PRISONERS OF THE DREAM STAR

(Part 1}

Lester LaForge



Night was beginning to cover the small city of Ganas with a black sheet. The streets were wet from the rain that had just fallen, and blocked by the thousands of cars crawling home from another days work. 

Many miles away on the other side of the planet, an alien sat watching the scene on a scanner. He turned and nodded. The control panel was activated. Just before the picture blacked out, the whole town was enveloped in a huge sheet of flame. The controller gave a quick smile of satisfaction to his companion. 

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 

"Hey, come on Stella," Des protested, "this virgin thing may be chic and cool right now back on Earth, but we're a long way from there. Come on, listen to your soul. We could have a weekend of heaven." 

"Give it a rest, Des," Stella responded. "You're a serial womaniser, everyone knows that. All I am to you is a challenge. Once you've got what you want, you'll be on to the next one." 

"Okay, I know I've got a bad reputation, but you're not like the other girls I've known. You're different; special." 

"No doubt the same old line you've used a hundred times before. Or have you got a thing about women in uniforms?" 

"I mean it," Des persisted. "What can I do to prove it?" 

"Go away and let me get on with my job. In case you've forgotten, I hold an important position in National Security and since they blew up Ganas, we're on red alert." 

"There's more to life than your damn job," Des responded angrily. "It's about time you loosened up!" 

"Go and find another of those mindless bimbos who wants to be your plaything," Stella countered wearily. "If you don't stop bothering me, I'll have you arrested as a stalker." She terminated the conversation and strode into the building. 

Des sighed and began to walk back down the pavement. She was right, he was a womaniser, but she really was something special. He wasn't giving up that easily. 

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 

Junez struggled into his clothes, and rubbing his eyes, pondered the ridiculous hour he had to start work. Having dressed he walked over to the window and went through the daily ritual of praying for rain. He knew it didn't work. He had plenty of his own ideas how to make it rain, but they wouldn't let him experiment. He was just there to scrub the floors. One day, he vowed, he'd leave this farm for good, and get a job in the city. However, you couldn't get into the city without a permit, and where could he get one? Bozz had a permit, but then he was a big shot, bigger than he'd ever be. Still, he couldn't take this life much longer though, it was driving him mad. 

He heard Bozz's gruff voice calling him. He washed his daydreams from his mind and resigned himself to the senseless day of toil that lay ahead. On Earth they had robots to do the work he did here, why didn't they have robots on this dump? He knew why, human labour was cheaper than buying an expensive robot. He walked out of his room and down the stairs. Bozz was waiting at the bottom as he always did, a giant of a man, fully seven feet tall and over twenty stone of muscle. No-one crossed him unless they fancied a slow painful death. 

"Come on boy," Bozz snarled. 

"Yes sir," Junez replied meekly. God, how he hated the man, he silently vowed he'd kill him one day. 

"Start scrubbing the floor in here," Bozz ordered. 

"Yes sir," Junez mumbled. He bent down and started cleaning, while Bozz went over to his desk and started cleaning. Junez noticed he'd left his blaster on the other table. If he could work his way over to it, he could get it, kill the big bastard, take his permit, and go into the city, where they would never find him. 

He scrubbed the floor quickly, moving towards the table. Having reached the table leg, he jumped up and picked up the blaster, which he saw was fully charged. He looked round; apart from the two of them, the room was deserted. It was now or never. Bozz looked up to see why Junez had stopped work as the boy took quick aim and pulled the trigger. A blast of energy burst from the gun hitting Bozz full in the chest. He collapsed backwards. Junez dropped the gun and ran over to the lifeless form. He felt in his pockets and found the permit. Then he drew a sharp breath. Where the scarlet stain of blood should have been, there was only a black charred hole. It could only mean one thing, Bozz was an android! 

Junez heard footsteps coming towards the door - it would be the two senior guards reporting to collect the duty rotas. He had to get out fast. He ran towards the outer door having decided to take Bozz's car; they'd never catch him in that. He got outside before the two guards entered the room. There was another guard standing by Bozz's vehicle. 

"What do you want?" the guard barked, seeing him and raising his gun. 

"Bozz has lent me his car," Junez replied casually. 

"Oh yeah," sneered the guard, "of course he has." 

"What's this then?" Junez asked, pulling the permit out of his pocket. 

"Well," the guard said hesitantly, not sure of himself. 

"Do you want me to call Bozz to clarify the position?" Junez asked in a loud voice. 

"No," the guard replied quickly, a frightened look crossing his face. "If you've got the permit, I guess it's okay." 

Junez jumped into the car, which read the permit and activated the powerful engine. He sped towards the exit, the doors swung open. As they began to close behind him, he saw the two guards rush out of the house, looking wildly around. 

"Where's the guy who just came out?" one of them demanded. 

"Just gone off in Bozz's car, running some errand for him," the outdoor guard replied. 

"He must be stopped. He's killed Bozz! He could endanger the whole plan." Get all our men out after him. Kill him on sight." 

"Right," the guard replied, rushing off to raise the alarm. 

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 

The old man cursed out loud, his arms raised to the sky. The engine unit was a complete write off. What a place to be stranded, right in the middle of a desert. The only sign of civilisation was one long, straight road that stretched from horizon to horizon and that was completely deserted. With a complete power failure in his ship, he couldn't even summon help. His portable viewer wasn't working either, the network on this planet must be incompatible. He had no choice but to start walking in the hopes he could stop a car and hitch a lift, or alternatively die when his water ran out. 

He went back to the ship and gathered together all the rations he had, which didn't amount to much. Things looked pretty grim. He made the provisions up into a bundle and swung them across his back. He was getting too old for things like this, but it seemed just when he was about to make a big breakthrough in his quest, he was to be thwarted. 

He walked over to the road and wondered which way to go? Both ways looked the same - deserted. He began to walk the way he was facing. About an hour later, a car came up behind him and screeched to a halt, a few yards up the road. A rather tall, well built man leaned his head out of the window. 

"Want a lift to town?" he enquired. 

"Sure do," the old man replied, thankfully getting in. 

"I guess that was your spaceship back a bit," the driver enquired. "No-one walks out here for the scenery. I stopped to make sure there was no-one inside the craft hurt or anything, and you don't look like one of the rebels." 

"Rebels?" the old man asked. 

"Oh, it's an internal problem, nothing important on a Galactic scale." The driver responded. "Jon Rex, by the way." 

"Den Hural," the old man replied. "I was on my way to Ferew 6 with a cargo out from Hypere Star 2," he lied. "I had a spot of trouble." 

"As soon as we get to town, I'd get a salvage crew out there before the rebels steal anything," Rex suggested. 

"Who are these rebels?" Hural asked. 

"Well," Rex answered, "to tell the truth, we don't know, but they have their base out here in the desert somewhere. So far they've been content to keep things down to minor raids and acts of sabotage, but we think that something really big is on the way." 

"Something like what happened to Ganas?" Hural asked. 

"We sure hope not, but Ganas was too close to our city for comfort." 

"Yeah," the old man agreed. "That's why I asked. Don't want to turn up somewhere that's about to be nuked." He paused for a moment. "I hope you don't mind me asking this," he said, "but from the way you speak, you seem very interested in these rebels." 

"Yeah," Rex replied, "it's my job. I work on The World Safety Committee." 

The old man hit his thigh with his hand. "Oh of course," he exclaimed. "I thought the face was familiar. You're THE Jon Rex, aren't you." 

"Yes," Rex confirmed, "but I didn't know I was that famous." 

"Well everyone knows you in this sector, sir," the old man replied. 

"Well thanks," Rex said, looking slightly embarrassed. 

"Is that the town up ahead?" the old man asked. 

"Yeah," Rex confirmed, "at 500 m.p.h., on a straight road, it's much quicker than walking." He slowed down as the car approached the city limit gates. Rex lowered the window of his car and flashed his permit. The guard recognised him and waved him on, not bothering to question the old man. 

The huge gates of the city hissed open as Rex's car purred through. Once inside the car maintained its low speed. "I'll drop you off at the salvage office," he said. 

"Thanks," the old man replied. "I'm obliged. I'll try and repay the debt someday.'' 

The car turned off the main motorway and drove into the spaceport area. It came to a halt outside the salvage depot. 

The old man stepped out of the car. "Once again thanks very much," he said. 

"That's alright," Rex said, "anytime, spacer. So long." 

"So long," the old man replied, as the door of the car closed and headed back towards the motorway. Hural turned and entered the office. 

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 

"Have you been waiting out here all this time?" Stella demanded, as she saw Jon lounging about nearby. 

"Sure have," he replied, smiling sheepishly. "I told you, I'm obsessed with you. You still just as fabulous in casual clothes." 

"Look, little boy," Stella cursed. "I'm on important business, and I don't want you tagging along on my tails like a lost sheepdog. Go away now, or I will have you arrested." 

He shrugged, but noting the hard tone in her voice, conceded; for the moment at least. "Okay, okay. I'm gone!" He began to walk in the opposite direction. 

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 

Junez gave the car full acceleration as he saw the exit gates open behind him. He only had a small lead, but Bozz's car should be able to keep ahead of anything else on the farm. He stole a quick glance at the speedometer. It read 650; that wasn't fast enough, the guards could do 750. 

He realised that the gap between them was narrowing, and sweat began to trickle down his face. He had to tell someone in the city that Bozz was an android. He didn't know why, but something told him that it was of vital importance. 

He hit overdrive and the gap began to widen. He'd often heard Bozz boast to his underlings how dangerous it was for anyone but him to drive in overdrive for more than a few seconds because the car was too powerful and was liable to go out of control. 

The road ahead stretched like a ruled line to the horizon - at least there were no corners to slow him down. The gap between the two cars was getting wider each second - could he make it? The city was still a long way off. 

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 

Hural walked into the salvage office and the man behind the desk got out of his chair and came over to the counter. 

"Yes sir?" he enquired. "Can I help you?" 

"I sure hope so," the old man replied. "It's my spaceship, I had to bring it down in the desert near the city. Major system and engine failure." 

"I see," the man pondered, "that would call for our heavy lifting gear." He consulted his screen. "It's free for use at the moment. It will be a costly operation of course." He paused looking slightly embarrassed. "You can cover the cost?" he asked. 

"My backers can," the old man lied. He pulled out his fake credentials. 

"Yes," the man muttered, studying them, "I know the firm, we've dealt with them before. I'll just get a preliminary agreement drawn up for you to sign. With a bit of luck we should be able to start recovery this afternoon." 

"That's great," Hural replied. "When will the document be ready?" 

"About an hour," the man said. "You can wait if you like, or take a walk around. I've got all the necessary information on your credentials here to complete the agreement." 

"Good," the old man decided. "I'll go and book into a hotel." Hural stepped out of the office and into the street. He paused on the sidewalk for a moment, looking for a hotel. Seeing one a few blocks away, he started walking towards it. 

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 

Stella stepped forward as Rex's car pulled up. "Right on time," she announced, getting into the car. "Head for Zone 6. What was the journey like from the outpost?" 

"Quiet," Rex confirmed, "though I did pick up an old spacer whose ship had come down in the desert." 

"Was he alright?" she asked. 

"Yes, well, he looked alright. The ship was a bit knocked about though, because I stopped to have a look at it, in case there was anyone left inside it. I dropped him by the Salvage Office." 

Stella looked at Rex suspiciously as his hand brushed her knee as he changed gear. 

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 

Hural authorised the salvage agreement and passed the documents back to the clerk. 

"Do you want to go along with the crew, Mr. Hural?" the man enquired. 

"Yeah," the old man replied, "might as well. There's not much else doing around here. Not that they could miss it, it's almost on the road Just a little way outside the town." 

"Good," the clerk decided. "If you follow me, you can meet the man in charge." 

Hural was led into the garage where he could see the heavy duty lifting lorries warming up, the noise of their engines echoing in the confined space. 

The clerk introduced Hural to the engineer in charge, Fed Jenkins, a tall, thin, sallow faced man in his early forties, whose face appeared to be completely devoid of any expression. 

Hural climbed aboard the leading lorry as it began to slowly pull out of the garage. He noticed he was alone with Jenkins in the cab. "Been on this job long?" he asked. 

"Just about ever since I was a little kid. I ain't much good at nothing else, and I love the work, so..." 

"I know what you mean," Hural replied, "I've been in space ever since I was a kid, never known anything else. My father was a spaceman as well. We used to live right by the spaceport, and so doing anything different never crossed my mind." 

"Your first crash?" Jenkins asked, as the heavy lorry crawled out onto the main road. 

"Yep," the old man replied. "Had to happen sooner or later, the old girl's had the life thrashed out of her over the years." 

As the convoy approached the gates, they hissed open and the guard waved them out. 

"Don't you need a pass to get out?" Hural. "The man I came in with had to show his." 

"No," Jenkins laughed. "They're kind of choosy who they let in, but don't care who goes out." 

"Why is there any need for passes anyway?" the old man asked. 

"Danged if I know," Jenkins confessed. "Ten years ago, you could come and go as you like. Progress I suppose," he added wryly. 

When they were out on the open road, the lorries began to pick up speed. 

"These dang things are so slow," Jenkins cursed. "You take forever to get anywhere." 

The lorries trundled along for some time until the old man pointed ahead. "You can see it now, just away from the road." 

"Yeah," Jenkins drawled. "Shouldn't be too hard." 

"Someone's in a hurry," Hural said, pointing to a cloud of dust hurtling up the road. The convoy of lorries pulled over to the side as the car hurtled nearer. A little way behind it, there appeared to be another vehicle; they seemed to be having a race. 

"Dang fools out of control," Jenkins murmured as the car hurtled towards them, swinging all across the road. "He must be doing 800. Treat this damn thing as a racetrack. This is the most dangerous place on this planet if you ask me." 

"He's going to hit us," the old man gasped as the car brushed them and somersaulted over and exploded. The driver was thrown out in mid air. The pursuing car had slowed down considerably and was now some way behind. The lorries reversed to where the body lay. Hural jumped down from the cab and ran over to the man who was bleeding badly, though still just alive. 

"That was a dang fool thing to do, son," he said. 

"I was escaping," Junez gasped. "Killed Bozz - android." He went limp. The old man shook his head sadly as Jenkins and the rest of the salvage crew ran over. 

"Dead?" one of the men asked. 

"Yeah, he is now" the old man replied. 

"Did he say anything?" a voice enquired. An occupant of the following car. 

"No," Hural lied. "Not a word." 

"We'll take him back and see he gets a proper burial," the other man said. "Sorry about any inconvenience." 

"That's okay," drawled Jenkins, "didn't even dent the front bumper." 

Hural followed Jenkins back to the lorry. "Are there many accidents like that?" he asked, as they climbed back into the cab. "Everyone seems very matter of fact about it." 

"Yeah," Jenkins replied, "they're getting killed out here all the time. They go too fast." He started up the engine again and pulled back into the road. They continued their journey to the wrecked spaceship in silence, the old man's brow furrowed. 

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 

Des pulled his car to the side of the kerb. He considered Rex to be a serious rival and was so jealous when he saw Stella getting into Rex's car, that he followed them. They had parked here downtown and gone into a shabby apartment. He could just guess what they were up to now. God, what a hypocrite that girl was, playing all cool and virginal with him, while all the time Rex, who was old enough to be her father, was having her! 

Jealousy got the better of him and he got out of the car and began to prowl around the outside of the building, the higher floor windows were boarded up, so it was likely their seedy lovenest was here on the ground floor. He could see some movement through a grimy window and crept forward. The ill fitting frame offered little soundproofing. He strained to hear what they were saying. It sounded like Stella was speaking. 

"Bozz is dead," she asked incredulously. "But how could anyone kill him? How did it happen? Who did it?" 

"Some fool kid," another man, not Rex, replied. "But he was killed in a crash with a lorry while trying to escape." 

"Did he find out Bozz was an android?" she asked. 

"Yeah," the man replied, "he shot him right where his guts should have been. The kid died with the secret though." 

"Good," Stella decided. "But it was bad news about Bozz being killed. Lagruna will not be pleased. I'm expecting a visit from him soon." 

"You gonna take control now, Stella?" the man asked. 

"Yeah, guess I'll have to. Go and get the rest of the leaders." 

Des beat a hasty retreat towards his car, feeling somewhat embarrassed. It sounded like she was there on some sort of business to do with her job; though what was all the talk about androids? They were banned on this planet. He was about to get in the car, when he felt a blaster pressed into his back. 

"Hold it there, son," a gruff voice cursed. "I think you've heard a bit too much for your own good." Two men grabbed Des and bundled him into the building. 

"What the hell-" Stella cursed. 

"Caught him snooping outside," the man stated. "He must have heard." 

"What's going on, Stella?" Des cursed. 

"You stupid fool," Stella cursed. "You've just signed your death warrant!" One of the men primed his blaster. "Not here, moron. Bring him with us to the rendezvous. Get his car, we'll stage a car crash, the desert road is notorious." 

Anything else Des was going to ask was silenced as the butt of a blaster hammered against the back of his neck. 

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 

The convoy of lorries reached the wrecked spaceship, and the old man watched for a while as Jenkins and his crew began to assemble the salvage equipment. Then he saw the car that had been chasing the crashed car earlier zoom past in the direction it had come from. 

The old man walked over to Jenkins. "I suddenly remembered something that I forgot to do back in town," he said. "You haven't got some other means of transport that would get me back to town quickly have you?" 

"Yeah," Jenkins drawled. "I've got a couple of small fast cars in the back of the last lorry. You can borrow one of those if you like." 

"Thanks," Hural replied. "I'll be back later," he promised. 

As he pulled out onto the road, he pondered the situation. Who was Bozz? Was he an android? Who were these men who had chased that young boy who'd been travelling so fast he'd crashed and killed himself? He'd always been strong on playing hunches and for reasons he couldn't even begin to understand himself, felt this was all linked in to the reason he'd come to this planet in the first place. He pressed his foot down on the accelerator and soon found he was soon approaching the city gates. He mentally thanked Jenkins for his foresight as he saw a pass clipped to the dashboard. He entered the city without query. 

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 

"Do you know where I can find Bozz?" Hural asked in the tenth bar. This time he did not receive an indifferent shrug of the shoulders. "Why do you want to know?" the barman enquired after a lengthy pause. 

"I'm an old business friend," he replied. "I thought I'd look him up and maybe put some work his way." 

"You're too late, mister" the barman answered. "Newsvid said that he's been killed by some mad kid." 

"Here in town?" the old man asked. 

"Farm out in the desert," the barman replied. "Third turning on the left outside the city on the main road. But I guess they'll bring the body into town for cremation." 

"Thanks," Hural replied. He finished off his drink and walked back out to his car. 

He started the car up. He'd go out to the farm to pay his respects to the rest of the family and would perhaps be able to get a better insight into what was happening. He drove out of the city as it was beginning to get dark. He'd have to keep his speed down, or he'd miss the turning; although he could use the wreck of his ship as a landmark. 

He saw his stricken craft and slowed down to tell Jenkins that he'd need to borrow the car for a little longer. He pulled up near the wreck, but the salvage crew appeared to have called it a day and gone back to the city. 

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 

Stella pointed at the map. "Lagruna is arriving tonight in the desert; just about here-" she pointed. "We'll deal with our hostage while we're waiting for him." 

"Everything's ready," the man stated. Stella nodded and the party proceeded downstairs and out into the street. Des was beginning to recover from the blow he'd received. As he was bundled into the first of the three cars, with Stella and Rex, he gasped in horror. The occupants of the other two cars were aliens! 

"What are they?" Des groaned at Stella. "What game are you up to?" 

"Shut it kid," Rex cursed. "Why worry, you'll be dead soon and all your worries will be gone!" 

The other man in the car raised his hands to his face and fiddled about at the back off his head for a few seconds and then gave a sharp jerk. He pulled off a plasma face mask; underneath was the head of a purple alien. It made strange gurgling sounds at Stella. He adjusted it slightly and put it back on. 

"The others were in the process of adjusting their disguises when we came out," Stella explained, ignoring Rex's comments about not telling him anything. 

"Are you an alien?" Des gasped. 

"No," Stella replied coldly. I'm one hundred per cent human, unfortunately." 

"But what is this?" Des asked. "What evil plot is this?" 

"As I said before," Rex interrupted, "it's not worth you worrying about it, bearing in mind your life expectancy." 

The convoy of cars pulled off, and got past the city guards without the alarm being raised. As they sped into the desert, Stella smiled at Des. "Wise of you not to raise the alarm," she said, "saved a lot of slaughter." 

"I didn't have much choice," he replied bitterly, "with a gun stuck in my side." 

A silence fell in the car which was not broken until the convoy pulled up near the wreck of Hural's spaceship. 

"Is this Lagruna's ship?" the alien asked. 

"I'm not sure," Stella replied. "I hope not." She leaned forward, turning the headlights of the car onto the wreck. "No, it's a Terran design," she stated. 

"So Lagruna is also an alien is he?" Des commented. 

"A little knowledge is dangerous," Rex stated. "You could get hurt knowing things like that," he added sarcastically. 

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 

Hural pulled his car up angrily. He was sure he'd just missed the turning in the darkness. He began to turn it round when he saw a trio of cars approaching at high speed. In an effort to hurry, he stalled the engine. He tried to restart it, but it wouldn't fire. He broke out into a sweat. This vehicle was a serious danger to the oncoming traffic. He leapt out and rolled over and over trying to clear the scene of an almost certain collision. 

There was a screeching of brakes as the leading car saw the obstacles in the road, and swerved to the side. It went up onto its rear wheels like a crazed horse and turned over, skidding along the road in a shower of sparks. The second car was too late and smashed into the abandoned vehicle and blew up. The third car piled into the wreckage and somersaulted over the top, also exploding as it hit the ground. The first car finally came to a stop, further down the road. 

Hural staggered to his feet and stumbled forward to check the lead car. Miraculously, there seemed to be survivors, who were dragging themselves out through the shattered windows. He assisted with the rescue, shocked to identify the final occupant, who was clearly dead. "Hey," he exclaimed, "this is the guy who gave me a lift into town. Rex, er-" 

"Jon Rex," the younger man of the group breathed. He turned to Stella who was sitting on the road, holding her head. "What's going on?" he demanded, "just tell me that!" She sat there dazed. Des turned back to Hural. "Have you got a gun, mister?" he demanded urgently. "There's some sort of treason afoot here!" 

Suddenly there was a huge roar from the sky, and a mighty spaceship began to descend. The flames from its rockets hurt their eyes to look at. 

"Being an old spaceman myself," Hural observed, "I have a feeling that it's going to land so close to us, that the little creatures of this desert will be having fried breakfast tomorrow." 

One of the aliens, on hearing the old man's words, jumped up from where he lay on the ground and pulled a flare gun out of his belt. He pointed it in the air, and activated it. A multi-coloured flare lit the sky for miles around. 

"Get down," he screamed. 

Everyone who was standing, dived to the ground. The spaceship that was slowly descending, switched on its main motor. The heat seared across the people on the ground, but the ship began to slowly climb back into the sky. When the old man cautiously looked up, the ship was now only a bright speck. 

Stella looked up. "What happened?" she asked. 

"It's alright, Stella," the alien explained, "It's gone back into orbit." 

"Good," she replied, recovering her composure and getting back to her feet. 

"We'll have to kill this other one now as well," the alien decided. "They both know far too much to live. Looks like we've got the crash already to use as a suitable cover." 

"No," Stella shouted. "I've changed my mind. We'll wait for Lagruna. Hostages may be useful if we're discovered before he lands." The alien looked at her sullenly. "Don't forget whose in charge," she added angrily. 

The alien now fired a green flare into the sky. The ship had obviously matched the planet's speed of rotation, as it still hung overhead. Once more it began to descend, this time at a safer distance, to their right. 

The spaceship was landing, it's jets blasting into the dry acrid desert. The alien now fired a yellow flare into the sky. 

"There will be a car sent to collect us," Stella announced. 

"We kill them now," the alien insisted. '"While they are alive, they present a constant danger." 

"No" Stella insisted, "and that is final." 

The vehicle sped towards them, and as it skidded to a halt, ten figures poured out. They ran over to Stella and saluted her. The commander of the unit pointed at the two men.. "Terran prisoners?" he enquired. 

"Yes," Stella confirmed. 

"Very well," the commander replied. He ordered the prisoners to move to the new vehicle. 

"Hey," Des exclaimed, as they got near it, "this is an ambulance of the World Safety Committee!" 

"Don't ask questions," Stella ordered. 

They crowded into the vehicle and once inside, Des could see that it was indeed not an ambulance, but a troop carrier. He looked at the old man who shrugged his shoulders. The car revved up its engine and with a jerk shot off towards the space-ship. 

"Is it true what we have heard about Bozz?" the commander asked Stella. 

"Yes," she confirmed. "It was just one of those unfortunate things, it had nothing to do with the plan." 

"Good," the commander replied, smiling. 

"Have the final arrangements been made?" Stella asked. 

"Almost," the commander replied. "We shall soon be ready." 

"Death to all Terrans," Stella shouted. 

"Death to all Terrans'" the troops echoed. 

Des looked at Hural, whose face had turned deathly white. The vehicle began to slow down as it approached the ship, and they were jerked backwards, as the car shot up the ramp into the hull of the ship where it came to an abrupt halt. 

The door opened and the troops filed out. Stella picked up a mask from the seat next to her as choking fumes seeped into the vehicle. "Put these on," she ordered the others, throwing them masks. "Unless, of course, you want to die now," she added. 

Outside, the troops pulled off their own masks, revealing their alien faces. 

"All aliens," Hural exclaimed, as he looked out of the ambulance. 

"Indeed," Stella replied, "you are looking at the future rulers of your human empire." 

"Rubbish," Hural replied, but the look in Stella's eyes made his voice sound uncertain. 

"Move," Stella ordered. She adjusted a control on her mask and spoke in a strange garble to the commander of the aliens. He replied in the same gurgling tone. 

She turned the control back and spoke once more to Des. "You are being taken to a Terran type room which was prepared for me. There you will be able to breathe without those masks." 

They were marched off while Stella followed the commander to Lagruna. She walked down several corridors until she reached a heavily guarded room. It opened as she approached and the commander turned round and walked off. Stella entered, her heart beating fast. She had never seen their leader before, although she had communicated verbally. 

Stella looked cautiously around Lagruna's cabin as she heard the ship's engines roaring back into life. "Behind you, my dear," a thin voice stated. 

She turned slowly, unsure as to what she was going to see. A small, thin man sat on a bunk, looking at her. She had been prepared for most things, but she had to gasp with surprise; he was as human as she was. "You look surprised?" he stated. "You expected an alien?" 

"Who else could control a whole alien empire but an alien?" Stella enquired. "Who else would plan the destruction of the Terran race." 

"Me," the man replied cooly, a faint smile touching his lips. "But then you also wish to destroy Earth's inhabitants and descendants." 

"Are you now ready to give me the details?" Stella asked. 

"The Raccs have always wanted to eliminate Earth's power, But due to the fact that they have alien minds, they were unable to devise a plan sufficiently foolproof to succeed. They needed the knowledge of how the Terrans think and that was where I came in. The whole plan is mine; they are just the tools I'm employing. When I first took my idea to them they did not believe me, but they have machines that can read into the deepest part of the brain and they saw my longing for a whole area of space where the planets were devoid of life. It suited their ideals, for they do not want Earth's empire, just the removal of the threat of Earth's power." 

"Ever since I left that polluted, overcrowded planet Earth, I wanted to be alone. I finally found a virgin planet, completely barren, but my paradise did not last long. Terran civilisation came and built and excavated, until it was just another carbon copy of Earth. I vowed that for destroying my sanctuary, I would not rest until all the Terran Empire was devoid life. Now my chance has come!" He raised his hands in exultation. "And now for you, young lady, Miss Stella Dessas, the non double agent of the Terran Intelligence Service. You didn't really think we didn't know about you, do you? But tell me how did you first find out about my plan, I considered it foolproof." 

Stella gazed at the man for a moment, unable to speak. Finally she found the words. "Very well," she said, "I will explain, as you seem to want to play the game of revealing the background to your own plan to me. I was sent to this planet to investigate a minor act of sabotage. We had reason to believe that a group of renegades were planning a local war by blowing up a large city - the city of Ganas. A deranged android, known as Bozz, was behind the whole thing. I managed to infiltrate his organisation, posing as a double agent with a hatred of my fellow humans and by accident came to learn the skeleton of your plan." 

"I knew I should never have trusted an android," Lagruna cursed, "and he was engaged on the most vital piece of work of the whole project." He got off the couch and began to walk slowly towards the girl. "I thank you for your honesty, my dear," he added. "I am glad I did not have you killed earlier. It has amused me to think that you know about my plan, but can do nothing to stop it. But, what are we going to do with you, my little traitor?" 

"You could kill me now," she replied cooly. 

"Do you expect any other fate?" the man asked. 

"Not ultimately," the girl replied, "but I feel that the rest of the information I have should be worth my life; for a while at least." 

Lagruna pondered this statement for a moment, and then he smiled. "As I told you earlier, my dear, my friends the Raccs have a device to read minds. I think yours would reveal a few interesting points about the Terran security organisation that I have overlooked." He pulled out a microphone with a special translating attachment and barked orders into it. A few seconds later two aliens entered and grabbed Stella and took her to where the other prisoners were being kept. 

She was thrown into the room, where she gave a hurried explanation as to what was going on. 

"How can we believe you?" Hural asked. 

"Whether you do or not is largely academic now," Stella replied. "It is unlikely that anything can now stop their plan being carried out." 

"What is this plan?" Hural asked. 

"The ultimate result is the complete and utter destruction of all Terran type life. The Raccs have developed a new strain of bacteria that Earth scientists will be unable to destroy. It has two main properties, once released from its specially cooled containers it breeds at an incredibly fast rate, but due to the fact that at its creation it remains latent for a six month period, it is undetectable as anything but a harmless virus. As you know from Earth, you can reach any planet habitable and colonised by either passenger ships or robot freighters. You will find by studying trade routes and timetables of journeys, that every port is visited by a ship from either Earth in a six month period. After vast research by Lagruna into the ships used, relief carriers and personnel involved, he computed the minimum number of places he would need to plant the virus aboard ships so that by the time the six month hibernation period was over, every planet in the Terran Empire would be infected. It is well within the scope of the amount of virus he owns. I and the android known as the Bozz were the two chosen to 'salt' the necessary spaceships. This planet, having a large spaceport, had numerous ships that had to be infected. There are sufficient agents on other planets, people who have a grudge against the human race; warped, mentally diseased people, who do not realise that they will also perish. Lagruna is the only human being who has been given the antidote. The plan may sound ridiculous, but it is far from that. It is probably the most serious threat the human race has ever had to face." 

"Where do the troop carriers disguised as ambulances come into it?" Des enquired. 

"If an epidemic hits a planet, it'll welcome aid with open arms," Stella explained, "but there will be no medical supplies. The ships will be full of alien troops ready to mop up any resistance." 

They stood silent and white faced, visibly shaken by the plot they had just heard. The silence was shattered when the ship, that was circling the planet, broke its orbit and began to descend back towards the surface. A gentle bump that followed a minute later, confirmed that they had landed. "I wonder why we have returned?" Des enquired. 

"I think I know," Stella replied, "and I wouldn't be surprised if we haven't landed in the middle of Bozz's farm." 

"Why?" Des enquired, but he did not receive an answer to his question. Four aliens entered the cell and began to usher the party out of the room. They were led along a series of corridors and finally out of the air-lock. They saw that Stella had been correct in her assumption, and the ship had come to rest near to the main complex that included the android's house. They were herded into a room where Lagruna sat next to a large machine. Stella was separated from the others and led before him. 

He smiled at her. "Now then, my dear little Terran spy," he sneered, "let's see what is hidden in your mind." 

The aliens grabbed her and forced her into a seat. The machine was suspended above her head and various electrodes were connected to her head. Lagruna fiddled with several controls and then cursed out loud. 

He spoke to one of the aliens who was wearing a Terran mask. "There is no power in the machine," he cursed. "The Suil Filter has burnt out. Do we have a replacement?" The alien shook his head. "Is the matter transmitter workable yet?" he demanded. "It is of vital importance that this machine is operational. The secrets of this girl's mind must be revealed before my plan is put into operation. Also we cannot dispose of those other scum until I am sure they are in no way connected with her. Request a Suil Filter from the home planet as soon as possible." 

"I will make enquiries,'' the alien replied, "but the last test still showed dangerous interference from Tyress. We feel however that it may be possible to recommence transmission on a restricted wavelength, and as the filter is so small, it should be possible." 

"Then bring the transmitter in," Lagruna ordered. He turned back to the girl. "Set her free for a few minutes," he commanded. 

The transmitter was wheeled into the room, and connected to a power generator point that led to the mighty atomic reactor situated behind the house. The aliens helped Lagruna adjust several controls and after extensive tests, an alien recorded a message requesting the spare part and fed it into the machine. 

At this point, taking everyone by surprise, Hural lunged forward knocking the transmitter sideways. 

For a second everything seemed to freeze, then Lagruna's face turned white. "Imbecile," he breathed, "don't you realise how delicate the controls are. You've expanded the field of effect!" 

The alien wearing the Terran mask began to chant like a frenzied dervish. "The whole waveband is open.....dangerously wide....Tyress's influence is strong on the outer bands....too strong to resist." 

At this point there was a blaze of blinding light, followed a mighty gale which lifted everyone off their feet and swept them forward in the darkness. It was hard to tell how long this state lasted, but when their eyesight returned to normal, they found themselves laying in a disordered pile in a strange land. The humans began to disengage themselves from each other and stood up, but the aliens remained motionless on the ground. 

"What's happened?" Des asked in a daze. 

Lagruna looked at Hural and spoke angrily. "You fool," he shouted, "do you realise just exactly what you have done?" 

Hural didn't reply, but there was a strange exultation in his eyes. 

"Whatever has happened," Stella commented, "it seems to have put your plans up the creek for a while." 

"I shall explain the exact situation," Lagruna replied acidly. "The matter transmitter, instead of transferring just the message to the alien's home planet along the small 'safe' beam that was set on the machine, had its delicate mechanism altered so that the beam of attraction was spread across the whole room, transmitting all of us, and," he pointed at pieces of jagged plastic and wood, "parts of the room as well." He paused. "In normal circumstances we would have been cast at random, probably into space, where we would have all died a quick and sudden death by decompression. However, things aren't normal. If you were listening earlier you probably heard 'Tyress' mentioned. Well, there it is, up above you!" 

They all looked up. In the sky hung a huge thing that looked like an overbloated grey balloon, pulsating like a heart. 

"Yes," Lagruna continued, "that is Tyress; it is a creature of prey. It hunts in the matter lanes - on the longer wavelengths, which thanks to our friend, we ended up travelling on. As I said, normally we would have been cast into space where we would have died a quick death, but Tyress was in an active period, and it snatched us out of the matter transmission path and deposited us on its satellite. For some strange reason it doesn't seem to have any immediate effect on human beings, but as you can see it has had an immediate effect on the Raccs. The waves from Tyress renders them unconscious and while they are in that state, it seeps their inner mind out of them, and from that moment on, their lives may be considered to have ended. We have a slight advantage over them, for we humans do not possess matter transmission of this conception, and therefore we are strange to it. But that is unlikely to do us any good, for there is no way to get away from this strange place that I know of, and that thing you see up in the sky, has another name - The Dream Star, and believe me, its size is similar to that of a small star." 

"If only a tiny fraction of it is intelligent, it outweighs our combined IQ's a thousand times. We must accept the fact that we are its prisoners, prisoners of The Dream Star." 


^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^


PRISONERS OF THE DREAM STAR 

{Part 2}

Lester LaForge



"You have overlooked one thing," Stella interrupted, "you are alone now. As you've just confessed, all the aliens carried here with you are dead. There are three of us, we numerically have the upper hand.. If nothing else, it's all over for you now." 

Lagruna smiled. "No," he corrected. "You are wrong there. I think you will find that you need me, and I am now on your side. You see I am the only one who knows anything about Tyress. You all know absolutely nothing about it. I may not be a Terran lover, but even if I was an alien like them, which I do consider myself to be, I would join forces with you against that thing." He pointed at Tyress. "I doubt if I could fight it by myself, and you could do absolutely nothing. I suggest that for the duration of our stay on this planet, we forget our differences and join together to fight the common enemy. It is the only way we stand even the slightest chance." 

"That's all very well," Des said, "but what happens if we do escape? You have dedicated yourself to wiping out all human beings other than yourself. We might as well stay here and die. At least we'll die with the satisfaction of knowing that we have destroyed you and your evil plan." 

Lagruna smiled. "Very brave words," he replied, "but I do not think you really mean that. All Terrans are the same; they will fight on even after all hope is gone, hoping for a miracle. Look," he continued, "I won't say that if we get out of here, all will be forgiven and I'll vanish and leave you alone and everyone will live happily ever after, but I will say this, I'll give you a chance to escape. If you wish, escape to fight me, for I know it will do you no good; my plan will succeed. But by giving you a chance, I will let you escape far outside the Terran Empire to another Galaxy. If you go that distance, I will no longer wish to harm you." 

"We will have to discuss this," Stella replied. The three walked out of hearing range of Lagruna. "He's right," Stella said bitterly. "He knows that we will agree with him in the hope that if we do escape we can then foil him, though we all know he'd probably kill us at the earliest opportunity. I don't fancy dying yet, I've got a job to do, a mission to follow, even if its only for a few hours or days." 

"I don't want to die yet, either" Des stated, looking at Stella. "I still intend to win the heart of the most beautiful girl I've ever met." 

Stella gave a slight grimace and turned to the old man. "What about you?" she asked, looking slightly suspicious. "It was your action that got us here and you haven't had much to say on the subject." 

There was a somewhat distant look in Hural's eyes as he responded. "For as long as I can remember, I've been scouring space, looking for a Racc transmission point that was affected by Tyress. That's what brought me to your planet. I'd heard there was such a point there." His voice became more animated as he cast his eyes upwards. "At last, I have found my goal. I have found Tyress." He looked back at Des and Stella, shaking his head slightly. "Do what you wish, my friends, but there is no escape, eventually you will understand why." 

Stella looked somewhat taken aback by the old man's statement, not sure if he was mentally sound. She went back over to Lagruna. "We will join you," she announced. She didn't mention Hural's 'confession'. "Now you must tell us what you know about this thing up in the sky, Lagruna." 

"Very well," he agreed. "The thing appeared many years ago near Racc. They do not know where it came from or what it is, but then it was much smaller, but just as deadly. It went into orbit around their planet, and plundered any spaceship that came anywhere near it, robbing the crews of their minds until they were no more than vegetables. The more ships it plundered, the bigger it grew. Their weapons, not unlike Terran counterparts had no effect on it, and if anything it seemed to thrive on nuclear explosions and radioactive fallout. The Raccs, afraid that the creature would swoop down on the surface of the planet, built a mighty matter transmitter and ferried it up into orbit around Tyress. For some reason their alien minds did not understand remote control as such, and therefore, the brave men aboard all perished; but not before they had activated the control that sent the alien creature along the matter lane for a fraction of a second, stranding it in the middle of nowhere. However, they had overlooked one main point. The thing survived the 'jerk' into the matter lane, and now preys on any creature that happens to be travelling on the wrong frequency." 

"Did any of the Raccs ever manage to communicate with this thing?" Hural asked. 

Lagruna shook his head. "Not to my knowledge," he replied, "anyone who chanced to go near it was immediately killed." 

"Where did this satellite we are on, come from?" Hural enquired. 

"There is no mention of it when Tyress was in normal space," Lagruna replied, "and I suspect that it is an offshoot from Tyress. As you can see from the parent's size, it is unlikely that it could get any bigger without collapsing." 

"Then it is reasonable to assume that what we are standing on, is the same as what Tyress is composed of," Hural interrupted. 

Lagruna nodded. "But why does it have a breathable atmosphere?" he pondered. "It preys on the Racc, why not their atmosphere?" 

Hural got down on his knees and began to prod at the surface. He looked at the others with a puzzled expression on his face." 

"Have you got a clue?" Stella asked. 

"I'm not sure yet," Hural replied. "I really need something sharp." Des picked up a piece of jagged plastic that was laying by his side and handed it to Hural. Lagruna watched them suspiciously, fingering the trigger of his blaster. 

"It's okay," Des cursed. "I'm not about to pull a double cross." Hural dug the sharp edge into the surface and dragged the plastic through the ground for a few inches. Then he put his hand in the furrow and felt around for a few seconds. When he pulled his hand out, it was covered with a slightly opaque liquid. 

"Have you discovered something?" Lagruna demanded. 

"Yes," Hural confessed, "I'm sure that this thing is organic, and in fact not unlike the outer layers of our bodies. What we are standing on is its outer skin. There would appear to be several layers of skin under that, and then probably a large layer of soft tissue. Deep in the centre I think is its nerve centre." 

"But this is not doing us any good," Lagruna replied. "I suspected that it was organic anyway. Can you imagine how long it would take us to cut to the centre of this thing. Admittedly it's not anywhere as large as Tyress, but it must be a long way to its centre." 

"What's the matter?" Des asked, as he noticed Hural pacing up and down with a puzzled look on his face. 

"I've got it," Hural exclaimed. He turned to Lagruna. "What is the power type of one of those alien guns?" 

"It is a ray projected not unlike a maser beam," Lagruna explained, a little uneasily. "This blaster I've got is a modified version. The full powered version has a longer barrel." 

"That's it," Hural exclaimed. "I knew it looked familiar. It's been bugging me since I first saw it." 

"But how is that going to help us?" Lagruna asked. 

"A maser beam would cut through this tissue faster than a rouge ship out of Hell," Hural exclaimed. "If we can find one carried here with the wreckage, our troubles will be over - well almost." 

"I find your optimism amusing," Lagruna commented. "However, I will concede to admitting that at least one of the alien guards in the room did possess a full powered maser rifle." He smiled, "But was it carried here? If it was, is it still in working order?" 

"That," Hural replied, "we will only find out by looking. Standing around talking will get us nowhere!" 

They began to sift through the debris that was scattered over many hundred yards, After several minutes searching, Stella pulled something from underneath a motionless alien and held it triumphantly in the air. The others ran over to where she was standing. 

"I've found it," she announced. "It still appears to be in working order." She jerked it down, and for a second the barrel pointed straight at Lagruna's face. Then she pointed back in the air. It was all over so quickly that he didn't even have time to move. "I could have destroyed you then,'' Stella said bitterly, "and you wouldn't have stood a chance of defending yourself, or even knowing that I had fired at you. Just remember that if we ever get out of this strange place." 

Lagruna smiled nervously. "Of course my dear," he replied. "I shall remember you." 

"How does this thing work?" Hural asked, taking it from Stella. 

"The beam can be concentrated or diffused by turning the dial at the base," Lagruna explained. "At the moment it is set to fire a fine beam, suitable for your purpose." 

"How long will the power last?" Hural asked. 

"They will last a month in intensive battle conditions," Lagruna replied, "and the gun looks almost new." 

"You'd better all stand back," Hural decided. "I will commence operations here." The others moved back as Hural pointed the gun at the ground a few feet from where he stood. He depressed the firing mechanism, and a blinding beam of light lanced into the ground and a hissing, combined with the smell of burning flesh, filled the air. Hural switched off and walked over to the edge of the hole he'd made. "I seem to have penetrated further than I hoped with the first burst," he mused. 

"You must appreciate that whatever this thing is comprised of," Lagruna interrupted, "it is probably bloated beyond its natural size and is not as solid as it might be." 

"I'm going down inside," Hural decided. 

"No," Des insisted, trying to impress Stella. "I'm the fittest of the party. I will go." Des swung the rifle over his shoulder and began, to descend into the hole that was about seventy five feet deep. After two blasts that lit the hole with light, Des called for the others to follow him at a safe distance, and so their nightmare journey began. 

The party seemed to travel further and further down into the black, charred, stench filled abyss. Many a time one of the group would lose their grip on the crumbling charred edge and almost slip down into the ever deepening hole. The only light they had to guide them was when Des fired another blast to deepen the hole further. They travelled for so long that they forgot how long they had been going and gave up hope of ever seeing the surface again. Their voyage down into the interior of the strange creature was halted, when Des, who had become almost blind from the light of the maser beam, screamed. The sound was muffled by the strange charred tissue that seemed to absorb sound. A few seconds later, they heard a dull thud followed by a rattle. The first sound they guessed was Des falling onto something, and the other was his maser rifle; but what startled them more than Des' fall was the realisation that the maser gun had hit something metallic! 

They groped on down, further and further, forgetting the smoke of the charred flesh that polluted their lungs, and in their eagerness, almost fell to their deaths several times. Finally, Stella who had been leading the rest of the party croaked hoarsely: "I've come to the end. There's nothing for my feet to take hold of. I'm going to jump. I can only hope it's not far." There was a faint thud. Her voice drifted up faintly. "It's not far, so jump. I'm sure that it's metal that I'm standing on!" 

The other two followed; they fumbled about in the darkness, and Stella located Des, who had slightly concussed himself in the fall. They decided to stop and rest and all bar Stella quickly fell into an exhausted sleep. 

Later, partially refreshed from his slumbers, Lagruna spoke. "It would appear that we have passed through the outer layer of the creature, and have now arrived at its centre. However, this is not natural - this is artificial!" 

Hural fired the maser rifle at the surface in a rough circle, He walked over to where the beam had penetrated the floor and gave it a sharp kick. The metal fell inwards, revealing light, which for a moment blinded them all. Stella was the first to regain her sight, and she peered down into the hole, then turned slowly round to face the others, her body illuminated by the light from within. 

"There's a corridor down there," she whispered, "and I can see the door to a room." She paused. "The door has writing on it - in Terran!" 

There was a complete silence for a moment, then the others edged forward and peered down the hole. They could see a door marked 'PRIVATE'. 

"I'm going down," Stella decided, and before anyone could stop her, she slipped through the hole and fell ten or twelve feet to land lightly on her feet. The others followed more cautiously, and Des, whose eyes had been slightly damaged by the light from the maser beam, landed badly and sprained his foot. 

Lagruna and Stella began to make their way to the door, which opened to reveal an empty room. The two stepped inside. The only thing in the room was a light that was on. They exchanged puzzled glances and came out and walked down the empty corridor. They agreed they should only turn right when they came to intersecting corridors, in order that they would be able to find their way back to their point of inception. Stella now had possession of the maser rifle and constantly exchanged uneasy glances with Lagruna who was the only other person armed. Each room they investigated was the same as the last, completely empty. 

They walked on for what seemed like hours, until near to exhaustion and starvation they finally came back to the point they had started from. They rested for about half an hour, during which time no-one spoke, but all kept looking down the corridor, as if they were expecting someone to appear. 

They began their exploratory search again, this time turning left, but each room they explored revealed only the same emptiness. They were on the point of giving up, and laying down to die, when they turned a corner and found themselves confronted by a lift, whose doors were closed. Stella pressed a button, and to her surprise they opened. Like everywhere else, it was empty 

They entered the lift, and Stella pressed a button at the base of a control panel, hoping that it would take them down. The lift looked almost unused, and the doors closed. They felt that they were travelling downwards at a great speed, and suddenly the feeling stopped. The doors opened, and they stepped out into a passage much the same as the one they had just left. 

But when they entered the nearest room, they found that it was furnished. The fittings in the room appeared to have been only slightly used, but there was evidence of it having been habitated at one time. They examined the room and confirmed that it contained things of Terran origin. Stella looked very worried. 

The examination of several other similar rooms finally uncovered a kitchen which contained a large supply of food, sealed for long life. The party ate until they had satisfied their hunger. They were also amazed to find the water supply was still producing fresh, drinkable water. They rested for a short while in the luxurious surroundings of the next room. 

Refreshed, they continued their examination. They finally reached a room marked 'Captain & Controllers Cabin'. It was different from the others, larger and more spacious, but still didn't reveal any further information, all these rooms appeared to be for the purpose of relaxation. 

It was Lagruna who found a door set into the wall, which opened to reveal a travallator that began to move. The others followed Lagruna as he stepped onto it. It carried them down to a level below which the lift went. They emerged into a vast room, and could see a mighty atomic reactor amongst the huge banks of machinery. In one half of the room was a massive intricate control board. Around this panel lay a scattered mass of human remains, now only dry, crumbling skeletons, but recognisable as human in origin. 

"What is all this?" Des asked in horror. "What does it all mean?" 

Stella stepped forward and began to examine the vast control panel that still appeared to be operating. "I thought I had seen something like this before," she said. "I'm almost certain that I know what this is." 

"What?" Des asked, peering through his damaged eyes. 

"Give me a little more time," Stella replied. "I must find the log files. Although on stand-by, the whole complex appears to still be automatically functioning." They watched patiently, as she sat down at the control panel and studied it for a long time. 

"It looks like some sort of space station," Lagruna remarked. 

Stella finally found the series of controls she required and began to activate them. A screen lit up with data which she studied intently as it scrolled across the screen. Then addressed the others . "My guess is confirmed from this copy of the log. Most of the information at the beginning is routine flight data. The same goes for the end. The interesting part seems to be in the middle. What exactly happened, I'm not yet sure, but I can reveal that we are on the RT 2. Unless you were like me and engaged in the Terran Secret Service, it would mean nothing to you, for this was a top secret device. It was designed to be used only in the event of a full scale war. You see Earth had prepared itself for an attack by the Raccs. The RT1 and RT 2 were huge space stations that would orbit the edge of the Terran Empire. In the event of potential failure in any ensuing war, Terran command would authorise the stations to unleash their ultimate death ray, right at the heart of the Racc's home planet." 

"Both stations were lost on their first test flight. I hope that this log will explain what happened." She read quickly through the text that the computer had displayed. After a few minutes she spoke again. "It would appear that an unknown force captured these stations and ensnared them. We can assume it was Tyress. The creature appears to have reproduced itself, splitting into two. One assumes the RT1 is embedded in the larger creature, the original Tyress." She paused. "The fact that none of the crew have survived, suggests that we are likely to be in great danger here as well." "This could explain why the atmosphere on the surface was breathable," Lagruna mused. "For some strange alien logic, it duplicated the air of its captive." 

"So what are we going to do?" Des asked. 

"I think the answer is obvious," Lagruna replied. "This station still appears to be operational and is armed with Earth's finest weapons. Use them to blast this creature and Tyress to bits, it can only be their force that hold us here in the matter travel lanes. We should then be released and returned to our point of inception." 

"But what if the station is destroyed," Hural interjected. 

Lagruna shrugged. "As long as we survive, what does it matter?" 

"You'd like to see one of Earth's most powerful weapons decommissioned wouldn't you?" Des stated. 

Stella suddenly looked up. "I've just located the data on the crew," she exclaimed. "The Captain's name was Hural!" 

The old man looked uneasy. 

"You?" Des queried. "You escaped and wanted to get back here, after all these years. No wonder you've been evasive since we got here!" 

"Captain Martha Hural," the old spacer replied quietly. "My wife. Lost in action." He paused. "We were talking on a personal link when the thing attacked, she gave me brief details before we lost contact. I never gave up searching, hoping ....... but I guess now I have." 

"We'll be able to identify all the remains when we get back," Stella said sombrely. 

"So we are going back?" Lagruna queried. "We will activate the death ray?" 

"Already done," Stella stated. "There are times for discussion and there are times for action. The ray has powered up and will soon be cutting through the creature in a wide arc any second." Suddenly, they were all thrown sideways as the station jerked violently. A few moments later, the motioned ceased. Stella's brow frowned. "This can't be..." she muttered. 

"I think it can," Lagruna smirked, now holding both blasters. "You see," he continued, "When the station was freed from Tyress and it travelled along the matter band, it was not returned to the point of its inception, but to where all random journeys are drawn - Racc! I am in contact with the receiving station now, a welcoming committee is being arranged for you." 

"You've tricked us," Stella cursed. 

"Of course," Lagruna confirmed, "such is the fate of all inferior beings. But does it matter where you die?" he sneered, "for die you will, just as soon as you've served your purpose, and that won't be long now!" 

Stella looked contemptuously at Lagruna. "I should have known better than to trust you even a little bit," she cursed. But I shall never tell you anything that will help you." 

"I don't think you will have any say in the matter," he explained. "It is impossible to close your subconscious mind to the Racc thought reading machines. As soon as we have investigated your memories and extracted any relevant information, I shall be able to kill you all and proceed with my plan to destroy the Terran Empire for once and for all. Now get out, the sooner I've got rid of you all the better." He ushered them towards the door and through the station until they came to an exit. They donned space suits, as the atmosphere of Racc was not safe to humans. 

As they emerged from the station, they found the it had been completely ringed by Raccs, holding blasters ready to fire. They eyed the party suspiciously as they walked down the gangway, then one of the higher ranking Racc soldiers recognised Lagruna, and donning a translator mask, ran forward to greet him. 

"We feared you had been destroyed," he said. 

"I will explain all later," he replied. "As you can see, I have brought a group of highly dangerous Terrans with me. I wish to have their minds investigated. As soon as this task has been completed, they are to be destroyed, a task which I will personally undertake. Is that understood?" 

The Racc commander added. "It shall be so," he replied. He removed the mask and gurgled orders at his men, who closed in around the Terrans and marched them off to a carrier type vehicle. 

They travelled in darkness inside the machine for a short distance, in silence. Des felt that this time, the game had come to an end and nothing could save them now. The vehicle jerked to a halt and they were pulled out and marched to a small room where only Lagruna and two high ranking Raccs stood. Stella was grabbed and forced into a seat while Lagruna kept the others covered. They lowered a bowl over the girls head, and were about to activate the machinery, when a nearby viewer lit up showing a frenzied Racc gurgling in a distressed state. 

"What is happening?" Lagruna demanded. 

"There is some strange disturbance happening in the area of the space station," one of the aliens replied. "What sort of strange thing?" Lagruna asked, looking worried. 

"A strange growth," the alien replied. "It's appearing on the hull of the space station. A pink fleshy substance." 

Lagruna, who had not put on the gloves that went with his space suit, scratched his hand as if something was biting it. He glanced down and then gasped in horror. There was something growing on his hand which looked like a pink wart. All eyes turned towards him, as he stood still like a statue. The thing was visibly growing before their eyes. He dropped his gun to the floor as the two aliens began to edge away towards the door, looks of horror on their faces. Hural rushed forward and picked up the gun in a gloved hand as Lagruna collapsed, all life having appeared to have vanished from his body. Des released Stella from her seat. 

A blast above the door from Hural's blaster halted the aliens who were about to vanish from the room. Stella leapt out of her seat, a plan forming in her mind. She looked with horror at what was once Lagruna and was now only a bloated mass of flesh. "Blast it," she ordered Hural. She motioned for the aliens to switch on their translator masks. 

She pointed at what was now a charred mass on the floor. "You know about Tyress," she stated, "it is now in our power. Unless you reveal where the store of bacteria is that you intend to destroy the Terran Empire with, we shall allow Tyress to breed until it envelopes your whole planet. We do not wish to make war with you; leave us alone in peace, and we shall not interfere with you." 

The aliens looked uneasily at the blackened mass on the floor. "Very well," they agreed, "the whole store of bacteria is kept near here. In fact, in the next building." 

"I see," Stella nodded. She walked over to Hural and took the gun from his hand, and blasted the two aliens. "This is no time for sentiment," she said. "If you haven't guessed, it appears that we might have escaped from Tyress's hatchling, but part of it has come with us. We need to get off this planet fast, as I suspect it is about to be enveloped. At least the Racc bacteria will perish along with their home world. With their base and major weapon destroyed, the chances of them launching an attack against Earth will now be very sleight. However, it's not all good news, I can't emphasise the danger enough. The chances of us not being infected must be minimal, and if it penetrates our suits, were as good as dead. God only knows what it's like outside, but something tells me it's going to be pretty grim." 

They stripped the two aliens of their weapons, and made their way down the corridor. A Racc soldier rushed past them making no attempt to stop them. Instead, he was screaming in a high pitched whine. As they emerged from the building, they stopped in their tracks. All around in the strange alien city, people were running in terror. The sky was filled with drifting globes of pink flesh. From all the buildings, pink growths were clinging to the walls. 

They quickly made their way to the next building, blasting ahead of them at the ground that was beginning to sprout tiny pink growths. "This planet is doomed," Des sobbed. "Let's try and find a spaceship and escape." Suddenly the ground to their left cracked and a huge pink mass forced its way up from under the ground. The buildings around them began to break apart, showering debris all around them. They ran through the streets which were now deserted save for the occasional body of an alien that had been touched by the fungus and was slowly being eaten away. 

"Where have all the Racc gone?" Hural asked. Stella skidded to a halt. "What's wrong?" Hural asked. 

"Did you notice that all the Raccs who weren't contaminated by the fungus were running in the same direction?" Stella asked. 

"You think they've got some sort of central hideout for emergencies," Hural replied. 

Stella shook her head. "No," she replied. "It's better than that. I remember now, I studied Racc culture as part of my training. In event of a catastrophe or invasion, they had a plan to evacuate the complete population of the planet in a very short time." 

"That sounds a little fantastic," Hural replied. "You can't evacuate a whole planet, it's just not possible. Think of all the skill and organisation you'd need. No, I don't really believe that. In all my days in space, I've never heard of anything on that scale even being considered." 

Any other words the old man was going to say were drowned in a mighty roar that rose above everything else. The ground on which they stood shuddered. They watched in fascination as a mighty fleet of ships rose into the air, their tail jets blasting huge gouts of fire that almost blinded the Terrans as they watched. For a few minutes the sky was alight with rocket flames as countless numbers of ships took off. They were so many that they were impossible to count. 

"It can't be true," Hural breathed, "not in such a short time. It's impossible." 

"We are not dealing with humans," Stella reminded him. "These are the Racc, they have built a huge empire. Why do you think Earth spent such a vast amount of money building the RT1 and 2? In an all-out war, it was calculated we could only beat the Racc with our superior numbers." 

"At least we know where the spaceport is," Des interrupted. "I suggest that we go there at full speed. It's just possible there may be a spaceship or two left which we can escape in." As he finished speaking, he leapt out of the way as a lump of pink fungus drifted down out of the sky, almost brushing his space helmet. 

They made their way, as fast as their spacesuits would allow, through the now deserted town. They had little time to spend gazing at the strange shaped buildings of this weird alien city. Their whole time was taken up by avoiding contact with any of the pink fungus, that was now almost everywhere. Whole buildings, covered with the strange organism, were cracking apart and toppling over as the fungus forced its way out, or crushed its way in. The ground was so littered with pink blobs that they had to blast a path before themselves to make any progress. 

Ten minutes walking brought them to the spaceport. They paused at the entrance for a few seconds and looked to their far left, at the matter receiver centre. What had once been there was now a huge pulsating mass that throbbed with a strange life force, as it ejected a continuous stream of pink growths into the air. 

They looked into the spaceport that was scattered with debris from the obviously hurried take-off. There were several ships near them, which were all covered with pink fungus. They blasted a path to a ship that appeared to be unscathed, and they hastily boarded it and sealed the air-lock. 

"We've a long way to go," Des muttered weakly. 

"Does anyone know how to control one of these things?" Hural asked. 

"I have a basic idea." Stella replied. "It was another of those things I was taught on my training course." 

"We ought to give the hull an extensive check., Hural warned. "If we've got any of that pink stuff on it -" 

"We can't waste time," Stella decided. "we'll have to risk it." They followed her through to the control room. 

"The trouble is," Stella said, as they entered the control area, "the Racc have still not advanced very far with regard to remote control. All of their ships are guided manually. That isn't going to make our task any easier." She began to stare at the banks of controls studying them very carefully. 

"Can you make it go?" Des asked nervously. 

"It's slightly modified from the model I used in training," Stella confessed. She sat down at the controls. "I think this is what we want," she decided. "Get into seats," she ordered, as a dull roar began to boom from the bottom of the ship. The pressure in the cabin began to build up as the ship rose from the spaceport. After a few minutes of jerky travelling, she turned to face the others. "We're in orbit," she announced. She looked grim. "Now all the hell we've got to do is find our way home under manual control!" 

"Look," Hural exclaimed, pointing at a group of glowing lights on the scanner, "that must be the Racc evacuation fleet." He paused. "They're fighting amongst themselves," he exclaimed. "Have they gone mad?" 

"No," Stella replied sombrely. "I don't think so." She increased magnification. "They're blasting the ships with fungus growing on them." 

As they watched, another ship was blasted out of the sky as it bulged outwards. They watched for several more minutes and other ships were destroyed, They turned the scanner back in the direction of Racc. What they saw made even the old, experienced spaceman Hural, gape with disbelief. The planet was visibly growing in size with every second that passed, and it was beginning to pulsate like Tyress had done. "Nothing can grow that fast," he breathed in disbelief. "It's against the laws of nature." 

Stella switched the scanner back to the Racc fleet. She tried adjusting the focus, a frown on her face. 

"What's the matter?" Hural asked. 

Stella pointing at the screen, "I thought I'd lost focus, they're all fuzzy and distorted......" 

"The whole population of Racc destroyed," Des gasped in horror. 

"I doubt if more than a fraction of the population was in those ships," Stella replied, regaining her voice. "Don't forget that the Racc have the power of matter transmission. It was only Tyress, that restricted them. In an emergency, most of them would have transported themselves in that manner, though whether they took the pink fungus with them before it over-ran their transmitter station, only time will tell." She looked more perplexed. "What worries me more, is why should we be any different to them." 

"What do you mean?" Hural asked. 

"If all their ships have fallen foul to the fungus, why hasn't this one?" She looked down at the controls. "Something's gone wrong with the drive," she announced, "I've got to shut it down, it's overheating. Something is blocking the cooling system!" 

"We're still prisoners of the dream star," Hural stated quietly. "There is no escape." 

"You give up too easily," Stella assured him. "I've got out of tighter situations than this." She looked down at the scanner. "There's a planet to our left," she continued. "I suggest that we take the escape capsule and effect a landing down there." She uttered a curse. "We're caught up in some sort of force field. We're being pulled back towards what was Racc." 

"No," Hural muttered, "We're being pulled WITH Racc. What had once been the planet was now visibly moving against the background of twinkling stars. 

"Look at it's acceleration," Hural gasped. 

"And ours," Stella added. "We're already travelling at roughly a quarter the speed of light." 

They travelled on, their speed increasing. At first they watched the stars shoot by faster and faster until they became mere blurs, then they vanished all together. They passed the speed of light, emerging beyond the Galaxy itself. 

"We've stopped," Stella breathed. "I think it's trying to do what we were, orient itself to find its way home. The creature began to move again, carrying them and many other pieces of space debris behind it. They watched in awe as their Galaxy slowly began to diminish in size, then everything vanished as they passed the speed of light once more. 

The Universe came back into perspective as the creature finally slowed down. 

"I think we may be in an area of the Universe whose light has yet to reach Earth," Stella said sombrely. 

"There's something ahead," Hural observed. They all looked in the scanner. Whatever it was, it was was bigger than their Galaxy; impossibly large. 

"It's too large to measure," Stella breathed. She tried to take further readings but gave up. 

The air in their spacesuits was now virtually unbreathable and the atmosphere generated by the ship was suitable only for Racc consumption. The Terrans were not able to survive in the same wide range of atmospheres that the Racc could achieve. 

Des looked at Stella drowsily. "I really do love you," he breathed, "I meant what I said. Please, lets remove our helmets and die with a kiss..." 

Stella looked impassively as Des passed into unconsciousness. "I can't give up," she sighed, "as long as there's a chance, I must get back, it's my duty." 

Hural wheezed, pointing weakly at the scanner. "It's home," he gasped. "it's back in the bosom of its family. The dream star....... We never did escape. We're still prisoners of the dream star." 

Stella slowly nodded her head, as Hural lay back and closed his eyes, "If we had returned home," she whispered to Hural, no longer sure he could hear her; "if we had escaped, we would still have been prisoners of our own dream stars. Love, like Des. Duty, like me. You, your quest for your wife. Whatever your own dream star is, you're a prisoner of it all your life, until it finally envelopes you." She was so drowsy, she closed her eyes. She began to slip into unconsciousness, but jerked back. She must stay awake. She must. Must, but knew she couldn't. It was over this time. She wondered why the fungus had spared them, against all others. 

She staggered over to Des' inert body and with an effort, removed his helmet. Taking one last gasp of the stale air in her suit, she removed her own helmet. She was able to plant one gentle kiss on his forehead, before she began to choke in the alien atmosphere, as her tortured lungs filled with the noxious gases of the Racc air. 





