"This is too easy," thought Joe as he ran through the computer files, retrieving the information he needed. "I mean, even if they really think I'm this Jason jerk they ought to doublecheck it. Dr. Nambu would have had a fit; I could have been anyone. Berg Katse would've had a field day here." He continued his work, thinking that the only advantage to this place was the amount of information that was logged and accessible. From the records he could trace the routine of any employee; check the atmospheric conditions at any time, as well as any changes; and projected forecasts. From all this, Joe discovered that during the transporter run there had been a meteor belt passing between the origin point and the destination. According to the computer it was a wide belt which would move out of the area in just over an hour. That meant he had to get them to recreate the experiment, and soon. Problem was, the machine was still being tested and would need to be reassembled. And the information on how to do that was kept in only one location: Zark's memory banks. Maybe with a little smooth talking a lot of sophistry he could con the robot into cooperating. Checking his equipment once more, he set off for the transporter room. * * * * * Kamo paced around, puffing on his pipe like an antiquated steam engine. He was still getting nowhere, nor had Gatchaman contacted him. He was reluctantly about to resume the interrogation when Ken and Jun raced in. "What happened? What is it?" "They must have been expecting us," said Ken. "It was a trap." "So they have got Joe, then." Jun shook her head. "We didn't see him. But now they've got Ryu and Jinpei." Ken jerked his thumb towards the room. "Any progress?" "None. It's like playing a broken record." Ken looked thoughtful. "Can we really be positive that this isn't Joe? Apart from his attitude, I mean." "He's no cyborg, but he's got some gizmos in him," offered Kamo. Jun looked puzzled. "Like Joe's?" "No, much smaller and compact." "Oh, so that's why..." "Why what?" asked Ken. "Not important. But you don't really think this can be Joe, do you?" "Not Joe exactly, but....do you remember something Dr. Nambu mentioned once? He called it a parallel universe, one similar to ours but existing on another plane?" "I remember him talking about it, but I never really understood it. What are you getting at?" "Nothing this guy remembers matches Joe in any way - EXCEPT for that bright light. It's exactly the same as the one we saw.." Jun and Kamo still looked blank, so he continued. "Everything we've been going on has been guesswork, based on what we know. What if we bring in the unknown? Maybe this isn't Joe, but if there is such a thing as a parallel universe, this could be his counterpart." "It would explain a lot," said Jun, thoughtfully. "If we took him with us, we could see if there's any other similarities. He must have been trained to fight at some time." "It's too risky," objected Kamo. "I'm willing to take that risk. We've got to go back for the others, and we'll need all the help we can get. * * * * * Joe approached the transporter room, immediately putting the guards on the defensive. With his best attempt at affability, he put a bland expression on his face and in his voice."Hi, fellas. What's up?" Nonplussed, they lowered their guns and looked at him. "What are you doing back here?" "Zark sent for me. It's about what happened during the test." The guards looked at each other, then at Joe, then finally said, "Yeah, well, then I guess it's okay." They stepped aside. Inside, Zark looked up from his tinkering. "Why, Jason! What a surprise! What brings you here?" With difficulty, Joe force himself to sound pleasant. "About the transporter: I think we should try it out again." "Oh, but we haven't finished all our tests yet..." "You mean you haven't found an explanation yet. Never mind those; if we try the run again, things might sort themselves out back to normal." "Oh, that WOULD be nice! But it isn't in working order right now." Joe looked at the clock, heart sinking. "How long to get it working?" "Not long, but I don't have the authority to fix it." "I thought you said YOU were in charge of security here." "Oh, I am, but I have to be cleared by Chief Anderson first. And he's in a meeting right now." "And I couldn't buffalo him anyway," thought Joe grimly. "It'll have to be the hard way." "I want that machine ready to go in five minutes. Are you going to cooperate?" "Now, Jason, you've always been impetuous, but..." "ARE YOU GOING TO COOPERATE?!" "I'm not programmed to deal with insubordination.." Joe produced his rebuilt airgun and pointed it straight at the robot. "Put it back together...NOW!" "Well, really! This is most irregular!" "YOU will be most irregular in another second. Get to work!" Zark hesitated and Joe shot out a brand new vid-screen. Quickly the robot began work, albeit under protest. "Really, I don't know what the Chief will make of this!" "He told you to work on this transporter problem, didn't he? That's just what you're doing. Speed it up." The guards, heard the breaking glass, went to investigate, and found the door jammed close. Rather than tangle with him themselves, they went to contact G-Force. * * * * * Inside the Gatcha Spartan, Jun (in spite of the situation) was having difficulty keeping a straight face. Ken, who was acting as pilot, was briefing Jason on their mission and was getting pretty much the same reactions she'd gotten. Still, he weathered it fairly well. As for Jason, he seemed relieved that they finally believed him and was eager to help out. Now, if he could just learn to fire his airgun without falling over... "Remember," Ken was saying. "When we get there, stick close by. Don't try anything on your own; just follow my lead, understand?" "Sure thing, Skipper." Ken winced and Jun giggled. "Still think it's Joe?" she murmured, and got a dirty look in return. Ken landed the ship well away from the Galactor base and the three set out. Once inside, they rapidly made their way to the holding cells. "You seem to be very familiar with all this," said Ken to Jason suspiciously. "Hey, you see one Spectran base, you've seen them all." "Spectra?" "Yeah, the guys in the green suits and brown hair, remember?" "How could I forget?" They knocked out the guards, found Ryu and Jinpei, and set them free. Their first reaction was, "Joe?" and then, "What's HE doing here?" "Doing okay, so far. Any chances the guards were talking?" "Yeah," groaned Ryu. "All about last night's poker game." "We tried to steer them around," added Jinpei. "But it didn't work." Ken swore and thought hard. It was still possible that this was an imposter and that Joe was a prisoner. Best to make sure... * * * * * G-Force was spread out over the Ready Room, licking their wounds and trying to regain some composure. "Was it bad?" asked Princess, sympatheically. "Really bad. I can't remember when he's ever been that angry." "Can't say I blame 'im," mused Tiny. "Wouldn't wanna hafta face the Council myself." "Be worse...arrrr...when he...toot-toot...gets back." "That's for sure," sighed Mark. "I'd hate to be in Jason's shoes when he does." Princess sighed. "Somehow I don't think he's particularly worried about that," Suddenly the guards burst in. "QUICK!!! The transporter room!! Jason's locked in there with Zark!" Four faces went pale as four minds shared the same horrible thought. They took off like lightning. * * * * * "Remember," said Ken to the other three (Ryu having been sent to retrieve the ship), "let him think it's just me. Joe...I mean, Jason, if I say, 'Don't be too sure,' that's your cue to jump down. But don't say anything." "Why not?" "If they've got Joe, they'll be surprised to see you, as long as they think you're Joe. Try carrying one of your shurikens in your teeth." "My what?" "Steel darts, remember?" "You mean these?" and Jason pulled out a pale facsimile. Ken groaned. "Here, I've got some extras. Like this." And he struck up Joe's familiar pose. Jason tried to imitate him. "OWW!!" "What?" "Cut my tongue." They got to their position over the room where Egobossler was planning his next move. Ken jumped down, and the blue skinned man rose to face him. "You! I wondered when you'd be back." "Release your prisoners, Count. All of them." "Your two young friends..." "I said ALL the prisoners!" "I'm sure I don't know what you mean, Gatchaman. But those two are staying." "Don't be too sure." Jason landed neatly beside him, but the Count looked only mildly surprised. "But of course; I should have expected the Condor. I hope you brought the Swan as well, so I can complete my collection." Several panels in the walls opened and teams of Galactors swarmed in. Jun and Jinpei leaped into the fray, and Gatchaman began to get the upper hand. Egobossler chose that moment to escape, but two burly Galactors got the drop on Jason. "Freeze, Gatchaman!" one yelled. "Surrender or the Condor dies!" Mentally, Ken tore a strip off himself for not seeing that coming. "You'll kill him anyway. And we can get you ourselves. Let him go and you can live." "No chance, I'll get a great promotion for this. Maybe even Kempler's old job!" Jason had been struggling and now shouted, "Save yourselves! Get out of here!" His voice took them by surprise. "HUH?! YOU'RE not...OOOOOFFFGGHH!!!" Jason disabled one guard and Ken took out the other. The four then made a dash for the exit, but reinforcements were already pouring in. "Split up!" ordered Ken. "Meet back at the Gatcha Spartan!" They were nearly outside when a boobytrap went off, leaving Jason caught inside. * * * * * "Nearly done?" asked Joe, checking the clock again. "There. It's just as it was before." "Good. Now set it for exactly the same coordinates and time as before." "But...I....couldn't we talk this over? This is terribly wrong!" The gun came closer. "Do as I say. If it's just like before, I'll come back and maybe I'll be normal. If you try anything funny, I won't be back and you'll be up to your transistors in trouble." "But I was forced to do this!" "Where's your proof?" There was silence, then the robot began setting the controls. "Now move away from there." It did, but just then the doors were blown open and G-Force ran in. "Jason!" yelled Mark. "What are you DOING?!" "Don't interfere. I'm warning you." "Have you gone crazy? Put down that gun!" As the fracas heated up, Zark moved silently to deactivate the transporter. Quick as ever, Joe turned and fired, blowing the robot into a hundred pieces. Aghast, the others stood frozen until Princess managed to gasp out, "You...you didn't have to..do THAT.." Joe flipped the switch and jumped into place. "Oh, yes I did." * * * * * Jason clawed at the pile of rubble that kept him inside. The two Galactors, having recovered, closed in on him. "This can't be happening," he thought frantically. "It's never been like this! What am I..." The image of the guards began to fade as a bright light spun up around him, glowing brighter and brighter until he could see nothing. When at last it faded, he blinked and looked around, and looked warily at the others. "Centre Neptune?" he asked uncertainly. "Yesss..." came the chorus in a tone he couldn't quite place. Still, he sighed in relief. "Mark - you ARE Mark, aren't you?" "Of course I'm....OOOOOFFFF!!! LEGGO! Those are the only ribs I've got!" And Mark tried to break free of Jason's bear-hug. Jason let him go, and then did a double-take. "Hey, where'd you get all those bruises?" Mark smiled evilly and grabbed him. "Like THIS!" he snarled, and threw his partner into the wall. "Hey, what was that for?" "For the last eighteen hours, that's what for!" "It wasn't my fault..." "Tell that to the Chief." Jason remembered. "The Chief! Omigosh, is he okay?" "You'll see for yourself," said Princess coldly. "He wants you in his office. BEFORE he gets back form the Galaxy Council." "Why?" Jason wondered. "What's wrong?" "Arrr...toot-toot...won't be happy...broop-beep...with the way you...whirrrr...trashed Zark." For the first time, Jason noticed the heap of smouldering electronics and turned white. "Oh, NO!! "They might be able to fix him up," continued Mark. "But the repairs are coming out of your pay." "Along with all the vid-screens you smashed," added Tiny. "Shouldn't....broop...take more than...whirrr...forty years." Jason slumped down on a chair, put his head in his hands and moaned, "It wasn't my fault, I wasn't even here..." The others snorted in disbelief and left. All except for Tiny, who regarded his teammate with some sympathy - he was, after all, in for a very rough time of it. "Relax," he said. "The Chief won't be back for a while. Let's get a bite to eat." "I'm not hungry." "Aw, come on, I'll buy ya a space burger. Whattaya want on it?" Jason sighed. "Ketchup, pickles...and cyanide." * * * * * Joe gritted his teeth while the lights flared up, and when they died down he was surprised to see two Galactors trying to recover their sight. He dispatched them both and then knocked his way to the outside. The others looked at him in some surprise. He returned the look. "Well? What are you all staring at?" They seemed to relax then, and Jinpei laughed, "It sure sounds like Joe." Ken suddenly threw a punch that Joe blocked without even trying. "It's Joe, all right." "Let's make sure." Jun produced the small plastic box from her belt and ran it over Joe. The lights glowed brightly. She threw her arms around him. "It IS Joe!" He laughed. "Of course it's me - who were you expecting?" Ryu groaned, "Wait'll you hear. Unbelievable!" "It was quite an experience," their leader confirmed. Joe smiled, but said nothing of his own misadventure. There would be plenty of time to compare notes later. He took the device from Jun. "Just what is this, and how does it tell you it's me?" "It's a kind of magnet. I figured your cybernetics would show up on it." "Where did you get it?" "Any hardware store sells it." He turned it over, saw the raised letters, and burst out laughing. "What's so funny?" asked Jun, somewhat miffed. He drew her attention to the lettering. It read, "STUD DETECTOR." The End Susan Johnson -- "I am the cat who walks by himself, and all places are alike to me." Susan Johnson -- "I am the cat who walks by himself, and all places are alike to me."