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Welcome to the Second Season of Melting Pot - who'da thunkit? Copyright 2006. "Know When to Fold 'em" by Paul Cloutier Luck is what you have left over after you give 100 percent. Langston Coleman Captain's Log; Stardate 58340.5 - The ship and crew are still recovering from our trip to the Happy Universe. Nearly everyone has now been interviewed by Starfleet Dimensional Investigations. Apparently, they are quite concerned by what is happening in the so called - 'Happyverse'. We are currently en route to Waystation, where we will take aboard the new Multek Ambassador. Once on board, we will take the Ambassador on a tour of several Federation worlds. The trip to Waystation will take us several days. Days which will be well used with rest and with healing the physical and emotional wounds that have been opened up over the past few days. "Sir, we are on course with a projected travel time of 4.28 days. All major ship's systems are online and functioning normally. Minor systems are all repaired and full repairs to all systems are scheduled for completion within twenty hours," M'Dral reported. "Excellent," Seetamyn acknowledged. "This trip should be quite uneventful and restful for us all," he continued, proving, quite definitively that he lacked the gift of prophecy. The overhead lights on a Prometheus Class starship's Bridge, are arranged in two tiers. One ring of lights illuminates the raised command dias where the Captain and First Officer usually sit. A second ring lights up the consoles that line the outer periphery of the Bridge - the Helm, Ops, Security, Science and Engineering Consoles. The lighing is muted and subdued so there are no harsh glares or shadows that might distract someone during a crisis. This isn't to say that NO shadows exist, of course. Anytime lights and solid objects inter-relate there are bound to be at least a few shadows. With the Prometheus, the most prominent of these occurs directly in front of that command dias. It was here that the body suddenly appeared! There was no sound, no indication of where he had come from, there was just an orange man, suddenly on the Bridge. Banjo's cry of alarm alerted the rest of the Bridge Crew. Gisech jumped up, training a phaser on the still form. Dil spun around and, with a cry, jumped down to the man. "Its Dario!" he shouted! "He's been shot!" Banjo tapped his commbadge, "Ensign Zamtra! Emergency! Transport Dil and the lifesign next to him to Sickbay!" Seconds later the two sparkled away. "Explanation, Commander?" Seetamyn asked. "Dario was the name of that Sushian that Dil and Linnea worked with while they were working on breaking up that crime gang for Starfleet Command, about three months ago," the Changeling explained. "Ah yes, I remember. He was supposed to be that ShadowWalker character." "If he could 'walk' from Sushi IV to here, I'd say he's /bona fide/!" "Agreed. Let us hope that his injuries are not life-threatening." "...the damage to his thoracic cavity. Fortunately, his internal organs are layed out pretty much like any other humanoid's, so I was able to patch him up with no trouble," Jantoo was discussing Dario's surgery with Banjo, Dil and Linnea, down in Sickbay. "How long until he's conscious?" Linnea asked. "The sedation field has been off for a while, now. He could wake up at just about any time," the Bajoran replied. Through the syntheglass of the Sickbay windows, the four watched the unlikely hero while he rested. It wasn't long before the medical indicators showed that he was coming out of the recuperative slumber that he had been in since his surgery. Dil and Linnea moved into his recovery room so that he would know that he was among friends when he awoke. "Wh? Wh? Who? Dil! I'm so glad to see you! But why are you so pale?" the re-awakened ShadowWalker asked. Since Dil and Linnea had been working undercover on Sushi when they had met Dario, they had been dyed bright orange to match the normal Sushian skin tone. Back on the Menagerie, they, of course, were their regular beigey-tan and light green. "This is my normal color," Dil explained. "Just as this, is Linnea's." Green, organge or polka-dotted, few would reject a hug from the gorgeous Orion. Dario was not among that number and he hugged her back. "My friends! You must help me! He has Asia!" Seetamyn had called a Briefing to discuss Dario's situation. While Sushi IV was not a Federation world, it had been the involvement of his crew (at the orders of Starfleet Command) that had helped contribute to the current situation. Dario had been transported to Briefing Room One to relate what was happening. "For awhile," he began, "it was like we had entered a Golden Age. People were concerned and everyone was united against the criminal elements. The bad guys were on the run and it looked like the whole planet had turned around. Then the enthusiasm faded. People went back to looking out for number one. People stopped trying to help one another. The gangs came back, worse than before. Now they knew who to target to keep the 'troublemakers' at bay. One of Song Sung Blu's chief lieutenants somehow slipped through the dragnet that had gone out after the Boss's capture and he took control of the Moo Goo Twos! Everybody Nose Won seems to have figured out that I am involved with the ShadowWalker. He kidnapped Asia and he had me meet him to trade my knowledge of the 'Walker for Asia. For some reason, the meet turned out to be an ambush and he had his men open fire when I showed up. I just managed to drop into a shadow and head for Dil before I blacked out." "We must do something, Captain," Linnea declared. "Yes," agreed the Vulcan, "but we are scheduled to pick up the Multek Ambassador in four days. We must make that appointment." "Sir, we could take the Utricularia," suggested Ustrano. "We?" Banjo asked. "Who invited you?" "Who else is going to run your engines?" the Velvattian rumbled. "That brings up the question of how we will evade the Starfleet Cultural Analysis sensors? We don't have time to outfit the Utricularia with Sensor Reflective Shielding!" "Well, umm, that shouldn't be a problem," Ustrano, somehow looked embarassed. "What did you do?" asked Banjo. "Well, remember when we defeated the Black Queen and I beamed over to the Warbird to check for booby-traps?" "Yes," chorused everyone but Dario, who just looked confused. "Weeeelllll, while I was over there, I happened to find a Cloaking Device. I figured that the Black Queen didn't need it anymore, so I kinda salvaged it..." "And?" prompted Banjo. "And installed it in the Utricularia!" finished Ustrano. "In clear violation of the Treaty of Algernon!" Gisech accused. "Actually, the treaty states that it is illegal for a Federation ship to /use/ a Cloak. Having one installed is not, technically, a violation," Seetamyn argued. "So, we can't use it. What good is it?" Gisech continued. "I have an idea," Ustrano said, waving its tentacles. "Go on," Banjo encouraged it. "Just ahead of us is a minor graviton storm. It is barely even worth mentioning. Starships pass by, and even through, such storms all the time. What if the docking clamps holding the Utricularia, however, used quanta-synched gravitronics to keep the ship docked? And, what if, the graviton storm adversely affected the clamps? And, what if, the ship was lost? Then, Starfleet would have all of its paperwork in order, and we would have a ship with which to aid Dario?" "You want us to LIE to Command?" Gisech was aghast at the very thought. "Actually," Ustrano disagreed, "the docking clamps DO use quanta-synched gravitronics." "But we haven't lost the ship in any graviton storm!" "Not yet, we haven't," Banjo grinned. "You're just playing with semantics!" Gisech argued. "Perhaps," Seetamyn admitted, "but most legal interplay involves little else." "It's still a Federation crew, regardless of what ship they are using!" "Actually, if Commander Banjo is in charge, we can make the argument that it is definately NOT a Federation crew. Banjo is, technically, a member of the Dominion. Since that affiliation preceded his assocition with Starfleet, and, since that affiliation is still extant, he can be said to be acting wholly as a Dominion agent. With the new era of friendship between the Gamma Quadrant and the Federation, we are simply loaning him a few crewmembers to assist him in his journey. We can have no way of stipulating what ship or what devices he uses, now can we?" Ustrano's arguments stemmed the Graaken's protests. Whether they had convinced him or whether he had simply realized that the others wouldn't give in was a moot point. The end result was that, within the hour, Ustrano, Banjo, Jantoo, Dil and Linnea had joined the ShadowWalker aboard the newly de-commissioned Saber Class ship. M'Dral had downloaded an itineray of the Menagerie's planned route for the ambassador's tour and the five crewmembers would simply rejoin them as soon as they had straightened out the situation on Sushi IV. How they would explain the reappearance of the Utricularia, hadn't really been considered, yet. The Utricularia was about three hours out from Sushi. Banjo was sitting in the Captain's seat, as he had been since they had embarked upon this mission. Dil was at Helm and Linnea at Ops. Jantoo was at the Science Console. Dario sat at the Security Console which had been deactivated to prevent any 'accidents'. Ustrano was down in Main Engineering keeping the Cloaking Device humming along. Its rumbly voice came across the comm system, "It occurs to me that Dario is The ShadowWalker. Dil, The Luck Eater and Linnea, The Invisible Brain. What about the rest of us?" "What? You want some silly name, too?" Banjo asked, grinning. "Well, we can call you - Liguid Guy!" Ustrano shot back. "Ewww!" Jantoo discarded that name. "He needs something with more, I don't know, pizzazz!" "How about The Amazing Melting Man!" Dil chuckled. "Hey! That's not bad!" Jantoo agreed. "Why on Sushi would you be called that?" Dario asked. "Because of this," Banjo said as he went into liquid mode and flowed down out of the chair and over to the ShadowWalker. He resumed his normal form and stood over the amazed Sushian. "Sorry I asked!" "OK - Banjo's taken care of, now what about me?" Ustrano asked. "You just stay down there and tinker with your engines and stuff," Banjo ordered. "OK - The Tinkerer - it is!" Ustrano announced. Banjo just rolled his eyes. "What about me?" Jantoo's plaintive pout could be heard clear across the Bridge. Banjo knew he had to think quick, "What's that staff-thingie that Starfleet Medical is always displaying?" he asked? "You mean the caduceus?" Jantoo answered, confused. "Yeah - that thing. What is that, anyway?" "Well, apparently, one of the Ancient Terrestrial Gods associated with alchemy used to carry it. Its supposed to represent two snakes wrapped around a branch. There's this whole story about a guy who tried to force two mating snakes apart with a branch and was transformed into a woman! Which, when you think about it, doesn't really have anything to do with medicine! It really should have been the staff of Asclepius, who was the first great Human physician. But, Humans, being what they are, went ahead and used the caduceus, instead." "That's it!" Dil announced. "You're Caduceus Girl!" "You want to associate /me/ with a symbol that is integral to medicine?" Jantoo asked, in shock. "That may be the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me," she blubbered. "Well, that's a lot easier to say than 'Asclepius Girl!'!" Dil exlpained. "So," Ustrano's voice broke up the tender moment before it could get all maudlin, "we're: The Amazing Melting Man The Luck Eater The Tinkerer The Invisible Brain Caduceus Girl and The ShadowWalker!" "Yay!" Dario shouted. "Sushi is saved!" Banjo just shook his head. <> Foo Young was one of the largest cities on Sushi IV. It rested on the shore of the Egg Drop Ocean and sprawled its way towards a small, heavily forested mountain range to the north and a major river to the south. Sticking out into the ocean were the city's docks. Most of the goods which passed through the city came in on these docks. Interspaced amongst these docks were countless warehouses, seedy bars and taverns, and cheap flophouses. The dockside part of the city attracted the less savory elements, as had docks throughout history on countless worlds. One of the warehouses held a particular fascination for the crew of the Utricularia. "There it is - the Green Tea Carpet and Tile Warehouse. That's where they ambushed me last time," Dario explained. "'Blind steel'," Linnea confirmed, checking the sensors. "We can't see in. We can't beam in. And, once we're in there, we can't call for help." "We won't need to," Banjo decided. "We're all going down!" "What? Even Ustrano?" Dil asked. "Hey! That's The Tinkerer to you, Luck Eater!" Ustrano was taking the whole 'superhero' thing way too seriously. "Don't you think we might, I don't know, tip them off that we're not Sushian?" "Doesn't matter. We'll simply wipe their memories when we're done," Banjo announced. "This ship has the equipment for that, right?" "Sure," Jantoo agreed. "The Utricularia isn't a huge ship, but she's plenty big enough for our needs." "What about weapons?" Dil wanted to know. "That's a bigger issue. We can wipe someones memories, but its a whole lot harder to erase a piece of hardware. I think we should just take some truncheons. Less chance of accidentally dismembering someone that way." The group had already put on their Nightsuits. This time, they had taken the precaution of adding a flexarmor breastplate beneath the suits. The flexarmor would stop a bullet, offering a good deal of protection for the team. Deciding that they were as ready as they were likely to ever be, Ustrano transported everyone down to the vacant alley behind the warehouse. Linnea found an unlocked door in the alley. It was the first door that she checked, so she wasn't sure it they were all unlocked, of if the team had just gotten lucky. She slowly eased the door open and the team slipped inside. The interior of the warehouse was extremely well lit. Not quite as brightly as Song Sung Blu had lit things at the height of his paranoia, but plenty bright enough to show the entrance of five black-clad individuals and a giant slug. "Come in! Come in!" a scrawny man in a very nice suit invited. Having no choice, the team stepped towards the center of the warehouse, where a desk and several chairs had been set up. Deeper in the warehouse, rolls of flooring and boxes of tile stood guard over the proceedings. The scrawny guy who had ordered the team in, came from around his desk to stand next to one particular chair. Bound to that chair was Dario's girlfriend, Asia! With a yell of, "Asia!" the young hero was running through the warehouse. Ustrano tried to yell out a warning but it was unlikely it would have been heeded, as Dario, intent on rescuing Asia, ran into a puddle on the floor. A puddle into which a heavy duty electrical cable had been run. ZZZZZZZZZZZZPPPPPPPPPTTTTT! The lights dimmed momentarily as the ShadowWalker was electrocuted and slumped to the floor in an unmoving lump! The scrawny man laughed, "Well! That takes care o' /that/ problem!" and then hit a switch on his desk. Steel bars slid into openings in all of the doors. "We're leaving now! If any 'o you freaks tries to follow us, the girl gets it!" Two men grabbed Asia and scrawny and his men quickly moved off into the darkness of the back of the warehouse, leaving the team to scramble to the ShadowWalker's side. "Dario! Dario!" Linnea and Jantoo ran to the fallen ShadowWalker. "I can't find a pulse!" Jantoo sobbed. The switch that had been used to lock the doors was now non-functional. They were all trapped! Ustrano examined the walls of the warehouse. They were double- walled Sushian 'blind steel'. While it would be possible for the Velvattian to batter its way through them, such action would take time - time that they just didn't have! "We need to get him medical attention, immediately!" Jantoo cried. "Hon, we're trapped in here! We must find a way to help him - here!" Banjo decided. "What do we need to do?" "He's been electrocuted! His heart has stopped. We need some sort of mild shock to get it going again, then we need to keep him warm." Dil, Banjo and Jantoo were already removing their outer tunics to wrap around the stricken Sushian. Ustrano considered the piles of merchandise that took up the bulk of the warehouse's space. Hadn't Dario mentioned that the warehouse was owned by a carpet company? "I have an idea," Ustrano was pulling down rolls of expensive rugs, looking for something in particular. Finally satisfied with a cheap, scratchy carpet, it laid it out on the floor and outlined it's plan. Everyone just stared. It was as though the Engineer had suddenly grown a head! There was no way such a thing could work, but, having nothing to lose, they decided to give it a shot. Quickly making their way over to the carpet, Dil, Banjo, Linnea and Jantoo began to shuffle their feet across it as quickly as they could. Even in the well-lit warehouse, faint, blue sparks could be seen dancing along their feet. Ustrano lifted the still form of Dario and carried him over, holding him aloft, next to the carpet - turned skating rink. After nearly a minute of 'skating' across the carpet, the four scuffled their way over to the ShadowWalker. As Ustrano counted to 'three', they all extended their index fingers. A loud 'ZAAAAP' filled the warehouse and the four pulled back tingling fingers. In Ustrano's tentacles, the ShadowWalker drew a shaky breath! The static shock had worked! Jantoo quickly knelt by Dario's side as Ustrano laid the recovering ShadowWalker down and went to batter a door open. There was now plenty of time to work on getting out of this deathtrap! Dario awoke in a Federation Sickbay. This was happening distressingly often, lately. As he swam back up through the depths of unconsciousness, he began to make out the features of Jantoo's face as she peered down at him. "Glad to see you back up and around," she said, relieved that he had finally revived. "What happened," the ShadowWalker mumbled out, groggily. "It was another trap," Banjo explained, walking forward. "They had put a high voltage electrical cable into a puddle that you ran into. They went out of their way to make sure that there were no shadows for you to slip into, too. I think the only thing that surprised them was the fact that you showed up with five companions. Other than that, they were certainly ready for you." "Damn! Everybody Nose Won must have tortured Asia to find out about my abilities!" "Don't tell me... let me just guess! You told Asia that you are the ShadowWalker!" "Well, yeah," Dario at least had the intelligence to look uncomfortable about that little slip. "Let me make sure that I understand. The secret identity of a ShadowWalker has been sacrosanct for centuries, but you've undone all of that in a couple of months!" Banjo was now shouting in Dario's face. Jantoo nearly stepped in to allow Dario some time to recover from his near electrocution, but she decided that what Banjo was saying was more important, right now. After any damage done during a shock was repaired, recovery was usually quite fast, anyway. Right now Dario needed needed to get his head on straight. "My father shared the secret with my mother!" he was protesting. "After how many years together?" Banjo demanded. "True love doesn't need time to grow!" "True love! True love? Why didn't your 'true love' call out a warning to you, then? She wasn't gagged!" "She was probably so shocked to see me still alive that she couldn't speak!" "Or she's joined with the gang!" Banjo shot back. Dario's arm snapped forward striking Banjo square in the face - and continuing right through his head as the Changeling simply willed his flesh out of the way of the blow. "Save that anger for the Moo Goo Twos," Banjo advised the young man. "Don't take it out on your friends." "You're no friends of mine if you suspect Asia!" Dario countered. "And you're no good to yourself or anyone else until you can get past that anger," Banjo finished the argument and walked over to Jantoo. The Changeling and the Bajoran conferred for a couple of minutes and then Banjo left Sickbay. Jantoo came over to the biobed with a hypospray. She injected it's contents into Dario and the lights all went out, again. Dil and Jantoo were, at that same time, scouring the Green Tea Carpet and Tile Warehouse. They were looking for any sort of DNA samples that they could use to try to trace the Gang's steps. They were paying special attention to the chair where Asia had been bound. If, as Dario believed, she was a prisoner of the Gang, then it was their duty to rescue her. If Banjo was correct, however, and she was a willing accomplice, then it was possible that she could lead them to the Gang's new hideout. Either way, she was the key to this mission. After picking up any stray hairs, dead skin dust and persperation residue that they could find, Linnea stepped back and looked the chair over. After examining it for several long minutes, she finally asked, "What happened to the ropes that she was bound with?" "Didn't they cut her free when they left?" "I don't think so. Although, at the time, I was more concerned with Dario," the Orion admitted. "There's no rope fibers embedded in the chair. And none on the floor around it, either," Dil reported. "So the ropes were loose enough to not rub against the chair and they were removed in seconds without cutting them," Linnea summed up. "Looks like Banjo was right," Dil agreed. "Let's get these samples back to the ship." Linnea and Dil quickly exited the warehouse and contacted the Utricularia for a beamout. Dominion Representative's Log; Stardate 58353.3 - I have just recieved word from Captain Seetamyn that he and the Menagerie have just picked up the Multek Ambassador. They will be departing from Waystation very shortly on their tour of several Federation worlds. I have brought him up to date on our progress here on Sushi IV and assured him that we will rendezous with the ship as soon as possible. Banjo had called together five of the "Sensational Six" as Ustrano had taken to calling the Utricularia's crew. They were meeting in the forward observation lounge, at the very front of the Utricularia. It had a much nicer view than the Briefing Room back on board the Menagerie. Dario was being kept under sedation to prevent his 'Walking' down to the planet to take matters into his own hands, again. They hadn't yet determined whether or not he could ShadowWalk through Shields, yet, but, since they couldn't raise Shields with the Cloak engaged, anyway, it was pretty much a moot point. "We've been analyzing the data for two days, now!" Linnea argued. "It all points to the same conclusion!" "That the head of the most notorious Gang in Foo Young lives in a fancy apartment building?" Banjo still couldn't believe it. "Why not?" Linnea wanted to know. "I'm sure /I'd/ get tired of living in a warehouse all the time!" "She's got a point," Dil stuck in. "What's the point of being a good thief if you don't get to enjoy the money you've stolen?" "OK - assuming this is the right building, Ustrano what can you tell us about the structure, itself?" Dead silence greeted this question. "OK! OK! Sorry! /Tinkerer/, what can you tell us about this structure?" Banjo just shook his head wearily. It had been a loooong mission. "Well," UStrano rumbled, "the core supports are made of a pretty good grade of steel. This steel doesn't interfere with sensors..." Banjo looked exited at this news. "...unfortunately, the crossmembers and secondary struts are 'blind steel'. What we end up with is a building with intermittant sensor blackouts and null areas. We can see some areas quite well, but others are completely impenetrable." "If we were inside, would we have any better luck?" "Pobably not. If fact, the transmissions from your tricorders might create so much feedback that you would lose commlinks and transport locks." "So, you think that we can transport in?" "Yes. We'll all have to wear transporter beacons and I'll have to up the gain on the transporter here, on the ship, but I think we'll be able to get in and out with no troubles." "Well, that may be the best news I've had all day!" Banjo. "Where should we start our search?" "Where else?" Linnea countered. "The penthouse!" The group began to make detailed plans for their infiltration, later that evening. No one noticed that one of the auxilary consoles in the observation lounge was active and relaying the meeting to another location. Down in Sickbay, Dario had been waking up earlier and earlier from each of the injections that Jantoo had been giving him. He had kept quiet about his growing immunity to the mild sedative that she had been using. He had learned just enough about the workings of the standard LCARS computer interface to tune into the meeting. Now that he knew what was happening, he knew that he had to act. Dil and Linnea and their friends were talking about Asia as if she were a common criminal! It was up to him to prove her innocence. He knew that Jantoo wouldn't be back to give him a new injection until after the meeting was over, so he used the Sickbay replicator to produce a new Starfleet Nightsuit and then he 'Walked' out of Sickbay, appearing in his own house in the suburbs of Foo Young. He quickly armed himself with a pistol and sat back for a few moments to plan his next move. Dusk was rapidly approaching. Soon there would be plenty of shadows stretching their dark shapes over Foo Young. Dario smiled to himself. Everybody Nose Won was a happy man. Here he was, living it up in a beautiful apartment. It had everything! A view of the city, spread out before him and his for the taking! Fancy furinture, the best the docks had ever seen, pinched by his men not three days ago! Artwork on the walls, the most choice pieces from various museums and private collectors, the disappearances of which were annoying several insurance companies no end! And, last but not least, a gorgeous dame to share it all with! This last attraction had come as a surprise to the crime lord. When he and his men had grabbed her, they had meant to use her as bait to get that reporter guy to have his friend, the ShadowWalker, help try to rescue her. That rescue had sent the ShawdowWalker straight into a trap. Won thought he had gotten him then, but, somehow the bastard had managed to escape. He was setting another trap for the 'Walker when the dame had begun to sing like a canary! Turned out, that damned reporter /was/ the ShadowWalker, himself! His girl, this Asia Fulci, had decided that she liked the sort of things that Won could give her. The fancy dinners. The nice apartment. The pretty clothes. So, she had told Won all about little Dario. The second trap, in the warehouse, had even been her idea! And it had worked like a charm, too! Won didn't know who, or even /what/ those people who had been with the ShadowWalker were, but since that night, no one had caught so much as a glimpse of the 'Walker. Won's Gang had moved, unimpeded through the city, claiming more and more territory and the illict revenues that went with that territory. Won smiled to himself as he considered that the best thing that had ever happened to the criminal element on Sushi was the initial involvement of the ShadowWalker. Thanks to him, all the deadwood had been cleared away and people had managed to convince themselves that there was no crime anymore! Won chuckled to himself as he saw the future laid out in front of him. Pretty soon he would be in position to move openly, being more powerful than the local government, itself. He could see it now - Everybody Nose Won, Mayor of Foo Young! From there, a governorship and more. Foo Young would become the Capital of Crime on the planet and he would become its Lord Emperor! Interestingly enough, this was exactly the scenario that the Federation Council had hoped to avoid by using Dil and Linnea to publicize the ShadowWalker legend. So much for that old 'violate the Prime Directive to save the planet' spiel! Asia walked into the living room from the bedroom where she had been getting ready for the evening. She was wearing a clingy, slinky and, above all, expensive evening gown. She made her way over to the bar where she poured two glasses of champagne. Handing one to the Gang leader, she sat down on Won's lap and they toasted to their success. It was upon this cozy, domestic scene that Dario 'Walked' in on! "So. They were right, afterall," he said, with infinite sadness in his voice. Asia jumped up, "Oh thank heavens you've finally found me!" she cried. Leaping off of Won and throwing herself into Dario's arms. "But you were over there with him?" Dario said confused. "Oh! He makes me dress up like this and pretend to be his moll! He even watches as I change clothes!" she sobbed into the ShadowWalker's shoulder Dario's grief was quickly being replaced by a fiery anger. He turned in rage to Won, who was still seated on the couch, pushing Asia behind himself to protect her. "You bastard! I'll ... urk...gurgle..." Won was kind of curious what Dario had planned to do to him, but it appeared that he would never find out. Asia had picked up a knife off of the bar and plunged it into the ShadowWalker's back! Dario dropped to his knees, hemorrhaging fiercely from the wound in his back and spitting even more blood out of his mouth. The blade had bit deeply, indeed. As he fought to remain conscious, he saw Asia's legs walk around him and rejoin Won, on the sofa. "Sorry, loverboy!" she taunted him. "I just decided to bet on the winner!" Dario saw Won get up from the couch. "In case you missed that reference. She means me!" Won's foot came flying right at Dario's bowed head and connected, sending a cascade of bright lights through the Sushian's skull. The last thing that Dario remembered before he blacked out was the sound of Asia's giggling. Ustrano was behind the operator's console in Transporter Room One, the Utricularia's main transporter room. Banjo, Linnea and Dil were about to beam down to reconnoiter the penthouse where they suspected the Moo Goo Two's leader was hiding. Jantoo's panicked voice came over the comm system, "Dario's gone!" "What? Computer! Locate Dario!" "Dario is not on board the Utricularia!" came the immediate answer. "Extend search parameters to include the surface of Sushi IV!" Banjo ordered. "Match found!" the computer responded, as everyone breathed a sigh of relief. "Match coordinates indicate Dario is currently 100 meters above the surface of the planet... 90 meters... 80 meters..." Everyone freaked, realizing that the young hero was falling! Ustrano waved its tentacles over the transporter console, tying in its targetting system to the external sensors. Getting a lock on a target moving this fast could be tricky! Finally, the Velvattian managed to get a lock and threw the dematerialization activators forward. "Got him! Dampening velocity-based inertia! Lifesigns fluctuating wildly! Redirecting rematerialization to Sickbay... now!" The bloodied form of the Sushian re-appeared on the biobed that he had been laying on, earlier. Jantoo set to work, patching up their young friend, yet again! "What is it with these guys and dropping people from heights?" Dil wanted to know. "Where was he falling from?" Banjo asked Ustrano. "Oddly enough, from the balcony of that penthouse that you were going to!" "Guess that means we don't need to reconnoiter it, then!" Dil observed. "No. So, let's phaser it, instead!" offered Linnea. "What about Starfleet Cultural?" "We could phaser them, too!" "Nobody in this rag-tag band is phasering anybody!" Banjo shouted, using his new favorite word. "Ragtime? But we don't play jazz!" Dil said, confused. "Rag-TAG! Rag-TAG! Not Ragtime!" Banjo corrected. "Wait a minute!" Ustrano interuppted these attractive options. "The DNA signature for Asia just left the building! She's walking with five other Sushians, three of which we had DNA samples of from the warehouse!" "Track them," Banjo ordered. "See! We won't have to phaser anyone, afterall." Linnea and Dil looked disappointed. It turned out that Asia and her entourage had gone out to dinner and to a show. Afterwards the group had returned to the penthouse. Ustrano had deployed some remote sensors and determined that two of the targets had returned to the penthouse and the other four had ended up joining several other lifesigns on the floor below. It appeared that the Gang was all in one spot. Banjo called a meeting to discuss their options. Linnea and Dil were all for phasering the top two floors of the building and being done with the entire affair, Starfleet Cultural or no. Ustrano wanted to save that for an absolute, last-ditch resort and Banjo agreed with it. Grumbling, Linnea then laid out an alternative plan. She filled in details as she went, outlining a plan where they could set the time and place for the next, and, hopefully, last, meeting between the Moo Goo Twos and the Sensational Six! Asia and Won, blissfully unaware that their death by vaporization was being discussed above them, congratulated themsleves on finally being rid of that meddlesome ShadowWalker. Dario awoke in a Federation Sickbay. Fighting off an extreme sense of /deja vu/ he groaned, "Oh no! Not again!" "'Fraid so," Banjo said, moving over to the biobed. "Look, Dario, I know that its tough to be part of a team when you've got a personal stake in something, but if you want to be part of this rag-tag group, you really need to curb your enthusiasm." "Ragtime? But I don't play any instruments? How can I...?" "Rag-TAG! Rag-TAG!" Banjo decided that he had better come up with a new favorite word. It was just that rag-tag fit them /so/ well! "Yes, sir," conceeded Dario. "You were right, you know." "About any number of things, I am sure," Banjo said in his best Seetamyn impression. The effect was lost on Dario who had barely met the Vulcan. "About Asia," Dario clarified. "Ahhh," Banjo nodded. He had been dreading this particular moment. "Son, I'm sorry about that. I would have much preferred to have been wrong if it would have saved you this pain." To Banjo's surprise, Dario laughed! "You mean the stab wound or the heartache?" "Well, both, actually!" "Thanks, Melting Man! You're a good friend. All of you aliens are better friends than any I've ever had on Sushi!" "That's /Amazing/ Melting Man!" Banjo corrected with a grin. "Thanks for the kind words. Now, get some rest. We're planning a trap for the Moo Goo Twos. If you can convince Caduseus Girl that you're well enough, you can join us for the /coup de grace/!" "The what?" Dario asked confused, French not being a language used on Sushi and not being translated by the Universal Translators since Captain Picard had made so many of its idioms commonplace. "The wrap up!" Banjo explained, annoyed - none of his attempts to sound dignified and sophisticated were proving successful. More to the point, he was annoyed that Dario even knew what Ragtime was! Shipping was a huge business on Sushi IV. As has been mentioned, Foo Young was a major port. Goods entered the city through its extensive system of docks and warehouses 28 hours a day (the Sushian day being nearly exactly 4 hours longer than a Terran Standard Day). Everybody Nose Won's great success was due in no small part to his extensive contacts and network of spies that patrolled the docks, ferreting out choice targets for the Gang to steal. Bits and pieces of information trickled in to Won's penthouse suite throughout the day and night and it was up to the Boss to filter through it all and come up with the most tempting tidbits. It was, therefore, something of a rarity when ten of his best informers all came up with the same tip, simultaneously! It seemed that a ship would be docking tomorrow night which was carrying a huge shipment of exquisite jewelry. The most perfect and beautiful pieces crafted by the world-renown artisans of Chow Mein were arriving for distribution to the entire country. Won chuckled to himself, <> He set to work learning as many details as he could about this shipment. As more and more of those details became available, Won's chuckles became outright laughs! The jewelry was being shipped in a huge, one-piece shipping box. The box was so large that it wouldn't fit belowdecks of any of even the super freighters! It had been lashed to the deck of the biggest and safest of the world's ships. The ship would dock at approximately 2500 hours, tomorrow. There it would sit, right out in the open, until a special crane could be moved from another dock. This couldn't happen until after 1100 the next morning! Fouteen hours to have their pick of the most fabulous jewelry the planet had ever seen! It was like a dream come true! Won began to make his plans. Banjo had no idea how Linnea had pulled it off, but here he was, inside a massive shipping crate with Dil, Ustrano and Dario. The crate was specially constructed of wood and special fastners and nails that were corrosion-proof, and, more importantly to the Changeling's mind, wouldn't interfere with transporters or comm signals. The inside of the crate was laid out like an elegant jewelry store with dozens of display cases, all filled with dazzling, sparkling gems and highly polished, gleaming metal. Rings, necklaces, bracelets, tiaras - the most remarkable pieces that Linnea's fertile imagination could conceive. The Utricularia's replicators had been working overtime to produce the assorted goodies on display here, this evening. Many pieces had been used to bribe this box onto the deck of this ship, but oh so many were still left to tempt even the most honest of Sushians. Of course, on the docks, honesty wasn't a highly valued character trait, anyway. Linnea and Jantoo were standing by, on the Utricularia, letting the 'boys' have their 'fun'. Dario, Dil and Ustrano had positioned themselves around the perimeter of the crate in such a way that they could each fire their phasers into the center without hitting each other. The phasers had all been set on medium beam, heavy stun and it was hoped that the entire Gang could be captured in one, fell swoop. Banjo was spread out on the floor, looking for all the world like some rich, golden carpet. The ship carrying the crate had docked barely an hour ago. Unloading of the rest of the cargo couldn't be done with the huge crate taking up nearly the whole deck, so the crew of the ship had been given the night off. They hadn't stayed around very long after hearing that! The dock's security personnel were all that stood between the jewelry and the Moo Goo Twos, and Linnea had determined that nearly all of the guards were on the Gang's payroll. Anyone around the ship this evening was a fair target. Banjo wondered how long of a wait they would have. While Banjo was wondering, Won, Asia and an even dozen Moo Goo Twos were making their way across the gangway that led to the ship with their prize. The crate was easily visible from quite a distance, towering above the docks' infrastructure and the other ships in the harbor. The Gang wasn't making any particular effort to conceal themselves or to muffle their footsteps - there wasn't anyone to oppose them! Ustrano was the first to detect the arrival of their quarry. The Velvattian's sense receptors picked up on the vibrations that the Gang's footsteps created. After waving a tentacle to alert the others, Ustrano froze in place. It was the most visible of the team (with the exception of Banjo) but it had taken pains to disguise itself as some sort of extra-cushy chair. It would have had an easier time if the Sushians had invented bean-bag chairs, but, alas, they had yet to develop that level of furniture technology. Won and Asia watched over the rest of the Gang like parents watching over an unruly mob of children. The special, unbreakable lock that secured the crate's door delayed the Gang all of five minutes, melted away by the expert application of the Sushian equivalent of thermite. Various other fastners fell before an assault of bolt-cutters, blow-torches and good, old-fashioned crowbars. With the way open before them, Won and Asia started acting with excessive formality and politeness. "Oh, after you, sir!" Asia purred, sweeping her hand towards the door. "Oh no, madam! After you," Won mimicked the gesture. "Oh, sir! I insist!" Asia countered. "Madam! Ladies first!" returned Won. The Gang pretty much made up their minds for them, as, having had enough culture, the other twelve men rushed past them both, and through the door. "Tsk, tsking" at such rudeness, the pair followed, behind, arm-in-arm. That minor delay was enough to save them, at least momentarily, from the trap which awaited, inside. ZZZZZAAAAAPPPPP! Twelve members of the Moo Goo Two Gang dropped to the floor of the crate, only to be wrapped into a tight ball by Banjo rolling himself around them. In the doorway, two startled faces stared whitely at this unexpected turn of events, before turning and fleeing into the night. Without a word, Dario stepped out of the crate, into the shadow cast by one of the very few lights that were in working order on the dock - and disappeared! Ustrano and Dil set to work tying up the stunned Gang members as Banjo rotated each one into position. They had tied up ten of them when Dil reached back. "Dario, hand me some more rope, will ya?" There was no answer. Looking around, the others realized that the ShadowWalker was no longer with them! Asia and Won had managed to get off of the ship and were scurrying around the docks, looking for some sort of refuge. Someone had gone to a lot of trouble to lay a trap for them and it was only by the barest of lucky margins that they had managed to escape. Heads would roll for this, Won vowed grimly, to himself as he and Asia rounded a corner between the stacks of shipping crates, only to find themselves faced with a dead end. Spinning around, they found themselves trapped as Dario, literally, stepped out of the shadows! "You!" they cried. "But you're dead!" Dario just smiled a sad little smile and raised his phaser, his thumb sliding the intensity setting up. There was a saying among those who populated the Sushian underworld. 'When you find yourself trapped, hope that your opponent is an evil man!' Won had never considered the real truth behind this saying, until now. For, if you were trapped by someone evil, he realized, you had a chance. Your opponent would take the time to boast, or, perhaps, gloat. Perhaps seeing his own evil reflected in you, he might even have pity on you. There were dozens of possibilities when your opponent was evil. When your opponent was good, on the other hand, there was only one possible outcome. Won and Asia didn't even have time to scream as Dario's phaser blasted them. Holstering his weapon, the ShadowWalker faded back into the comforting darkness, knowing that he would never be the same, again. The twelve Gang members were found, tied up in front of Foo Young's largest police station. The only clue as to how they got there, an embossed business card with a distinct "SW" on it. Dil, Ustrano and Banjo beamed back to the Utricularia and began a search for Won, Asia and Dario. No traces of any of them could be found on the planet. Part of the reason why was discovered when Dario drifted out of the shadow behind the transporter console. Banjo took one look at his face and held out his hand. Without a word, Dario handed over his phaser. Banjo checked the setting on the weapon and then lowered it to its normal storage setting before storing it in the transporter room's weapons locker. Banjo placed his hand on the young Sushian's shoulder, "Good job, Dario," he congratulated him. "You've cleaned up Foo Young once again. We'd love to stay and celebrate with you, but we're already late for an important diplomatic job!" "I'd really like to come with you," Dario responded, surprising the rest of the crew. "I just don't see how that's possible," Banjo disagreed. "Well, he /does/ know a lot about advanced technology," Dil argued. "That can't be good for Sushi!" "What would he do? He knows nothing about the Federation!" "I'm sure we can find a place for him," Linnea decided, wrapping an arm around the ShadowWalker and walking out of the transporter room with him. "Know anything about waitering?" "I'm willing to learn," Dario grinned. "And I'll even try to play the trumpet!" "The trumpet?" Linnea asked, confused. "What does that have to do with anything?" "Well, The Amazing Melting Man wanted me to learn Ragtime..." "That's Rag-TAG! Rag-TAG!" Next Time: Its the Season Two Finale, as the Lycanthropes decide to get even with the Menagerie for Thog's meddling. Will the ship and crew survive a "Wolf in Sheep's Clothing"? Find out April 10th! I welcome Reader Feedback! Please let me know what you've thought of Melting Pot so far, and, in particular this story! Contact me at: meltingpot@khobrah.net