like a stone and skipping twice before hitting a third time and sinking like a gold brick into the drink. Contact with the cool water against her sun-warmed skin was a shock that further added to her trauma, her hyper-sensitive nervous system going into immediate shut-down even as she found herself short of breath, water pouring into her mouth and nostrils, further adding to her sense of growing peril. Having negative buoyancy, she was unable to help for her downward plunge into the briny blue ocean, and the further she descended the farther she moved beyond the reach of the life-giving energy that she depended upon so greatly. The Biosolar energy of the sun diminished greatly even as the water pressure increased over every square inch of her body, and as Mar-Sa fought for breath and life she found her energy reserves were increasingly diminished. She fought to hold on for dear life even as the pain of the attack began to ebb and her nervous system regenerated the damage, but by that point she was already so far down that the water had become indigo and murky. She could barely see anything, let alone tell up from down so that she could not know which way to swim to reach the surface, even the sun itself being hidden from her as she continued to descend into the stygian darkness. All at once, however, she hit something hard and solid that broke her fall and gave her a momentary start. A strange artificial surface, faintly metallic, greeted the contact of her skin, and as she set her hands against this object she felt a tingle of electricity, as though it held a charge that was at least partially repelling the molecules of the water. There was no time to pause and question what it was that she had fallen atop of, she only knew that she now had some bearing since the object was below her, which meant that she had fallen from above. She wasted no time bracing her feet against the object while reaching out with her senses in search of the beacon of light that she knew would tell her the sun's exact position, and then she stretched out towards that glowing ball of light that now became recognizable once again. Even at the edge of her reserves she knew that she had enough power left to make one powerful leap towards her only hope for survival, and so she gathered her legs underneath her and pushed hard, jumping away from the object with such force that she was immediately propelled upward like a human-shaped torpedo... Unknown to her the occupants of the object that she had become her partial salvation themselves became aware that something had just pushed against them with force enough to send a momentary jolt all through the length of their submerged vessel. "What in the hell was that?" demanded the sub's captain as she swerved in her command-chair. "Unknown, Captain," a lieutenant on sonar immediately reported, "Something shoved us just now, tremendous pressure has been exerted against section A42 of the hull, not enough to collapse the plating but spread out enough to be felt like a virtual shockwave." "How is that even possible?" the First Officer turned to his Captain, "Could we be under an attack?" "Go to yellow alert and notify Magnus at once," Captain Janice Land instructed, "For something to approach us like this...any contacts on passive sonar?" "Negative, Captain," the sonar person replied, "The pressure wave is the only anomaly...wait! Something else! It's moving away from us...I think it's...swimming upward?" "Swimming?" First Officer Ned Leeds repeated. "Swimming," Captain Land murmured, "Now I have heard just about everything. The next thing you'll know you'll say we just got hit by a mermaid..." Mar-Sa did not know what a mermaid was, but she did know that the closer she came towards the surface the greater was the level of Bioenergy that flowed into body. Soon she did not have to paddle at all to continue to rise to the surface, being able to "push" downward while "pulling" herself towards the light, and as the pressure on her body lessened she found herself almost light- headed as she broke the surface and rose into the air, no longer fighting for life but becoming empowered as the energy flowed through her body unceasing. Of course she had to cough up the water that she had inadvertently swallowed on the way down, but with her ability to regenerate and control her telekinesis restored, it was possible for her to "will" the excess brine out of her lungs as she continued to rise up into the air, allowing her regeneration power to do the job of fixing the remaining damage. Once free from the risk of drowning, she started to think rationally again, her mind sorting out what had just happened and putting the jumbled images in her mind into some sort of coherent picture. She remembered the flash of light following the appearance of a type Five Rover-Droid, and with that thought in mind she immediately thought of Phoebe, and stretched out with her senses, making immediate contact with her all-too-human lover... ...Who even then was staring death in the face and trying not to flinch about it. "What's it doing just hovering there like that?" Phoebe wondered, "Is it going to attack?" "I hope not," Cathy averred softly, "In case you haven't noticed, we don't exactly carry any weapons on this yacht." "No one move," Heather urged, "Try to remain still and hope that whoever is controlling that...thing...is more curious about us than hostile." "Hostile?" Katie repeated, "I'd say it's pretty hostile from what it did to poor Marsha." "I'm more interested in knowing what it's gonna do to us," said Donna, one of Luigi's assistants, who then turned as if in afterthought and said, "Luigi...?" All heads turned in time to see the photographer lifting his fabled camera to his eyes and reflexively begin the process of snapping off pictures. The slight motion seemed to draw the attention of the hovering metal sphere, which turned and flashed an energy bolt towards the man, striking him full in the chest and knocking him unconscious. "LUIGI!" Heather cried out in astonished horror. "Boss!" Donna darted forward, only to back away as the probe shot off another blast at the deck directly ahead of where she had been going. "SUNUVA---!" Phoebe began to cry when she felt Katie grab her arm, preventing her from charging forward. "Wait---don't move!" Katie warned, "That thing reacts to perceived attacks, and it's pretty obvious that it's attacks are lethal!" "Poor Luigi," Cathy said, "He never had a chance, the poor guy..." "He can't be dead," Donna said, starting forward again and screaming, "YOU BASTARD!" The Probe started to build up a charge for another attack when all at once its onboard proximity alarms diverted its attention to another, more potentially dangerous source. All at once an object struck it a glancing blow and caused a tremendous explosion that knocked everyone off their feet while diverting the probe from its intended objectives. "Where the hell did that come from?" Katie cried. "Hah?" Phoebe winced, "I can't hear you...my ears are still ringing!" Cathy had the presence of mind to turn and said, "Hey, look at that! Where the heck did they come from?" "Eh?" Heather asked, looking up from where she was crouched by the railing to see something wholly unexpected, a speedboat rapidly approaching at full throttle... "Got it!" Gabrielle cried as she lowered her shoulder-held mini-rocket launcher, "Take that, you stupid Sputnik!" "I think you definitely got its attention," Raphael declared as he kept a firm grip on the controls, veering sharply to the side so that their speedboat would not ram the very ship that they were intending to rescue, "But I don't think it is out of action just yet..." "Huh?" Gabrielle blinked, staring in disbelief and murmuring, "No way...!" The probe confirmed that it had suffered no damage with a diagnostic scan that took no more than a nanosecond. Having expended that much time recovering its status, it next directed its AI programs towards the new potential enemy, the primitive craft and its two puny human occupants. At once it upgraded them from minor nuisance to definite mission obstruction. "It's not even scratched!" Gabrielle cried as she fell to her knee and started pulling something else out from the weapons locker on board the small, fast- moving ship, "What the hell is it made of?" "Whatever it is, I suspect it is a lot harder than we are," Raphael declared, "And, not to worry you, Gabby, but I think you made it angry." "That's tough!" Gabrielle declared as she pulled out a machine gun and started firing off at the approaching sphere, "Eat lead you floating beach-ball!" Her fire was surprisingly accurate for someone who was fighting for balance on a rocking, racing, surf-tossed speedboat, and most of her tracer-shots hit home against the speeding probe, though the flashes of light that registered about its shields demonstrated the utter uselessness of her angry gesture. "Oh shit!" Gabrielle declared, changing clips in spite of the fact that she was certain it would be nothing more than a further waste of ammunition. "Hold on!" Raphael said, "I'm going to floor it!" No sooner had he accompanied his words with actions but then another plasma bolt shot out from the probe, the charged ions of superheated molecular motion forming a destructive stream that hit the water where they had been but moments before. Gabrielle was nearly knocked off her feet as the sudden acceleration, accompanied by the near-hit, challenged even her powers of balance as their speedboat started tossing on the waves, rising up on pontoon-like planes that helped keep the hull partially out of the water... "Whoever the heck they are they've got to be crazy," Katie declared. "Either that or they've seen way too many movies," Cathy noted. "Too much red meat in that girl's diet," Heather agreed, "But I hope they make it...it would be a shame for their efforts to be wasted." "Hey, not to worry guys," Phoebe said with a strange confidence growing in her bosom, "Help's on the way." "Help?" Cathy turned to look at her, "You feeling sunstroke or something?" "No, look!" Katie pointed, "Over there, see that?" "She's back," Heather declared, feeling a strange thrill as she saw the hurtling golden object... Gabrielle was about to say something very choice as she saw the glowing ball bearing down on top of their boat as though intending to smash them out of the water, but just as it was about to unleash another deadly blast that would smash them into a bloody pulp something hit the metal ball at a side angle and knocked it away, a certain SOMEONE who was even more impressive to look at when flying past at the speed of a guided missile. "Holy...!" she declared as the wind whipped her long brown hair past her head and she came close to giving herself a serious case of whiplash. "My sentiments exactly," Raphael replied, his voice all but inaudible over the roar of the speedboat's engine. Mar-Sa did not know who the two occupants of the boat were, nor did she particularly care at the moment, knowing only from Phoebe's mind that they had acted to protect her friends, which meant that they were more than worthy of saving. The fact of the sneak attack upon her, coupled with the probe's more personal attack against a harmless old man like Luigi, was enough to get her good and mad, and since her powers were now fully restored she intended to vent her wrath upon this instrument of technology that had instantly come to represent everything she now knew and loathed about her own home planet... Back in the laboratory complex on Wolframa the confusing array of conflicting images being generated in holo-relief left the Councilors staring in disbelief and amazement. "What's happening?" Jon-Hul asked, "Another attack?" "Apologies, your Graces," Gas-Ton all but pleaded, "We are attempting to compensate and restore the signal to full strength, but there is something...beating against the shielding..." "Beating against it?" Kas-Par repeated, "With what weapons?" "Sir!" a lesser Technician reported, "We believe we have the solution. We are attempting to compensate...now!" The image was restored, but not the composure or collective sensibilities of the observers. "What?" Has-Tur gasped, "Is that...the rebel?" "She's flying...how can she be flying?" even Dar-Kem's voice was shaken. "Um...perhaps she is wearing some sort of portable gravity-nullifying device?" Che-Ne proposed rather faintly. "Do you see any such device upon her person?" Jon-Hul asked, wondering how he could be so calm while gazing upon such an impossible occurrence. Kas-Par just stared, words being too inadequate to describe his own reaction. As impossible as it might see it did indeed appear as though the fugitive Apprenticed Technician was moving on her own power in total defiance of the weak gravity field of this distant blue world. There did indeed seem to be nothing that could be supporting her, nor was her body in any way clothed or concealing, and from the way she moved in the air...it was almost like something his ancestors would have called "poetry," an all but forgotten indulgence of that decadent pre-Council civilization. "Impossible," Dark-Kem mindlessly declared, "It cannot be...it must be some sort of a trick..." "Ah...sirs?" Gas-Ton said meekly, "The Bioreadings we took before...the levels are confirmed. There is no trace of technology nor standard EMR or E-Force signal that would indicate that she is using a device of any kind that we can recognize..." "What are you saying?" Jon-Hul gasped, "That she is doing this...on her own power?" "Nice moves," Has-Tur remarked, surprising himself as he studied the astonishing and fascinating image of the woman's body moving in free-fall, and the even stranger reaction of his own body as he felt stirred to ever greater awareness of the fact that she was indeed female. "How could she be accomplishing this?" Jon-Hul asked, "It defies rational explanation..." "Not necessarily," Kas-Par murmured softly, his attention fixed for reasons very different from that of the Councilors, his memory stirring as gazed upon the naked beauty moving in such defiance of both space and time, and suddenly he saw another image superimposed in his mind over the rebel and felt mightily disturbed, unable to comprehend just why he should be thinking about HER after all these years of loneliness and reflection... Mar-Sa could sense the build up of magnetic particles in the air gathering about the probe as it prepared to unleash yet another discharge. It was ridiculously easy to predict the direction of its next attack with time enough to "push" herself out of the way through her growing skill in using her telekinesis. Once she had calculated the angle of the discharge she had only to levitate into a different attack vector to come around and hit it where the probe least expected to be encountered. Of course her fists did not touch the metal itself but rather glanced off of the probe's electrostatic shielding, but each time she hit it she registered a sparking discharge, and she knew that if she hit it enough times then she would be able to overload its internal systems. "Don't look now," Katie said as she shielded her eyes, "But I think she's winning." "Incredible," Heather averred, "Luigi should be taking pictures of...Luigi!" "Oh no," Phoebe whirled around, finding that Donna was already hovering over the man's body, and without pausing to question her own actions she darted over to their side and knelt down to examine the old man, sensing somehow that he was still alive though suffering internally, and without knowing how she sensed that it was his heart going into cardiac arrest, "Katie!" Her roommate-slash-lover was not slow in catching on to the crisis, and once she had joined them she confirmed the worst, "He's in bad shape...it's a heart attack. We have to apply CPR at once. You guys got any portable medical equipment?" "I'll go get the kit," Cathy volunteered, moving off at a run towards the mid- deck of the luxury yacht while others came out from hiding and milled around looking for some sort of a direction. "Everyone to your stations!" Heather commanded, smoothly taking charge over her people, "Have the captain start up the engines, we're heading back to port, and contact the nearest hospital and emergency rescue teams! Let's move it, people, a man's life is at stake here!" "What do you want me to do, Katie?" Phoebe asked. "Until they get the defibrillator here we're gonna have to do what we can the old fashioned way," Katie replied, positioning herself over the face of the hapless old man and nodding to Phoebe, "Put your hands over here and when I tell you to push, you push, got it?" "Right," Phoebe declared, placing both of her palms over the solar plexus of the unconscious Luigi. Meanwhile Mar-Sa was taking a beating herself, having mistimed one of her dodges and wound up on the receiving end of another electrostatic plasma discharge. The blast caught her all but napping, but as her own telekinetic shields were up in full force the brunt of the blast was dissipated this time and thus did no real damage. Back in the complex on Wolframa, however, the Council members were reacting to her display with a royal mix of emotions, everything from shock and dismay to growing excitement and even a hint of genuine anticipation. "She took a level four plasma burst in the chest...and she isn't even affected?" Jon-Hul exclaimed in disbelief. "How can she withstand that kind of punishment?" Che-Ne marveled. "Yes," Has-Tur agreed, "And still remain in such...excellent shape." "We...we are at a loss to explain this, Excellencies," Gas-Ton stammered as he studied the Bioreadings, "Her life signs are unbelievable, strength and constitution off the charts, and the Psychokinetic readings that we are registering cannot be credited! Simply put, what she is doing is impossible, it goes against all known physical laws..." "Not necessarily," Kas-Par said with a calm that surprised even him, "Mar-Tan's theories speculated that we have a genetic anomaly that allows us to withstand the force of our own planet's gravity. He theorized that our pineal glands process and channel the Bioenergy of our sun into a form that is stored within the cells of our body...and the solar output of this sun is much more intense than our own...roughly a thousand times as great, which means..." "An entire magnitude of amplification," Gas-Ton declared as his expression took on a look of almost religious rapture, "Of course...that would explain everything! A living transducer of Bioenergy...why did this never occur to us before? And with our body density serving as a platform for this convertible power you speak of..." "This is all heresy!" Dar-Kem proclaimed, "You have all violated Council precedent by even entertaining such...absurdly far-fetched notions!" "Far-fetched you say?" Jon-Hul replied, pointing at the images, "Then how do you account for that?" Dar-Kem sputtered as he searched for a meaningful explanation, but by this point his fellow Councilors had decided to treat him as one might the mentally deformed. Here was abundant evidence not only of a world rich in resources but offering the potential for each one of them to be like unto a god, and while they had no recollection of the time when their ancestors had worshipped at graven idols, still they had a belief in the fantastical just by gazing upon the likeness of a woman doing battle with a probe and actually keeping it off balance... "Yeehaw, go get 'em, Cowgirl!" Gabrielle cheered as she watched the golden woman do battle, "Man, she is something else!" "Yes, something else indeed," Raphael replied, speaking into his collar, "Are you reading me, my friends?" "Raphe," Michael responded, "What the hell is going on up there? We got sonar readings that sound like a major air battle is taking place..." "That is a close enough approximation, Michael," Raphael replied, "A strange object shaped like a metal ball, roughly a meter in diameter, appeared a short time ago and has done battle with our golden lady. She is holding her own, but the issue is far from decided, and we are picking up transmissions from the yacht that suggest that they are facing a medical crisis of some sort." "Have they seen you, Buddy?" Uriel cut in, "Tell us that Gabby didn't strong-arm you into going on the warpath?" "Alas," Raphael sighed, "It was... an unavoidable compromise, but we believe that we bought some time for the passengers for the subject to recover from the object's initial attack. Here...see if you can make out the fight from our remaining recorders." Raphael held up a palm-sized image scanner and pointed it at the two combatants, glancing down at the flat-screen digital display that was affirming that he was pointing the tiny camera in the right direction. "Holy Mother of Mercy," Uriel remarked, "Is this thing live?" "Hey, it's happening right now, Uri," Gabrielle declared, "In fact, we're so close to them now that---HEADS UP---INCOMING!!!" She and Raphael instinctively flinched as they saw Mar-Sa take another point- blank blast, this time far more intensive than the last one, and then she splashed hard into the water only a few meters shy of their speedboat, kicking up a stream of water in her passage. "She's down, and I think it's for good this time," Gabrielle exclaimed as she straightened up, "And the way she's built I don't think she'll float back to the surface." "Eagle one, we need diving teams into the water!" Raphael called out. "Not enough time," Gabrielle said, already reaching down to unsling the life preserver from its moorings, wasting no time to tie a knot around her ankle and picking up a belt of lead weights before saying, "Wish me luck!" "But---WAIT!" Raphael cried out too late as he watched his partner dive over the side and into the water. "Did she just do what I think she did?" Uriel asked over their com-line. "Do you really need to ask, Effendi?" Raphael replied in resignation, making sure to secure the life preserver so that he did not lose all contact with his rash and headstrong fellow agent... "A level six plasma discharge," Gas-Ton said in awe, "That was what it took to take her down..." "Incredible," Che-Ne said, "If we had not witnessed it with our own eyes..." "It must be a trick, it cannot be real," Dar-Kem persisted. "It is real," Kas-Par remarked, "Everything Kar-Tor and Mar-Tan predicted, it all has been confirmed here." "Do you realize what this means?" Has-Tur declared, "An entirely new way of sustaining our world through the resources of another world...it is everything that we could ever hope for, if we could but stabilize the process of transferal..." "We could be as mighty as those Ancients that Mar-Tan was always going on about," Che-Ne smiled "The possibilities are endless..." "A lot more work will be needed before we are ready to begin such a complex undertaking," Jon-Hul said in a thoughtful tone of voice, "We will need more time to study this world and the people who inhabit it, to learn just how far removed we are, and for that we will need to take samples." "I follow you," Has-Tur smiled, "Chief Technician, order the probe to capture some of the humans on that ship. Have them readied for transfer..." "Sir...your Eminence," Gas-Ton said hesitantly, "We are still uncertain of the recall process. For one of us it would be difficult and quite a strain, but for these lighter-bodied aliens..." "So?" Che-Ne smiled coldly, "There's more than one of them on that ship, plenty of chances to practice to get it right, and if a few die in the process...it is to be regretted, but entirely necessary." Kas-Par frowned slightly at the dryly analytical nature of that statement, but the hardened security man was only able to privately frame his objections, being too dutiful a soldier to even think of contradicting his betters... "What's wrong?" Donna asked desperately, "Why isn't he recovering? Is he going to make it?" "He will if I have anything to say about it," Katie snapped, "Keep pushing, Phoebe, only stop when I tell you to." "Right," Phoebe said between pants as she continued her periodic rhythm, "One- two-three-four," then paused while Katie blew fresh air into the mouth of the still-motionless photographer, then she started again as Katie nodded for her to continue. "I got the defibrillator!" Cathy cried as she raced across the deck holding the portable device with both hands, "It's heavy! I hope it does the trick!" "That's what we'll find out," Katie stated as she took the device, opened it and started sorting around the insides, pulling out a gel package that she broke open over Luigi's bared chest, "Massage that in, Phoebe, but be sure not to touch him when I tell you to back away," and then she pulled out a pair of metal pads and rubbed more gel between them, telling Heather, "Be sure to charge it up by depressing that lever." "I understand," Heather replied, much impressed with the woman's self-possessed tone of authority as she methodically set about her business. "Charge," Katie ordered, telling Phoebe to begin another four-part count, and when the meter read a full charge she snapped out, "Back away...stay clear. Here goes nothing!" She placed the pads on the shaved chest of the old man and immediately sent a jolt of current into his body. Luigi's body reflexively spasmed but then lay still when Katie removed the pads and ordered Donna to check the man for a pulse. Phoebe bit her lip and told herself that Katie was a professional, that if anyone could bring the kindly old photographer back to life it had to be her. She told herself this because she had faith in Katie as a miracle worker, but thinking that made her also think about Mar-Sa and the fear in her own heart as she could feel her lover struggling for life, even though it seemed at the moment that she was having trouble breathing at all, and she had a strong sense of being underwater... Gabrielle was an excellent swimmer and a professional diver who knew the rules as well as any Navy Seal, but she was also used to operating at the farthest edge of human potential, and so she threw caution to the wind as she aimed herself towards where she was certain she would intercept the stunned body of Mar-Sa. As expected she could see the golden woman sinking like a lead balloon into the cold pacific waters, and with her negative buoyancy it was certain that she would soon descend beyond the reach of even an experienced pearl diver. But with the lead weights dragging Gabrielle down, and her body angled downward rather than limply drifting sideways, she was able to angle her body and gain just enough momentum to intercept her target while Mar-Sa was still only a few fathoms down, and with a desperate lunge Gabrielle caught her by one gleaming ankle. Immediately Gabrielle felt her own body begin to increase her decline, but she let go of the lead belt and used both hands to get a firmer grasp of the woman whom she intended to rescue. She had no way of slowing their descent beyond this point other than to trust that Raphael would have the good sense to grab hold of the life preserver and---sure enough, she felt the tugging on her leg that signified that she had reached the limits of the nylon rope, pulling her taunt as the astonishing weight of the golden woman tugged her hard and almost broke her grip upon her ankle. From there she had only to wait and hold her breath while Raphael started to heave them back up towards the surface, using the winch on board their boat to accomplish what human hands alone would not be able to manage. It seemed to go on forever but in fact it was no more than two minutes before her foot was lifted into the air, and then another rope was passed down to her, which Gabrielle took with what strength she had left, passing it down and looping it once around the golden woman's waist before hitching the clipped end around, and only then did she release her fully. Once she was able to thrust her head out of the water she gasped out aloud, "Remind me never to do that again! She weighs a ton!" "A quarter ton at the most," Raphael said as he used the winch to get Mar-Sa's head above the water, "I don't know if she is still alive, but she does appear to be in a form of shock of some sort..." "Then let's get her on board and do some CPR," Gabrielle cried as she pushed herself to scale the mini-ladder that Raphael had put over the side, "There's a good chance we can still revive her if...what the blazes?" Raphael stared in amazement as he felt the woman's body begin to warm up to the touch, and then she was glowing again and her eyes popped open. "Wh--!" she started to say, only to cough up water once again, and after some heaving coughs she lifted her head again and cried, "Phoebe!" "Who?" Gabrielle blinked as she reached down to offer her hand to the heavier woman, only to see Mar-Sa rise up out of the water on her own power as she levitated into the air again, which prompted her to exclaim, "Holy Fu---!" "My thoughts exactly," Raphael hastily cut her off. "Who are you?" Mar-Sa asked, then took notice of the line around her waist and said, "Oh...never mind. I thank you, but I am all right now," and with that she unhitched the line and rose up into the sky again, turning her attention back towards the probe that---to her considerable horror---was once again hovering over the yacht with a clear intention of causing more mischief. Gabrielle watched the golden woman glide off to the rescue then said faintly, "Uh...hey...you're welcome..." "I think it fair to say that she does not requite medical attention," Raphael relayed into his throat-mike. "Well, stay on her if you can, Raphe," Michael replied, "You're in it this deep, might as well go all the way." "Roger that," Raphael said, turning to Gabrielle, "You still up for more action?" Gabrielle ignored the wracking chills of her own body and said, "Hah, try and stop me..." "Marsha?" Phoebe suddenly exclaimed as she felt a curious surge of tingling warmth along her body. "Worry about your squeeze another time," Katie ordered, "Just keep pushing until I say quit." "It's no use," Heather sighed, "You've tried three times but there is no reaction." "Then we try a forth time," Katie said, "He's my patient and I'll say when we--- huh?" Phoebe stared down at her own hands, feeling strange all over as new life seemed to be pouring into her, even as she felt Mar-Sa drawing power into her own body. At the moment Phoebe had been staring down at the motionless body before her and remembering how Luigi Cozi had seemed so energetic and full of life, and what a shame it was that he would die because of a stupid mistake made by a mindless machine that could not tell a harmless man from an enemy agent. She knew her thoughts were mirrored in Mar-Sa's own inner reflections, but as she thought on this she seemed to be drawing deep down on something further inside her...some element of which Phoebe had never been aware until that very moment, save through her rapport with Mar-Sa. To the others the remarkable thing was that Phoebe was giving off a warmth that felt strangely comforting and yet uncanny, and as they looked on in disbelief they saw her hands begin to glow faintly, to give off a more intensive form of this radiance, hovering over Luigi's body and suffusing it with the energy of her own body. "What the...?" Cathy asked in amazement. "Fascinating," Heather marveled. "Phoebe?" Katie wondered aloud. "It's...it's all right," Phoebe said as a strange kind of peace fell over her, "I can feel it...it's working..." "What is?" Donna asked, no less fascinated than the others. "Um...guys?" Cathy turned her attention to something else that she felt was worth noting. The others forced themselves to look away from Phoebe and the glow of her palms over Luigi's chest to take in the presence of the probe over their heads, the slight hum it gave off filling the air with electrostatic tension. "I think we're in trouble," Katie murmured, wondering if the object would fire on them again or if curiosity would once again get the better of its creators... "What is that female doing?" Jon-Hul asked. "It looks almost like...she's glowing," Has-Tur remarked, "Is this typical for the natives?" "I don't understand these readings at all," Gas-Ton said numbly, "The native's Bioreadings have just tripled in output...and her hands are conducting some manner of life transference energy to the injured human, whose body is responding to the infusion. Cardiovascular and neural damage is...self- repairing? This does not make any sense at all..." "Can all natives do this?" Che-Ne asked. "Perhaps it is a logical adaptation to compensate for their lighter construction," Kas-Par suggested, "Or perhaps this native is herself unusually gifted." "Whatever the case, it makes her all the more valuable to take as a sample," Jon-Hul smiled, "Begin the capture process, and this time use a lower stun setting so that we do not damage this female before we can retrieve her." "As you command, your Eminence," Gas-Ton replied, hastily relaying the new instructions from his own console station... "What do you suppose it wants?" Donna asked. "Dunno and I don't wanna know either," Cathy replied. "Perhaps the ones controlling it are merely curious," Heather suggested. "Maybe," Katie said, "But I wouldn't put any money down on them being friendly...look out!" The women braced themselves as they sensed the tension in the air increasing dramatically, though they could sense this time that the attack, when it came, would be very different from the other previous occasions. However, before the probe could create a wide-area stun beam, something else blurred into the space separating them, and then all at once a figure stood between the probe and its intended targets, raising his hands as the probe unleashed its discharge. "Wha...?" Katie blinked. "Mark?" Heather exclaimed in surprise. "That you, Action Guy?" Cathy blinked. "Please, just Action," Mark replied while maintaining his shields, "So...you're the machine that's causing all these problems, huh? 'Zak, what say we show this thing who the better probe is." **Affirmative,** came a reply that only he could sense. The Rover droid hesitated, confronted by a new anomaly, and as such it did not react in time before the human gestured with his hands and energy flowed down his arms into his hands and out from his finger-tips to form a plasma ball in the air directly before him. In less than an eye-flicker this blast lanced out and took the Rover probe at point-blank range, impacting against its ionic shielding and repelling it backward. "Just wait here, ladies, this will only take a second," Mark said before his form blurred again and he took off into the air, moving with the speed of a guided human-shaped missile. The Rover droid managed to compensate for its sudden change in trajectory, but now it was alert to the potential danger and quickly calculated the possible attack vectors as it veered out of the path of the human, who could not sustain flight for more than a few minutes at best. There was an anomaly to the readings that the Rover-droid was picking up, as though the human attacking it were not the true source of threat that should concern it... "What now?" Jon-Hul asked plaintively. "Another native?" Has-Tur remarked, "And...what is that he is wearing?" "Must be a native costume of some sort," Che-Ne mused, "Primitive yet functional, if rather garishly colored..." "Eminences," Gas-Ton said, "This native is registering a very unusual energy field, and his Bioreadings are strikingly different from that of the females." "Different how?" Kas-Par asked sharply. "We are attempting to isolate the readings now, Commander," the Chief Technician replied, "But there seems to be...another presence on hand...one that is cloaked against detection...as if this man is receiving his power from a source outside himself, yet very close to his position." "Are you saying that these natives are in possession of a technology that would permit them to create a device that artificially enhances the abilities of an agent?" "Yes, that would appear to be correct," Gas-Ton frowned, "But...this makes no sense...nothing else detected so far on this world would suggest such a level of sophistication...in fact, this is...almost an anomaly unto itself..." "Look!" Has-Tur pointed at the holo-projected image, "What is happening this time...?" The Rover-droid was still analyzing and transmitting the data when it perceived another attack by the human, but this time it fired first rather than be on the receiving end of yet another charged blast of repulsion. To its own surprise (and the consternation of the old men watching these transmissions) the blast went wild as the human dodged the plasma burst, but instead of striking the man it hit the bow of the ship and put a hole in the side the size of a large crater. "What the---?" Mark reacted with shock, pausing just long enough to assess the damage before saying, "'Zak!" and with that he forgot about the probe and rushed to the side of the damaged vessel. Heather and the others registered the blast as the deck pitched out from beneath their feet and everyone screamed in momentary panic. Cathy was the first to recover in time to say, "We're hit..." "No shit, Sherlock," Katie groaned as she sheltered Phoebe as best she could, her patient breathing steady and easy when her hand made contact there, though she had no time to wonder what had happened to improve his condition. "How bad is it?" Heather asked, calling out to one of her people. "Bad enough!" someone called out, "We're taking water in the hold, and I don't think the pumps can take it!" "No, wait!" somebody cried, pointing over the starboard side, "It's Action-guy! He's on it!" "Huh?" Katie blinked, "He's what?" "He's...fixing the hole," the crewmate (Fiona, Katie believed her name was), "Doing something anyway...I can't really see what though..." "But...what about the ball?" Cathy asked. "Did somebody drop the ball or...?" Donna looked up and then her tone fell, "Never mind..." The women all collectively followed her glance and saw what she was seeing as the hovering metal ball once more resumed its threatening position above their deck... The probe had been confused by the sudden shift of behavior in the human male, enough so that it did not resume its attack but instead took up a stationary observation as its controllers back on Wolframa continued to observe things from over six hundred light years distance. It could sense the swirl of energy surrounding the human, saw the molecules being manipulated and controlled somehow, but---more importantly---it also detected a discernable outline created by the spray of water that flowed in all directions. From that it did more computational analysis and arrived at a deduction that it filed away for later retrieval. Mark was all too ware of his own vulnerability as he wondered why the ball did not attack him. At the moment he had more immediate things on his mind, concentrating on the task of mentally directing Isaac as they combined their resources to project a curtain of charged ions downward to support them both over the water while they sought to rescue the stricken yacht. To other eyes it might seem as though he were standing over the churning foam of the shifting water, but for Mark it was no more difficult than trying to stay balanced on top of either a ball or a surfboard, for which he gave thanks to an Uncle for letting him spend one summer touring with a traveling circus. The first thing the probe had recommended was to put a halt to the inward flow of water into the vessel, so Mark channeled energies through the gesturing of his hands as they converted the water to steam without increasing the heat vector, expanding the area of the water and thus pushing it out through the hole in the side of the vessel. Next came the more delicate task of repairing the hole itself, but--- fortunately---there were enough particles and atoms left in the evaporating water to harness for the raw materials that would be needed, and with that he melted the damaged plating and caused it to fuse back together, replacing the bits that were lost with new material and causing the molecules to reintegrate into a new and stronger pattern, reinforcing the hull so that the rift would be as though it had never been there in the first place. A single thought smoothed over the surface and replaced the water-proof paint there, and then it was done literally as good as new and Mark could relax a bit, having achieved the near- impossible in the space of less than a minute. Another thought and he rose above the water and drifted back onto the deck of the ship, whereupon he once more took a defensive position, putting himself between the huddled women (and some old guy who was clearly out of it) and the looming menace of the Rover. "Fixed it," Mark announced, "You'll be happy to know that she's water-tight and ship-shape again, Ms. Holberg." "You don't say?" Heather remarked, surprising herself at how calm she seemed during this crisis. "You fix holes and walk on water all the time, huh?" Cathy also sounded oddly calm, though in her case she chalked it up to being so terrified at the unreality of the situation left her no alternative to treating it like a day at the office. "Sorry I got delayed getting here, guys," Mark said flippantly while keeping his attention on the hovering metal ball, "Got stuck in traffic, you know how it is..." "He makes jokes in a crisis?" Cathy said, "He really is like a comic book character!" "At least be grateful he is on our side," Heather noted before adding, "Er...you do know what you are up against, right?" "I think so," Mark replied, "Same technology that created 'Zak, right?" The probe facing him did not respond to that question, but in his mind he could heard the invisible probe at his side respond, **Only in the sense that we come from the same creative works center...we are entirely different models and series. The Type Five Rover Unit you are facing is designed for deep system exploration of hostile gas giants and asteroid clusters, it is designed to withstand entirely different environmental...** "Right," Mark cut his invisible companion off, "Save the explanations for later, 'Zak. Let's just deal with this floating ball-bearing and then you can compare hardware types." The Rover probe had not been entirely idle during the time that all of this had transpired, and it had been busy making an analysis of the confusing and conflicting data that its sensors had been recording the whole while. The human confronting it was structurally different from the other Terrans that it had so far encountered, but there was considerable evidence of electrosurgical modification to the baseline DNA structure. The human was acting like a living conduit receiving, storing and transmitting signals from an outside source, and with its complex menu of definable options it deduced that the most probable source was another probe unit modified to have such a capacity. With that issue decided the Rover probe next analyzed the residual particles indicating the presence of a cloaking field, and from that it next deduced the other probe's probable location. Mark tensed as he could feel the enemy probe preparing to make a move, but he was unprepared when the attack was directed not at himself but off to the side where Isaac was positioned. An electrostatic plasma bolt struck the ionic field surrounding the 1138 probe unit and the two canceled each other out, the resultant backlash causing Mark's companion probe to be repelled and knocked to the deck. "ZAK!" Mark cried out, shocked at the unexpected maneuver. "Oy gavalt!" Katie exclaimed as she saw the sputtering cloaking field go down, exposing the probe to full view as it toppled over onto its side, shooting off sparks in all directions. "Uh oh," Cathy said, "That can't be good..." "You sunuvabitch!" Mark lashed out using his own reserve power, but with the probe no longer able to feed him the energy he needed to sustain his superhuman power the blow was much slower and far less effective than intended. To the others the blast he unleashed was quite substantial, but against the Rover's defensive field it was only a minor inconvenience, easily compensated for as its own ionic shields absorbed the brunt of the human's fury. Mark staggered as he felt his energy levels drop, then stared at the undamaged probe and said, "Oshit..." "Don't look now," Donna said, "But I think we're back in deep trouble..." "Heads up!" Katie cried as she sensed something was about to happen. Everyone tensed in expectation of an attack, but before the probe could build up another charge something slammed into it forcefully, knocking it away as its shields were not calibrated to withstand the force of such an impact. The figure was not content to merely batter the object away but to follow up with a series of blows from her hands that pummeled the object forcefully until its ionic shields started to flare and then buckle... "...She is back?" Jon-Hul exclaimed, stating the obvious as all concerned could plainly see that it was the naked Mar-Sa who was hammering upon the probe with a relentless fury that left it with no further possibility of defense. "She survived?" Has-Tur was no less astonished, "A level six plasma burst?" "She is even more powerful than...we could possibly imagine," Kas-Par murmured in dull amazement, "Kar-Tor's notes never calculated for this..." The picture suddenly flickered as the image grew unsteady, then wavered before vanishing for several seconds, then restoring itself for a few more seconds before vanishing altogether. The Council members waited for the image to be restored, but after several long Mikrevs ticked away, Che-Ne finally said, "Well?" "Your graces, apologies, but...we are having...technical difficulties," Gas-Ton stammered out while frantically working the controls at his station. "Technical difficulties?" Has-Tur asked, "What kind of technical difficulties?" "Only..." the Chief Technician hesitated before finishing his statement, "The signal has gone dead...we have lost contact with the probe... it is...non- functional." "Non-functional?" Kas-Par turned to look fully at the man, "Do you mean to say...that she destroyed it?" "Impossible!" Dar-Kem declared, "It cannot be! It is inconceivable...heresy!" "Oh shut up," Che-Ne snapped, "We are all tired of hearing your rant like that. The evidence is incontestable that Apprentice Technician Mar-Sa not only lives but has prospered on this alien world and is using her advanced knowledge to benefit herself by establishing contacts with the natives." "Like that fellow using the enhancement technology of a shielded probe," Jon-Hul remarked, "Quite obviously he is one of Kar-Tor's agents. The rebel planned further ahead than any of us dared even to imagine." "How extensive does his network reach?" Has-Tur marveled, "You are right about one thing, Dar-Kem, clearly this matter represents the gravest challenge to our authority that has ever been known upon Wolframa, but you were wrong to advise that we use this technology only this one time to retrieve the rebel agent herself. Clearly this matter will require an even more extensive and well- funded operation, one that requires greater research before we take the next step of confronting the rebel on an equal level." "Yes," Che-Ne agreed, "And I believe you already set things in motion in that regard. You were planning to send an agent in place of the probe in case of failure...well, now it seems that the agent will need more intensive training if he is to accomplish his mission." "Yes, clearly anyone who ventures to this strange lush planet will affected in ways very similar to what we have all just witnessed," Jon-Hul turned to Kas-Par and said, "Commander, you must feel greatly honored. It is your son who shall be prepared to become our agent to not only retrieve the rebel but establish contact with whatever governing body this primitive world might have to offer." "My...son," Kas-Par repeated, his expression unreadable though his eyes looked troubled. "Yes, this is definitely looking like a promising new venture," Has-Tur turned to his fellow Councilors and beamed, "Greater than any discovery that we have ever made using probes to survey our solar system...one can only wonder what abundant resources we could discover if we had time to do a thorough scan of the entire planet." "Yes, and if the natives are as primitive and fragile as they appeared, then we would have little to oppose us should we desire to take what we need and leave the explanations for later," Che-Ne's smile was entirely predatory. "Why even contemplate a diplomatic mission?" Jon-Hul mused, "If these natives are both primitive and weak, then we could take them over with very little real effort." "We must form a committee to study this proposal at once," Has-Tur decided, still grinning at the prospects, turning to the Chief Technician and saying, "Study the problem, find out what went wrong, and give us a detailed analysis of everything you recorded. We have to know what the rebel's limits are and how her abilities function so that we can draft up a training program for our agent. This business about using the power of the sun to enhance us...truly fascinating. I can't wait to hear the full and complete explanation." "Yes, and be sure to give us visual data on the rebel," Has-Tur added, "Very inspirational, it should help us to realize what we're up against." "What about the modified human?" Kas-Par asked. "Time enough to trouble ourselves with the trifling details," Jon-Hul said dismissively, "This retrieval mission may have failed but we have achieved great success gathering intelligence about a planetary body that could well become a new Wolframan homeland. There are still some bugs to work out technically, of course, but we should manage to prevail and in good time this could prove to be our salvation. Carry on the good work, Gas-Ton, and you will earn yourself a promotion." "Th-Thank you, Eminences," the Chief Engineer replied, considering a promotion infinitely preferable to the alternatives, which did not simply include a possible demotion. "Come, my colleagues," Jon-Hul said to the others, "We must hold a quorum to decide this matter, and the rest of the Council awaits our report." The Councilors filed out of the room, leaving behind a bewildered Dar-Kem, who kept repeating over and over to himself, "How can this be? It should not be possible...it makes no sense...how can it be...?" "Um...Commander?" Gas-Ton noticed that Kas-Par had not moved from where he had been standing. "You are certain that the probe cannot be recalled?" Kas-Par said with a strangely distracted expression. "No, Commander," Gas-Ton replied, "Without a signal to lock onto we cannot be certain of our coordinates, and so we would be acting blindly..." "I see," Kas-Par replied, "Very well. I await your report as soon as you have it prepared." With that he left the laboratory complex, but a curious chill seemed to exit with him, and without knowing quite why Gas-Ton repressed an inaudible shudder, wondering if the environmental controls were in need of some adjustments... Mar-Sa had deduced that the best way of taking the probe out of commission was to take away its one advantage of maneuverability, and so she had aimed her punches to drive the probe down into the water. Once the Rover-droid had splashed down into the restless surf its ionic field began to fragment, giving Mar-Sa the opening she needed to begin pounding on its hard metallic hide in earnest, hoping to rattle something loose, like a vital connection... For the people still on the yacht the sight of their heroine vanished over the rail was not so much a comforting sight as a moment of tense expectation, and then something startling happened that shook everyone out of their hopeful expectation. "Did I miss anything?" "Luigi?" Heather gasped, nearly jumping out of her well-complexioned skin. "You're alive?" Cathy asked. "Boss?" Donna asked. "Yeah, I'm fine," the old Italian gentleman replied, "Just a bit tired...a bit winded maybe..." "That's saying a lot, all things considered," Katie remarked, turning to look at the one member of their little group who had been unusually silent for the past several minutes. "I did it," Phoebe murmured, staring down at her own hands, which still held a faint warmth that was well above the normal threshold, "I saved him..." "You saved him?" Katie repeated. "Yeah," Phoebe looked up and smiled the most beatific smile at Katie, "Me...who'd ever believe it?" On impulse Katie touched the hands that Phoebe was holding out to her, and the moment they made contact she felt the energy flowing into her, the warmth that traveled up her arms and opened her senses to a new level of awareness that could normally only be achieved through lengthy meditation. For a moment there were no words to share between them, but Katie felt aware and alive like never before, her mind expanding to receive the memories that flowed from Phoebe's mind into her own, making her aware on a strongly empathic level just how involved her roommate had become with the golden hued Mar-Sa. Other images flowed past her consciousness, too fast to assimilate all of it at one sitting, but leaving the strong impression that there was more to digest at her first chance for reflection. And then the moment passed and Phoebe slumped forward into unconsciousness, Katie catching her in time to ease her to the deck. She did a quick check to insure that her blonde girlfriend was all right, then turned and stared at Luigi, her expression unusually thoughtful as though she were thinking some difficult issue over. "Guess that was a little too much for her," Heather said in sympathy. "Yeah...but...how did she do it?" Cathy wondered, "I mean, sure Mar-Sa heals people with her touch, but who knew Phoebe had been taking lessons?" "Hello?" a voice called out, "Everything okay up there?" "Huh?" Donna asked as she tried to help her employer into a sitting position, "What now?" Heather called out to one of her people and said, "Fiona, check it out!" "Right," the manicurist replied as she moved from concealment to glance over the railing, only to look back at Heather with a, "It's that gun-crazy chick and her Latin-looking boyfriend. Do we let them come on board?" "Are they armed?" Heather asked. Fiona called down over the rail, "Leave the guns behind, we're all unarmed here." "Sure, no problem!" a mildly Southern-accented voice called back, "Y'all just stand back now and let Raphe and me come on aboard." A moment later a grappling hood attached itself to the railing, and moments after this both the brown haired girl and her dusky-skinned companion were climbing onto the deck, slipping on board with as much ease as a pair of swimsuited commandos. "Hope y'all don't mind if we drop in on you like this," the bikini-clad beauty smiled charmingly, "But it sounded like you were having some troubles, and since we were in the neighborhood..." "You just thought you'd come on board to see if you could help?" Cathy asked with a mildly suspicious expression. "Your sentiments are welcome, and it was certainly thoughtful for you to fire off that rocket to distract our assailant," Heather said as she eyed the Southern Belle with more than professional interest, "Of course if you had missed even by a fraction..." "Me? Miss?" the other girl snorted, "Yeah, that'll be the day..." "You are speaking to a regular Anne Oakland," the dark haired and bearded man remarked with a gentle smile that belied his distinctly Arabic accent, "The last time she missed something it was probably her period...Oof!" The girl took her elbow out of the washboard-smooth stomach of her companion and said, "Raphe's such a kidder. My handle's Gabrielle, but you can call me Gabby, everyone else does and..." "That voice," Katie looked away from Phoebe and frowned sharply at the woman, "Have we met before?" "Hah---ah?" the Belle gave a sudden start as if she clearly recognized the one asking her that question. "Holy Mecca," Raphael murmured faintly, "Such a small universe..." "I know you," Katie stood up, having assured herself that her roommate was only sleeping it off, "I know both of you. Ali? What are you doing out in these parts?" "Ali?" Cathy blinked. "Interesting," Heather slowly nodded to herself in thought. "And you," Katie turned her glare upon Gabrielle, "You work for Ari, don't you? Yeah, I've seen you sitting shotgun for him once. What's that slimy bastard up to now? Is he having you guys tail me?" "Ah...no, not at all, Catherine," Raphael assured her with a gesture of both hands to signify his peaceful intentions, "We were...not really aware that you were even on board this yacht..." "Ah...what are y'all doin' here, Ms. Cross?" Gabrielle asked with a somewhat sheepish expression, "Ah...if y'all don't mind me asking?" "I think you're the ones who ought to do some explaining here," Katie crossed her arms and glared, "So start talking." "Ah...well..." Raphael started to say when he glanced up and said, "Oh look...she is returning!" Heads swerved in time to see Mar-Sa sailing their way holding up the round metal ball in both of her hands, gliding down to a graceful landing while supporting the heavy thing with great ease above her head. "Ah, Mar-Sa," Heather remarked, "You're back already?" "But...what did you bring that thing along for?" Cathy asked nervously as if expecting the ball to attack them at any moment. "Don't worry," Mar-Sa said as she chose a place to set the probe down where it would not roll across the deck, "It's harmless. I telekinetically separated its power couplings from its central processing unit. It can't move or attack you until I effect repairs on it later." "You want to repair it?" Katie asked with a frown. "It represents the technology of my world," Mar-Sa replied, "Centuries more advanced than your own, and as such it would be a shame to simply let it sink to the bottom of the ocean." "Ah!" a voice called out, "Speaking of probes...can I get a little help here, Marsha?" "Mark?" Mar-Sa turned to see the gaudily garbed young man kneeling over the now- motionless probe, "I'd ask what you were doing here, but I guess that would be a bit self-evident. How is Unit 1138?" "I can't tell," Mark replied, "I'm not a mechanic, but I think he's broken." "I'll check on him in another minutes but..." Mar-Sa looked around and then her voice took on a note of concern, "Phoebe?" "Right here, Marsha," a voice said weakly, drawing her attention to the small blond form laying prostrate upon the deck. "Phoebe?" Mar-Sa wasted no time rushing to kneel at her lover's side, and soon she was cradling her gently in her lap as she was asking, "Are you...?" "I did it, Marsha," Phoebe smiled up at her with an expression of pure joy, "I saved Luigi's life...just like you would..." "You...what?" Mar-Sa asked in confusion. "She healed Luigi," Heather explained, "Her hands started glowing and then she began manifesting the same golden touch you use to help people." "But...what?" Mar-Sa gasped then looked down, "Phoebe?" "Aren't you proud of me, Marsha?" Phoebe sighed, "Now I really am...your...side...kick..." and then she slipped back into a dreamy sleep, clearly exhausted but in most other respects in excellent condition. "Phoebe?" Mar-Sa whispered gently. "She's exhausted herself," Katie explained, "Her nervous system wasn't up to the strain. She's gonna need to sleep it off a bit, and then I'll bet she'll wake up with a mother of a headache." "Ah...'scuse me for asking, and all," Gabrielle said, "But did I just hear that right? She...healed that other guy over yonder?" "Sure did," Cathy replied, "Most amazing thing I ever saw..." "She saved Luigi's life," Donna replied, also cradling her boss in her lap as if expecting her feminine presence to work as good as any tonic, "She's a real hero." "Allah be praised," Raphael murmured faintly. "Huh?" Cathy blinked, "Allah? You mean you're not Mexican?" "Hardly," the other man said, touching his collar and saying, "Cancel that medical emergency, Effendi, the situation appears to be under control here." There was a pause before Gabrielle said, "Confirm that, guys, the worst thing to worry about here appears to be a simple case of exhaustion." "And who's that you've got on the line?" Katie demanded, "Ariel or one of his other friends? You bring the whole party here with you?" "Ariel?" Heather mused, "Raphael and Gabrielle. Tell me, Katie, do you know any friends who don't have an 'el' at the end of their name?" "Sometimes even I wonder," Katie grumbled. "Whoever you are," Mar-Sa looked up, "I want to thank you for helping me. You probably prevented me from drowning." "Ah...well...anytime, y'all," Gabrielle shrugged as she studied the golden woman, "Don't mind me asking, but you plan on staying like that? Not that I'd mind at all, but Raphe here...he's a little shy around women." "With you as an example, is it any wonder?" Raphael asked, making it a point to NOT stare at the naked glory that was Mar-Sa. "Your point is well taken," Mar-Sa said as she stood up with Phoebe resting gently in the cradle of her arms, "Heather...I believe I could borrow a suit from you, preferably in my size?" "Not a problem, Mar-Sa," Heather assured her, "Take Phoebe and set her down in my cabin. I think a bit of rest is what she needs most of all right now." Mark straightened up and said, "You need any help with her, Marsha?" "Thank you, Mark, but I will manage," Mar-Sa replied, allowing one of Heather's people to guide her blow deck while everyone else studied her retreating profile. "There goes one very cute but extremely odd couple," Cathy remarked in an appreciative manner. "I know," Katie murmured in thought, "And that's what has me worried..." (Chapters 12-19) (First Copyrights Only) Created and Written by Jim Robert Bader, all rights reserved, characters and situations are purely fictitious and are not based on persons living or dead (with the sole exception of Katie, whose voluntary contributions are deeply appreciated). Mar-Sa, the Ultra-Girl, is the creation of Jim Robert Bader with ideas and suggestions provided by his friends and collaborators, Katie Norcross (the REAL Kate Cross) and Bill Guiroff, with additional ideas and suggestions provided by Ed Dear III, who took a liking to Mark Daniels. All rights reserved; the characters and situations here are fictitious and are not intended to depict persons living and dead (other than Katie that is). This is a rough draft, subject to future alterations if I should find a publisher friendly enough to sponsor this series. Any resemblance to copyrighted or trademarked ideas belonging to other authors is purely coincidental. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- If you wish to check out my other works, Please check out my Fanfiction webpage at: http://s11.sexshare.com/~jbader/jimbader.html All related chapters of this series can be found there along with my other works.