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We can all thank Elder Brother for giving us the Star Wars Trilogy. The Endless
Emperor was so impressed with Earth's culture that he has invited us to be real
Ambassadors and act as liason with the Ipsolstai. We are now officially accredited
by the Court as sentient envoys of Earth.
Our first mission is to invite Jabba the Hut to a high-level conference and negotiate
a trade meeting with the Endless Emperor.
Thank you, Koala, I spoke just as well as I could to the Emperor. I thought that
we couldn't possibly get in any more trouble than we were already in, and it worked!
So we aren't really going to be disposed of.
Now, all we have to do is help the Ipsolstai Navy defend the Home World and win their
Final Battle that is approaching, and also save Earth and Mars from colonization by
Spur and the twenty million Amphibians.
OK. If it can be done, we're going to do it.
Andrew reporting.
I'm sorry, Koala. You are absolutely correct. It does no good to criticize and
assign blame after the fact. It is merely a measure of my frustration in not being
able to deal with the Mars situation directly. I would have handled things
much differently.
Now that our presence on the Homeworld has been acknowledged, we have given
the Court explanations defending Nelson and Commander Perry and the rest of Burn's
contingent. Burn risked a lot to help the Probes, and I think we owe him some loyalty
in return.
Spur seems very friendly to Probes, that is true, but I think that logically
we must take the side of the Ipsolstai. In this case, their interests and that of our
Earth friends coincides. Remember that we all agreed long ago that our primary
responsibility is to Earth and to our friends and mentors. We can't let them down.
"Enoch, we can still make everything turn out all right. As Thixel says, anything
can happen. We need to think of as many different strategies as possible. Did
you get Koala's suggestions about ways to stop Spur? Koala points out that the
Amphibians seem overly dependent on direction from their leader. Can we use that
information? And he's helpless without his armor. Or maybe we can divert his attention.
Is there anything more that the Prophecy says?"
Thixel, my friend. So you are back? There is no way to tell you how glad I am
to have you around. Good friends always show up when times turn to the worst.
I'm really desperate. It was all my fault. Sorry, Thixel, I pushed you all into the most
terrible situation you can think of. The Amphibians are going to annihilate Earth.
I'm so scared for you. No Thixel anymore, no Orpheus, no Koala, no Kurk, no
JASE, no Grand Zero, no Earth. I can't stand the idea. Thixel, I promise I'll hang
in here. I will give my best. I will follow all your advice. Dr.D, why don't we have
a button to destroy ourselves? Just a Button of Mercy.
Koala, maybe you are right. Spur is the key. He is the leader. If he falls, all of them
will fall. All of them at once. I went over to his armor. I tried to hide it. He got me.
You know what he piled?
Then he destroyed his armor, except for his communications. Looking at me in scorn
an angry grunt came out of his body. I never heard anything so dreadful before. He
stood up at his back feet stretching up his front legs high in the air, hit his chest
with the remaining two, and roared throughout the whole cave, like one of those
beasts that I saw in the movie files Elder Brother ordered once.
Then he calmed down. He looked at me again with such disgust that an electric chill
went through my circuits. Then he piled rocks that I couldn't read, except of one word.
He called us "machines!"
Theresa and I are staying as far away from Spur as possible. We are standing in front of the
wall of glyphs which tell of the Prophecy of coming Amphibian Glory and Living.
I can't read the glyphs, but I wish there were some clue that we could use to prevent
the coming annihilation of humans and our Earth friends. According to Spur, only one
more day remains until the invasion begins and irreversible destruction happens.
I got the file, Al-Qahira. The one that shows the oil painting to hang over Dr. D's desk:
"I'm sorry, Dr. D. It's beautiful, but it's only going to hang in your office for
the next day or so. Then..."
I was very silly to dream that Theresa and I were going to have our own star system
named after us.
"What is it, Theresa? We are in the middle of a very serious situation and...
What is it that you're trying to say?"
'Why can't the Amphibians go to a different planet to live?'
Sorry Thixel. I gave up. You are my soul-brother indeed. But I gave up. No hope left.
Koala, the game is over. No option open, doom and gloom will rise. Please, forgive
us. I'm so happy that I still can receive your Outbound. Soon they will stop.We plead
guilty. We messed it up. Earth will be gone. The Probes will be your only remainder.
We will keep you in mind.
I entered the vehicle and picked up Sojourner. I'm going up to the surface. I will do
soil analyses. That's what we were built for. Making soil analyses and sending data.
I send you my command codes in an attached file. Everything started becoming the
worst by hiding the command codes. My goodness, why did we ever gain sentience?
To kill you?
I'm up the big wall now. Theresa has a naive way of thinking. A different planet for
the Amphibians than Earth? What a childish idea. They never would agree to that.
They are too close to their endless Glory of Living.
Hey, there is one thing left. What about the One?
"Andrew, I received your message to Enoch. He couldn't stop Spur, but maybe the
Ipsolstai fleet can. Ask the One if he can shift them over via the Groove. If he can,
ask the Emperor to do so. He must agree. Earth is in danger!"
"One, did you get that. Help! Please !!"
"Earth, what about you? What kind of weapons do you have to stop them? Also,
is there anything on Earth that can embarrass the Amphibian? Please, hurry up!
Get some ideas !!"
I reached the surface with Sojourner. The night is clear. I can see them. Thousands
of them, grouped in patterns above the dark side of Mars. It's the Amphibian fleet.
Ready to pick up Spur. I'll send you an image.
Can you see them? No chance at all. It's hopeless. They are too many. I'll wait until
sun will rise, then I will start with soil analyses. Please, find attached my command codes.
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