Episode 24 - Blame Game

I was mildly annoyed with the doctor completely ignoring me and the situation at hand, but when he introduced me this Katie chick, I found my own mind wandering. She was as pretty as any Spaceforce member I had ever seen, her face was like porcelain and her body was like... well let's put it this way, no three breasted martian Marla could compare with who was standing right in front of me. I looked up into her eyes and immediately knew I was gonna' make some time to spend with Katie over here, once this whole interplanetary crisis was over with. I quickly pushed my lust aside and stood to introduce myself.

"Sergeant Derrick Thomas. I work for AR... I work for an agency back on Earth" I began, but she quickly interrupted me; "Yes Sgt., I know who you are. Your reputation is well known at the Spaceforce academy. You seem to have a nose for trouble I hear, and judging from your wounds and the situation you are in the midst of, I can certainly attest to that rumor. Now what I want to know Sgt. Thomas is, what is the Advanced Research and Command Authority doing sending a hotshot like you on a mission where delicate diplomacy is certainly needed?"

"I know right, he is all fists and plasma blades, and I'm all like..." Jerry began to interject.

"Uh, Dr. Waldman?" she barely looked his way when addressing him.

"Yes Katie?"

"With all due respect doctor, please shut the hell up and let me finish speaking with Sgt. Thomas."

"Uh, uh... well, I mean, I was just trying to say..." Jerry's voice quickly trailed off as she gave him a quick glare. I have no idea who this woman is, but if she could get the doctor to shut up simply by looking at him, I was in-love already!

"Now, back to my question sergeant, what is ARCA doing sending someone like you on a mission like this? They are technically not even recognized as a military nor paramilitary agency, and have no jurisdiction in matters such as these."

"Well Ms. Golden... Is it 'Ms.' or 'Mrs.' by the way?"

"It's Ensign to you or if you prefer, you can call me Ma'am.  Now, can we move past your obvious fixation with my breasts and on to the matter of your assignment?"

"Well Ensign Golden, the fact that you have any knowledge of who I am and who ARCA is, is both impressive and troubling at the same time. Why would an ensign, a recent graduate at that, from the Spaceforce Academy be privy to the kind of information you have, and coincidentally, why would you be here on Mars in the middle of what may turn out to be the Earth's most terrifying historical event?"  

She paused for a moment, a sign that she was carefully weighing what to tell me versus what to keep all to herself; "Sgt. Thomas..." 

"Derrick" I corrected her, "just call me Derrick please?"

"Fine, Derrick. I may be just an 'ensign' or 'recent graduate' as you like to put it, but what neither of you know is, immediately after graduation I was recruited into a joint operational task force, whose mission it was to track the alien traders as they attempted to buy or more reasonably, steal the fusion device and use it in a terrorist attack against our planet."

I looked her up and down for a moment, something just didn't seem to right about this woman. I didn't know anything about her, but she knew plenty about me and my mission here. More than made me comfortable.

"Well, it would appear to me Katie, that you and your 'task force' didn't do much if anything to stop these traders from acquiring the fusion device, and were it not for ARCA quietly sending me up here, they would have both the device and the chip that controls it, and would be halfway to the Earth right now, cocked, locked and ready to blow up our little rock. So the answer to your question is simple: I was sent here to do what someone higher up than both you and I knew you obviously could not handle. Is that clarity enough for you on the situation at hand Ms. Golden?" 

I admit the rolling of my eyes was an unnecessary accent to my berating response, but I couldn't help myself. Apparently neither could she, because as I began to sit back down she swept her leg knocking the chair from under me and I came crashing to the ground. She pounced on me like a wild animal and the ire in her eyes was as much frightening as it was stimulating.

"Now listen close, Derrick. You may be top agent back on Earth, but right now there is a situation of catastrophic capacity, and whether or not my team dropped the ball is the least of our concerns. The couple traders you took out back there in the conduit... they were just a teaser of what you have waiting for you if you try and go this alone. Besides the head trader, whom you let escape, and the fifty or so other minions he has looking for you, there are a multitude of other agents from star systems you haven't even heard of all looking for you and that chip in your vest, because us humans are not the only ones who value ultimate power. The amount of devastation that fusion device can create is coveted by just about every life-force in the universe. So if you're done playing the 'blame game', you should get your ass back in your chair and debrief me on what your mission is, whether you have accomplished any of its objectives, and let me help get you and the chip off this red rock in one piece."

"Hey, what about me?" Jerry chimed in, always having the flair for the annoying.

"You  can come too doc, but you better learn to man up if you expect to make it through this alive!"

She climbed off me, grabbed my good arm and helped me to my feet. As I plopped myself back down in my chair all I could think about was what she looked like naked.

Tag Team in Space is an interactive collaboration between authors: J. Naomi Ay & Ahmad Taylor

Now seeking authors to join in on the fun. New collaborators wanted to contribute to the exciting TTiS saga! Contact with your interest Naomi / Ahmad

Episode 22 - "Noodlier Dive"

"Marshall! Get your ass over here and help me with this Big Head! You know we need that chip!" Officer Marshall looked like hammered hell but his addictions were the least of my concerns.

Marshall leaned in and grabbed Fogweet by the neck. He was a a man a some size, and lifted the Big Head with ease. I climbed off of the doctor and got to my feet. "Hey, hold him up in front of me" I told Marshall and slugged Fogweet hard in the gut.

"Hey Derrick, what the hell man! You can't just go punching...", the doctor stopped short as I picked up the shiny gold chip off of the ground. 

"Doc, I'm pretty patient with you and your freak Martian buddy over here 'cause I know you're not really a military man, but you have no clue how important this chip is. It is no toy, nor candy, nor anything else to be played with. I've been through hell and high-water to acquire this from that agent, to keep it hidden from those wild Big Heads, and to keep its location secret from those monstrous traders. I've been beaten quite severely, chained like an animal with no hope of escape, and bitten by what you tell me is probably some rabid alien trader, all with the intent of reacquiring this chip and completing my mission, so if you think that your sensitivities or the sweet tooth of this little Martian is going to stand in my way, you are sorely and sadly mistaken. Are we clear?" 

I hadn't even noticed but I had my good arm across Jerry's chest and had him pinned against the far wall of the conduit. My anger subsided a bit and I took my arm off of the doctor. His eyes were glassy behind his glasses. A tear streamed down his face, but I could tell this was not a tear from fear, but more from adrenaline and his own anger. He collected himself and put his finger in my face; "You listen here you obnoxious brute. I may not be a cold-hearted, violent, murderous soldier like you, but I am a military man and I have made plenty of my own sacrifices just to find and help you on this bullshit quest of yours. So remember that next time you lay hands on me or my freak friend over there. Now, if you don't mind... Tell your massive minion over there to release Fogweet before he chokes him to death and explain what the hell is so important about this chip of yours, because your secrets are getting boring and old."

Officer Marshall put Fogweet down and the two surrounded Jerry and I. They were as interested in an explanation of the chip as the doc was.

There was complete silence in the conduit as the two men's faces wore the gravity of the information I had presented to them. "What is Noodlier dive?" the little Big Head asked. "It's Nuclear Drive genius!" I corrected him. Jerry rubbed his eyes under his glasses trying to process everything he had just heard; "So you're telling me that there is some sort of fusion device in this spaceport that has the capability of creating a nuclear explosion that could globally decimate the Earth?"

"That is exactly what I am telling you doc! The device was scheduled to be shipped to some technologically backwards colony somewhere in star system-Alpha but we got word that is was going to be hijacked by those traders we ran into. I was sent here to try and stop them, but by the time I arrived on this freakin' rock it was already too late. The device had been stolen and stashed somewhere secret. The one saving grace was that we had other agents working on our behalf. That old lady in the lift from earlier is a Martian agent working to ensure that the device does not get off this planet in the traders' possession and so she removed the chip from the device before it was stolen. She knew that the device would not work without it and that the alien traders would not be able to leave without it, so it was her best effort at stalling until I could get here to help. And now that I'm here, and finally have a hold of the chip it is imperative that I keep it out of their hands."

"But you're saying that these traders want to take the device to Earth? And then what, set it off? Why?" Officer Marshall asked, his voice trembling.

"That information is classified Officer, sorry I can't share that with you."

"Damnit Derrick, what is wrong with you people? You government spooks don't ever think in the world of reality. That device is on the loose somewhere you have not located yet, those traders are apparently all over the place with one intent: killing us all for that chip, and once they get it they will transport a nuclear device to our home planet with the intent of detonating it and probably wiping out life as we know it, and you're still concerned about your damn secrets? Classified? Seriously? Don't you think it's about time to give us all of the information we need to help you?"

"Help me? So you're sticking around a little longer then doc?"

"I don't see that I even have a choice now Derrick, do I?"

Episode 20 - Derrick's Escape

The trader and his minion continued shoving me forward down the conduit. I was getting fed up with being pushed around but I knew that this was not the time to try and protest. The head trader was at least eight feet tall and probably at least four hundred pounds. Combine his stature with the weapons around his belt and the sharpness of his fangs and I was certainly at a slight disadvantage. I knew in order to escape I'd have to find or create a moment but this was not it, not yet.

"Stalling is making me angered. Show me chip now or die to death."

As if their foul breathe and pushing wasn't bad enough, their blatant butchering of the English language was grating on my nerves. 

I scanned the area ahead of me, continuing to count the steps we took in my head. It was four hundred feet between emergency beacons and I was nearly at the next one. Through the darkness, dragging my feet, I came up on the next beacon. I pretending to trip again, and as I fell to the ground I initiated the next one. 

"What you do? What that light?" I heard over my shoulder as a mammoth foot came crashing down on my back. The weight of the blow knocked the air out of my lungs. I regained my senses and turned over; "It's a marker I placed to show me the way to the chip I hid." It was a blatant bluff, but it was all I could come up with at the minute. The head trader leaned down over me, his vile breathe making me nauseous. He seethed over me for several moments before he acquiesced. 

"You get up now and find chip, or you find your head under foot next time."

I got to my feet and continued to stumble forward. All I could do was pray that somewhere, someone was monitoring the feed from the emergency beacons and was alerted to the distress signal, because I was certainly in plenty of distress.

Another four hundred feet forward and I was able to convince the traders to allow me to initiate another beacon. A flimsy plan at best, but it was working, and it was all I had to go on, until...

"Fogweet find another one, see; there are many, many lights for Fogweet to play with" I heard approaching from behind us. There was a small glimmer of light approaching from where we had come from. The two traders turned towards the voice and my moment had arrived.

The light from my plasma blade illuminated the entire conduit in a blink of an eye. There was a loud howl as the thick muscular arm of the trader in front of me came off with almost no effort. He spun around and clubbed me with his armored hand in my chest. I was lifted off my feet and fell backward onto my back. I tried to recover from the fall and find the blade which had slipped from my hand, but suddenly I had several hundred pounds of beast on top of me. I threw my forearm up over my face and could feel the sharp fangs of the trader pressing into my flesh. I wailed in pain, feeling his teeth against my bone. 

I was briefly blinded by the sudden light of Fogweet's large head as he jumped on the trader's back and sank his own sharp teeth into his neck. Again the beast wailed out in pain, but in the process he released my arm from his jaws and lifted his weight off of my body. Adrenaline drove me backward toward my blade and with all the energy in my body I ran forward plunging the blade into the abdomen of the trader. The smell of searing flesh wafted throughout the air; "Mmmm, smell like dinner" Fogweet said as he unclamped  his teeth from the neck of the dead villain.

"Fogweet! Fogweet! Where the hell did you go Big Head?" I heard approaching from the far end of the conduit. 

"Sgt. Thomas? Oh my God, it is you!" 

I could make out the voice of officer Marshall, and as he came over and placed an arm around my waist to help me up I could see his face. 

"If I may say so, you look like shit sir..." he said, lifting me off the ground. 

"You don't look too hot yourself Marshall, you must be jonesing right about now, huh?" The look in his eyes and the smell of rubbing alcohol on his breathe confirmed my suspicions.


"What happened to the head trader? Did you guys take him out?"


"Head who? We didn't see anyone else besides this dismembered thing you killed over here, phew, what a stench by the way..."


The reality that the main trader had somehow escaped the conduit and was still out there searching for the chip was troubling, but I was bleeding and did not have the energy to go in pursuit right this minute. He would have to wait, for now...

Another familiar voice addressed me; "Well, I never thought I'd say this but it's good to see you again Derrick."

"Yeah, the feeling is mutual doc. What the fuck took you so long anyway?"

(TTiS is an interactive Episodic Saga, from the minds of: J. Naomi Ay & Ahmad Taylor. Follow the whole tale here and the individual stories at: J. Naomi Ay & Ahmad Darkside Musings)

Episode 18 - Derrick

The trader released my shackles from the wall and I came crashing to the ground. Immediately there were hands under my arms dragging me across the floor. My head was still throbbing and I was in no shape to attempt to fight back against these creatures so I allowed myself to thrown around like a rag doll for the moment.

We exited the room we were in and found ourselves back in the conduit, “Now, you tell me where you hid the chip and this can all be over very soon Human.” The distaste for me and all humans was evident in the trader’s voice. I knew this was not going to end well, but I also knew the value of the chip and that I had to protect by any means possible, including losing my life.

I had no idea of whether Jerry was out there looking for me, or if anyone else was searching for my location, but I did have one idea of how I might bring some help my way. I directed the group down the conduit away from the link to the lift shaft, and thus away from where I had hidden the chip. The creatures crawled along the path I set forth and dragged me along behind them. Ahead of us was a faint light. As we approached the source of the light I could see the floor of the conduit was broken through providing another link to the lift shaft. I wanted desperately to keep them out of the shaft, but they were already descending and I was still shackled and being dragged along so I could not provide much resistance. There was a sudden tug and I slid through the opening and fell several feet to the bottom of the shaft floor.

I landed hard, but my fall was somewhat softened by the large mass of one of the traders beneath me. He let out a loud grunt and the life seemed to go from his body. I leaned over and examined the body with my hands. His neck was certainly broken. I felt around more for anything I could find. I quietly tucked a few finds in my pockets and then I heard the voice of the head trader calling back to his minion in whatever language they spoke. When there was no response, I could hear him coming toward us. I scurried to my feet and held my hands up to show I was not a threat. The trader and another of his men grabbed me by the back of my neck; “You show us chip now or next dead body is you!”

I nodded my agreement and pointed up the shaft.

As we walked I frantically searched the dark crevices of the shaft with my feet for what I needed. After several meters I finally stumbled over it. I tumbled to the ground and used that moment to pull the emergency safety beacon on the floor. My guess had been proven right, hoping the beacon would exist and hoping the backup power to the shaft had been restored; I had been able to activate a signal to the terminal’s safety and security department. Whether anyone was monitoring it at that moment was the least of my concerns. At least there was some request for assistance sent out.

The trader pulled me to my feet and ushered me forward. Now I had to just hold out til someone could find me. I prayed I’d still be alive when they did.

Tag Team in Space is an interactive collaborative science fiction story by J. Naomi Ay & Ahmad Taylor. Keep up on the adventures of Dr. Jerry Waldman and Sgt. Derrick Thomas as they experience the wild happenings on Mars and in outer-space.

Episode 15 - Derrick

My eyes opened to a dim light across the room. My head was cloudy and throbbing, and I could feel the knot on my head swelling by the moment. As my vision cleared more I could make out four large, hulking figures in the far corner of the room. They were aggressively involved in some sort of discussion, pushing and shoving each other as they spoke.

I tried to rub the bump on my head but realized that my hands were restrained against the wall. “What the hell have you gotten yourself into now Derrick?” I said under my breathe. Apparently not silent enough because the four figures suddenly turned around and looked in my direction.

One of the figures pushed his way through the group and made his way over to me. The smell coming from his body was overwhelmingly offensive and his face; scarred and grotesque, matched his odor. He grabbed my face in his partially gnarled hand and leaned forward.

“Chip! You give me chip now Human!” he demanded, drool oozing through his sharp fangs and down his jaw.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I don’t have any chip pal.”

He was less than impressed with my answer as he threw a massive blow to my abdomen. I gasped in agony, and spit up everywhere.

He grabbed my face again in his hand and lifted my head; “You not as tough as you think. You will give me chip or you will die… Maybe both” he said, laughing as he looked into my dejected eyes. He turned back to his cohorts and began barking orders in whatever language they spoke.

By his demeanor and how the others deferred to him, I could only surmise that this was the infamous trader the Big Heads were worried about.

I tried to think hard about what my next course of action was going to be. I didn’t have my blade on me, and even if I did, my hands were chained to the wall so I couldn’t fight back regardless. What I wouldn’t give to see the doc right now or even that stupid little Big Head Fogwat.

I had to try and buy myself sometime to think of a way out of this.

I coughed up the bile that was welling up in my throat and called out to the trader; “Okay buddy, Okay. I can get you that chip. Just give me a minute to remember where it is” I said, hoping my answer would help me avoid another punch and allow me the time I needed to figure a way out of this mess.

The trader turned back to me and came closer; “Now, now. Don’t hold my actions against me. I sometimes lose my… how do you Humans say it, ‘cool’? You tell me what I need to know and I let you go. I promise” he said, with what I could only imagine was his version of a smile.

I looked at the others, weapons in hand, and I knew his promises were meaningless. I also knew that if I didn’t give them any information I was dead anyway. My choices were more than limited. I could really use your help now Jerry, where the hell are you?

Episode 12 - Derrick

I can't believe I'm being dragged up by this Martian freak with his weird extendable arms. This was exactly the last thing I imagined would be happening at this point in the day when I woke up this morning.

Fogwat finally hauled us up into the conduit and I asked doc to pull out his torch so we could gain our bearings. 

Suddenly I heard some voices; "Hey shut that damn thing off now! Turn it off!" I whispered intently, slapping Jerry's hand down to try and get the light out.

"Wait, what? What the hell..." he began, but I quickly threw my hand over his mouth.

"Shhhh. Shut the hell up Jerry. Just be quiet, please!" I looked over to the Big Head, "Hey, dim that dome of yours right now, and keep your trap shut!"

Fogwat looked confused, but Jerry gave him a nod to obey, and the glow from his huge head went out.

"You two stay right here, and don't make a sound" I commanded as I began crawling along the conduit toward the noises I heard. 

The upper conduit to the tube was dark and even more wet and smelly than the actual tube. I forced myself to hold in my disgust as I tried to decipher the voices I was approaching. I could make out at least three voices, but was not certain if there were any more than that.

I approached the bend in the conduit and leaned my head out slightly to try and listen in better.

"You find them... You find them now and get that damn micrometer chip before I lose my patience with you!" a voice demanded. The other two voices made sounds of compliance and began moving in different directions.

I was unfamiliar with the main voice, but I had to assume it was the trader the head Big Head had told us about. I knew having the trader and his minions after us was sure trouble, so I tried to slowly back up down the conduit, back to Jerry and our Martian companion.

"Ow! Ow! Fogwat here, you step on Fogwat foot Derrick, say sorry."

I turned around to see the freakin' Martian standing right behind me. "You jack ass, I told you to stay put and shut the hell..." was all I could muster before I was tackled from behind. 

My head slammed against the wall of the conduit and then into Fogwat who then fell over backward crying.

I cleared my head, and spun around the face my attacker who had me firmly pinned down to the ground. My arms were trapped at my side under his enormous weight. I could smell his vile breathe and could see a dim orange glare in his eyes. Whatever this thing was, it was big, and strong, and pretty ferocious. 

I could feel its weight shift and I quickly swung my head to the side just in time to escape his lunging attack with his mouth. I screamed as I felt several sharp teeth sink into my shoulder. The creature clamped down on my shoulder with such an amazing bite force that I thought I would black out from the pain. I tried to wriggle my way lose from its jaws but it was locked in tight and the more I writhed the more the pain set in. 

I bucked upward and was able to bring my left leg up against what I hoped was the groin of the thing. It made a strange moan and released its bite on my shoulder. I tried to move but was still firmly pinned and now had an open wound which was bleeding pretty good. What the hell was I going to do?

My attacker leaned in close to my face and muttered; "Fuck you human!" in garbled English, and I could tell it was coming in for another bite. 

With all my strength I bucked my hips again and brought my knee up again. This gave me a brief window of opportunity as the creature rolled to the side a bit. My left hand gained some movement and I reacted as quickly as I could. With a quick flick I popped the release on my belt and slid the handle into my hand. 

As I slid the safety off and powered it on, the white glow from my plasma blade was a welcome sight for me. The nauseating stench of his flesh stung my nostrils, but I was relieved to be released from his grasp.

I wiggled my way from under my deceased attacker and scurried along the conduit as fast as I could move with my wounds. I barely noticed running into Fogwat and shoved him forward ahead of me. I could hear the mumbled voices of the trader and his other minion behind me and I knew we had but moments to escape. 

As I approached the Martian and the doctor something caught hold of my ankle and stopped me dead in my tracks. The only thing I could do was yell; "Run Jerry! Get the fuck out of here now! Run!"

Check back for Jerry's tale - Coming Soon!