Fan Fiction ❯ The Gemini Chronicles ❯ The Gemini Chronicles ( Prologue )

[ P - Pre-Teen ]

M'kay, here it is. This is a prequel to the game and prequel to Pest Control. It's my first attempt at a JFG fanfic, so please understand why it sounds so simplistic and innocent. And yes, I know JFG didn't really quit the Federation, that's just a personal view.

The Gemini Chronicles
By Megan Miller

Part 1
Noises. Unmistakable screams. "Get the kids! Hurry!"
"Now just stay here, and don't leave until you know it's safe, you two," Mother gasped.
Two small children stood in a closet, shivering and staring out through a crack in the door. What was going on in the rest of the ship was oblivious to them, but the screams continued. Though they couldn't see anything, they knew something was wrong. "Mom!" the boy cried out softly, listening to his parents' cries, reaching out for the door.
"No, Juno! Mommy said to stay!" his sister said, pulling him back by his arm. He continued to whisper out to his parents, shaking in the cool, dark closet. Finally, the cries died down and it was silent again except for the constant humming of the ship's engines. Juno gently pushed open the door, and his sister screamed. "Mommy! Daddy! No!"
Juno led her away, away from the horror...tried to escape it...they were so alone...
With a gasp, Juno awoke in a cold sweat. In the bed next to his, his sister Vela rolled over and groggily sat up. "Hey, Squirt, what's wrong?"
"Just another dream," he replied softly. He breathed deeply. Why did these dreams keep returning? It had been about ten years since his parents' murder, and yet it continued to haunt him every once in a while. What a cruel universe. Why were there so many bad people?
Vela rose and sat next to him. "I understand how you feel," she said softly. "I get them sometimes too. It feels as if it happened just yesterday." Juno shivered in reply, and Vela held him closer. "There was nothing we could have done."
"They're still dead," Juno said harshly. "Nothing can fix that now. I just wish we could have known whom was responsible for it."
"I do too. Whoever it was shouldn't be out there, you know. Our parents are gone because they decided to hitch a quick ride and steal some cash."
Lupus, the team mascot, whined and put his front paws on the side of the bed. "Yeah, you can come up too," Juno sighed, relaxing a bit and patting his thigh, signaling Lupus to hop up onto the bed. He barked happily and began sniffing around the covers until he found the perfect spot to lie down. Juno stroked the dog's soft fur, and Lupus turned onto his back, his tongue rolling out of his mouth. Juno grinned.
"I better go see where we are now," Vela said, yawning. "It's almost six o'clock. Meet me at the bridge when you're dressed."
Juno stretched and climbed out of bed. Lupus growled and pushed his nose under the sheet as Juno made his way to the bathroom to shave and dress. The little dog grabbed a hold of his favorite squeaky toy and began shaking it back and forth. Juno watched from the doorway as he brushed his teeth, smiling. Then Lupus grabbed hold of the sheets on his bed and began tugging them with little growls until he finally pulled them off the mattress. The dog began to drag them behind him towards the bridge.
"And where do you think you're going?" Juno scolded playfully, and Lupus gave a gleeful yelp and took off, tearing through the ship at full speed for the bridge, Juno chasing him along the way.
Lupus skidded to a stop just before crashing into Vela's computer panel. "What in the world?" she laughed, watching Juno slide to a stop just behind the energetic dog. The two engaged in a game of tug-of-war over the sheets until Juno finally gave up, falling over with laughter. Lupus continued to gnaw on the sheets, snarling through his nose. "All right now, we're aboard a space cruiser, not a playground," Vela grinned.
"Okay, Mother," Juno joked. "I'll go put my sheets back." He promptly lifted the blankets and carried them back to his dormitory, dragging Lupus along with them, still locked to the covers with his jaws. He gave a few growls as Juno threw the sheets back on his bed. He was starting back to the bridge when Vela called out to him.
"Don't just throw them on there. You better have made the bed."
"Aw," he answered. "How'd she know?"
"I know everything," Vela yelled from the bridge. "Now get a move on, Commander."
"Why am I the commander? You're the one who's always commanding." Juno pried Lupus' teeth from the covers and made his bed. "Now go on," he told the dog as he stared at the bed with those sad puppy eyes. "That's enough play for now."
"Juno, get over here, now!" Vela shouted urgently from the bridge. Juno raced to her, Lupus at his heels. "You better see this," Vela said. Juno glanced at the radar panel with concern.
"Bogey approaching at approximately fifty-point-two kilometers, distance, three-hundred-point-five-two-seven kilometers." Juno looked up from the screen. "Probably some goof-offs who are running short on fuel. I tell you one thing; we're not picking up any hitchhikers."
Just then, the ship shook with a small impact, and Juno, Vela, and Lupus stabled themselves. "Check the computer," Juno said as he began adjusting the ship's speed. "How bad is the damage?"
"Just a dent," Vela said," but something tells me these are no hitchhikers."
"Try contacting some of the other Jet Force squadrons," Juno commanded.
Vela began dialing out to other troops. "Jet Force Orion, do you read me?"
"Yeah, we hear you loud and clear."
"We're under attack. Can you help us out?"
"Sure, soon as we pinpoint your location. Over and out."
"They're on the way," Vela announced.
"We're going to sit it out then," Juno said, slowing the ship down again. "Their ships are better equipped for battle. Besides, there's only one fighter. It shouldn't be too bad. If they get here in time." The ship vibrated again, and Juno, Vela, and Lupus found something to hold on to.
"We've lost the hyperdrive unit," Vela proclaimed.
"It's okay, Gemini. We're here." Orion had arrived, and their fighters were now taking down the attacker. Juno didn't feel right.
"Something's wrong," he said cautiously. "There's no way one small fighter would try to take out a cruiser. It's a trap. I can feel it. Orion, fall back. I repeat, fall back, now."
Jet Force Orion began to back off, and a swarm of fighters rose out of nowhere. "Invisibility," Juno muttered with unease. "Radar didn't detect them. There must be fifty of them."
Within a few short moments, Jet Force Orion no longer existed. "We've got to find a place to land," Vela said insistently.
"Then find one." Juno turned away from the windshield as they were pelted with weapon power. "Better make it snappy." He began strapping weaponry to himself and Lupus. "If we can get into an atmosphere, their ships might burn up. Let's head for Earth."
Vela nodded. "We're on the way."
The Gemini Cruiser slowly slid down into Earth's ambiance and finished its descent with a soft landing in a deciduous forest. The team walked out of the ship, armed to the teeth in case of emergency.
Up in orbit, Mizar's fighters had to make a decision. "Either we go down there and sniff them out or we turn back. There are risks in landing."
"They're as good as dead down there anyhow," one fighter replied. "If they come back, we'll kill them. I wouldn't worry about it, though. Their ship took some damage. They probably won't try us again."
"I'm going after them anyway," one fighter replied. "I want to make sure they're dead."
"I'm with you all the way," another said. A team of about ten fighters flew down to Earth, tracking Juno, Vela, and Lupus with body heat trackers. The ships that survived the atmospheric pressure and heat soon landed in the forest.
"We need to split up," Juno said. "Lupus, stick with Vela. I'm going to try to contact the Federation. They need to know about Mizar's ambush."
Vela and Lupus left Juno and came across a small, abandoned cabin. "This could be useful," Vela told herself. "It would probably be a safe haven, at least until we're ready for a real fight."
Juno walked and walked, trying to find me sort of more civilized setting. I can't contact the Federation until I'm in an open area, he told himself. Just then, he heard a rustling of leaves. Walking carefully in the direction, a creature jumped out at him, and he jumped. "Just a squirrel," he said quietly.
"Guess again," a low-pitched growl answered. A group of blue ants measuring at least five feet tall emerged from the trees, surrounding Juno. He was boxed in...
"Allrighty then," Vela smiled. "Let's go find Juno." They set off in search of their friend. About an hour later, they found him, his hands tied behind his back, his legs spread and tied to a tree behind him, and the back of his breastplate attached to the tree with a metal wire. "Juno," Vela said softly, kneeling beside her friend. "How'd this happen?"
"How do you think? Don't just stare at me," he said. "Get me out of here!"
Vela whipped out a pocketknife and began sawing the rope from his wrists. There was a rustling in the woods, and some snarls. "Hurry; big bug on the way," Juno gulped. "Press the button on my body armor, and move it!"
Vela pressed the button, and the protective covering over Juno's chest ejected. Juno tore the last threads of rope imprisoning his hands and Vela continued sawing away at the ones at his ankles. "Stand back," he said, ripping out of the rope. "Now run."
Vela and Lupus took off, Juno limping after them, one of his ankles injured. Vela skidded to a stop and whirled back around. She knew that now that the armor over his heart had been removed, he was vulnerable to attack. She ran back to Juno and put her arm around his back, grabbing the side of his belt to stabilize him. "I'm fine," he muttered.
"No, you're not," she said. "Let me help you."
Juno allowed her to help him walk, but it made him feel inferior. "I have a cabin we can go to," she said. "Lupus and I discovered it before we left to find you."
"We're not going there yet, then," Juno said sternly.
"Are you nuts?" Vela asked irritably. "You need to rest!"
"Listen, do you want to lead those bugs straight to our refuge?" Juno asked. "Quit following the trail. Get off it!"
Vela, Juno, and Lupus leapt off the path and ran onto an unexpected landslide. They lost their footing and tumbled down the hill, the bugs close behind. An overhang lay below the edge of the cliff, and just in time, Juno grabbed the edge and shifted under the overhang to rest on a ledge. Lupus raced off the side and hovered with his thrusters over to Juno's shelter, and Vela slid off the edge too sharply, sending her falling. Juno reached out and grabbed her hand just in time as the dim-witted ants plummeted into a deep canyon below. Juno counted them as they fell. "One, two, three..." he said as they each barreled off the side. "That's all of them," he said with a sigh of relief. "It should be safe to go back to that cabin now."
When the tired trio finally reached the cabin, it was late afternoon. There was little time to spare before dusk, and they were so tired, they wiped out as soon as they got comfortable. Only Lupus remained awake. He sniffed around the little house until he found something interesting. He picked it up in his mouth and nuzzled Juno.
"What is it, boy?" Juno asked, rolling over as Lupus dropped a piece of fabric in his hand. "A patch? Where'd you find this?" He turned it over in his hand. "A Jet Force symbol," he said softly, noticing the embroidery on the patch. "How'd that get here?"
"Juno, rest," Vela said. "You can look around at stuff tomorrow."
Juno rolled over. Lupus lay at his feet. No sooner had he fallen asleep then there was a sound at the door. This time, Vela sat up too. The lock began to move back, and it began to open--
Lupus growled and Juno stood up, grabbing his Jet Force pistol and preparing for a fight, but he came face to face with another human, holding the same weapon! Each of them was so surprised that moments past before either spoke. "What are you doing here?" Juno managed to say.
"I think the question is rather what you're doing here," the other replied.
"We're Jet Force Gemini," Juno began. "We took a bit of a beating--"
"Well, it's about time a rescue crew was sent," the newcomer answered. "I've been waiting!"
"Who are you?" Vela asked.
"My name's Venus," she replied. "My cat Leo and I are Jet Force Mercury."
"Jet Force Mercury?" Juno gasped. "But that's impossible. Mercury was taken out months ago!"
"We survived. The rest of the crew didn't make it. We lost two of them." She sighed. "We tried to save them--"
"Who were they?" Juno asked.
"Mercedes and Pontiac," she joked. "Just kidding. If you don't mind, I'd rather not mention them. They meant a lot to me, and I'd prefer if the rest of the universe didn't know about their deaths. Just some respect I'd like to honor them with."
"So, uh, I guess we'd like to know if we can stay," Juno said. "Of course, it would only be temporary. We thought this place was vacant, and we were hoping to stay here until we could repair our ship. If it's not interrupted, the process should only take two days."
"I suppose, if you have nowhere else to go," Venus sighed. "But don't let that dog take a bite out of Leo." Leo the cat purred and strolled into the room, inspecting the three intruders.
"Don't worry about Lupus; he wouldn't harm a thing except for Mizar's drones," Vela said reassuringly. "Would you, Lupus?"
Lupus looked at Leo and whined. Leo came up to him and sniffed around him a bit, then playfully began chewing on his ear. Lupus barked and rolled around, happy to be able to play a little again. Vela smiled. "I think they'll get along fine. My name's Vela. It's a pleasure to meet you."
Venus paced around Juno. "Why are you standing like that?" she asked. "Something wrong with your leg?"
"It's nothing," Juno said quickly, trying to sound sincere. "Just bruised it when we were running from the drones." He blushed. Vela almost said something, but then she remembered how embarrassing it must have been for him to be tied to the base of a tree by a bunch of ants, so she decided not to comment.
Venus moved on to her next question. "Where's your body armor?"
"Let's just say it got snagged on something in battle," Juno said, hoping he might be able to change the subject. "Now how about you let us get some rest?"
Venus sighed. "There's only one bed, and since you're the injured one, you can take it. Vela, you can have the couch. Lupus and Leo can share the pet bed, and I'll take the floor." She looked to the team. "Don't think you'll be staying long. I've got better things to do than baby-sit a trio of trespassers. But since you're part of the Jet Force, I guess it's my duty to lend a hand." As she lay down, she added, "I do ask one favor of you in return."
"What's that?" asked Vela.
"Tell the Federation that they're lazy, pathetic hypocrites," Venus grumbled. "Tell them that I said it in the name of Jet Force Mercury and in the name of all Jet Force squadrons. They said they never take chances. Peacekeeping is top priority. Yeah, right. The bugs seemed weak to them, so they decided they'd just forget about them whether they wanted to conquer societies or not. They have strength in numbers. The Federation looked that over, and because of their idiocy, two of my best friends are dead. You make sure and tell them that," Venus said angrily. "Tell those idiotic frauds that I quit."
Juno lay down on the bed carefully as to not harm his leg any further. Jet Force Mercury had a familiar ring to it, but he couldn't quite place where he'd last heard it. It was bugging him, this strange feeling of déjà vu, but he eventually fell asleep, still wondering where he had first heard of Mercury's crew.
* * *
After a few days, Juno, Vela, and Lupus, with the help of Leo and Venus, had repaired the ship enough so that it would fly and were preparing to leave. "Do you care to come?" Juno asked Venus.
"Thanks for the offer, but I think I'd rather defend my home world and enjoy the peace of the forest than leave for the blackness of space again," she answered. "Leo and I will be fine here. If you need anything we're here for shelter. Just come on by if you need support, and we'd be glad to pitch in, long as the Federation isn't involved. Ohm and here's a little something for you, Juno," she added, handing him his breastplate, completely mended back to normal. "I found it, just like you said, 'snagged' on a tree, next to some sawed rope."
Juno turned bright red, knowing that she had figured out what had happened. "Don't worry," Venus said. "You're secret's safe with me. Besides, it's nothing to be ashamed of." She waved as Gemini reentered their ship.
"Prepare for takeoff," Juno said. "Main thrusters on."
"Check," Vela said. "We are ready for liftoff."
Juno, Lupus, and Vela strapped themselves into position as the ship rocketed off into space, ready to continue their journey.

Part 2

"What's that?" Vela asked as she stared out the porthole at a strange-looking formation in space. It was reflecting the light of a nearby star, shining brightly.
"Truth is, I've never seen it before," Juno replied. "If it was a little different, I would have said it was a black hole."
"You want to turn around?" Vela asked Juno. "Better decide fast. I don't know its gravitational pull's strength."
The ship jolted and began to move at high speed towards the strange, twisting shape. "Looks like it's too late to settle on now," Juno gulped. "I hope we didn't just make a big mistake." The ship lurched into the unknown, and Vela, Lupus, and Juno slammed into the floor. Each was knocked out on contact with the floor.
After a few moments, Vela stirred. She sat up and looked around. Lupus woke up, too, and he whined nervously. Vela stared at Lupus, not believing what she saw--he was a mere puppy!
Then she saw Juno. He wasn't unconscious; he was only sleeping, and he didn't appear to be in any pain, but he had dramatically changed. He wore a red helmet, his arms were almost covered, and his legs were exposed. He appeared to only be about ten years old, and Vela realized that she, too, had changed. They all had somehow reversed the aging process and gone back in time!
Vela gently touched Juno's cheek, and he opened his eyes slightly. The pain in his leg had mysteriously disappeared. "Vela?" he asked, not believing what he was seeing. "What happened to you?"
"You mean, what happened to us," she said. "When we passed through that space-cyclone thing, we invalidated the aging process--we actually turned it around. Juno, we're getting younger."
Juno sat up and put his hands over his face. "How did this happen?" he moaned. "It's not even scientifically possible!"
"There's no time to work that out," Vela said. "As I said, we didn't just get younger. I think we're still getting younger. We probably didn't just jump to age ten, perhaps we gained that in the time we weren't conscious."
Juno thought this over. "How long were we out cold?" he wondered.
"I have no idea," Vela sighed. "It could have been a few hours; it could have been several minutes. But if we keep getting younger--"
"We'll eventually disappear," Juno said. "If few keep getting younger, we will ultimately surpass our births. We won't exist."
"And our IQ will regress," Vela added. "We won't have any of our thinking abilities anymore, either. We'll be unable to do anything on our own, not even walk, let alone calculate data. Without our intellect, we don't stand a chance."
"What do we do?" Juno asked fearfully. "We're as good as dead if we don't reverse this back to normal!"
"Let's contact Venus," Vela said, an idea coming to her. "If she has the right equipment, it might just work. I'll do it now."
* * *
"How did I know they'd come racing to me for help?" Venus smiled, stroking Leo's fur. "It'd be my pleasure. We're going to need one strong magnet, Leo." Venus hurried to her ship, Leo at her heels. She took off at full speed for Gemini's location.
Soon she came upon a tornado-like structure, swirling in the abyss. "That's got to be what they described," she said quietly. "I've never seen anything like it before. Leo, hit the switch."
Leo purred and lifted a switch with his nose, and several large solar panels adjusted on the exterior of the ship, facing the formation. More panels rose on the other side of the ship to face the star. Because the cyclone was reflective, it provided just as much solar power as the star itself, and this generated twice the amount of solar energy as the star, a gigantic quantity of power. "All right, this better work," Venus gulped as she hit a variety of buttons on her control panel. An extremely large electricity-powered magnetic device was deployed from the bottom of the big ship, and Venus hit one last control. "Here goes nothing," she sighed. "I hope this succeeds."
Vela, Juno, and Lupus continued to get younger and younger. "I really doubt this is going to work," Juno said nervously in a high, childish voice.
At that moment, the ship gave another lurch, and it began to move backwards--the way it came. Shouts and barks of joy rose from the team as they were being pulled out of the weird phenomenon. They slowly began to return to normal. The pull of the magnet was actually working!
After about an hour, Juno, Vela, and Lupus' ship was finally freed with the help of Venus and Leo. Juno quickly contacted them.
"Uh, well, I guess what I mean to say is," he said, turning red as his voice tried to adjust again, "thanks for the help."
"No problem," Venus smiled. "I had a feeling you were going to need us again. I just didn't think it would be so soon." She laughed. "I know I said I hoped to see you soon, but this was a little sudden, don't you think?" She breathed a sigh. "I didn't want to come back, but now it feels kind of nice to be out here again."
"Why don't you stick with us?" Vela offered again. "We wouldn't mind the company, and you've been a major help so far. We can't exactly fight Mizar yet since the Federation hasn't given us the go, but defense is an excuse."
"Can't. I don't work with the Federation. From now on, you guys are on your own." Venus turned her ship back towards Earth. "You should quit their Jet Force; they're not worthy of you." She sped off into the distance.
"She needs to learn forgiveness," Vela told Juno. "You can't just assume someone is that bad because they made one mistake."
"That's too big a mistake to make," Juno disagreed. "The Federation is a lifeline between evil forces and peaceful ones. They're supposed to protect and serve our nations. If they don't, then they're failing to follow their job schedule. Too bad no one can fire them, since they're on top of everyone else."
"Maybe it's not as big a problem as you think," Vela opposed. "Maybe we can fix it."
Juno laughed. "Yeah, right."
"Oh, come on. Don't you have any faith at all?"
"Faith? I gave up on faith a long time ago," Juno replied hastily. "When my entire life went up in a puff of smoke, I didn't believe in faith anymore."
"Well, maybe it's time you faced your troubles and fixed them," Vela replied. "Believe again. Otherwise there's no point in living."
Juno thought this over. Thoughts of his lost relatives burned in his heart, but he'd never known how to cure it. He had given up. Possibly fighting for them in the upcoming war would help renew his faith and heal some of the pain. He took Vela's hands in his. "We aren't going to give up," he said.

Part 3

Juno, Vela, and Lupus arrived at a giant space station within a few days. They docked on one end, and Juno jumped out first to greet a guard. "Who are you and what are you here for?" the guard asked.
"I am Juno, and with me are Vela and Lupus. We are Jet Force Gemini," Juno said, introducing the team. "And we are here to meet with the Federation. Important business."
"Come right this way," the sentry replied. "You may speak to one of our officials."
Lupus, Juno, and Vela followed the guard into an office. A very tall man sat at a desk inside, and as the team entered, he rose and stuck out his hand. "Gemini, you're alive! I thought we'd lost all hope."
Juno did not shake his hand. "Sir, you are conscious that Mizar's forces are attempting to conquer various unspecified worlds."
"Yes, we are, and we thought all of our squadrons had failed to prevent this terrible tragedy," the official answered.
"Failed to prevent it? With all due respects, sir, you made it illegal for us to intervene with their forces. That's not failing; that's following orders. We did our job."
The administrator had nothing to say to that. He only looked Juno in the eye, staring him down. Juno just stared back, his cold, green eyes reflecting his hate, and the officer had to break eye contact. The stare made him back down a little, but Juno didn't flinch. "The Federation has failed, not the Jet Force squadrons. You're only trying to find someone else to blame that on."
"Now, Juno, you can't just jump to conclusions like that," the official said quickly. "We could have turned this situation around. Now we can fight."
"Yes, we could have. But you refused to allow us to. Because of your stupidity, there has already been too much bloodshed. Lives have been lost; the damage's been done. You can't bring them back. If you hadn't misjudged those insects, we could have avoided that carnage. But you didn't let us, so now you have lost all of the squadrons except Gemini. And soon you'll have lost them all."
Vela looked up in surprise. "Juno, you mean…"
"If it's okay with all of you," Juno said. Vela nodded in agreement, and Lupus howled. Juno turned back to the administrator.
"Since the Federation is unreliable, our team has now retired from it. From now on, Jet Force Gemini will stand alone." Juno said not another word as he headed for the door, nor let the officer get in a remark of his own. When he reached the doorway, he turned back to give the official one last cold stare before following his family back to their cruiser, ready to leave the Federation behind. Forever.

Part 4

"Wasn't I great?" Juno laughed as the team shot out into the sky in their space cruiser. "We sure showed who's the boss!"
"I could have done it better," Vela whispered loudly to Lupus.
"I heard that," Juno said, putting his hands on his hips.
"Obviously," Vela grinned. "And I'll repeat it: I could have done better."
"What makes you think you're better than me?" Juno argued, smirking. "I could whip you any time!"
"Oh really?" Vela taunted. "Why don't you prove it?"
Juno gave Vela a devious grin. "That sounds like a great idea. I love contests."
"You'll never win. Girls rock over guys any day."
"What'd you say?" Juno asked, giving Vela his evil-eye look.
"You heard me," she teased. "Girls rule, guys drool."
"So we drool, do we?" Juno inquired, taking a step closer to his sister, smiling wickedly. "Let's start the games then, and we'll see who is drooling in envy at the finish!"
* * *
"All right, I've created a list of the challenges," Vela said. "I think they'll be a cinch. Lupus can judge us. Deal?"
"Deal," Juno agreed. "What's first?"
"Twister," Vela grinned.
"What kind of contest is that?" Juno protested. "What skill does it show?"
"It shows skills of endurance and flexibility," Vela answered, "and besides, you told me I could choose the games since I was so confident. You just have to play them."
Half an hour later, Vela stood on the mat, left hand on green, left foot on green, right hand on red, right foot on red. Juno, on the other hand, was twisted in knots. How he had gotten himself into this position even he didn't know, but he was determined to win this game, no matter what it took.
"Juno, it's your turn," Vela said. "Lupus, can you spin the spinner for him?" Lupus nudged the arrow with his nose and it spun around until it finally landed on right hand blue. Juno groaned and reached around the mat to try to get positioned again.
"Spin again, Lupus," Vela said. "Good boy." The arrow spun round and round until it pointed to right hand red. "Well, that was easy," Vela said.
"You're already on right hand red," Juno complained. "Don't you have to spin again?"
"No. Your turn."
Juno watched the spinner move in circles until it stopped on left hand blue. "Sure, you get all the easy breaks," he sighed as he flipped over to sit in the crab-walk position.
"Oh, just admit it," Vela said. "Girls are more flexible. We're cooler. Left foot red." She moved her foot over to the red row and kicked Juno in the process, and he fell over. "Oh, dear, I'm so sorry, but you lost that one."
"Only 'cause you kicked me--"
"Don't make up excuses," Vela said. "I won. Let's move on."
"But you kicked me!"
"Did not!"
"Did too!"
"Did not!"
"You did too! Didn't she, Lupus?"
Lupus whined and rolled his eyes. He nudged the list and Vela picked it up. "As I said, let's move on. Our next course is target practice."
"At least it's not some kid's board game," Juno mumbled. He got his pistol ready as the team headed for the target room.
"As you can see, I've designed these pop cans with paintings of drones and stacked them in neat pyramids," Vela said, referring to the stacks of cans in the room.
"Isn't she talented?" Juno mumbled to Lupus. "She can paint cans and stack them in pyramids."
"Excuse me?" Vela growled.
"Oh, sorry, neat pyramids," he mocked. "Please continue."
"As in any target practice, you shoot the cans. Lupus will count how many shots we use, and the winner will be the person who uses the least number of shots. Got it?"
"Yes, sir." Juno snorted and began to laugh.
"What did you call me?" Vela asked. "Did you call me 'sir'?"
Lupus barked and growled. Juno raised his Jet Force Pistol and took aim, picking the bottom center can off, causing most of the cans to fall. He had to use only two more shots to knock them all off the platform. He grinned and turned to Vela. "Beat that. Piece of cake."
Vela pulled out her Tri-Rocket Launcher and blasted the cans down with one shot. "Like you said, piece of cake."
"But you used a Tri-Rocket Launcher!" Juno protested. "With that you don't need to aim!"
"I never specified the weapon, so it's legal," she confirmed.
"But it shoots three rockets, so technically it's a tie," Juno argued.
"They're all deployed at once, so theoretically, I won. It's still only one shot." Vela grinned cunningly at her twin. "Time for the next game."
"What now?" Juno mumbled.
"Airboarding race," Vela said, heading for the bridge. "We'll land on Earth in about an hour. Then we're going to set up a distance limit. Since our boards keep track of distance and speed, we'll se who's the better boarder, eh, Juno?"
* * *
With Vela leading confidently, the Jet Force team walked out of the ship onto a forest trail with many bumps and swerves. "We're going for five kilometers," Vela said. "Program that into your board now. Then go ahead and start whenever you're ready."
Juno triggered the rockets on the skateboard-like equipment and shot out across the path, pacing himself and sticking to the track. Vela soon caught up to him, speeding along so quickly she kicked up the dust high enough to make Juno cough. The two of them raced side by side as thy came to a sharp cliffside drop. "Vela, you'd better watch it," Juno yelled to her as she passed him.
"You'd better watch it yourself," Vela laughed. "This is the last contest, so I've already won!" She turned to stick her tongue out playfully and hit a tree root sticking out of the ground, and her board spun out, sending her flying off the edge of the cliff. As she fell, she cued her Jet Pack thrusters and shot upwards. Unfortunately, she didn't have enough fuel to reach the top, and she landed on a ledge below the trail.
Juno saw his chance to win, but instead he skidded to a stop and turned back to the cliff. He jumped down to the ledge, keying his jets near it to land softly beside Vela. "You came back," she said. "What were you doing? Now you'll never win anything!"
"Who cares?" Juno picked her up in his arms and began steadily shooting up towards the trail. "You're more important than that. I'd never get any pride out of winning if my opponent were at a disadvantage. Besides, why come all the way back to this cliff to help you later when I could do it while I'm here?" His fuel began to run low, and he shot up with one last strong thrust, falling onto his back on the trail. Vela got to her feet and helped her brother up.
"Thanks," she said. "But girls still rule. Those games were great, and it's time we got back to the ship now. We have a ton of duties to catch up on."
"I guess it was pretty fun," Juno admitted, "but don't ask me to play Twister with you again! It's dangerous!"
Vela laughed. Lupus barked and ran back towards the space cruiser, and Vela and Juno weren't far behind him. They headed back out to space.

Part 5

Juno, Vela, and Lupus shot out into the sky, ready to start anew now that the Federation no longer controlled their lives. Just then, the ship jolted with a strange force, and all three members of the team slid across the deck with the impact. "Computer! What's going on?" Vela shouted.
There was no answer.
"Computer! Respond!"
Still, no reply came. A deep growl ripped through the ship, vibrating through Juno's chest. He saw Vela and Lupus get knocked unconscious for no apparent reason, and a fear gripped him. Whoever or whatever it was definitely wasn't messing around. It had an urgent message and was certainly trying to make that aware.
"Who's there? What are you?" Juno called as the ship's lights flickered out, leaving him sitting in pitch-blackness. The roar tore through the ship again, and the sound seemed to circle and surround Juno, closing in on him slowly but undeniably. It got louder and more fearsome by the moment. Juno could almost feel its breath in his face. A searing pain sliced into his face, and he shrieked in agony. All of a sudden, he felt his mind shut down and his body go limp. He collapsed, unconscious, beside his teammates. Whatever had attacked him retreated as quickly as it had advanced.
* * *
The team stirred, trying to wake themselves up. Vela stood up and looked around. The lights were back on. "Computer?" she called out. Miraculously, it responded.
"How much damage has been done to the hull?" Vela sighed in exhaustion.
"Hull damage: 0%," it replied.
Vela couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Check the whole ship," she demanded.
"Total damage: 0%."
Juno approached her. "Whatever it was didn't want us dead, 'cause otherwise it would have killed us by now."
Vela turned to her brother, noticing the deep cut in his face. "What happened to you? Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," he said.
With how long Vela had known him, she knew that he wasn't just fine. "C'mon, let's get that cleaned out." She headed to the medical cabinet and opened, pulling out a sterile cloth and soaking it in warm water. She gently wiped the blood from beneath his eye, examining the cut. "It's pretty deep, but it should heal." Then something caught her eye. She reached out and stretched the skin taut to look a little closer.
"Ow!" Juno complained. "What are you doing?"
Vela looked at the wound again. The three birthmarks on Juno's cheek had been neatly connected with three incisions, forming a triangular shape. "Little Leo," she muttered.
"Little what?" Juno asked, still wincing.
"Little Leo," Vela continued excitedly. "It's a three-star constellation. I never noticed it before, but when you connect those, they form Little Leo!"
"Uh, I think I'm a bit confused," Juno said. "What do my birthmarks have in relation to the stars?"
Vela ignored him. She gazed out the bridge window. "Look, it's supposed to be right out there." She gestured to the sky. "Right there. I see it!"
"I don't see it," mumbled Juno, pulling her hand off his face.
"Well, whatever that thing was that attacked us, it was trying to tell us something," Vela said. "It must want us to go to that constellation. A solar system there needs something. This must be their way of telling us."
"I don't know about this," Juno said doubtfully. "It sounds like some crazy coincidence to me. Besides, wasn't there a less painful and violent way to let us know? Couldn't they have plainly said, 'Gemini, we need your help'?"
"Please?" begged Vela, looking at him with sad eyes. Juno couldn't resist.
"Okay, set coordinates for the Leo Minor constellation," the ship's commander ordered.
"Yes sir!" Vela responded with enthusiasm.

Part 6

"There's Goldwood," Vela said, looking out the window at the green, tropical planet below the cruiser. "I guess this is it. It's the only solar system with life in Leo Minor."
Juno sat in his commanding seat, sipping his coffee. "Maybe if I get enough caffeine, I'll be able to stay awake in battle," Juno yawned, folding his legs. Vela rolled her eyes and shifted gears. All of a sudden, her computer screen went red. Something was wrong.
Juno sat up, looking to Vela as the warning signs began making noise and flashing. She faced him with the same confused look. They both ran to the communications panel as a blurry image appeared. Goldwood was under attack!
The team watched as the distress image portrayed the peaceful inhabitants of Goldwood becoming enslaved or killed--whichever the bugs felt like doing at the time. The furry little bear-creatures, called Tribals, were a vulnerable race and an easy target for Mizar. Their friendly villages were being burned, and they were being rounded up into pods to be put to work for Mizar. The harmless species had no way of fighting back. And in the meantime, Juno, Lupus, and Vela had problems of their own. A sharp impact hit the ship and the lights went out. The twins looked at each other, and without saying a word, Juno signaled them to run for the escape pods.
As Gemini raced towards the teleport bay, the cargo bay doors burst open, and a troop of Mizar's drones flooded into the vicinity. A Stealth Ship had attached itself to the JFG cruiser and was staging an invasion of its own. Vela and Lupus sped past the door, but the blast caught Juno as one bug lobbed a grenade at him and he fell onto his stomach. Without a moment's hesitation, the brave warrior rolled onto his back and began shooting the Soldier Drones with his machine gun. Vela and Lupus turned back to their fallen friend, but he urged them to continue. Reluctantly, two members of Jet Force Gemini left Juno behind to avoid capture. Juno remained, kneeling beside the door to shoot any more drones that dared venture into the ship.
Vela and Lupus rocketed out of the beaten cruiser towards Goldwood's atmosphere. They could only pray that Juno would live on through the harsh battle that awaited him. Each member of the team had a slim chance of survival in the upcoming war, and there was no telling what Mizar and his eerie army of creepy-crawlers had up their sleeves. The future certainly didn't look bright.
All of a sudden, Juno's voice came in over Vela's communications speaker. "Vela, do you read me?"
Vela breathed a sigh of relief. "Juno, you're all right! You know, maybe we ought to give up now. We could make a larger army first. I mean, what if we don't make it? Three fighters against his giant armies is illogical."
"Say listen," Juno said vigorously, "we don't give up. If we stop to form an army, it may be too late. If we don't make it, we can still be proud that we tried. If we surrender and lose planet after planet to Mizar's forces, what have we got to live for? Nothing. I'd be proud to die knowing I was doing what was right and avenging my parents' deaths. Whatever you do, don't surrender. Have faith." Juno's mellifluous voice faded away from Vela's pod.
"No, Juno, please keep talking," Vela whispered, wishing this all weren't true. "Please answer me--"
But he was gone.