You Only Live Once Schools of fish swam serenely past, appearing and disappearing in each of the undersea windows that spanned the vast length of the room.  Yet again, the whole team was assembled at a cluster of couches at the Crescent Coral Base, waiting for Dr. Nambu to explain Galactor's latest assault on global peace and safety.   Except Dr. Nambu wasn't actually explaining anything yet.  Instead he was standing far down the room from the science ninjas, talking on the phone. They couldn't quite make out what he was saying, but the scowl on his face was apparent despite the distance, punctuated with abrupt hand gestures.   "Must be something really bad this time," said Jinpei. Silence is a form of concurrence; no one answered him. But eventually Joe muttered, "Whatever it is, it's only going to get worse while we just sit here." Dr. Nambu's conversation, however, was looking more and more like an argument that he wasn't winning but wouldn't concede either. Ken assessed his second-in-command, who was sitting with his head in his hands instead of leaning against a wall with his arms crossed.  Was there significance in that?  After all, it wasn't that long ago that he'd been shot up with bullets at BC Island.  Despite Joe's repeated insistence that he was "Just fine, damn it," there had to be some lingering effects.   And it also wasn't that long ago that he'd pretty much had a complete breakdown during the mission in the submarine to that deep sea lab.  Joe seemed to be over that now, and reconciled to the truth about his parents.  But with Joe, wondered Ken, could one ever really know what was going on in his head? But he, and the rest of the team, soon had something else to think about.  Dr. Nambu had finished his call and strode back to them, still scowling, and they were tersely informed that: There was a place called "Mesa City" in some remote desert area of Ameris. It was an experimental city built by the ISO that almost totally recycled its water supply, over and over, and thus could be in a remote desert area. An unknown disease had just suddenly broken out there, that seemed to have a 100% percent fatality rate within 24 hours. The UN had ordered the ISO to deploy a recently-developed form of force field over the entire city, creating complete containment -no one could leave Mesa City and no one could enter it either. "That's so harsh," said Jun, "Isn't anyone going to help the poor people in that city?  Surely they're not just being left to die?" "You summoned us, and we're no doctors," said Joe, "Do you think Galactor's behind this?" All the science ninjas exchanged looks.  Yeah, wasn't it always Galactor? "I agree with Jun," replied Dr. Nambu, "That it is unduly harsh to leave an epidemic like this solely in the hands of the one hospital in Mesa City, and inefficient -a team of medical experts from the ISO could isolate disease samples and bring them back for research and accomplish far more." "Let me guess," said Ken, "You've been overruled?" "Yes," said Dr. Nambu, nostrils flaring slightly, hands clenched. "The UN is in a complete panic -convinced that letting anyone in or out of Mesa City will unleash a global pandemic and kill us all." 'Uh, what Joe said," said Ryu, "What is it you're wanting us to do, Doc?" Dr. Nambu's eyes narrowed. "I have access to all the research pertaining to the force field that's around Mesa City, and I can make an adjustment to your birdstyles that will allow the five of you to be able to cross the barrier and enter the city.  You can then investigate for any Galactor presence, do whatever you can to promote calm and assure people the ISO won't abandon them, and urge the extreme necessity of staff at the hospital isolating disease samples for you to bring to me, as quickly as possible." "Of course, we'll go and help and everything," said Jinpei, looking at the other ninjas with hope of corroboration, "But, um, isn't that awfully risky?  We won't do any good if we just get sick too..." Yet again, silence was concurrence. "Your concern is valid," agreed Dr. Nambu, "And I can also temporarily modify your birdstyles' visors into full face masks, with oxygen tanks under your capes.  I've long been working on this, with the aim of making your birdstyles suitable for being in space, and it will work equally well now for biohazard protection." "All right then," concluded Ken, "We'll go just as soon as you've got our birdstyles ready.  Anything else we need to know?" "Make contact with the mayor of Mesa City.  There is... some chance that communications from your bracelets will not be able to pass through the force field around the city.  Currently, no communications via radio or satellite are getting in or out, but the mayor's office has a secure landline, for telephone and internet, so if necessary, you can reach me from there, once you have the disease samples.  All I know is that the disease initially manifests as a severe headache followed by extremely high fever... and that death follows very soon after." "So many people dying, and so quickly," murmured Jun to Ken, "Jinpei was right -this is really bad." Joe heard her too.   "And if Galactor is somehow behind this, we'll make them pay." Ever since his father died thwarting Galactor's V-2 plan, Ken truly understood why Joe's voice sounded like a jagged blade whenever he said something like that. The pain was uniquely personal.  Galactor had killed his parents. And his parents had been Galactor. KNTKNTKNTKNT The God Phoenix settled down onto the arid plain of rock and sand.  Mesa City was visible in the distance, but obscured behind a shimmering force field dome, in an early evening sky. "It's desolate here.  No one will be around here to mess with the God Phoenix while we're gone, and we can approach the city from its least populated side," said Ryu, "But it still won't take us that long to walk to the city from here." All of the ninjas were in their civvies -possibly the first time ever that they'd all been in civvies on the God Phoenix.  But their birdstyles now featured complete face masks and independent air supplies.  This was tremendously reassuring, considering they were about to enter a city stricken with a mysterious death-plague, but the masks also felt very stuffy and confining, and no one wanted to endure them any sooner than they had to, or waste their oxygen supplies. But soon they had to; a short walk had brought them up to the force field that covered the city as a massive, shimmering dome of translucence. "Okay, everyone," said Ken, as the others gathered around him, "This is it.  It's nearly dark but we should reach the city soon." Even through the force field, they could see the lights of Mesa City looming ahead.  No one replied except to raise their arms and cry "Bird go!" A five-fold flash of light and it was all done; they were safe in their biohazard-resistant birdstyles, each of them with oxygen tanks concealed beneath their capes and hoses connecting to their now fully face-covering visors.  Otherwise, their birdstyles were unchanged. And Dr. Nambu was correct, as always -they were all able to walk right through the force field, though sharp flashes of sparks resulted from their passages. As soon as they were all through, Ken raised his bracelet to his mouth. "Dr. Nambu, this is Gatchaman, over." No response. Jun tried next, "Dr. Nambu, we're through the force field, please come through." No response, except Jinpei.  "Hey, I don't have my bolas!  Oh wait, it's okay -they're here on my belt!" They all tried to reach Dr. Nambu, but it soon was undeniable -Dr. Nambu's prediction that they might be cut off from communicating directly with him was all too true. "Okay, we're prepared to deal with this," said Ken, "We'll liaise with the mayor here just as soon as we can.  Let's get moving -it's going to take at least half an hour to reach the edge of the city." Their path to the city was clear before them, an even and dry swath of sand and small rocks.  The remnant of sun on the edge of the horizon was all the light they needed.  Their masks, they found, muffled their voices somewhat, but no one was in the mood to talk anyway, with the grim prospect of a disease-stricken city before them.  But it still felt unnatural, like they were under water or in space - in a place they didn't belong. At one point Jun said "My boot! It's-" but just as they all snapped their attention her way, she added, "It's fine -don't know what I was thinking..." It was shifty, walking on the sand.  Clearly, she'd briefly stumbled.  They all kept trudging forward, and they were almost up to the buildings on the very edge of the city, none of which seemed to be more than three or four stories, and all with very few or no windows -which made sense considering how much brightness and heat the sun probably unleashed here during much of the year. For an instant, though, Ken felt the cool evening air on his right hand, and in that instant, would have sworn that his glove was gone, but he pulled his hand up to his visor and his glove was there. "This is creepy," said Jinpei.

It was fully dark now, though the moon had risen and its light was making it through the force field, though the stars couldn't be seen.  There seemed to be a few street lights in the vicinity as well, but there was no sign of any people. "Yeah, I think we're all getting a little jumpy," said Ryu, "A few minutes ago, for a moment it seemed like my face mask was gone." "Well, if that's so, I think it's understandable," declared Ken, stepping ahead of the others and squaring his shoulders, "This could be really grim and terrible, but we have to do our duty." "The map that Dr. Nambu had of Mesa City showed a large plaza at the center, and it's where City Hall and hospital are," said Joe, "I say we go directly there.  The sooner we know what's going on around here, the better." "Let's go up on the roofs," suggested Jun, "The building are all close together and we can soar from roof to roof -might be better to keep out of sight until we reach the city center." Everyone liked that plan, and for the ninjas, it was easy to cover ground that way, quickly and covertly. Roof to roof, buildings got taller, but also closer together...  Soon they were almost to the plaza -there was more light there, from lampposts, rising into the sky, and also more noise.  Voices -angry voices, and lots of them. One more flight across a street and they'd be able to see it. They landed on the last roof.  The plaza five stories below them was swarming, packed with people, all yelling and waving fists.  It was chaos.  Joe had landed badly, fallen over.  When did Joe ever fall over? "Hey, are you okay?" demanded Ken.  He was close enough now and there was enough light, he could see that Joe's eyes were clenched shut. But Joe was hastily getting back on his feet, snapping "I'm fine!" Jun had been studying the insanity below. "Ken, this is bad -it's practically a riot."  She had to shout to be heard through her mask and over the sounds of rage coming from the plaza. "At least not everyone's dead!" said Jinpei. They were all hunkered down now at the building's edge.  Angry shouts, louder than most, rose above the roaring din. "Let us in the hospital!"  "Let me see my wife!"  "The ISO can't do this to us!"  "We need help here, not a goddamned force field!" "We demand to see the mayor!" Ken sighed.  "Look, we'd better get down there -right now.  We can assure people that the ISO hasn't abandoned Mesa City, try to calm some of them down, and make our way over to City Hall to speak to the mayor. Instinctively, though, he felt for his boomerang as he stood up -but it was missing from his belt.  What the hell? But no time to deal with that now.  And these were scared, angry people in the plaza -not enemies to mow down. "Shit, I lost my-"  That was Joe, but no time to deal with him either. "We go down there together," shouted Ken, "Now!" And they all jumped, as one, capes in full flare, slowing and controlling their descent... A faint flash of light surrounded them. They were all on the ground, five in a row, in low crouches, wincing and gasping.  They'd landed hard. But in a heartbeat they were all upright, still gasping, but staring at each other in utter horror.  Crowds of people, yelling in anger, surged all around them now, ignoring them, elbowing past them. They were all in their civvies, numbered one through five.  Their birdstyles -the uniforms, capes, boots, helmets and even weapons -had all vanished. Their visor-masks and oxygen tanks had also vanished. Before he could even think about the fact that he was in a crowd of people, Ken whipped his bracelet up before his face and cried a "Bird Go!" that was swallowed up by the noise around him.  But it should have worked nevertheless! But it didn't!!   The other ninjas continued to stare at Ken, frozen in horrified disbelief, except Joe, who was still crouched on one knee, holding his head. The seething mass of scared and angry humanity all around them was unifying its cries into a deafening chant of "Down with the Mayor! Down with the ISO!"  They were being shoved and buffeted from all sides by the crowd. "This isn't for kids," said a man who paused to look at them as he charged past them, "You get back to your homes!" Ken gestured anxiously for other ninjas to gather close around him.  "We have to get to the City Hall!" he told them, "Until we can figure out what's wrong with our birdstyles, our only chance to accomplish anything here is through the mayor -he can help us contact Dr. Nambu." Fear widened all their eyes -except Joe's, his were closed again.  None of them wanted to say it... They were completely vulnerable to the disease now. And there was nothing they could do about it. The mania of the crowd that flooded the plaza continued to escalate.  Rocks were being thrown at buildings and flames from bonfires were rising into the air.  More and more people were pushing their way into the plaza and joining in the angry chant. "We keep moving!" Ken told them all, "And we stick close together -we'll try to skirt the edges of the plaza, use backstreets, till we're closer to City Hall." He and Jun moved to either side of Jinpei, and Ryu got in front of them, prepared to be their vanguard through the crowd.  Joe was right behind Jinpei. "You okay, Joe?" said Ken. Ken couldn't see him but he sure heard the "I'm fine!" And they set off through the crowd...  And it was rough going.  The crowd was afraid -of course they were; people were dropping like flies from a mysterious disease and they were helpless- but it was escalating into total panic.  No one was paying much attention to who they collided with or shoved, and it was nearing a frenzy. But City Hall was looming ahead now.  They would find a way inside, somehow.  They would make contact with the mayor, explain that they could actually get help for Mesa City, through Dr. Nambu. This must be a peaceful and rational city in normal times, Ken thought -they clearly didn't have much in the way of police or security forces for crowd control around here!  The mayor would listen to them... The crowd was densest, and angriest, this close to City Hall.  People were screaming and throwing everything they could get their hands on -many of the things they were throwing were on fire. The doors of City Hall flew open, no longer barred shut, and figures came storming out -all dressed in what looked like police riot gear combined with white biohazard suits.  There were at least five dozen of them and they began attacking the crowd before them.   Some carried shields and clubs, and they began beating people and shoving them back off the wide stairs that led up to City Hall's doors, which now slammed shut behind them again. Others began firing guns into the screaming crowd -with what Ken prayed were rubber bullets.  Worst of all, though, was the gas.  These security personnel from City Hall were tossing canisters all throughout the crowded plaza, that landed and instantly began gushing a thick smoke that left people gasping and attempting only to flee, with eyes streaming thick tears. Many were collapsing onto the ground, clutching their faces. "This is no good!" Jun yelled, "We have to retreat, try to reach City Hall tomorrow!" She was right, Ken conceded.   "Everyone -stay together!" he yelled A frenzied rout -a stampede- was breaking out all around them.  They were helplessly being shoved and hurled along now, at the mercy of the rushing flow of panicked people all around them, in serious danger of getting gassed or getting knocked down and crushed by people too frenzied to care who they stomped on. It was a nightmare, but all nightmares end eventually.  They'd avoided the gas canisters and they  were out of the plaza and into the streets that led away from it.  The crowd around them now was lessening, dispersing into the smaller streets and fleeing back to their homes. "Where's Joe?" KNTKNTKNTKNT

Pain.  Sudden, blinding pain in his head had made Joe stumble, then fall.  He was lucky he hadn't been trampled to death, but he was moaning hoarsely and clutching his head... Where were Ken and the others? The screaming and shooting was fading.  Joe tried to look around, tried to stand, but it was all a blur around him.  He was coughing and his eyes burned, and he collapsed to the ground again, on his stomach, feeling as if his head were about to split open... There were people around him now, talking.   "I think we might have one here." "Get him to the hospital then." He was lifted onto a stretcher.  He stared up at the people, mere blurs in the darkness but white like the biohazard garb the savage anti-riot squad had been wearing... He wanted to shout "I'm fine!"  He wanted to get away from them! But everything was fading to darkness around him, fading to oblivion.... KNTKNTKNTKNT "Where's Joe?" Jun's voice was high with alarm. Oh no. "Joe!!" Ken spun around, looking everywhere he could see, looking for Joe's face, a yellow 2 on a blue shirt.... Jun, Ryu and Jinpei were doing the same. But it was futile.  Somewhere along the way, in the retreat from City Hall, Joe had become separated from them. "Joe?" called Ken into his bracelet, "Joe -answer me!"  Jun did the same. "I don't think bracelets are working at all," said Jun, "Mine won't do anything!" "Those guys from City Hall," snarled Jinpei, "They're a bunch of thugs!  I bet they're with Galactor!" Could that be?  Ken didn't find it too hard to believe Galactor was behind every major calamity -that had so often been their experience... "It's sure a crappy way to treat a bunch of people who are just frightened and angry," said Ryu.   Ken was remembering BC Island, finding Joe shot and bleeding inside the church.  He'd been in his civvies instead of his birdstyle that day, so much more vulnerable.   Just like they all were now. Why had they lost their birdstyles -and even their weapons?  Without them, they were...  kids.  That's what the man in crowd had called them. No one was going to take them seriously.  And they were all at risk, of more than just disease, if they continued to try to carry out their mission. How many Galactor goons might have seen Joe's face that day on BC Island and lived to remember it?  He was possibly the most vulnerable of any of them now. Ken tried to keep fear out of his voice.  "He's okay -wherever he is. We'll find him." "We have to reach Dr. Nambu too," said Jun, "Maybe he can tell us how to get our birdstyles working again." "Yeah," said Jinpei, shoulders sagging, "Like this..."  He gestured at his t-shirt and striped pants, "We're nothing." "You're alive and well, kid," said Ryu, "That counts for a lot right now." "We're not nothing," said Ken, "We've done undercover missions before, in our civvies." "But when the real action starts, we always change to our birdstyles," said Jinpei. "How about you work on trying not to breathe any of the air here?" said Ryu, "That'll probably keep you safer than anything else now." Ken closed his eyes... what to do next? "We need to find Joe, but Jun is right -we also need to get our birdstyles back.  It's a long shot now, but maybe we can still get back through the force field, even in our civvies, and contact Dr. Nambu.  Or maybe if we just get back to the edge of the force field dome, our birdstyles will start working again -they were working when we first crossed through there." But not working well.  It was apparent now that none of them had been imagining their weapons, gloves, masks and boots disappearing and reappearing. "So, first we're going to go back to the force field, where we came in," said Ken, "And then we're going to go and find Joe." KNTKNTKNTKNT Joe opened his eyes.  His head still ached, but he could see a little better; he was staring up at an institutional sort of ceiling with harsh, utilitarian lights.  There were voices all around him, people moving on the edge of his vision, all smocked in white, faces covered. "Get me temperature readings on these new patients." "We need more beds!  We've got tons of incoming, all from that riot." "Someone tell the morgue crew to work faster -we'll have more beds as soon as they get more bodies out of here." He was in the hospital, Joe realized.  Last thing he remembered was being out on the plaza, in the riot.  He'd lost his balance, fallen... He sat up, heart pounding, discovering that his wrists were cuffed to the sides of the gurney he was on, as were his ankles.  All around him were rows of gurneys with other patients, some sitting up like him, many not moving at all.  Medical staff, all swathed in white protective garb and with surgical masks covering their noses and mouths, were moving amidst the gurneys but were vastly outnumbered by the patients. "Hey! What the hell is this?  Why am I chained up?" Joe began thrashing his arms and legs as he yelled.  A couple of medical staff rushed up to him. "Sorry, but those are our orders -we have to keep all patients here until it's clear they're not infected.  No one can leave." "I don't give a damn," snarled Joe, continuing to try to snap his cuffs, and resisting their efforts to push him back down onto the gurney.  "Uncuff me now!" His head was pounding along with his heart, his vision blurring again.  He was Condor Joe of the Science Ninja Team -not some sickie in a hospital bed!  He had to get out of here! "What's the problem here?" snapped a new voice.  Another surgical-masked face was looking down at him, a woman, with pale blue, angular eyes. "No problem except these!" Joe shook his hands as hard as he could, making the cuffs clatter loudly against the metal rails of his gurney.  He could hear some other patients around him beginning to do the same, demanding to be freed. "He's almost certainly infected," said one of the medical staff, "Security brought him in -said he'd collapsed out there on the plaza." The woman said nothing, her icy-cold eyes unblinking as she studied Joe intensely. "Quit staring at me, would you?  Let me go -I'm fine!" "I've got his one," she instructed the two other medical staff, "Go see about those others making noise." Even as Joe continued to yell "No!" and thrash against his restraints, she wheeled his gurney down a long corridor and into a small, windowless room not much bigger than a supply closet. Without a word, still ignoring all of Joe's efforts to free himself, she left the room and the last thing Joe heard was the click of a deadbolt lock on the door. KNTKNTKNTKNT

"We had to try," said Ken, pushing his hair back from his face, "To know for sure." "We left the God Phoenix just over there," said Jinpei glumly, peering through the force field barrier and gesturing vaguely at the darkness beyond, "Sure wish we could get to it." They were all still in their civvies.  Every attempt to change to their birdstyles failed, and their bracelets were still useless for communication.  For anything, it seemed. And they were unable to pass back through the force field.  Painful electrical shocks were all that their attempts produced. "I can't believe the Doc screwed up like this," said Ryu, shaking his head. "That ISO research data on the force field that he accessed must have contained some errors, and he did have to modify our birdstyles in a hurry," said Jun, "It's not all his fault." "That'll comfort me when I start bleeding out my eyeballs," said Ryu. "Is that one of the symptoms too?" Jinpei looked ready to start hurling himself at the force field anew. "No, it isn't!" said Jun. "Look," said Ken, "This is a rotten situation we're in, but we have to complete our mission somehow, whatever it takes.  Let's get back to the city.  That riot's been suppressed so it should be easier to get around.  We'll find Joe." "Or he'll find us," said Jun, "He must be looking for us too." They got back to the city plaza as quickly as they could.  The bonfires were still burning, and rocks and debris that had been hurled littered the ground.  But the security thugs were gone, and the air was now clear of the tear gas.   Ken raked his eyes all over the plaza, looking for the red and blue of Joe's t-shirt, anyone with a number 2... Dozens and dozens of rioters were all lying on the ground, many moaning and clutching their heads, seemingly too dizzy or weak to stand.   Many, though, weren't moving at all. "This is awful," whispered Jun, "These poor people." Jinpei gulped.  "Are they sick? Is it the disease?" Medical personnel, all covered in white protective gear and wearing masks over their noses and mouths, were moving slowly about the plaza, moving the ailing people onto stretchers and carrying them towards ambulances parked on the edges of the plaza. A different crew was attending to those who were not moving, putting them into body bags and piling them onto large carts and wheeling them towards vans. A cart passed near them as they stood at the edge of the plaza, too appalled to move and still seeing no sign of Joe anywhere they looked. "Hello," called Jun to the two men pushing the cart, "We're trying to find a friend of ours -he was here when the riot was going on -wearing a blue t-shirt, with a 2 on it..." "Yeah," said Jinpei, "Have you seen him anywhere?" "Listen, kids," said one of the men, "If he's smart, he ran home.  Otherwise..."  He shrugged, "It's the hospital or the morgue." "But don't go trying to look for him at either," said the other man, his eyes a little more kind, "With this epidemic, staff's totally swamped at both places, and they're just not able to let anyvisitors in, no matter who they're trying to find.  You kids shouldn't be here, and it's late -go home, okay?" KNTKNTKNTKNT Lying still, cuffed to a gurney in a dark room was insanely frustrating, but Joe had to concede it was helping his headache dissipate.   The chains tying his cuffs to the gurney's side rails were long enough that he could bang his bracelet against the rail to activate a bird scramble signal for the others to use to find him. But it didn't seem to be working.  He slid his right hip towards his right hand, and managed to get the side pocket of his jeans open. But no gun, not even any shuriken. What the hell had gone wrong with their birdstyles?   And how was he going to get out of this damned hospital? Forget lying still!  He sat up and began clattering his wrist and ankle cuffs as loudly as he could. "Hey!  I want out of here!  Now!" The door was unlocking, opening.  Light from the corridor poured into the room. It was her again, that woman with the disturbing eyes, turning on the room's light, shutting the door again. She produced a long, shiny syringe, a bead of liquid glistening at its tip. "What the hell is that?  You can't give me anything without my consent!" "I have my orders," was all that she replied, "Patients all get an injection." Joe yelled "No!" over and over and continued to thrash, but it was to no avail. She seized his left forearm -she was strong- and quickly jabbed the needle into him, and injected the syringe's entire contents. And his world faded into darkness... KNTKNTKNTKNT "City Hall," said Ken, "We've got to get in there somehow, and talk to the mayor." "Considering what his security personnel are like," said Jun, "I'm not sure I want to talk to him." "Yeah," said Ryu, "That was a bad scene there, at the plaza." "Everyone's scared," said Ken, "Order is breaking down -bad decisions get made at times like this." "We need the mayor," said Jinpei, "He's the only way we can reach Dr. Nambu." They all stared across the plaza towards the windowless, pillared stone facade of the City Hall.  The ambulances, and the vans, were beginning to depart the plaza. "Oh, do I want to talk to Nambu," said Ken, "Wait till he finds out what's going on in here..." "Even in our civvies, we're still ninjas," said Jun, "Let's approach the City Hall from the back -there's got to be a way to get inside, and we'll find it." "Could be that Joe's already in there," said Ryu. Ken wanted to believe that, despite the hints that Joe was likely not at the top of his game here in Mesa City.  Holding his head, losing his balance... No, he was being paranoid.  Everyone had off days sometimes.  Wherever Joe was right now, he was surely okay. All the streets around the plaza were quiet, only sporadically lit with lampposts.  The four ninjas were soon behind the City Hall, moving covertly through the shadows. But as expected, all the doors they quietly investigated proved to be securely locked. There was a concrete ramp that led down to a below-street-level garage door entrance into the City Hall, but it too resisted all their attempts to force it open or to override the keycode pad. "If only I had my yoyo," whispered Jun, "I'd get it open!" They pulled back, staying crouched in the shadow of a dumpster in the entrance to a nearby alley, watching and waiting... "What now?" whispered Jinpei, "Are we going to sit here all night?" Ken wasn't sure, but an answer then presented itself -beams from the headlights of an approaching vehicle, now shining towards the ramp to the garage door... It was quite dark here, behind City Hall and away from the plaza's lights; and they could all move fast and quietly. Ken peered out from behind the dumpster -it was a van approaching. "We all have to be on that van when it goes inside," Ken whispered hastily, "But be fast, and quiet. Like Jun said, we're still ninjas!" It was true.  The van's rear door had no window, so there was a blindspot immediately behind it that the drivers' mirrors couldn't see.  When the van paused, its driver entering the keycode to open the garage door, Ken and Jun were able to boost Ryu onto its roof, and Ryu then immediately reached an arm down and pulled Jinpei up to lie flat beside him.  Ken and Jun then each clutched hold of the van's rear bumper as it drove into the garage... The instant they were inside, Ken looked up.  Garage was large and only dimly lit, and metal beams traversed its ceiling -but not too high up. "Up," whispered Ken, and Jun immediately knew what he meant.  They both climbed lithely and silently onto the van's roof, joining Ryu and Jinpei.  As the van came to a halt, they all went up onto the ceiling beams over the van.   It was dark and shadowed up there, and as long as they were quiet and still, no one would notice them. Two men got out of the van, both wearing the anti-riot/biohazard gear of the security personnel who had quashed the riot.  But they were no longer wearing their helmets and full face masks but instead carrying them. "Some of the thugs from the plaza," whispered Jinpei, scowling down at them. But all their attention now went to a man wearing a suit and tie exiting from an elevator and walking towards the two security men. "Greetings, Mayor," said one of the security men, who had a dark brown beard and the bearing of one who was in a position of some authority, "Our leader remains pleased with your cooperation.  You may sleep well tonight." "What am I supposed to be telling the UN now?" said the mayor, "I'm still getting barraged with calls."

"You will keep telling them the same as before; you acknowledge the necessity of the force field containment, and agree that it is still far too dangerous for anyone to enter or leave Mesa City." "I wish they hadn't deployed the force field quite so damned quick," muttered the other security man, "We could have gotten a bigger crew in here." "And some cranky ISO scientist has been calling me all evening too, though I haven't taken any of his calls.  What do I do about him?" "Ignore the ISO," replied the bearded man. "My secretary says he's being awfully persistent."  The mayor shifted nervously, "And isn't it going to look, well... weird, if I won't talk to elite researchers in medical science?" "Come now, you are in the midst of a terrible crisis -you're so very busy." The bearded man's smooth voice now became harsher, and he stepped closer to the mayor. "Find ways to convincingly avoid him -that is part of the job we are paying you so handsomely for, is it not?  Don't make our leader, hmm, elect a new mayor because the current one has, oh let's say, suddenly succumbed to the disease." The mayor flinched, and staggered back a couple steps. "Don't worry!" he stammered, "I, I'll do everything you say -no problem.  None!" "Good.  And besides, at our current rate of progress, this project should be complete in just a few more days." "That's great!' said the mayor, taking steps backwards now in retreat towards the elevator, "Uh... can I go now?" "Yes," replied the bearded man, walking away, his companion following him, "Should you need to consult with me again, I will be in the morgue." With that, the mayor made a beeline for the elevator, and was gone.  The other two men strode off towards a corridor that led out of the garage. "Holy crap!" said Jinpei, the moment they were out of hearing range, "What did I tell you?  They're Galactor for sure -Galactor's behind this whole thing!" "And we can write off any notion of getting help from the mayor to reach Dr. Nambu," said Ryu, "What a slimeball he is!" Ken shifted his position on the beam, dangling one leg. "Everything has just gotten a lot more complicated, that's for sure."  He paused, "Or simpler.  We know what we're really dealing with here now." "But what exactly is Galactor doing here?" said Jun, "We still don't know that.  If all they wanted to do was kill everyone in Mesa City, why didn't they just send a mecha to drop bombs on it -something like that?" "Good point," said Ken, sighing and leaning his head back to push his hair off his forehead, "If Galactor is behind the epidemic, I can only think it's some kind of contained experiment they're doing here, in biological warfare." "We should follow those two Galactor thugs," said Jinpei, "Spy on them." Ken paused before answering. "We'll do that," said Ken, "But not you." "Huh?" said Jinpei. "We need you to find a way to sneak inside the mayor's office, and once you're in there, call or get a message somehow to Dr. Nambu." "I can do it!" Jinpei's eyes lit up, "I'm the best on the team at infiltration." "Perhaps," said Ken, "And you are certainly the smallest. See the grate on the ceiling that's just above us?  I bet that's covering an air duct, but certainly one that you can fit into." With Jinpei dispatched into the City Hall ventilation system, Ken, Jun and Ryu dropped back onto the van's roof and then to the floor. "The map of Mesa City that Dr. Nambu showed us indicated that a lot of the buildings downtown have underground tunnels connecting them," said Jun, "That corridor the Galactor thugs went down probably leads to the morgue -that's where they said they were going." The van was unlocked but there was nothing of any use or significance inside it but some protective medical garb and a surgical face masks -enough for two people. "Why couldn't there be three biohazard suits in here?" said Ryu. "The Galactor guys weren't wearing their helmets," said Ken, "Probably the dead aren't so contagious, just the living?" "Hey, you two should put that stuff on, at any rate," said Ryu, "If we get caught sneaking around the morgue, I'll play dead and you two carry me like you just brought me in." "Uh, I say let's not get caught," said Ken, "But let's put this stuff on, Jun.  He's right -it is a good disguise, if it comes to it." "And we don't know if we'll encounter anyone in that corridor," agreed Jun, "We might have to bluff our way in." But they didn't encounter anyone in the underground corridor.  Having traversed it, they approached its exit cautiously, as one of its doors was slightly open and cold air was wafting over them, but they had a partial view into a what seemed to be a very large, high-ceilinged room, with many tall shelves. "Some kind a warehouse?" whispered Ryu. "Or maybe an archive," replied Jun, "This can't be the normal morgue -the epidemic must have made the city need to turn a really big building into a provisional morgue." Indeed as they crept closer to the exit, they could see that the room's shelves were full of dead people, many in body bags or sheet-draped, but many not. There were hundreds and hundreds of them. "This must be nearly half the city's population," said Jun, her eyes wide above her surgical mask, "So sad..." Ken couldn't help himself, he was sweeping his eyes over the uncovered dead, looking for the colors of Joe's civvies... Stop it, he told himself.  Wherever Joe is, he's okay. They couldn't see anyone who wasn't dead, but there were definite sounds of activity coming from the far end of the vast room, but blocked from their view by the rows of shelves. Slowly, as stealthily as they could, they moved amid the shelves, ready to duck out of sight if they heard anyone coming, but getting ever closer to the voices and noise. Every few minutes, they heard a sudden, loud, crackling noise.  The voices were many. At last they were close enough to see -crouched down low behind a stack of bagged bodies on a shelf, peering over the narrow gap between the stack and the shelf immediately above it. As well as they knew the evil of which Galactor was capable, what they saw was nearly beyond belief. It truly was Galactor.  There were dozens of men in the green uniforms of Galactor, except they weren't wearing their green helmets.  Others were in the process of peeling off the white anti-riot and biohazard gear worn by those who'd suppress the riot earlier, and revealing still more green Galactor uniforms.  All around them were large wheeled carts, piled with bodies. "Latest shipment from the hospital," called out one Galactor soldier, "Where do you want us to put these new stiffs?" "Damned if I know," said another, "'We've only just started processing all the ones from that riot today.  We're running out of room!" There was some kind of large machinery, with many Galactor goons clustered about it.  It emitted a jagged flash of blue light, and the sudden, loud crackling sound. "You must become far more efficient with the zapping," declared the bearded man they'd seen in the City Hall garage, now wearing a blue Galactor uniform, "We are falling behind schedule!" It was an assembly line at the piece of large machinery.  Goons, one at a time, were positioning a corpse on a platform, strapping it down, and fitting a metal contraption over its head.  "Ready" a goon yelled, and another then yanked down a massive switch.  This caused the light and the crackling noise; the corpse writhed and thrashed violently and then grew still.  After a few minutes, the corpse was removed from the machinery. Except that it was no longer a corpse. One by one, over and over, the dead were being processed... And turned into zombies. There were rows and rows and rows of them, all standing, packed in close formation.  Some were naked, some had on the clothes they'd died in.  Their faces were pale and expressionless. Jun reached for Ken's hand and he didn't pull away.  Even through surgical gloves, her hand was a warm comfort in this chilling factory of death.

One by one, plague victims were subjected to the machine and restored to some horrible semblance of life, then ordered to go stand in the growing rows of their fellows, all with faces showing no traces of emotion or self-will. "'We're running out of space over here," called a goon who was walking up and down the tightly packed rows of zombies. "She is doing excellent work at the hospital," said the bearded goon in the blue uniform, "We have to keep up!  There's still plenty of room -get them closer to the shelves." An order to reform their lines was given, and the zombies showed no reaction but smooth and prompt obedience. None of the ninjas had attempted to speak; they'd only stared, appalled.  They were vastly outnumbered, weaponless, vulnerable to bullets...  What could they do to stop this ghastly new work of Galactor? Ken made a decision. "Ryu," he whispered, "We need to find out what's going on at the hospital -so Jun and I will head there now.  I need you to stay here." Ryu swallowed, his face pale, but he nodded. "Stay hidden, but keep watching, and listening.  If you have to leave, head for the hospital." KNTKNTKNTKNT It was slow work, ootching as quietly as possible through narrow ventilation ducts, and only the frequent appearance of grates that allowed him glimpses into rooms with light, and fresher air, kept Jinpei from succumbing to claustrophobia.  Tentative tries with a couple of grates had shown him that they were removable. He just needed to find the one that would get him to the mayor's office. He'd managed his way up a couple of vertical sections of duct, and figured he was on the third floor now... He arrived at yet another grate.  This one, however, looked down into an office that surely was the mayor's -only one desk, made of ornately carved wood, and lots of artwork that looked expensive. There was a computer at the desk, and it was on -the monitor was lit up and its desktop littered with icons.  No need for any access passwords -yay! There was a telephone too. Best of all, no one was in the office. But he could hear voices coming from the beyond the office, muffled by a thick door.  There were people talking out in the hallway or whatever was on the other side of the door. He couldn't risk using the phone -too likely that somewhat out there would hear him. Someone could come barging in at any moment regardless But this might be his only chance to get at that computer... "Gotta do this," he whispered. Jinpei carefully pushed out the grate, taking care not to let it fall, and holding it, he positioned himself to exit the duct feet-first, and dropped silently into a crouch on the floor. His eyes flew around the office.  It had a private bathroom -a possible hiding place if he needed one fast and didn't have time to climb back into the duct. He used the chair from the desk and stood with a foot on each of its armrests to put the grate back onto the duct opening. The voices were still right outside the door.  One sounded like it could be the mayor's.  Was he about to come walking in? He quickly rolled the chair back to the desk and sat down before the computer. Time to get a message off to Dr. Nambu -as fast as possible! KNTKNTKNTKNT After Ken and Jun crept away, Ryu stayed where he was in the morgue, hunkered down but watching, and listening. And trying not to puke.  There were bodies piled on the shelves all around him and he was watching Galactor churn out creatures that were a desecration of all that was right and decent.  He could feel some sweat on his forehead, even as he shivered and he wiped it away with an unsteady hand. At least he didn't have a headache, he told himself. Yet. The Galactor goon in the blue uniform, who seemed to be in charge of the morgue, ordered goons to bring over more bodies to the "zapping" machine.  Some of the goons were wheeling carts around some of the shelves now. Ryu had to move to avoid being seen.  Fortunately the tall shelves blocked the harsh light ceiling lights and created shadows he could maneuver in... But goons with the carts were coming towards him now -and he had nowhere to go!  They'd see him any second now! Unless... He lay on a shelf, right beside cold, dead bodies... Worst mission ever! But don't flinch!  He had to play dead... But the goons approaching him had stopped, they were ignoring him and piling bodies on their carts.  But they might keep coming in his direction, might want to put him on a cart... Their backs were turned now -this was his chance.  But where to go?  Where to go? There was only one place he could go, where none of goons seemed to be looking. He dashed... And then he froze, standing completely still, with absolutely no expression on his face, trying not to breathe even though his heart was racing. He was amidst the rows of zombies now, and he damned well had to look like one. It seemed to be working -no one was shouting "Hey, get that guy!" and no goons were rushing towards him.  He willed himself not to shiver in the cold air, and risked a couple glances at his zombie neighbors, and then wished he hadn't.  Their faces were so pale and still, their eyes blinked occasionally, but they just stood there, doing nothing. That hellish machine kept on flashing and zapping, and every few minutes a new zombie joined the rows... Some goons walked over to survey them up close -one was the blue-clad morgue commander and he was laughing happily. "Behold," he said to the others, "A decade of research, but it culminates now in this -a new army for Galactor!  Incapable of disobeying orders -even suicidal ones.  They don't feel pain or fear -they don't even eat or sleep unless they're ordered to!" "How's the disease being spread?" asked a goon. "The initial dose, in the city's water supply, has dissipated but we added the contagion to the tear gas that we used on the rioters -great results!" Ryu couldn't move, and it was becoming unbearable.  Had he breathed in any of that gas during the riot?  Was he doomed to truly become a zombie here? "Soon the entire population of Mesa City will be a slave-army for Galactor, and we have the UN to thank for it -how could we have accomplished this if they hadn't ordered the city to be totally cut off from outside aid?" The goons laughed long and hard about that. KNTKNTKNTKNT

The hospital's reception area was packed full with people when Ken and Jun arrived, though at least they were all alive people.  It was apparent to them within a moment what was going on -the long line of people that snaked its way through the entire area was composed of a lot of very anxious-looking people.  They could hear what many of them were saying to each other. "I haven't seen him in hours -he didn't come home today.  He must be here..." "They're not allowing any visiting hours, but if... I don't see her before..." "I'll take my chances with the damned disease -I just want to be allowed to see my father!" The long, long line of people were all waiting for a chance to ask the reception desk staff for updates on patients' conditions and to inquire if someone they couldn't find had been admitted as a patient. But no one who reached the head of the line seemed to be getting good news, judging from the anxiety or raw grief on their faces as they reluctantly stepped away from the desk and the next-in-lines rushed to fill their places. Ken could only watch in silence, feeling sick to realize that he probably knew exactly where so many of these people's loved ones were at this moment... And there was someone that he too couldn't find. It must have shown on his face.  Jun was looking at him now. "We'll have to ask," she said softly. "Yeah." Jun touched his hand for a moment. "Or find out ourselves," Ken continued, "We need to investigate the rest of the hospital." They were both looking around now at the doors from the hospital's reception foyer into the wards -they were guarded by the same variety of thugs, in riot gear and biohazard suits, that they now knew to be Galactor. But Ken and Jun were dressed in the hospital garb that they'd taken from the morgue commander's van, and it made them look just like orderlies. Again, their thoughts were as one. "The entrance to the emergency room, I think it's at the back of the hospital," said Jun, "That's where all the vans and ambulances are pulling up and leaving from; there'll be a bustle of activity around there and if we can blend in, look like we're supposed to be there long enough to get inside..." "You and I've pretended to be Galactor goons before," he agree, "We can surely manage to act like hospital orderlies.  We'll get inside." KNTKNTKNTKNT The mayor's office door opened- "-you guys deal with it, I'm too busy.  I need to get back to work -why the hell is there a kid in my office?" For an instant, Jinpei could only gape and stare blankly.  It was the mayor, flanked by a couple of younger people -a woman and a man- in business clothes. "We didn't let him in here, sir," said the man, "I don't know where he came from!" Jinpei began typing frantically...  and launched into a rant, "My Dad works here, but I can't find him anywhere!  There's nothing for me and my sister to eat at home!  I got nothing to do, 'cause there's no internet!  People are saying we're all going to die-" The mayor had strode across the room rapidly and he grabbed Jinpei's arm and pulled him out the chair. "It's all going to be fine."  He gave Jinpei a shove towards the door.  "Just...  get out of here -go home!  This is City Hall, not some preteen daycare-" He stared at the monitor. "You're using my computer to post status updates on your Facebook page?" "I'm trying to reach my Mom!" protested Jinpei, "We don't live in Mesa City." With an exasperated sigh, the mayor proceeded to drag Jinpei towards the door.  Jinpei resisted, and burst into keening sobs." Curiosity had brought the woman around the desk to look at the monitor. "We're trapped inside Mesa City -and it totally sucks!" she read, "You have to get us out of here!!! Our cell phones don't work AT ALL. None of us even has a change of clothes.  We aren't sick but way too many around here are looking green...  I want to come home!!" The mayor pushed the still-wailing Jinpei out the door, and the younger man with him. "Escort him to an exit and see to it that he leaves!" He then slammed the door and locked it. He stalked towards his desk.  "Close the browser -get that out of my sight," he told the woman. "Kids," he muttered, falling back into his chair. KNTKNTKNTKNT Luck was on Ken and Jun's side; they went outside and crept around to the back of the hospital, just in time to see a fleet of ambulances from the plaza pulling up to the emergency room entrance.   The area here was cordoned off with a high chain link fence, with more of the security thugs stationed around the gate for the arriving ambulances, but they were both science ninjas -even without their birdstyles, they were quick, strong and agile.  Choosing the section of fence furthest from the lights and the activity, they were both over it without being noticed. Multiple gurneys laden with new patients were being pulled from the ambulances and a flock of orderlies had appeared to wheel them all inside.  Ken and Jun joined them in that task. Inside the hospital, it was chaotic.  Gurneys and cots overflowed from the patient rooms into the hallways.  Some were groaning about pain in their heads, many were glassy-eyed and delirious with fever.  And many were no longer moving at all.  Even more disturbing, patients were manacled to the gurneys and cots. The place was woefully understaffed and too small -overwhelmed by an epidemic on a scale that it was never intended to face alone. Ken found himself tying his mask more firmly over his mouth and nose.  He and Jun did as they were told by some harried nurses, but at the first opportune moment when no one was watching them, they slipped down a corridor that seemed to pertain to cleaning supplies and laundry facilities.  Piles of filthy sheets and towels were heaped everywhere. But there was a small console with a computer linked to the hospital network. It only took Jun a couple minutes to figure out how to get access to patient records. "No one named Joe Asakura has been admitted today," she said a minute later, "But if..." Ken swallowed, his throat feeling dry. "Any John Does? Ones who wouldn't or... couldn't give their names?" "Lots," said Jun, her face grim, "But I can sort them by gender and estimated age... Oh-" There it was on the screen... Gender: male Age: late teens/early 20s Hair: light brown Eyes:  blue Build:  thin, athletic Clothing:  blue jeans, blue t-shirt with red sleeves, a 2 on the chest. Metal bracelet on left wrist Ken gasped, felt as if he'd been doused in ice water while the universe spun off its hinges around him.  "No, it can't be..." Jun was saying. This patient was listed as being in "terminal" condition, "not expected to recover." KNTKNTKNTKNT He was awake... sort of.  He felt so groggy, his head full of fog.   He was in near pitch darkness, and still cuffed to the gurney.  He was still in that small room, he realized, right where she'd left him -that bitch with the syringe! Would they be satisfied now that he wasn't diseased?  He sure as hell didn't have a fever.  Would they let him go? He wanted to think they would, but the treatment he'd received here had him damned suspicious about what kind of "medicine" was being practiced in this hospital.  One of the reasons Dr. Nambu had sent them here was to look for signs of Galactor. Well, between the plaza and the hospital, he had sure as hell seen some signs! Footsteps in the corridor -sounded like two people. They were coming closer... They were right outside his door, opening it... "She gave him the injection a few hours ago -time to send him to the morgue." A male voice.  Light came flooding into the room, blinding after being in complete darkness.  Joe kept his eyes closed, and lay completely still on the gurney. The door closed again, but now the light was on in the room. Someone shook his arm slightly.  "Must have run a really high fever -he's not even a bit cold yet."  This was a different male voice. "Good -they told us they wanted 'em as fresh, didn't they?" Joe did his best to be completely limp and to breathe as shallowly as possible.  The two men were unshackling his wrists and ankles from the gurney, one doing his arms and the other his feet... The instant he was free, Joe opened his eyes and simultaneously punched one of the men in the stomach while kicking the other one in the head. Hah!  They hadn't been expecting that!   Joe leapt up from the gurney, grabbing them both while they were momentarily stunned, and then slamming their heads together.  They dropped to the floor and lay there, unmoving, in their white medical smocks and surgical masks.  And Joe was quite certain they weren't pretending...

One by one, he hauled them both up onto the gurney, not troubling to be at all gentle.  He pulled the medical garb off one of the men, before using the cuffs on both of them, each getting one on a hand and a foot.  He might need a disguise to get out of here and find the rest of the science ninjas.   But before he could don any of his disguise, the door to the room opened again -though he hadn't heard anyone coming- The first thing he saw were those eyes above the mask -it was her! Even as her eyes widened, he lunged.  "Hoping to stab me with more needles, are you?" he growled as grabbed her and threw her against the wall while kicking the door shut again. Her back hit the wall, hard, and before she could recover, he grabbed her by the throat with one hand, pinning her there. She hadn't said a word, and now she couldn't, but she didn't struggle either -she just stared at him, studying his face with her angular blue eyes as if... like she- Like she knew him. "Know who I am, do you?  Well, get a good look, then, at Condor Joe -I'll be the last thing you ever see!" Despite the grip he had on her throat, she attempted to whisper something. "What did you say?" he sneered, not loosening his grip any but using his free hand to rip the surgical mask of her face. And then he let go of her neck, and staggered back a couple steps, staring in confusion. "Your name is George," she said. Joe gasped in horror... "Mom?!" KNTKNTKNTKNT Joe's patient record said he was in room 415. Ken and Jun couldn't find an elevator or stairs in the laundry area, so they headed back up the corridor that led to the main hallway. They were running, both desperate to get to the fourth floor and to Joe's room before... No, this just couldn't be happening! Still running, they pushed open the door into the main hallway and without pausing to look first- They crashed right into two thugs like the ones from the plaza, in the anti-riot/biohazard gear. One seized Jun by the arm, and the other grabbed Ken.  The thugs towered over both of them.  Light reflected from their helmets' masks, and the grip of their gloved hands was tight. "You twerps need to look where you're go-" began the one who held Ken, "Hey, you two don't have hospital identity badges." Around them, other orderlies and medical staff were looking on -and many of them looked distressed but too afraid to intervene.  They all had badges pinned to their white medical uniforms. "So who do you work for?" demanded the security thug, giving Ken's arm a rough shake. "We just want to see our friend," said Jun, her eyes wide and teary above her mask, "He's dying!  We have to see him!" The thug holding Jun ignored her plea; he too was looking at Ken. "How did you get in here without a badge?  Better tell us -don't want us to hurt your girlfriend here, do you?" More thugs were coming down the hallway now towards them...  from both directions. Jun grabbed the arm he was holding her with.  Twisting it with sudden speed, she kicked up with her knee while yanking it down. Crack! "Auugghh!!" cried the guard, staggering back from Jun and clutching his arm, now broken at the elbow. Wasting not a second, Ken grabbed the guard holding him with his free arm and swung his leg abruptly to sweep the thug's leg and throw him off balance as Ken pushed him over backwards and he crashed into the other thug.  They both went down, sprawling. Then Ken and Jun ran, in the only direction they easily could with more thugs barreling down on them from two sides -back out into the reception foyer. But the other thugs were in pursuit. The reception foyer was still packed with a long line of people, that now extended all the way out the door and beyond.  Dozens and dozens of people, all distressed, frantic, grief-stricken and angry. "Everybody!"  yelled Ken, his own voice now filled with the same anger, grief and rage, "It's a Galactor plot -the mayor is working for Galactor -they caused the disease!" He and Jun had to turn around now and push on the doors they'd just exited, as hard as they could.  On the other side, banging and shoving began -the thugs were trying to force their way into the foyer. "It's true!" yelled Jun, craned her neck to stare into the crowd, "We've been inside the morgue -Galactor is turning all the people who've died  into zombies!  You have to believe us -it's true!" The thugs who had already been in the foyer, guarding the doors, had been just staring at Ken and Jun in stupefied surprise, but now they closed in... And Ken and Jun were losing their battle to hold the doors shut against the pursuing thugs trying to get into the foyer. The ones already in the foyer were getting ready to attack them. "All these security thugs," yelled Ken, "They belong to Galactor!  And the mayor is telling the UN to keep the force field up!  We spied on him -we heard him say so!" There was a roar from the crowd, no longer in a line, no longer waiting patiently.  Dozens more who had been waiting outside were now pushing their way into the foyer. Ken and Jun finally lost their struggle and the doors flew open.  The thugs from the hallway were now in the foyer... And the crowd went thoroughly berserk and attacked them all -kicking them, beating them.   It was like the riot in the plaza all over again, but this time the citizens of Mesa City were not going to lose.   If any of the thugs here had weapons, they never got a chance to even draw them.   They all went down. Ken and Jun were still at the doors leading out of the foyer and into the rest of the hospital and now they held them wide open. "Everyone," they yelled, "Find who you came here looking for!" They turned and ran inside themselves, and were followed by a massive crowd that spilled into the hallways and patient rooms, and stairwells. Ken and Jun were ahead of the crowd, in a stairwell, and running as fast as they could up to the fourth floor. Hold on, Joe, thought Ken. Don't leave us now! KNTKNTKNTKNT

"Mom?" cried Joe again, "How... how can this be?  You died-you died on that beach!" She clutched her head, wincing.  "I'm following my orders," she muttered, "I gave him an injection.." "What, Mom?  What are you talking about?" She looked at Joe again, saying nothing, but her eyes were searching him so intensely, as if trying to see and learn, in his face, the last ten years of his life. "You and Dad," continued Joe, his voice rising slightly in pitch, more like a child's, "You were in Galactor -how could you do that, be part of them?" His eyes were wet with anguish.  His mother was still standing at the wall he'd been holding her against, but he'd walked closer to her again.  Her eyes were dry. "We were young and greedy," she said, "We wanted the money and the power, and then we were trapped.  When had you... we realized we were dooming you to serve them too, that's when we knew we had to try to leave." She clutched her head again, "I followed my orders, I followed my orders," she intoned. "Why do you keep saying that?" asked Joe, "Why are you following Galactor's orders now -what do they have on you?" Again, she only looked at him and for the first time, a hint of an expression crossed her face.  A smile. Joe reached for her, putting his hands on her shoulders. "You're cold," he said, and touched her face gently with his finger tips.  "So cold -what's going on?  What did they do to you?" She said nothing, but with lightning speed she slammed Joe around, pushed his back against the wall, her own back against him. A loud crack of gunfire. And again.  Her body convulsed as she shielded Joe but she was silent The man still wearing his medical garb had sat partially up in the gurney, and with his free arm, he was firing a handgun. Rapidly she strode toward him.  Fear and panic infused his face, he kept firing the gun at her.  She didn't even flinch. "Mom!" cried Joe, rushing towards her. But she had already reached the gunman and turned his gun on him, with unnatural strength, and the final bullet in his handgun entered his chest.  Then she fell to the floor. The door to the room flew open.  Ken and Jun stood there, too amazed and bewildered by what they were seeing to move.  Sounds of yelling and rioting from beyond flowed into the room too. Joe noticed none of this.  He sat on the floor of the room, cradling his mother in his arms. "We're in a hospital, Mom.  Stay still," he implored, "We'll get you help.  Don't die -don't leave me again." "This doesn't hurt me," she said softly.  "I've been a slave of Galactor for ten years.  I'm not truly alive." "You'll be free now," said Joe, "Truly free, like you meant to be all those years ago." "I diddie on that beach, George.  I'm not truly alive at all -I'm an abomination." "No, Mom, you're not.  Don't say that." "Don't hide from the truth. You feel how cold I am, you saw me take bullets without stopping, saw me overpower that man." Joe continued to hold her, his eyes bleak, and he was trembling. "Galactor has caused this disease.  They're using it to make more like me -I was their first success.  Making an army now, of mindlessly obedient slaves.  I was stationed here, and ordered to give all the patients an injection of the disease.  I cannot disobey orders." "So I'm going to die with you," whispered Joe, "We'll be a family again, you and me and Dad." "I gave you an injection, yes," said Katarina Asakura, "I couldn't not do that. I had orders But there is an antidote to the disease.  Most of it is stored at the morgue.  I injected you with the antidote, not the disease." "Oh..." breathed Jun, from the doorway, holding back a sob.  Ken put his arm around her, his own eyes as sad as hers. "Mom," said Joe, and he hugged her close. "You're my son," she whispered, "And I love you.  That is stronger, it seems, than any order they could give me." "I love you , Mom." "I will be free..."  Her final words before her eyes closed and she stilled completely. KNTKNTKNTKNT Ryu had seen and heard as much as he could stand.  Ken needed to be told what he'd learned about the zombies and Galactor's plans for them!  It hadn't been easy to slip away from the zombies and sneak out of the morgue without any of the goons noticing, but he'd managed it and found a small door that wasn't locked from the inside.  He'd gotten out... Only to see Jinpei, in the distance, being shoved out a side door of the City Hall. "I got a message to Doctor Nambu," crowed Jinpei, as soon as Ryu got over to him. "What kind of message?" "Uh..." said Jinpei, "It'll work -trust me!  What'd you guys learn at the morgue?  Where's Ken and Jun? "Galactor caused the disease. They're using all the dead bodies to create an army of zombies." Jinpei laughed... "You've always got the best jokes, Ryu!" Then he looked more closely at Ryu "You're serious?  Holy crap -you're serious!!!" But before Jinpei could run away screaming  (what he certainly looked about to do), both he and Ryu stared up in sudden surprise. The sky was filled with stars, all the myriad stars of the night sky, at their brightest. "The force field is down!" said Ryu. "Doctor Nambu!" yelled Jinpei, "I knew he'd see my message!  He's always on facebook playing Words with Friends against Director Anderson, though he thinks no one knows!" Everything seemed to be happening all at once.   In the distance, across the plaza, they could see the hospital, and now a crowd of people were streaming out of, yelling "Down with Galactor!  Down with the mayor!" at the top of their lungs. The noise of approaching helicopters filled the air... and soon a couple dozen of them were overhead and descending to the plaza.  They all had "ISO" on their sides, and as soon as they landed, troops began coming out, wearing biohazard gear but also heavily armed. And both Jinpei's and Ryu's bracelets suddenly came to life. "This is Dr. Nambu.  Science Ninja Team, report on the current situation!  The force field will be back up in ten minutes, but the troops need to be told what to do.  They're from the Monalince Kingdom -on loan from Princess Flake.  You won't be able to use your birdstyles...  I will have to... repair what I did when I modified them, at the Crescent Coral Base." "Oh man," said Ryu, "Doctor -do we have a story for you..." KNTKNTKNTKNT Joe was still kneeling at his mother's new gravesite, near the edge of the cliff that overlooked the sea.  Red flowers grew all over the grass there, and it had long been a place where he would go to sit when he wanted to be alone. The others were standing a short distance away, respecting his solitude, but not ready yet to walk back to the villa and leave him completely alone. The dates he'd had carved on the stone were those of her birth, and her death, ten years ago at BC Island. "She was right," Joe had said to Ken, "She did die that day.  When my time comes, Ken, however it comes -just let me die.  What Galactor did to her..." The ISO had taken over the responsibility of caring for the zombies created in Mesa City by Galactor, at a scientific research facility on a remote island.   The stockpiles of antidote that were found at the morgue in Mesa City had cured everyone afflicted by the disease who'd not yet succumbed, and ensured the disease would never be a threat again. But that day, though the sun was bright, the wind off the sea that made the flowers dance felt very cold to Ken. "I'll make Galactor pay," Joe had vowed, "If it's the last thing I do, I'll make them pay." Ken hadn't said anything.  Silence is concurrence. KNTKNTKNTKNT The End

Wow! What an awesome adventure! You made my prompt come to life in a way that I would have never thought of! I was gasping at certain parts- what great twists- and the way you made them lose their birdstyles was so clever! I knew that blue- eyed woman had special significance...but what a surprise( I was thinking Katse)! Also, what a sad foreshadowing from Joe at the end ("Just let me die".)You have an amazing gift for storytelling and I love my story! Thank you!

Wow that was powerful, poor Joe. He's got it rough this gift fic season.

I'm still trying to catch my breath! It's a great, fast-paced story, even with Joe experiencing heartbreak.

Poor Joe is right! I agree with you, Chris. No wonder he hates the holidays!

Joe just can't seem to catch a break in this exchange can he? I didn't see the woman turning out to be his mother, I was totally expecting it to be Katse. Who would have thought to add zombies, Joe's mother, and a lack of birdstyles to come up with this story?

This was very nicely put together. And I'll repeat this again, Joe seriously has *no* luck. Yeah, he's got it rough this year! LOL. And what ominous words from him: "When my time comes, Ken, however it comes -just let me die. What Galactor did to her..." Makes one wonder down the road, when put into that situation what Ken would decide--if he would honor Joe's wishes, or not.

What a twist! Fate can be a real bitch. I really enjoyed reading this and the ending is better explanation for the team leaving Joe when he was dying.

I have to say I think this is Chris's work.....

You think I'm that mean, huh KT?

where Joe's concerned? Yes!

Okay, I'll admit it -- you guys are good!

LOL EW, you're such a brat

What? Is there something wrong to what I've been admitting?

There's sure a lot of angst and long-hidden secrets coming to the fore in this year's Gift Exchange fics!

This is really thought-provoking, and another interesting look into where Galactor's seemingly endless line of troops comes from. And Joe being diseased and then cured... but perhaps not fully cured... is a good way to 'enhance' his earlier problems. And then the link to 'death' at the end... this all fits in so well with canon! And yes, I thought it was Katse too!

That was, probably, the worst mission ever for the team! Very well-done, though! The plot twist with the birdstyles was very clever -- I didn't see it coming, although them "losing" their equipment should've been an indication.