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[Arcalian]

Terra stumbled away from the computer bank as Changeling retreated, luring his opponent back with him.

Redwing and Dagon were still fighting the one that had felled Killowat. No help there. Changeling was shooting Terra anxious glances, as if to say, Help me with this guy.

But she was tired and her power still drained. The black-shirted enemy glanced at her, then at the terminal, seeming to be ready to make a grab for it.

If Terra tried to use her power, she would black out, plain and simple. But she had to do something!

So she ran in and kicked him where it would do the most harm.

A jolt of the purple energy shot up her leg and through her body, making her vision flash and her teeth buzz. But the man went to his knees with a groan, and Gar, taking ape form, battered him into unconsciousness.

"Extracting power source...." Jon said as Gar turned his attention to Redwing and Dagon still fighting the last opponent. He took a step to help them....

...and a flash of brilliant orange light filled Terra's vision. Then, blackness.

****

Terra didn't know how long she had been out. She only knew she woke up flat on her back, with a warm, heavy weight atop her.

She opened her eyes, and saw it was Changeling. Quite unconscious.

Well now, she thought with a wry smile. This is a most interesting development.

"Jon," she said with some diffuculty. "Did it work?"

She had no way of knowing if Jon could even hear her. But in the middle distance, she heard the AI's voice say, "Yeah. The alien crystal is disengaged from the circuitry. So far no one has tried to take it."

Terra nodded. "So far being the operative words in the phrase." It was obvious they had to get the crystal before any of the enemy woke up and took it. As nice as this was, she had to wake Changeling.

So she poked him in the face. "Wakey wakey, green-cheese."

"Mwuh?" Gar groaned, blinked, and opened his eyes. And stared at her.

Terra struggled with her own impish nature. Tempting as it was, she did not say Comfy? Nor did she give the triumphant toothy grin she wanted to give. Because if she did either of those things--or anything else that was coming to mind--he would run like a scared rabbit.

So she gave him a carefully neutral expression, eyebrows raised.

His expression was nervous, and she knew he must be flashing back to his memories of her hated predecessor, and what she had done to him. "I didn't...." he started to say.

"I know," she said simply. Please don't panic Gar....let your subconscious do the walking.....

Abruptly he shook his head and got off her. "Sorry."

"It's okay," she said, instead of the You can stay there if you want that came to her mind. At least he didn't react with fear or anger or disgust. Just mild embarrasment. Progress. "We have to get the power source before any of the black shirts wake up."

He nodded, and offered her a hand up, which she greatfully accepted. More progress. They turned to the computer system, now dead and inert. She took her bracelet off the top. It's futuristic metal-polymer construction had survived the blast, but even so it was faintly warm as she slipped it back on. "Get a spectral analysis of that thing, Jon?" she asked.

"Analysis yes, spectral no," replied Jon. Like Tara, he wasn't making any wisecracks about the situation, for which she was silently thankful. "Some of that stuff isn't anywhere near the Electromangic spectrum."

"Why am I not surprised," said Gar. They peered into the space behind the computers. Thanks to Jon's wizardry, the crystal had been shaken free, and still glowed faintly orange.

"So that's the power source, huh?" Terra said.

"Not much to look at, is it? But useful, I have no doubt. Let's get it."

"Right you are, Jon-boy," she said. She picked it up.

The black-shirt Redwing and Dagon had been fighting was also stirring. But as he made to rise, a red-feathered wing slammed into him and knocked him back into the corridor. Redwing rose, hair a mess, eyes glimmering. "I'm gonna have a migraine for a week," she said.

"Wake the others," said Tara. "We have to get the bad guys back to the jet for interrog--"

But she broke off in amazement, staring at their enemies as something began to happen....