Renny looked at his watch as the last of the transports drove away. With their cargo preloaded into trucks, it had taken less than twenty minutes for Durant to do the necessary paperwork with the Book Depot representative and for their supplied drivers to move the vehicles out of the Blue Horizon's hold. It was almost nine o'clock in the morning and Merlin had already told everyone that shore leave would last eleven days this time. All of the crew cabins had been inspected by the captain prior to landing and Merlin had given his okay that his ship had been cleaned well enough for them to go after their cargo had been unloaded.

Renny and Taro had not taken much time together during their past few shore leaves, but this time they had agreed to be together during their extended vacation. They had not made specific plans as yet; they wanted to wait until they knew more about the city in which they had landed. Of those on board the Horizon, only Samantha and Merlin had been in Iverson before, but Durant had made noises about spending several days away from the city on a fishing trip. It seemed he already had some foreknowledge of the area, even if he had never actually been there.

Because of the trucks, there had not been much to do so far as unloading cargo went. The only thing they had really had to do was disconnect the stout chains and cables that had secured the trucks to the cargo bay floor during flight. On a normal job, it would take the Horizon crew an hour or more to unload the standard octagonal shipping crates into loading trucks or a warehouse, and longer if their client happened to ship their goods in dissimilar wooden crates.

Despite the quickness and ease of this particular unloading, none of them could leave until Merlin gave the word that they could go, and most of the crew was milling around the hold awaiting that permission.

Renny glanced up at a sudden roar and watched a Seriola-class heavy freighter take off from a nearby launch pad. It was long, cylindrical, and easily five times the size of the Blue Horizon. The glare of its engine triad was brilliant even in the sunshine of the clear autumn morning and it created shadows as if it were a small sun. He squinted as it turned 180° degrees on its horizontal axis, and even at this distance, he could read the large lettering of the ship's name: Amberjack. The cheetah's mouth opened in awe at the sheer size of the thing. He remembered hearing about it on a news feed not too long ago. Its sole purpose was to transport settlers to new worlds that the Firebird Fleet would find, in addition to their families, livestock, and supplies enough to colonize new lands.

After the Amberjack finished its rotation, it angled up and began to rise ponderously, but its sluggishness was deceptive. Renny watched it until the ship reached an altitude above the spaceport traffic, and then it vanished in a sudden burst of speed. Wherever it was headed, the Amberjack was fast on its way.

Renny yawned and stretched, but something familiar suddenly caught his eye as he returned his attention to the spaceport. He had not noticed it before, but there was a Sakura-class freighter on the landing pad next to them. Its exterior colors of bluish-white with green and gold trim triggered a memory and he suddenly felt the fur along his tail begin to stand out. As he gazed at the wedge-shaped cargo carrier, he could see its main hatch open. A large male panda dressed in a red vest and black breeches stepped out into the morning air and began walking directly toward the open bay doors of the Blue Horizon. A thin gold chain around his neck sparkled in the sunlight.

"Uh oh…" he muttered to himself. He glanced over to where Merlin had been talking over the paperwork of their delivery with Durant, and noticed that the wolf was already headed out to meet the approaching visitor. Other members of the crew started forward until Durant cleared his throat loudly and held up a hand for the others to stop. Renny watched suspiciously as Merlin and the panda stopped in front of one another.

Merlin looked up at the taller panda, knowing full well whom he faced. There were many things he wanted to say at that moment, but his sense of diplomacy won out. "What can I do for you?" he asked stiffly as he fiddled with the cuffs of his bomber jacket.

"Captain Sinclair?" the panda asked. Merlin nodded and then the visitor held out a hand in greeting. "My name is JW Chon," he said with a slight bow. "I am captain of the Bamboo Wind."

Merlin took the offered hand hesitantly and squinted in the sunlight. "Hello, Mr. Chon," he replied. "We've met before, though not formally."

"Yes, that's right," the panda said with a nod. "I remember."

"Should I congratulate you on your promotion, Captain?" Merlin said dryly. Chon recognized the tone in the wolf's voice and nodded again.

"I suppose that depends upon your perspective," he replied. He looked steadily at Merlin for a moment and then said, "The Aglet Spaceport has a nice, but informal, restaurant in the South terminal called The Fasc Feather. I would welcome the chance to talk with you a bit, and things are usually friendlier over a meal. It would be my treat, if you would join me."

Merlin raised his eyebrows. "Uh, sure," he said, taken off guard. "Do you mind if I bring someone with me? I promised her breakfast as soon as we'd landed."

Chon smiled widely. "Of course, bring along your lady friend. I'll pick up her check, too."

Merlin nodded slowly. "Alright, I accept. I have a few more things to take care of before I can leave my ship. Shall we meet you there in half an hour?"

The panda pulled out an antique Terran timepiece from a vest pocket and then nodded. "That will be fine. I will see you there, Captain." He gave Merlin another small bow and then began walking toward the main spaceport terminal building.

"What was that about?" Renny asked a moment later.

Merlin looked over at his navigator and then scratched the fur beneath his hat. "I'm not sure, Renny," he replied. "I expected a fight, but instead I got an invitation to breakfast, with him picking up the tab."

Renny licked his lips. "Breakfast?" he asked. "Can I join you… you know, just to make sure he doesn't jump you or something?"

Merlin turned and looked at him with a big grin. "Sorry, Vacuum-Lips, but I'm taking Samantha with me."

The cheetah's whiskers drooped in disappointment. "Oh, I see how it is. I'm not good enough..." he whined.

"On the other hand, I suppose if Chon had to pay for your meal, his business would go broke and I'd be rid of another competitor…"

Renny put a hand to his chest in mock pain. "Oh, that hurt…"

When Merlin and Samantha entered the doors of the restaurant, they saw JW Chon immediately. He was across the room from the entrance, but his red vest stood out like a beacon and he looked up at them with a smile when they approached his booth.

"Please have a seat," the panda said pleasantly. Samantha exchanged glances with Merlin before she slid into the booth.

"Thank you," Merlin said after he had settled in next to Sam. "Captain Chon, this is Samantha Holden."

"Hello, Captain," the Border collie said politely.

"Thank you for joining me," the panda said with a nod of his head. Before he could say more, a waitress stepped up and set menus on the table between them.

"Welcome to the Fasc Feather," the cougar said with a smile.

"You may order anything you like," Chon told his companions. "This is my bill."

"Thank you, Captain," Samantha replied. She looked over the menu and was tempted to order the most expensive thing on the menu just because he was a competitor, especially since he had taken a customer away from them, but at the last moment she decided that she was better than that and ordered something only slightly less expensive. She watched his eyes when she gave her order to the waitress, but the panda did not even flinch. He actually smiled, which made her more uncomfortable.

Merlin gave his order to the waitress and then waited while Chon did the same. After she had left their table, the wolf leaned forward and looked up at their host.

"So," he said warily, "what did you wish to discuss with me?'

Chon nodded his head. "Straight to the point, I see – no small talk to lead into the conversation," he said as he leaned back in the seat. "Alright, Captain, we can go there. From our previous chat out by your ship, I think I can assume you are aware of the history of my freighter."

Merlin nodded. "Formerly known as the Savannah Hunter, formerly captained by Armando Jensen," he admitted. "We ran into him on Crescentis and he latched onto us like a leech, begging for a job."

"Ah, I am sure he gave you all the gritty details of our business transaction?" Chon said with a mischievous glint in his eyes.

Samantha nodded. "He said you tricked him into signing away his ship and business," she replied.

The waitress returned with their drinks and then departed again quietly. Chon took a sip of the diet soda he had ordered and then leaned on the table. "Jensen has not run the business himself in several years," he said, "but he continued to spend the company profits on things other than the company. For the sake of the company, I decided to relieve him of the responsibility of overseeing the business. We've done much better for it since his departure."

Merlin heard Samantha draw in a deep breath and could tell from the way her eyebrows drew together that she was about to give Chon her opinion of his business practices. "You're doing well," he said quickly before she could begin, "at our expense, I might add."

Chon blinked twice and looked puzzled. "At your expense?" he repeated. "How? I've done nothing against you, Captain."

"You stole one of our long-time customers from us!" Samantha spat.

"Who are you talking about?"

"Brandersen Electronics," Merlin answered tonelessly. "He broke an established contract with us to have his merchandise delivered by the Bamboo Wind instead."

"Brandersen?" Chon repeated quietly. "Well, this is a surprise… You can't blame me for this one," he said. "Marcus Brandersen contacted me to pick up his delivery for him. He said he had seen one of our commercials and gave us a specific bid for our services. He said nothing of having a prior contract with you or anyone else."

"You don't know anything about it?" Samantha asked doubtfully.

Chon shook his head. "I assure you this is the first I've heard of it," he replied. "I was glad to get his business since I was trying to establish a new clientele base." He looked at Merlin and raised an eyebrow. "If you and I had put in competing bids to Brandersen for his delivery, that would have been standard fare in the freighting business. As you are well aware, there are still parts of the Planetary Alignment still in chaos since the Siilv War. I am your competition, and I will promote my services as much as I can, but I wouldn't coerce a potential customer into breaking a contract. That makes for a bad reputation, even in these hard times."

"I see," the wolf replied after a moment of thought. "Brandersen was free enough to give out your name as the one who had taken our business from us."

"Is that so?" Chon asked with a furrowed brow. "I'll have to return the favor…"

"Our lawyer has been in touch with him," Samantha said quietly, "and Brandersen has been fined for breach of legal contract. Between his fine and legal fees, he has just gone into debt over this affair."

"It's a good thing he's already paid me," Chon said with an appreciative nod. The cougar returned with their meals and the trio fell silent as the woman set out their dishes and then once again left without a word.

"What about your crew?" Merlin asked after a moment. "I was aware that you often had to shanghai your employees…"

Chon smiled widely at this. "You were aware of that, eh?" he asked with a chuckle. "Jensen himself didn't even know that, although it was a necessity with him as Captain. The Savannah Hunter had such a lackluster reputation with Jensen in command that we never had any applicants for vacant positions. Things have changed dramatically since his departure."

"You have a willing crew that is employed under contract?" Samantha asked between bites of her food.

"I do now," the panda replied. "That was part of the changes I made to the business. I wanted to distance my ship from the Savannah Hunter's standing in the cargo-moving community. I gave leave of my crew for those who wished to return home, and generated contracts for those hired to replace them. I still have a third of my old crew on board. Once they knew of Jensen's removal and my intention to provide contracts and benefits for any who would stay, there were several who were glad to sign up to stay."

Merlin nodded appreciatively as he took a sip of his coffee. If everything the panda had told them was true, his respect for this competitor rose significantly. Even if Chon had run a difficult ship under Armando's captaincy, he seemed determined to make up for it with his people.

"Congratulations on your business," he said at last. "Is this what you wished to discuss with me?"

"That's a good part of it," Chon replied. "I realize I didn't have to give you any kind of explanation on what I do with my own business, but I knew there was a lot of bad blood between you and Jensen. When I saw your ship land next to mine, I wanted to make it clear to you that he was no longer in the picture. I'm not asking you to become my partner or anything like that. We're both in this business for the same reasons and competition is good for the economy. If we're going to be rivals, at least we can do it professionally."

Merlin glanced over at Samantha and she gave him a small nod. He wiped his fingers on his cloth napkin and extended a hand toward the panda with a smile. "Unlike your predecessor, you seem to have a good head on your shoulders, Captain Chon," he said as they shook hands. "On behalf of the Blue Horizon, it will be good competing with you."

Durant pulled out a pay voucher from a zippered pouch in his other hand and handed it to Lorelei. The white rabbit was dressed in a vibrantly-colored tie-dyed tee-shirt decorated with numerous necklaces of crystals and beads, sandals, and a pair of cutoff jeans. "Here you go," he told her. "Your pay was deposited to your account last night, but try not to spend it all at once. We'll be on leave here longer than usual this time."

"Thankies, Durant," the rabbit said to him with a big grin. "I already have big plans for my time off." She waved a colorful pamphlet in his face and unfolded it with glee. "There's a Mystical Hot Spring not too far from here that's just oozing in therapeutic mud, and the air is soaking with incense." The doe grinned widely at a particular photo on the reverse side of the pamphlet and added, "Ooh, I can't wait for a full body massage by this buck – he's gorgeous!"

Durant cleared his throat and pushed the pamphlet out of his face. "That's nice, Lori. Enjoy yourself."

"I will, hon. See ya!" The rabbit put on a pair of pink plastic sunglasses over her eyes and slung the strap of an orange bag over her shoulder. She began skipping out toward the terminal building, softly humming to herself.

Samantha stepped up to the grizzly, leaned back against his arm, and batted her eyelashes at him. "Ooh, I can't wait for a full body massage, Durant!" she mimicked the rabbit's voice in sing-song when their cook had gone. Durant laughed and handed her the pay voucher with her name on it.

"You do that very well, Samantha," he chuckled.

"Oh, please!" she said in mock indignation. "So, what are you going to do on your time off?"

"I'm going to rent a cabin in the woods in the Musty Mountains to the south of here," he replied as he handed the last voucher to Tanis. "I want to spend some time alone, away from ships, away from cities, away from people—"

"Away from medical attention…" Tanis interjected with a frown.

Durant ignored him and continued. "I want to relax, do some fishing, and roam around under the trees with my toes in the dirt."

"Just don't run around a bare bear," Samantha said with a chuckle. "Someone might mistake you for wildlife and make a rug out of you for their own cabin!"

Durant grinned widely at her. "I guess I can mark naturalism off my list, then," he said with a wink.

Tanis crossed his arms and looked up at the grizzly. "Ya've been dodging my requests to give ya a physical for a long time, Durant," he said. "At least let me check ya out before ya head off into the wilderness, just to be sure."

The accountant shook his head. "There's no need for that, Tanis," he assured him. "All I need is rest and relaxation away from the stress of our business, letting let my mind wander and unwind. I'll be okay. After that nasty flu virus, I need clean air in my lungs."

"I'm not convinced," the desert fox replied.

"Well, I'm not taking you with me, if that's what you're wanting," Durant said with a shrug of his shoulders.

"What I'm wanting," Tanis said with a frown, "is just for ya to let me look ya over before ya leave. Nothing more. A few minutes are all I will need."

Durant shook his head. "Sorry, I don't have the time. I already have a cab on the way to take me to the car rental agency, and then I'll be on my way after I pick up a few supplies. Don't worry about me – I'll be alright."

Tanis' frown deepened, if that were possible. "I'm going to convince Merlin that an annual physical for all crew members be made mandatory, my friend."

A horn honked outside the cargo bay's main hatch and Durant waved toward the cabbie that pulled up. "Time to go," he said with a smile. Samantha reached up to give him a warm hug and then looked up into his brown eyes.

"You take care of yourself, big guy," she said, "and enjoy your rest."

"I intend to," the grizzly replied. He reached out toward Tanis, but the fox hesitated a moment before taking the offered hand.

"Be very careful," the medic said. "Ya won't be close to help if something happens to ya out there."

"I will, Tanis," Durant told him. The cab honked again and the bear moved toward the bay door. He picked up his duffel bag near the door and carried it to the cab. Tanis and Samantha watched him until the vehicle drove away, and then the Border collie turned toward her companion.

"Why are you so adamant about giving him a physical?" she asked.

"Because he's hiding something from me," Tanis replied with the shake of his head. "There's something wrong with him, but I can't pinpoint what it is without an examination."

"He just got over that flu virus, Tanis. Didn't you give him an examination then?"

"No," Tanis answered as they started walking back toward the main lift. "He wouldn't let me do more than take his temperature and a small blood sample, neither of which showed me anything more than the flu. I need different tests. I don't have a suspicion of what is wrong with him – it's only a gut feeling that something's not right. I've had this feeling for months now, not just since the virus outbreak."

Samantha glanced back toward the bay doors as they entered the lift and lightly chewed on her bottom lip. "I hope you're wrong, Tanis. I really hope you are wrong," she said with a worried voice.

The door to Renny's quarters was open and Taro walked in through the opening with a datapak in one hand. "Renny?" she ventured when she did not see him.

"I'm in the closet," a muffled voice from the back room called out. The vixen made her way around the furniture to the back room and then poked her head inside the closet.

"What are you doing?" she asked with a chuckle when she saw only his feet and swishing tail sticking out from under hanging garments.

"I'm trying to find my old duffel bag," Renny's voice replied. "It has all of my dress slacks in it. If you and I are going to be hitting the nightclubs and going to stage plays while we're in Iverson, I want to look better than my usual jeans and a tank-top…"

"I don't think I've ever seen you in slacks before," Taro said with a grin. "This ought to be good."

"Found 'em!" Renny backed out of the closet and then stood up with a navy blue duffel bag that was partially full. He took it to his bed and then dumped out several wadded garments. "I might need to iron them first," he muttered when Taro picked up a pair of black slacks.

"Might?" she asked him with a tsk. "Honey, you aren't going anywhere with me in these things unless they've been thoroughly cleaned and ironed."

"That's what I meant," the cheetah replied with a grin. Taro gave him a dubious look and just shook her head. "I'm headed to the laundry room now," Renny said. He picked up the garments and Taro followed him out of the cabin toward the appropriate room on the other side of the ship from his quarters.

"I heard Pockets and Max talking about getting air tickets to Algegrath," Renny said as they walked. "What's there?"

"That's where the Hidalgo Sun is landing to pick up their mail and a shipment bound for Tanthe," the vixen replied. "Patch and Pockets planned to have a little reunion while they're there and Max just wanted to go along."

"Where Pockets goes, Max will follow…" Renny remarked. "I just hope the little filch doesn't teach Max how to pick locks, too."

"Agreed. Now, let's get your slacks in proper order," Taro said when they reached the laundry room. She opened the door and suddenly threw up her hands. "Yech!" she exclaimed. A pungent odor escaped the small room and Renny's eyes began to water.

"I wondered how Pockets was able to get his cabin cleaned so fast for Merlin's inspection," the cheetah gasped and stepped back away from the door. Inside were piles of dirty clothing that could belong to no one but their chief engineer. Apparently, all the garments and bedding that had been soiled during his sickness were just dumped inside the laundry room.

"Merlin never inspected this room," Taro growled, "or Pockets would have been denied shore leave for three voyages!" She put a hand over her nose and reached inside the door to lift up the cover to a protected switch. She punched the button beneath it and a small pump began venting the room's air through a duct leading to the exterior of the ship.

"Come on," Taro said with a frown. "We'll just pack your slacks and take them with us. The hotel staff will get them cleaned and ironed for you."

"Sounds like a good idea," Renny grumbled as he followed the vixen back to his cabin. They walked a few steps in silence and then Renny asked, "What's everyone else got planned for our stay?"

"Durant's gone up to the mountains to get away from it all," Taro replied, "and Lori's gone to some New Age nature resort. Pockets and Max, you know about… Merlin wanted to go camping, but Samantha wouldn't hear of it, so they're going shopping instead."

"Sounds like loads of fun," Renny remarked dryly. "What about Tanis?"

"He said he didn't have any plans, but was just going to wander around town and take it as it comes," Taro replied. "Perhaps he'll meet a nice young lady to entertain."

"Yeah," Renny mused, "with all that's happened with his homeworld, he needs something to keep his mind off of it. I'd invite him along with us, but he doesn't want to have much to do with me lately."

Taro turned to look at him. "You'd invite him along?" she repeated with a grin. "I didn't know you were into threesomes!"

Renny felt his skin flush beneath his fur. "I'm not!" he said quickly. "I didn't mean that… I meant running around with us!"

Taro laughed and winked at him. "Sure…. Okay, I'll ask him if he wants to go along. If he does, great. If not, at least we offered."

Merlin walked onto the bridge of the Blue Horizon and tapped on the light. Although they were now to be docked for over a week, he wanted to check things over a little before he would lock things down for the duration. Most of the crew had already gone by the time he and Samantha got back from their breakfast with Chon, though the last of them would be out soon.

He moved first to the Engineering station to power down all but the security systems, and noticed a flashing red light when he was near the Com panel. He thumbed the switch beside the light and played back a stored message.

"Merlin! This is Riki – Captain Kegawa needs you to contact us as soon as you get this. We've had an explosion in the cargo bay! We're at the spaceport in Algegrath on landing pad seventy-one."

"That's terrible!" said Renny. Merlin looked up at Taro and Renny standing in the doorway. He gave them a frown as he sat in the chair before the station and punched up the Hidalgo Sun's calling code. It only took a moment for the signal to relay along the planet's orbital communication satellites to the other side of the world.

"This is the Hidalgo Sun," the lemur's voice said from the Com speakers. "I'm sorry, but you've caught us at a bad time…"

"Riki," Merlin said quickly, "this is Captain Sinclair."

"Merlin! Thank goodness you called. It's terrible – something blew up in the –"

"Get Rezo on the line, please."

"Right away, sir!"

There was a pause and Merlin looked up at his first officer. "Do you think it's another attack, or a system malfunction?" Taro asked him.

"We're about to find out," the wolf replied.

"Boss!" Rezo's voice rang out suddenly.

"What happened? Give me all the details."

"About an hour ago, we were loading crates into the cargo bay when Littlefeather accidentally knocked one box into another with the forklift as he went up the ramp into the ship. The crate fell off the lift and something inside the container exploded." They could hear the red panda swallow as he tried not to talk too quickly. "The explosion blew away half of the cargo bay door and took out the main airlock. Mark was behind the plasteel windshield on the lift, or he might have been killed. What was left of the forklift was blown halfway across the tarmac. He has a broken arm and some burns to both legs, but it could have been a lot worse."

"Anyone else hurt?"

"There are a few bumps and bruises from blown debris, but otherwise everybody else is fine, although shaken. Carmen and Tsarina took Littlefeather to the local hospital about twenty minutes ago. Several fires inside the cargo bay ignited, but the fire suppressant system extinguished them before anything got out of control. The spaceport fire department is still examining everything to make sure nothing else is smoldering. I was talking with the police just now when you called and I really should get back down there."

"Okay, put somebody else on the line so I can get more details."

"Right… here's Riki again."

"I'm here, Merlin," the lemur's voice said.

"Riki, I want you to make sure everyone on your crew is issued a sidearm," the lupine captain said gravely. "Since all you are supposed to be hauling this time is textiles, this sounds like another attack on the company. There may be more forthcoming, so I want everyone to be on alert."

"That scares me," Riki replied. "There are some of us I'm sure have never used a gun before… I think those will probably be more of a danger carrying one than any other outside source."

"Nevertheless, I want it done. If you don't have any firearms, I'm authorizing you to purchase enough handguns for the crew."

"Yes sir, I'll make sure the word gets around."

Merlin looked over at Renny and knew the cheetah's concerned expression mirrored his own. "What else can you tell me?" he asked.

"The police have already been looking through the debris and found what they believe is a timer from the bomb."

"Wow, they work fast!" Renny replied.

"Their bomb squad moved in quickly," Riki agreed. "They were sifting through the debris within minutes of getting here. Apparently this is commonplace in spaceports these days and they are stationed nearby. They are currently going through the remaining crates to make sure there aren't any others, as well as the containers of our mail quota."

"What condition is the ship in?" Taro asked.

"As Captain Kegawa mentioned, our main airlock and most of the cargo bay door is in ruin. The blast blew out the engine room windows, as well as those in most nearby buildings, and started a number of fires both inside and outside of the ship. The overhead crane is a wreck and the door to elevator lift is out of operation, making it difficult to get to the upper levels. Patch says he and Paxton can do most of the repairs inside the ship themselves, but until the airlock and bay door is replaced, we won't be launching anytime soon. Pax is currently examining the outside structure of the ship around the hold. The initial report he gave the captain a few minutes ago says that it appears to be intact. It could have been a lot worse if it had exploded after we'd taken off…"

"Mark's carelessness might have actually spared the ship," Taro remarked.

"What about the engines?" Renny asked.

"The blast never made it inside as far as the engine room," Riki replied. "The windows were blown out from the concussion, but the explosion didn't make it much further. Patch says the engines are okay."

"Riki," Merlin said after a moment of thought, "Pockets and Maximillian are already en route to Algegrath. They were headed to your location to visit with Patch, but inform them that their shore leave has been cancelled. Their orders are to help Patch and Paxton make the repairs as quickly as possible. As for everyone else on the Hidalgo Sun who is able – their orders are to give the mechanics as much assistance as necessary."

"I understand, sir."

"Have Jonesy contact Interstellar Insurance to get their local adjuster over to take a look at things before the repairs start. This needs to be done pronto."

"I'll get your orders to the captain as soon as possible."

"One more thing," Merlin said. "I want you to hire some local security guards to watch the ship around the clock until such time as the Hidalgo Sun can take off again. The business funds will pay their fees."

"Right away."

"I'm going to stay carry a DC with me while I'm away from the Horizon," Merlin added as he took one of the digital communication units from a drawer under the Com station. He examined its label and said, "I'll be on frequency channel 707 and will await any report your people might have for me."

"Aye, sir," the lemur replied.

"Stay on your toes," Merlin said at last.

"Goodbye, sir," Riki answered. The signal cut off and then the wolf looked back up at Taro and Renny.

"Is our leave canceled, too?" the navigator asked.

"No," Merlin replied with the shake of his head. "There's no need for that, but I would caution you to be careful while you're out and about. If it's a terrorist attack against us, as I suspect, our unknown enemy may know more about our delivery schedule and be aware of the location of the Blue Horizon, in addition to the Hidalgo Sun. It might be a good idea if I hire guards to watch the Horizon, too. The ship sitting here alone during our extended stay would be too easy to sabotage."

"This is going to make for a nervous vacation," Taro mused, "if I have to watch my back everywhere I go."

"Well, you two will have to watch each other's back," Merlin replied with a wry smile, "as I doubt you'll be inseparable." He thought for a moment and then frowned again. "I would recommend the Buddy-system for everyone so no one is caught alone anywhere, but unfortunately everyone else has already scattered to the four winds."

"We're going to ask Tanis if he wants to tag along with us," Taro said, "so he won't have to watch himself alone."

"You've already missed him," Merlin replied. "He left a half hour ago to find a travel agent to see what he could get into during his time off. He left me the address of the hotel where he's going to be staying, however."

"He should have gone with Lori," Renny said. "He might have had to put up with her weirdness, but at least he wouldn't have been alone."

The wolf snickered. "I don't think he would have felt safe going to some of the places she intended to go," he said with a grin. "Lori's a great cook, but he knows that she's into some things the rest of us find pretty strange."

"What about you and Samantha?" Taro asked. "You two have anything special planned?"

"Oh, I thought I'd drag him to all the intimate apparel shops and see if I could find something kinky that would fit him," Samantha said with a laugh from the doorway.

"Not on your life!" the wolf replied. He gave a lopsided smile to Renny and said, "She's been threatening me with non-stop shopping since we landed."

"I'd vote for camping, myself," the cheetah replied.

"You would," Samantha retorted, "although I'm sure you'd be just as happy playing with a ball of yarn."

"At least that would be more entertaining than a rawhide chew toy," Renny shot back with a grin. "Where's your flea collar?"

"It's packed away in the suitcase, cry-kitty." Samantha whacked the navigator on the arm with a wink. "So, what's everyone gathered in here for?" she asked. "Are you conspiring now that everyone else has gone?"

The levity in the room disappeared at once. "There's been an attack on the Hidalgo Sun," Taro said somberly.

"Huh, what?" asked the surprised Border collie. "Oh no… what happened?"

Merlin, Taro, and Renny took turns filling her in on the situation. After tense moments, she sat down in the center seat of the bridge, her eyes moist. "That's just awful," she said in a choked voice. "Merlin?"

The wolf shook his head slowly. "Rezo's people will start making repairs as soon as they can, but I need to call the SPF about this, and inform the home office before we take off." He looked up at Taro and Renny and added, "There's no reason for you to stick around if you want to leave."

Taro reached into the Com drawer and pulled out another of the DCs. "We'll be on channel frequency 772 if anything more comes up."

"Right."

Taro exchanged glances with Samantha before she and Renny left the bridge. When Sam looked back at Merlin, he looked worried as he held up his DC. "I wish I'd had Durant take one of these with him up into the mountains," he said quietly. "We don't have any other way to inform him about the situation."

"I know," Samantha replied as she got up and moved to the wolf's side. She brushed her fingers through his head fur as he looked up at her and said, "Durant's been looking his age lately. Maybe he'll have the chance to actually relax up there in the woods if he doesn't know about this."

"Possibly," Merlin remarked, "but you know we'll catch fire from him for not trying to reach him when he finally finds out about it."

"What's that?" Renny asked an hour later. He and Taro had stopped in a small street-side curio shop to have a look around. The vixen had picked up a small figurine from a shelf and was examining a label affixed to its underside.

Taro smiled and held up the ceramic figure in the palm of one hand. It was a red fox much like herself, but of the non-sentient variety common on most of the Planetary Alignment worlds. It was about the size of her hand and was in a trotting position.

"Heh… that's cute," Renny said with a smile of his own.

"You like it?" Taro asked.

"Actually, yes," the cheetah replied genuinely. "Its facial markings are similar to yours."

"That's what drew me to it," Taro said. "If I were a wild fox, this is probably what I would have looked like."

"Well, that settles it," Renny replied, withdrawing his credicard. "I shall have to have it."

"Uh-uh," Taro giggled as she clutched the figurine to her chest. "I'll buy it for you as a gift."

"A gift?"

"Yes, Renny, a gift. Something for you to remember me by if we ever get separated again. The purpose of a souvenir is to remember."

"In that case," the navigator replied, "I need to find one of a wild cheetah for you in return."

Taro chuckled as her friend started looking through the various figurines on the shelf. After a moment, he picked up another fox and shook his head. "Now, this is odd…" he said quietly. He held it up near his face and examined it closely.

"What's odd? Find another one that looks like me?"

"No…" Renny replied slowly. "This one looks just like my best friend from flight school!"

"Your best friend was a fox?" Taro asked.

"Yeah. Jerry wasn't Hestran, but he did look a bit like this little guy."

Taro took a close look at the figurine Renny held and then looked up at him with a wink. "If this guy reminded you of him, your friend Jerry must have been quite nice on the eyes."

Renny chuckled. "Yeah, well, he was quite the ladies' magnet. I used to call him the Foxenator just to get a rise out of him, but he was basically a good guy. He was studying to be a doctor, but wanted a pilot's license too. He was more passionate about flying than anyone else in the school at the time, and the women thought Jerry Somner becoming a doctor was the greatest thing since baked Jinkles."

"What happened to him?"

"He went on to be a doctor like he wanted," Renny replied as he set the figurine back on the shelf, "but wound up in a clinic in a backwater town on Pomen. The last time I heard from him, he was looking for an opportunity to leave. I don't think a small town office suited him very much. He likes flying too much to be stationary. As far as I know, he's still there as a general practitioner."

"Well, I'm going to take my counterpart to the register and have your gift wrapped," Taro said as she began to walk back up the aisle.

"Wait!" Renny said suddenly. "I still have to find your cheetah!"

Tanis looked at his reflection in the mirror and sighed. He did not really feel like going out on the town, but he was reluctant to just stay in his hotel room and mope around. He knew he had not been very good company lately, and knew he had to do something to break himself out of his depression, but it seemed like every time he turned around there was a news broadcast or newspaper article about what happened to Nalirra.

The Roppa War was over. Sed Amittias had been located, immediately executed by the Tanatans, and the Emperor's daughter returned unharmed. Nalirra was then claimed by Oe'Tanata as occupied territory, and as the de facto government, withdrew its membership from the PA with a warning for all outsiders to stay away from the Roppa star system. Unauthorized vessels entering the system were destroyed without preamble and all other communications on or off the planet were jammed.

 In order to keep the peace, the Planetary Alignment Legislature had voted to honor the demands of Oe'Tanata. PA aid had been offered to Nalirra as an Alignment ally repeatedly before the downfall, but since Amittias had continued to refuse help, the Legislature was now in no frame to do anything more for the occupied planet. It had been summarily written off as foreign territory.

The desert fox often wondered lately why the fall of his homeworld upset him so much. He had been happy to leave his birthplace far behind and was always hesitant to go back if the planet ever came up on the Blue Horizon's delivery schedule. He had held no interest in ever returning to Nalirra, but now that the option was no longer open to him, he felt a deep regret that had been eating away at him. As much as he had wanted to be away from Nalirra, he should try to put it out of his mind and feel relieved that he would never have to return… but it was so very hard.

Tanis sighed again to himself and felt his stomach growl. He had not eaten all day, and now that it was early in the evening, he was famished. He had originally considered just having something delivered to his room, but he was tired of looking at the room's walls and wanted to get out for some fresh air.

He nodded to himself and knew getting out was the right choice. He dressed in casual dark brown pants and black boots, with a loose white, short-sleeved shirt that was open midway to his stomach to allow his white ruff free. He reached back to adjust the tail flap at the back of his pants and then picked up a thin tan jacket in case the evening air was cool.

Tanis left the hotel room quickly and then shared the elevator to the first floor with a pair of female canines who watched him coyly behind half-lidded eyes. The desert fox might have taken up to flirting with them had he been in a better frame of mind, but he tried to ignore them now.

When he reached the street, he wondered which way to go to find a decent restaurant. He almost hailed a cab, but at the last moment, he decided he would be a little adventurous and see what he could find on his own. He turned right and began walking along the sidewalk, his jacket draped over one arm and his hands in his pockets. There were many lights along this particular avenue and he thought he could hear live music up ahead.

When he had walked a block, he discovered the source of the music. A town square was teaming with people in what looked to be a celebration of some kind. A local band played on a raised pedestal and people of all species were dancing together in time with the lively beat in a merry atmosphere. Food and drinks were being passed around freely and there was activity everywhere. Tanis smiled in spite of himself when he saw a balcony above lined with dancing females in various states of undress; some were close to being unclad altogether, preferring to let the night air flow over their fur.

The desert fox had seen his days of carousing in the past, but he had never seen a gathering like this before. The people who danced together did not seem to have partners, but bumped and ground their hips, entwining their tails together with whoever was near them. He wondered what the celebration was for, but the beat of the music in his ears and the scents that reached his nose made his head swim. A banner loosely hanging to the side of a building displayed the words Loth'lan Ree in bold red letters, but he had no idea what it meant.

He moved closer to the crowd to see if he might join in on the fun and suddenly found himself surrounded by six of the cutest young females he had seen in a long while. They were all of different species, but they seemed to have zeroed in on the new male in their midst.

Eager to take part in this distraction, Tanis allowed himself to dance with them and felt the strong need to enjoy himself. Within moments, all previous thoughts of Nalirra were gone from his mind.

"The Robin's Red Breast?" Taro said with a grin as she looked at her feline companion. "Is this a night club or a strip joint?" she asked.

Renny gave her a smirk. "The hotel directory just called it a local bar. It didn't say anything about the entertainment."

"Ah," said the vixen. "Feeling like a last drink before we head back to the room?"

"Yeah," Renny replied. "Just something light. I know you don't normally indulge very much in alcohol, but perhaps a little something to warm the blood…?" He gave her a little wink and she laughed in spite of herself. They had spent the evening at a nice dinner and then had gone to a theater to see a local stage play. They had left the theatre and decided to walk around in the night air on their way back to their hotel. Taro and Renny had not had opportunities to just get out and enjoy time together on the town and both of them had a good time that evening.

Renny pushed the door open and allowed his companion to enter first. As soon as the panels parted, they could hear live music and instantly saw a crowd of people out on the dance floor. It was moderately crowded and the air was smoky, but after a quick look around, the only seats available seemed to be up at the bar. Taro looked up at a male red fox that stood guard beside the doorway and gave him brief wink before she followed Renny across the room.

There was plenty of light to see by, but the dark wood paneling on the walls and ceiling gave the room a shadowy feel. As they took two empty stools between a pair of felines, Renny read the placard of the band and briefly snickered at the notion that none of the five musicians resembled the construction workers the name suggested.

Taro gave the bartender their drink order and then turned back to Renny. He had the fox figurine on the bar and was petting it with a finger. "You really like that thing, don't you?" she asked with a smile.

"Yeah," the cheetah replied. "It's a new treasure." Their drinks were brought to them and the couple fell silent for a few moments while they listened to the music and watched the dancing. Both of them felt tempted to join the crowd.

"Why not?" Taro said suddenly as if reading his mind. Renny grinned at her and held out his hand in invitation.

A little later, they returned to their stools when the band announced they were taking a short break. When they reached the bar, Renny took the figurine out of his pocket and set it back on the counter next to his glass.

"Where are you going?" He asked when Taro stood up.

"I'm going to take a little jaunt to the powder room," she replied with a wink. "I need to tinkle."

"I'll be right here with my girlfriend," Renny said as he lovingly stroked the figurine. Taro laughed and then skirted around the edge of the dance floor toward the public water closet.

Renny sat on his bar stool for several moments in silence until the band got up to play again. Only two of the musicians had returned to play a duet of energetic chords, but couples all over the room jumped back out onto the dance floor as if the whole band were playing again.

For several moments, Renny watched the dancers and caught the eye of a slinky calico dancing erotically. She made some rather suggestive moves in his direction and Renny swallowed in spite of himself. Distracted, he did not notice the two felines who had been at the bar all evening get up from their stools and flank him.

In the midst of the loud music and dancing in the place, no one but the calico saw one of the jaguars suddenly put a fist into Renny's stomach. The cheetah was taken completely off guard and the second jaguar brought a knee up into his face when he doubled over. Renny dropped without a sound and the dark pair grabbed his limp arms. They dragged him to the side of the room past dancers who paid them no attention and then disappeared into a side hallway. The calico closed her eyes and continued dancing as if she had not seen a thing. The jaguars moved purposely to the back exit and pulled Renny out into a dingy alley behind the establishment.

One of the assailants kicked the cheetah in the side with a hard-toe boot just as he was regaining his breath. Renny chirped in sudden pain and the other jaguar slammed a fist into his temple. They dropped him to the newspaper-strewn ground and then began to beat and kick him vigorously.

Renny had no strength in him to fight back and could do nothing more than lie there as he was beaten. He tried to protect his middle by curling up, but one of the attackers stomped on his ankle for his trouble. Renny yelped and tried to say something, but he was kicked again.

"All right, Zuberi, that's enough," one of the ebony cats said in a raspy voice. "Do it."

The other jaguar reached into an inner pocket in his jacket and pulled out a revolver. He took aim at the cheetah and rapidly fired three shots into him.

Without a look back at their victim, the dark cats split up and took off in opposite directions along the alley. A moment later, they were gone and Renny's body convulsed a few times between several garbage cans before growing still in the night air.

Taro stepped out of the ladies' room and glanced across the nightclub through the smoky haze and the throng of bodies dancing to the music of the live band. Mountain Movers, Inc. was only a local band, but they were skilled players and the vixen felt they could have held their own professionally were they to try. As it was, she had enjoyed the music and had danced a little with Renny out on the floor earlier. The cheetah had little experience with dancing, but he had done well enough to elicit advances by other ladies in the place.

She swished her tail in time with the music as she made her way across the nightclub toward the bar where she and Renny had been nursing their drinks. When she got there, her partner's barstool was unoccupied. Taro grinned to herself, sure the cheetah was out on the dance floor again, but when she turned to search the crowd for him, something at her feet caught her eye. She knelt down next to the stool next to her and picked up the ceramic fox figurine she had given him. Its tail was broken off, as well as the tip of the nose and one ear.

It was unlike Renny to knock something like that to the floor and leave it where it lay, especially after making such a fuss over how much he had liked it. The vixen suddenly became uneasy and began searching the crowd. When she could not locate him, she frowned and turned back toward the bar. She wondered if he had gone to the men's room and decided to wait for him. She held the trinket tightly in one hand and continued to look for him. After several minutes, there was still no sign of the cheetah, so she turned back to the bar.

The barkeep, a thin opossum in a white apron lustfully watched a nearby pair of scantily-clad young females gyrating to the music against their boyfriends. Taro reached out and tugged gently on his sleeve. The man looked annoyed, but nodded to her.

"Need a refill?" he asked with a gesture toward the empty glass before her.

"Where is my friend?" she asked him loudly. She practically had to shout to be heard over the music.

The opossum shrugged his shoulders and returned his attention to the dancers. Taro snorted and reached out again. She snared his apron and pulled him to her. He looked up into her eyes wildly and struggled to get free.

"Lemmee go, lady!" he squealed as he tried to pry her fingers from his garment. Her grip remained solid and she pulled him up off the floor so that he was eye to eye with her.

"Where is my friend?" she asked again in a menacing tone.

"He – he left!" the marsupial said quickly with a hard swallow.

"Left?"

"Yeah… he went out the back with two black cats!" he squeaked as he gestured to the exit at one side of the room.

The vixen released the bartender and he fell back onto his tail behind the bar. Taro pushed her way through the edge of the crowd toward the back exit. She reached the door amidst unkind jeers at her for brashly shoving through them, and she darted into a small darkened hallway that serviced an office, two storage rooms, and the back door.

The exit was partially ajar and she swung it open quickly. She found herself in a narrow, garbage-strewn alley that stunk badly. She looked both ways along its length, but saw no one in the darkness. A single, low-powered bulb illuminated a small area near the door that gently closed behind her and blocked out the inside noise of the establishment. Taro was undecided which direction to take, but then she heard a raspy sound to her right. She turned toward a loose pile of newspapers behind some trash cans and recognized an out-flung yellow arm with a familiar black spotted pattern amongst them.

"Renny!" She scattered the garbage cans and moved quickly to kneel down next to him. She brushed aside the papers that partially covered him and suddenly drew in a breath of shock at the large amount of blood that covered him and the papers around him.

"Great Maker, No!" she choked as she reached for the vein in his neck. There was a pulse, but it was weak, and his breathing was labored. It was hard to tell exactly where or how he was hurt from the amount of blood that covered him, but she had to risk moving him. He was practically holding hands with Death.

Taro stumbled as she picked Renny up from the ground of the filthy alley, though not from his weight, but from the emotional turmoil inside her. Although his feline body had always been limber, he was now completely limp in her arms. Her white blouse soaked up the blood flowing freely from the cheetah's wounds when she held him close to her bosom. "Renny!" she cried in a choked voice as she touched her nose to his. "Don't you dare die on me!"

There was no response from the navigator, other than his labored breathing, and Taro swallowed the bile that rose up in her throat. She turned with him toward the back door of the nightclub. She pushed her burden through the door and then weaved her way through the narrow hallway filled with empty liquor boxes. The din of music became louder through the corridor and she moved through it into a hazy, smoke-filled room. Couples continued to dance in time with the music in the dim light until a petite cocker spaniel saw the bloody body in the vixen's arms. She screamed and backed away into the crowd. Within a moment, the band stopped playing and others began talking amongst themselves in murmurs. Taro ignored them all and took Renny straight across the dance floor to the bar.

"Somebody call an ambulance!" she yelled above the crowd. Taro set her friend and lover on the floor beside the bar stools and then quickly whipped off her blouse. She tore it into sections, oblivious to the stares at her black lace bra, and tried to staunch his wounds with the fabric. The gathered crowd did nothing to help her, but merely gawked at the injured cheetah and the almost-topless vixen.

A pot-bellied pig in a white shirt and red suspenders came out of the back with the bartender and rushed up to her. He pulled a thick cigar from his lips and shouted, "Whattaya think yer doin'?! Get 'im out of 'ere! E's bleedin' all over my place!"

"Can't you see he's dying?" Taro exclaimed. "We've got to help him!"

The manager snorted and gestured wildly with both hands. "We see fatal brawls alla time, lady," he said loudly. "Get that corpse outside – you can wait for the amb'lance out dere!"

Taro was getting frantic. Renny was too badly hurt for her meager treatment to stop his bleeding, and she fought back the tears welling up in her eyes. "Give me some help, somebody!" she shouted. Then she glared at the manager and the bartender, too. "I don't want to move him any more until the ambulance arrives. We're staying right here!"

The pig's brow wrinkled and his eyes narrowed. He raised his left hand and made a motion to someone across the room. Four security guards emerged from the crowd and formed a semi-circle around Taro and Renny. Taro looked up as one of them stepped forward and put a hand on her shoulder. She was about to break the male fox's wrist for his trouble, but felt his grip tighten with enough force that she could not move it. Not all foxes in the PA were from Hestra – in fact, they were a rarity since few Hestrans actually leave their homeworld. However, from the immobile grip upon her arm, Taro knew instantly that this fellow had the same dense musculature that she had.

"Let's make it nice and easy to the front curb, missy," the bouncer said in a low, but sympathetic voice. "The ambulance is already on its way."

Without further argument, Taro gathered up Renny gently in her arms and followed the fox through the parting crowd. She looked down at the cheetah and could see the pale palms of his hands getting whiter from blood loss. Her heart sank with the realization that Renny would probably never make it and the tears came freely this time. If only they had known the sequence of events over the past three days, Merlin might not have landed in Iverson at all. First the Hidalgo Sun, and now Renny. How many more tears might have to be shed before they were able to leave Alexandrius?

Tanis snickered when the young Spaniel playfully nipped at one of his large ears. He looked up at her and pulled her down to the ground beside him. He winked at her and then rolled her onto her back on the soft grass in the park so that she looked up at him. There were other couples lying in the grass all over the park and sounds of the celebration from the nearby crowd continued on.

"Ya still have not told me what this all festivity is about," he told her with a quick kiss. "Whatever it is, I like it."

The woman chuckled as she put her arms around his neck and shoulders. "It's a celebration of Life, my nameless friend," she replied with a smile. "Loth'lan Ree was the patron of The Kiss."

"Well, now…" Tanis said in a quiet voice, "I'm game to take part in local tradition, but my hotel room is about a block away, if ya don't mind."

The Spaniel laughed. "Too shy for play in public?" she teased. "Okay, we can disappear to your room for a while. My friends won't be looking for me anytime soon anyway."

Tanis grinned at her lithe form as he helped her to her feet. She grasped his arm and pulled him along as she began running in the direction of the only hotels on the street. The desert fox laughed aloud at her anticipation and they ran up the street together.

Moments later, they were in the lift heading up to his room, but they had already started kissing. The doors opened and a Chihuahua looked up at them in disgust. "Getta room!" he sneered at them.

"Good idea," Tanis replied with a laugh. "This way," he said as he pulled his friend up the hallway. He opened the door with his magnetic key, and just as they entered the room, the telephone on the desk began to ring."

"Don't answer it," the Spaniel said as she traced a finger along her lips.

Tanis was tempted to ignore the phone, but he bit his bottom lip and replied, "Sorry, I have to. I'm a medic and always on call. It will only take a moment – stay hot, sweetie."

"Ooh, are you going to play doctor with me?" she laughed coyly.

Tanis licked his lips and then picked up the phone.

Taro looked up at the sound of approaching feet and jumped up from the chair she had been warming when Merlin and Samantha stopped before her. Tanis got to his feet slowly, concern clearly in his eyes.

"How is he?" Samantha asked as her eyes went to the vixen's blood-stained pants underneath a white medical smock she wore loosely around her shoulders.

Taro's eyes were bloodshot from distress and she stumbled over her words as she sought how to reply. "He, uh… I mean… uhm…"

"He's been severely beaten and has a concussion," Tanis answered for her. "He has three broken ribs, a broken ankle, and the ligaments have been torn in his left wrist. The bullets didn't hit anything vital, but he's lost a lot of blood and the situation is critical."

Merlin put an arm around Taro and she clung to him without a word. "Is there anything you can do for him?" he asked the desert fox.

Tanis looked at the floor and shook his head. "Since I'm not a fully-licensed physician, they won't allow me to help," he said. Sam put a hand on his shoulder and he looked up at her with a frown. "I know I've not been very friendly to Renny lately," he said in a low voice, "but I would have never wished this on him. Despite our rivalry, he's been a good friend, even if I've acted like a jerk."

"He's been, uhm, unconscious since I found him in the alley," Taro said quietly. "Too much blood…"

"Are they giving him a transfusion?" Merlin asked. "Surely they—"

Tanis shook his head as he looked over at Taro. "There aren't many feline donors with his blood type in the area," he said. "That's all they would tell us."

Samantha moved to Taro. "C'mon, let's go get you into some clean clothes," she said gently.

"No…" Taro murmured. "I don't want to leave."

Samantha nodded. "Okay, I'll go get something for you." She looked up at Merlin and he nodded his approval. She leaned forward and touched her head against Taro's. "I'll be back shortly," she said.

"Thanks, Sam."

After the Border collie had left, the three of them sat down in the waiting area chairs. Doctors, nurses, and orderlies moved back and forth through the room for one thing or another and a monotone voice over the intercom droned announcements for phone calls or emergencies throughout the hospital. Merlin listened gravely as Taro explained all she knew of the situation, which was not much. She had already given a statement to a policeman who had been on duty in the emergency room and she was weary from worry.

There had been no more news concerning Renny, and when the medical staff was questioned, all they would say was to be patient. Taro finally stretched out on a bench seat with her head in Tanis' lap, as Merlin took to pacing the floor.

The only description local police could get of the two men who had left with Renny was they were "black cats". The marsupial bartender claimed ignorance to their exact species and there were no other witnesses who would come forth at the bar to give any leads. Merlin had known a number of 'black cats' in his lifetime and the only one who had ever threatened him with harm was Sagan. For a brief moment, the wolf's hackles raised as his mind entertained the idea that Sagan had somehow returned from the grave and he glanced quickly at Taro. No, he reminded himself with a shake of his head. Sagan was quite thoroughly dead. If Taro ripping his head around backwards had not killed him, the gelatinous goop his body had reduced itself to had finished him off. The SPF had never been able to give him an explanation for what foul thing had happened to the pirate's body.

Merlin ran a hand over his face and paced some more. He felt helpless, uninformed, and was frustrated by it all. Only Renny could give anyone a clue as to what had happened to him, and he was not able to divulge any information on the matter.

It seemed that all they could do now was to wait for the doctors to give them any morsel of information.

"Captain Sinclair?"

Merlin started awake and his chin slipped off the hand he had been resting on. He looked up wearily and recognized the red and grey uniform of an SPF officer who stood in front of him. He nodded and rubbed his eyes. It was early in the morning and there had been no other word on Renny's condition. He had fallen asleep leaning on his hands on the arms of the chair, though his dreams had been troubled with images of Sagan.

"Yes, I'm Sinclair," he muttered through his hands. "What can I do for you?"

"Sir, I'm Officer Sashay with the Spatial Police Force," the Siamese cat replied quietly as Merlin stood up before her, "and this is my partner, Officer Wagner." The silver fox beside her nodded silently, as Merlin's eyes moved to him. "We've just arrived from Algegrath, where we've been investigating the attack on your sister ship, the Hidalgo Sun."

Merlin felt himself coming fully awake and he looked around for his companions. Tanis sat on one end of a nearby couch, his head drooped forward as he snored softly. Taro lay stretched on her side, her head in the fennec's lap. Her sides moved in the quiet rhythm of slumber, and Samantha occupied another chair, also fast asleep. Merlin motioned for the officers to follow him down the hallway. When they had rounded a corner, he turned back to face them.

"It's been a long night for them," he explained quietly. "I'd like to let them sleep."

"We understand," Sashay replied. The feline nodded to her partner and then said, "Captain, we have reason to believe the attack on your sister ship is tied in with the previous threats you've received, as well as the vandalism to your home office on Dennier."

"I've felt that all along," the wolf replied. "While there is no proof, I also suspect the attack on my navigator last night is related."

"Now, that's not been established as yet," Wagner said in a gravelly voice. "According to the local authorities, your friends were in a part of Iverson that is well known for its crime rate. This could be isolated from the other incidents."

Merlin narrowed his eyes as the silver fox. "That doesn't convince me, officer," he said. "If the members of the crew of both my ships have been watched by these attackers, that bar would have only provided them with an ample opportunity because of the area's crime rate. This wouldn't be the first time that my ship has been stalked."

Sashay tilted her head and twitched her whiskers. "Oh?"

"Pirates have plagued me for years, officer," Merlin answered, "and one in particular monitored my movements enough that our final confrontation resulted in the destruction of my original ship."

"Ah yes, the incident at Crescentis with Sagan," Wagner said in remembrance. "That case file is well known to us."

Merlin lowered his head, and his voice, when he asked in hesitation, "Sagan was dead, yes?"

Wagner nodded at the wolf's apparent train of thought. "Yes, Captain, he's irrevocably dead. What was left of his body was taken to the labs on Joplin for further study. The remains have been divided up well enough for research among the labs that you don't have to be concerned with him coming back from the dead."

Merlin blinked twice and then allowed himself a small smile for the officers. "Of course," he said. "That was silly of me. I suppose the superstitions of my chief engineer got to me."

Sashay grinned. "Jerad Porter, right?" she asked. At Merlin's surprised nod, she said, "I thought so. He asked us the same thing when we interviewed him." The wolf chuckled in amusement, but it sounded odd in his ears due to the current situation. "Anyway," the Siamese cat continued, "I know that your people here have already been questioned by the local authorities, but we would like to talk to them ourselves so we can keep the details straight from one person to another in this investigation."

"They'll still be groggy if you try to talk to them now," Merlin told her. "I'm barely coherent, myself."

"I'm awake enough to talk to them," another voice said. Wagner started suddenly at the words and he spun around to face Taro. The vixen was grooming her fur with a soft brush, and although her eyes looked weary, she seemed alert.

"Officers," Merlin said, "this is my first officer, Taro Nichols. She was with my navigator at the time he was shot. Taro, these are SPF officers Sashay and Wagner."

"What can I tell you?" the red fox asked. "I'm afraid I don't know who did it to him."

"We understand that," Sashay said with a gentle smile. "We'd just like to find out what you do know, even if you think something is insignificant."

"I will tell you whatever I can," Taro replied.

Lorelei Easter hummed softly to herself as she walked through the busy Aglet Spaceport terminal. She twirled a daisy-like flower between her fingers that she had purchased from a vendor in the previous concourse and then placed it in her fur just above her right ear. Although she had only been away from the Blue Horizon for a day, she felt the need to return so she could retrieve some of her aromatic candles to burn in her room at the resort.

She neared the concourse terminal that led out toward the freighter landing pads and passed through the scanners without a problem. She smiled sweetly at the young feline who manned the station and then walked casually down the ramp to the outside, still humming to herself. The rabbit examined her fingernails as she walked across the tarmac, instinctively knowing which landing pad where her ship was currently docked.

"Stop right there, miss," a sharp voice called out. Startled, Lorelei halted and looked up into the deep brown eyes of a golden retriever dressed in a security uniform that blocked her path. He held a semi-automatic rifle with its muzzle pointed generally in her direction, without directly at her.

"Oh," the rabbit said in surprise. She looked up at the ship they were guarding, thinking she had walked in the wrong direction, but she recognized the large oval shape of the Blue Horizon and its two-tone blue paint scheme. "Excuse me," she said with a smile as she brushed her hands on her rainbow-dyed tank-top. "I didn't mean to run into you." She started to step around the canine, but he brought the muzzle of his weapon quickly around and jabbed it hard into her side. She stumbled and fell to her knees.

"I said Stop!" the retriever commanded with a growl. Lorelei looked up at him, holding her ribs in pain with a hard swallow.

"What did you do that for?" she whined. "I'm just returning to my ship!"

"No one is allowed near this vessel," the man told her as two more guards came to his aid, a rhinoceros and a white tiger. All three pointed their weapons at the cottontail rabbit and Lorelei suddenly realized they were not joking.

"What's the matter?" she asked. "What's happened to my ship?"

"Where is your identification?" the tiger demanded.

Lorelei stuck out her bottom lip and her eyebrows drew together in indignation at having her question ignored. She reached toward her back pocket and the rhino quickly brought his rifle to bear upon her forehead. She froze and then slowly moved to get her identicard. She removed it gently without taking her eyes off of the long barrel pointed between her eyes. She held the card up just as slowly. The tiger snatched it from her hand and looked it over carefully.

"It's not one of the special issues," he growled at the retriever.

"Now listen," Lorelei said as she pointed suddenly at the Horizon. "That's my – "

The tiger growled at her sudden movement and quickly snared her wrist. He pushed her down upon the concrete tarmac and placed his foot in the middle of her back. "You are under arrest for violation of a secure area," he said angrily. "I would advise you to stop resisting and to shut your trap! You'll have plenty of time to make your confession to a lawyer."

"But--!"

"You say one more word, miss, and you'll go unconscious – or worse."

Lorelei looked at the boot near her face and she could feel tears starting to well up in her eyes, as well as the cold barrel resting on her neck behind her left ear. She managed to nod her understanding and bit her bottom lip as she was pulled up to her feet. The tiger drew her hands behind her and sturdy handcuffs were placed around her slender wrists. Without another word, the retriever escorted her back toward the terminal building while the other two guards returned to their station points in front of the Blue Horizon.

"Mr. Sinclair?"

Merlin looked up as the orderly approached him. Samantha and Tanis jumped to their fe