"LUNAR: Tales From Crystal Tokyo"
LUNAR:
Tales From Crystal Tokyo
By
Daryll Pung
Episode
1-11: Mindgames
Rated:
R
Sabaat
Asteroid Field, Sabaat system, 10 October 2736
The
SLS Destiny
"And they know exactly where we are."
"By the Crystal," frowned Small Lady.
"This is not good. Have
all the Senshi report to the bridge; get us moving. Try to throw them off."
"Aye aye, Admiral."
Princess Serena sat in her chair, fingers tapping the armrest.
Diana looked at her.
"Are you okay, Reeni?" asked the cat.
The pink haired princess had a serious look on her face, one that didn't
quite match the streaks from the tears she had been shedding as they had
listened to the account of the atrocities on the surface of Congetia.
"I'll be okay, Diana," Reeni whispered.
"Right now, I'm trying to think of how we're getting out of this
one."
As the doors hissed open at the back of the bridge, the tactical officer
glanced up. "Enemy ship, range
20! Classified as... a DK cruiser,
I think. The asteroids are screwing
things up a bit, Majesty."
Reeni stood. "They
didn't waste any time, did they? Only
the one?"
"So far, your Highness."
"What's up?" asked Sailor Eos quietly.
Reeni sighed. "Congetia
has completely fallen; we listened to the last base get overrun. A DK scout ship then spotted us. It's been destroyed, but it transmitted before we killed
it."
"So, now we're being hunted," concluded Sailor Saturn. "And we're still quite heavily damaged."
"That's about the size of it," nodded Reeni.
She glanced at Sailor Saturn. "Take
command. We still have no shields;
I'm gonna stand by in the TPA to generate one.
The TPA and sublight drive are the two things that are fully operational;
weapons may cut in or out."
"Got it," replied Sailor Saturn.
"Be careful, Reeni."
"I will, Hotaru. Keep
us alive," Reeni said. She
raised her voice. "Sailor
Saturn, you have the bridge." Reeni
turned, and walked to the special TPA console.
"I have the bridge," Sailor Saturn replied.
"Activate the TPA. Keep
it charged and ready. Status of
weapons?"
"We have partial blasters; death rays all offline, and one forward
torpedo tube in action, with both types of torps, ma'am," came tactical's
reply.
"Load Ghost torpedoes. Standby
pinpoint blaster fire, and standby sublight for high acceleration maneuvering.
Keep those asteroids in mind; it would ruin our day to be nailed by
one," ordered Sailor Saturn briskly. She
moved to the big chair. "Let's
stay sharp; give me a tactical overlay on Screen 3."
The screen changed to show the current positions of both ships, and the
asteroids around them. Suddenly,
another ship appeared.
"Shit! Another DK ship,
range 23," said tactical. "Classify
as... another cruiser, ma'am."
"We're in trouble," muttered Sailor Sirius under her breath.
"Perhaps not," Sailor Vulcan commented thoughtfully. She moved to a nearby console, bringing up on Screen 4 a
detailed map of the Sabaat system. "Sailor
Saturn," she said. "There
is an old, abandoned asteroid mine not too far from our current position.
It was shut down several years ago when the asteroid was completely mined
out; reports indicate a large interior ship bay that is sufficient for our
needs. The machinery should still
be operational. We could enter,
seal the exit behind us, and leave when we were ready.
A simple bit of deception would allow us to make it appear we had hit an
asteroid and destroyed ourselves."
"Range?" asked Sailor Saturn.
"100,000 kilometers," replied Sailor Vulcan.
"10, huh? What sort of
deception?" Sailor Saturn said. "Scans
will show no debris and our ion trail."
Sailor Vulcan brought up on screen 5 an equation.
"According to calculations, the amount of debris remaining from a
direct asteroid impact would only be off by a small percentage, due to the
larger core explosion and disintegration effect if the Destiny's primary
power core were to rupture. This
should be enough to draw the DK forces off of our trail for the time being.
Our ion trail will lead right into the explosion, and the debris
remaining will match their expectations... at least for a short while."
"Whoa, whoa, wait a minute. Where
will we get debris to match the Destiny without damaging ourselves
severely?" asked Sailor Orion.
"No way," murmured Sailor America.
"You aren't!"
"We have adequate debris in the forms of the Draco and the Pleiades.
The tractor beams can be used to achieve sufficient velocity.
Both ships are currently unoccupied; it would take merely a few moments
to download both AI's into the Destiny's backup cores.
That is, if the Destiny would not mind sharing?" asked Sailor
Vulcan, raising one eyebrow.
"I could share, if need be," came the haughty reply of the
listening AI.
"No way! You are not
destroying those two ships!" snapped Sailor Sirius.
"After what they've accomplished!"
"It would afford us a better chance at repairing ourselves and
surviving, Sailor Sirius. Both
ships are so heavily damaged, it would actually take less time to build new
versions of them. It is true they
are somewhat famous and have accomplished much, but their deaths will help us
all survive. The needs of the many,
outweigh the needs of the few... or the one.
It is only logical," said Sailor Vulcan with a straight face.
Sailor Sirius glared at her, about to reply, when she noticed the stoic
Senshi's eyes, showing the internal struggle with her emotions.
Sailor Sirius closed her eyes and sighed.
"I don't know," said Sailor Orion slowly, wrestling with the
idea. "Those two..."
"She's right," admitted Sailor Sirius sadly.
"Let's do it, then," murmured Sailor America. "Before we change our minds."
Sailor Saturn nodded. "Sailor
Vulcan?"
"Downloading," Sailor Vulcan said.
"Set your course for the location Sailor Vulcan mentioned,"
directed Sailor Saturn. "Prepare
the tractor beams; set for maximum repulsion.
Open the bay doors."
"Download complete," reported Sailor Vulcan, the tiniest hint
of sadness in her voice.
"We're nearing the requested location, ma'am," said tactical.
"DK ships at range 18 and 19, respectively."
"You're sure about this?" asked Reeni.
The four Senshi shared a look. They
resolutely nodded.
"Very well," Sailor Saturn nodded.
"Access the door controls; open sesame. Prepare the Pleiades and the Draco; lower them
out."
On the viewscreen in front of them, the asteroid base's main doors slowly
rumbled open, revealing the yawning blackness within.
The doors themselves were each three times the size of the Destiny.
"Are we ready?" asked Sailor Saturn.
"Yes, ma'am. Base doors
open just enough to allow us in; we've established a connection with the base
sensors, which are still up and running," reported ops.
"Back us in, positioned so we can close the doors after we
release," ordered Sailor Saturn. "Base
sensors on screen 5."
"We're in position," came the report moments later.
The proud shape of the Destiny was now shrouded in darkness; its
running lights were dimmed.
"Target set?" asked Sailor Saturn.
"Aye, ma'am."
"The second they're clear, close the doors," said Sailor Saturn
softly. "Launch the Draco and
Pleiades."
The bridge was silent, except for the beep of the controls.
There was a blue flash as the tractor beams released and pushed the two
ships violently away. The bay doors
of the Destiny closed in conjunction with the base doors; soon they were
completely enclosed. Two quick
impacts from torpedoes wrecked the door locks.
"Transfer base sensors to screen 1," ordered Reeni.
"Magnify."
The image zoomed in, to show the tumbling hulks of the two ships. They slammed into the asteroid with concussive force.
The brilliant flash of the twin explosions was all they could have asked
for, chunks of asteroid and starship debris spiraling out.
"Screen off," said Reeni softly, as Sailor Eos glanced back at
the four. All but Sailor Vulcan had
their heads bowed. Sailor Vulcan
stood, stoic, refusing to show any emotion.
Save for the glimmer of tears in both of her eyes.
In
high orbit near Atlantis-1, Atlantis system, 10 October 2736
The
Demon
"Lord, we have a report from the Ripper, in the Sabaat
system," said First.
Heran swiveled in his chair to look at her.
"Yes?"
"First, they report that the sixth and seventh planets are firmly in
our hands; the eighth should be completely subjugated by tomorrow.
Second, they got a position fix from a scout on the Destiny.
Several ships were sent to investigate; apparently the Destiny's
shields were down, as it hit an asteroid dead on and exploded as it fled,"
she said, frowning slightly.
"You don't believe that any more than I do," said Heran darkly.
"No, Lord, I do not. Still,
they report the amount of debris is about what's expected," she continued.
"Instruct them to recover the debris and be sure," ordered
Heran, leaning back. "I highly
doubt they could be so foolish as to hit an asteroid; even with their precious
princess hurt."
"By your command, Lord," she bowed.
Heran swiveled back around, gazing back out into space, a grin spreading
across his face. "Just when I
was getting bored, things are getting interesting again," he muttered. "Good."
In
high Lunar orbit, Ulysses Dockyard, Sol system, 11 October 2736
The
SLS Minotaur
"Attention on deck!" snapped Mage Torym as he walked through
the door as it hissed open. "Commander,
187th 'Vipers', arriving."
The room snapped to attention, unsure of their new commander as he
stalked through the door, glaring at Torym.
"At ease." Archmage
Derrelli shook his head as he walked in front of them all, taking a glance
around.
"Alright, listen up. My
name is Archmage Derrelli, and I've been selected to take command of this
battalion. Why, I don't know; I
have no prior experience and this is one hell of an historic and elite unit.
What I do know is this: I'm gonna do my damndest to make all of you
proud. We'll be leaving on the
morrow; we'll have a day and a half trip into harm's way.
That isn't a lot of time; but that's okay.
For I'm betting
this battalion is eager to sink their fangs into the enemy, and to that I say,
blast 'em! However, until we get
there, relax. No formalities unless
someone higher ranking then me strolls in.
Guys, thanks," finished Derrelli.
Approving murmurs rolled through the standing ranks.
Derrelli grinned. "I
believe that means you're all dismissed, or something.
And now, where do I get some Coke up in here?"
Laughter greeted that statement as Torym walked over to Derrelli with a
grin.
The
SLS Nephlyte
"You're Archmage Ereunak?" asked the Warlock Zyi, carefully
gazing at him.
"That's
right," Ereunak said.
"You've been briefed on this mission?" continued Zyi.
"Sort of," he replied.
"Well, the short and sweet of it is, we use the TPA and illusions to
mask this ship as a DK ship of the same type, and enchantments to charm our way
into that nebula to figure out what's hidden in there," Zyi said.
"It's more elaborate than that, I hope," Ereunak said with a
slight grin.
"Of course. The details
will be explained after we get under way; in the meantime, tell no one. That's an order, by the way," replied Zyi.
Ereunak smiled broadly and shook his head as he left.
"Of course, sir."
In
high orbit near Atlantis-1, Atlantis system, 11 October 2736
The
Demon
"Lord?" asked First. Heran
swiveled around in his chair, gazing through steepled fingers at his first
officer.
"Do you have something?" he asked.
"Indeed, Lord," she said.
She turned to the screen. "On
screen, Lord."
The screen blinked on to show the main cargo bay of the Ripper.
Debris was scattered about, and the camera zoomed in on one fairish-sized
chunk. Written on it were the
scripted letters "L E I A D E", although the last "E" was
incomplete.
Heran stood. "The
hell?" he asked. He thought
for a moment. A grin spread over
his face. "Ah, I understand
now. We've been tricked.
The Pleiades."
"Yes, Lord. The total
debris recovered, while subtly less than the estimated amount for the Destiny,
is the precise amount for the two scout ships, Draco and Pleiades.
Because our ships took so long to investigate, the trail of the Destiny
has grown cold," First reported. "They
pulled a fast one on us, and now they're safe for the time being. However, I'll bet they're still in the asteroids."
"I quite agree," nodded Heran slowly.
"Instruct every available ship under the Ripper's command to
begin a slow, methodical search for the Destiny."
"As you wish, Lord," bowed First, before turning to the comm
officer. "You heard him!"
The comm officer hurriedly bent to his task.
In
high Lunar orbit, Ulysses Shipyard, Sol system, 12 October 2736
The
SLS Nephlyte
Hissing, small bursts of escaping air marked the retracting umbilical
connections to the docked destroyer. As
the gangways retracted, smallish yellow blasts signified the ship's thrusters
kicking in, backing the ship away slowly. As
it passed the outer pylons of its dock, the ship swerved abruptly, dropping
slightly, accompanied by further puffs of the thrusters.
About halfway through the turn, the Fusion Impellers ignited, throwing a
brilliant red burst of exhaust as the ship raced away at its maximum sublight
velocity. It blazed out past the
perimeter of the spaceport, to L-point by Mars.
As it approached, the white glow of its primary drive increased
dramatically. The white energy
burst forth, completely enclosing the small ship as it stretched in a burst of
light to the spiral that marked its jump into faster-than-light transit.
Ereunak glanced up momentarily as Nephlyte announced the jump, then
glanced back down to the spellcomp in front of him.
He knew he should be nervous, but instead he was strangely calm.
He looked up as his door chime beeped.
"Enter."
The door hissed open. Warlock
Zyi stepped in. "Hey, just
checking in on everyone; and I wanted to let you know we've got a complete brief
of the mission in one hour, in the conference room."
Ereunak yawned, and stretched. He
set his spellcomp aside. "Appreciate
it. You know, the one thing I'm
gonna miss doing this mission is working with that pyro, Derrelli."
"I've heard stories," Zyi grinned.
He leaned against the wall. "Is
he really that psycho?"
Ereunak chuckled. "You
didn't know? He single-handedly
trashed more labs, classes, and injured more students and faculty then has ever
been done. He settled down somewhat
when he made Archmage. Now,
whenever he enters a fight, practically the first thing he does is throw a
fireball!"
"Doesn't believe in negotiating, huh?" Zyi asked with a smile.
"Not a bit," agreed Ereunak.
Zyi shook his head. "Well,
hopefully you won't get too bored. See
you in an hour."
Ereunak nodded. "Got
it." As the door hissed shut,
Ereunak looked thoughtfully at the leaving Zyi, before getting back to his
spellcomp.
The
SLS Minotaur
Derrelli leaned back, glancing about the room at the knots of
Sorcerers in deep conversation, talking animatedly.
Some played pool; others were playing various card games of chance,
undoubtedly with friendly wagers. The
occasional triumphant shout marked the background noise, as someone won
something or bragged louder than anyone around them.
He looked at the ceiling. He
hadn't had a chance to test fire his new spells yet; it looked like his first
chance at that was going to be against real enemies.
He found he didn't mind, although his stomach felt weird.
Was he... scared?
He frowned. Apprehensive
was perhaps a better word, he thought.
His mind was full of doubts. Would
he perform adequately? Would he
lead the men assigned to him to glory? Would
he make the right decisions? Would
he die? What about those he led...
would they die? How many?
There were no easy answers to calm his nerves; outwardly he looked calm
and composed. Inside, he was
reeling. He couldn't concentrate.
He remembered being told such feelings were generally overcome after
one's first real combat. He hoped so. He
disliked feeling unsure, the current lack of confidence.
Torym came over to him. "Hey,
pyro. You're awfully quiet, man.
You alright?"
"Yeah, fine," said Derrelli.
He glanced at Torym. "How
'bout you?"
Torym was silent for a moment. Derrelli
blinked, and cracked a small smile. It
helped knowing he was not alone in his anxiety.
"I'm okay... just a little nervous," said Torym thoughtfully.
"I know the feeling," Derrelli replied wryly.
"Tor, we'll be fine. We'll
kick ass and take names like no one has before. We got it, man."
"You bet," grinned Torym.
"We'll get it done!"
"Or, as I like to say, nuke'em if you got'em!" chuckled
Derrelli.
They felt the slight motion that signified the ship beginning to move,
and both looked to the transparent crystal window, seeing the docking pylons
sliding by, and the retracting umbilical connections.
The ship began to turn, and the window revealed the combined fleet
forming up. The decision had been
made to use cruisers to ferry the troops instead of the transports; that way the
ferrying ships could then be utilized in the fight with other ships as the
ground troops did their thing.
And a pretty good-sized fleet it was.
Led by ten battlewagons, the fleet included thirty-four cruisers; over
half carried troops. Forty-nine
light cruisers and sixty-two destroyers made up the rest of the ships.
A very decent size, considering.
The view of the fleet was temporarily obscured, and suddenly Nelson, the Minotaur's
AI, spoke up. "Attention, all
hands. Attention: Prepare for RIFT
Transit!"
The view outside of the windows was momentarily white, then resolved into
curved starlines spiraling lazily around them.
"Here we go," nodded Derrelli.
"May the Crystal protect us."
Torym glanced at him, a funny expression on his face.
"Pyro, I think you've been watching too many movies... isn't that
from an old sci-fi flick?"
"Somethin' like that," grinned Derrelli.
"Here's another old motto, from where I forget, exactly: You have to
go, but you don't have to come back."
"Oh, like that's optimism!" said Torym sarcastically. "Got something that inspires more confidence, O Fearless
Leader?"
"For one thing, Tor, you ever call me that again and I'll turn you
into barbecued summoner. As for
something more cheerful, let me think..." trailed off Derrelli,
concentrating. His face brightened.
By this time, their exchange had brought the notice of the nearby troops.
"I got it!"
"Got what?" asked Torym, mock-suspiciously.
"A mental block," Derrelli said sheepishly.
"I can't think of a damn thing."
Torym rolled his eyes amid the nearby troops' laughter, a smile on his
face. At least everyone is in a
good mood, he thought.
In
Faster-Than-Light Transit, 12 October 2736
The
SLS Nephlyte
Ereunak stepped through as the door hissed open.
As he did so, he noted he was the third to arrive.
Big surprise there. He was
always a little early. And the
first didn't count, anyway, as it was Warlock Zyi, preparing his briefing.
Zyi glanced up, and nodded.
"Sit wherever, Ereunak; we'll start soon," Zyi said before
glancing back down at his microcomp.
Ereunak took a seat opposite the other Archmage.
He nodded at him, and received a nod in reply.
Shortly, three other individuals strode into the room.
As they took their seats, Zyi cleared his throat.
"All right. Gentlemen
and lady, welcome to this briefing. For
those who don't already know, this is our entire team.
The subject of this briefing is the exact details of what is being
referred to as Operation Discover Atlantis," began Zyi.
"The goal of this operation is threefold:
First, we must prove that we can successfully use illusion- and
enchantment-type magics to bypass and fool enemy defenses.
Second, we must discover what exactly is the secret hidden in the
Atlantis nebula. Lastly, we must
figure out a way to neutralize it," Zyi said.
"None of these goals are going to be easy.
The first step is to utilize mass illusion to bypass enemy defenses.
We have a picture from all angles of the type of ship we are attempting
to emulate," said Zyi, turning as the viewscreen behind him lit up with
multiple views of the angular DK destroyer.
"It will be the job of Warlock Otaklu to head the illusions team. Archmage Simarra will give her power to Otaklu to simulate
the proper energy signatures, and assist in maintaining the illusion.
Archmage Felralt will do the internal illusion of the captain and crew,
masking their true features and making them appear to be a DK crew, also based
on the pics we have. The
enchantment team, headed by myself, will insure that the illusions pass scrutiny
by utilizing charm, veil, and sleep spells.
I will take care of the charms; Archmage Yumir will cover the veil spell,
making it appear all our words are truth. Any
non-entities will be placed asleep by Archmage Ereunak," continued Zyi,
nodding at each as he mentioned their names.
"The illusions must be maintained until we actually enter the
nebula. At that time, we will
switch to silent running; namely, the captain will power down all non-essential
systems. This will include the TPA.
On a side note, you will find that the ship's bridge has been modified to
include an additional five TPA consoles, for a total of six.
Anyway, until we find a trace of anything DK, we remain at the lowered
power levels and scout around. This
may take some time," Zyi said.
"The discovery phase is going to be the longest one. When and if we find something, we will then move to the third
and final phase: analysis. We will
once again have to resume the previously mentioned duties, while we scan and see
if it is something we can handle. Both
Archmages Simarra and Felralt have spec-ops training; this will come into play
if we actually have to go aboard any facilities or stations we may find,"
Zyi said, pausing.
"In addition, we will be continuously relaying information via
data-stream or RIFT-capable probe to Fleet HQ.
This will include defense layout, ship counts, etc.
What will we find? Intelligence
thinks some sort of base, possibly with a heavily defended path into DK
space," Zyi concluded. There
was silence. Ereunak mused over
what he had just learned.
"Any questions?" asked Zyi.
There were no takers. "Very
well. Here are your comps; they
have the information you'll need for your parts, as well as the predicted
timetables. This is all I have at
this time. Let's all retire to our
quarters and study our parts; we have about a day to prepare. Remember, we all volunteered because we knew it was
important, we knew our lives were at risk.
Let's make Neo-Queen Serenity proud!"
As the gathering began to break up, Ereunak sat, thoughtful.
Life was about to get really interesting, he thought.
Tau
Ceti Mine, Sabaat system, 12 October 2736
The
SLS Destiny
"Well?" asked Diana, looking at Sailor Saturn.
"Well, there has been no activity since the ships flew in, scouted
the area, recovered the debris, and left," sighed Sailor Saturn.
The lights on the bridge were the red emergency lights, the same lighting
used throughout the ship. The Destiny
was all but shut down. Her drive
systems were at minimum levels, and shields and weapons were offline.
The various anchor cables had been deployed so that the energy signature
of tractor beams wouldn't be picked up. In
short, the Destiny was at its lowest detection levels, solely utilizing
the existing base sensors to see.
Princess Serena was asleep, as were the rest of the Senshi.
All needed recuperation, and Sailor Saturn and Diana were on the bridge
with a greatly reduced bridge crew, the better to allow additional rest to
stressed crewmembers. This was also
ship-wide, and repairs were proceeding steadily, at the same rate as before even
with the reduction, since engineering no longer had to repair...
Sailor Saturn gulped softly. The
four Senshi whose ships had been sacrificed hadn't said much as of late.
With no real duties, they had pretty much remained depressed and bored,
even Sailor Vulcan. Even a brief pep talk by Reeni hadn't snapped them out of it.
Sailor Saturn knew morale was becoming a problem, and not only just for
the Senshi.
She stood, stretching. She
slowly began strolling around the bridge, the soft patter of Diana's feet
following. She stopped by the
unmanned Engineering console, taking in the information displayed there.
"I'm worried, Diana," said Sailor Saturn.
"Things aren't looking so good; and morale is dropping."
"I know," sighed the gray cat.
She nimbly leapt to the console, careful not to hit anything.
"I am too."
The doors on the port side hissed open, being the only lift still
operating. Sailor Eos stepped out
onto the bridge, and noticed the two of them.
She strolled over.
"Don't look so glum," she said.
Sailor Saturn looked at her, quietly.
"Hard not to be, Eos," she said.
Sailor Eos nodded. "Look,
I can understand why everyone's down. The
whole situation as of late really sucks. But
do you honestly think her Majesty won’t answer this situation?
Can you say that Serenity won't send help?
I'm positive the best minds in the GM have already come up with a plan,
and in fact, help is probably on the way. So
we aboard the Destiny got clobbered... it was damn near 800 to 1 odds! I'd say we did good, killing a quarter of the enemy and
surviving. I think I know what
really has anyone down... except Sailors Orion, America, Sirius, and Vulcan, of
course. Everyone would rather be
fighting as opposed to hiding."
Sailor Saturn blinked. "You
sure you're not psychic? I know
that's what's bothering me."
Sailor Eos laughed softly, the richness of her laugh cheering Sailor
Saturn and Diana somewhat. "Not
the last time I checked," she said. "You
know, I'd kill for a soda right now."
"Emergency food packets only, Eos.
The food and beverage processors are offline," smiled Sailor Saturn.
"Wishful thinking," Sailor Eos sighed.
"How go the repairs?"
"Well, the upshot is everyone is getting sufficient rest.
They're going slow, but steady. I
understand a lot of major components are almost ready to be tested. The hull is
complete again, as well," Diana put in.
"Uh, Sailor Saturn?" called the officer at ops.
"We have an incoming DK destroyer.
It's about range 15; and it's moving slow."
Sailor Saturn hopped the rail to the captain's chair, landing lightly on
her feet as she stood next to the ops console.
"What's it doing?" she asked.
"Well, ma'am, it appears to be... scanning intensely.
Apparently it doesn't care if it's found or not," came the report.
Diana moved next to Sailor Saturn. "That
could be bad."
"It's moving right for us," said the ops officer.
They went silent as the viewscreen showed the destroyer move next to the
asteroid, rotating slightly as it scanned the space around them.
The bridge was silent, as if sound could bridge the gap of space and
solid rock. As it moved away,
Sailor Eos was conscious of the fact that she had been holding her breath.
She let it out slowly.
"Another one," came the report.
"This one's a cruiser. It's
doing the same thing, and I think there's another one right behind it.
I hate to say it, but I believe they've begun a methodical search of the
asteroid field, ma'am."
"Oh, this isn't good," said Sailor Saturn.
"This isn't good at all. This
means...."
"They discovered our deception," finished Sailor Eos. "And they're looking for us."
The two Senshi shared a look. Diana
summed it up perfectly.
"Oh, shit," she whispered.
STAY
TUNED!