Monday, December 22, 2008

Rudy the Red-Toed Reindeer Returns!


You know Dasher and Dancer and Prancer and Vixen
Comet and Cupid and Donner and Blitzen
But who do you recall the most famous reindeer of all?

Rudy, the red-toed reindeer
had some very shiny toes.
And if you ever saw him,
you would even say they glows.

All of the other reindeer
used to laugh and call him names.
They never let poor Rudy
join in any Massively multiplayer online role-playing games.

Then one foggy Christmas Eve
Santa came to say:
“Rudy with your toes aglow,
won’t guide my sleigh ho ho ho?”

Then all the reindeer loved him
as they shouted out with adulation,
Rudy, the red-toed reindeer,
BMI has this song in heavy rotation

Rudy, Rudy, Rudy, Rudy
Do you, do you, do you, do you
Know what you're doing, doing, to me
Rudy, Rudy, Rudy, Rudy

Could it be, could it be
That you're joking with me?
And you don't really see you and me
Could it be, could it be
That you're joking with me?
And you don't really see you and me

Rudy, Rudy, Rudy, Rudy
Do you, do you, do you, do you
Know what you're doing, doing, to me
Rudy, Rudy, Rudy, Rudy
Do you, do you, do you, do you
Know what you're doing, doing, to me

Hey everybody, Rudy the Red-Toed Reindeer's back!

He’s the reindeer that visits all the Junior Intergalactic Gladiators this time of year to wish everyone a Merry Christmas.

So grab yourself a nice big cup of eggnoodles (with rum, of course) and enjoy the season!

Friday, December 19, 2008

Splotchy's Story Meme

Merry Christmas, all my Junior Intergalactic Gladiators. I know you’re all just itching to find out what happens next but I’m going to take a slight detour to particiapate in Splotchy’s story Meme. Read on, true believers!

Here's what I would like to do. I want to create a story that branches out in a variety of different, unexpected ways. I don't know how realistic it is, but that's what I'm aiming for. Hopefully, at least one thread of the story can make a decent number of hops before it dies out.If you are one of the carriers of this story virus (i.e. you have been tagged and choose to contribute to it), you will have one responsibility, in addition to contributing your own piece of the story: you will have to tag at least one person that continues your story thread. So, say you tag five people. If four people decide to not participate, it's okay, as long as the fifth one does. And if all five participate, well that's five interesting threads the story spins off into.Not a requirement, but something your readers would appreciate: to help people trace your own particular thread of the narrative, it will be helpful if you include links to the chapters preceding yours. Splotchy

The Apple

The bus was more crowded than usual. It was bitterly cold outside, and I hadn't prepared for it. I noticed that a fair number of the riders were dressed curiously. As I glanced around, I stretched my feet and kicked up against a large, heavy cardboard box laying under the seat in front of me. (Splotchy)

I couldn't believe my eyes. Surrepticiously, I tried to establish, without giving it away, if anyone else had seen what I had. For ten years I had been looking for that box. What looked like an ordinary cardboard box to most contained something most precious. Only by the small golden "P" was I able to identify what I was looking at. (Freida Bee)

How the box got here, or how I happened to be on this bus with it now--these questions were immaterial. I just had to get that box. The bus slowed to a stop, so I steadied myself. Just as I was about to make a grab for the box, however, it moved. Someone else was picking it up to take it away! I had to stop her! (Dguzman)

"Ack!" I expclaimed. "Unhand my box, Madam!" But my woeful cry was to no avail as the woman with my box had already turned her back to me, and was quickly walking down the aisle towards the door. Oh, cruel fate! The woman with my box was escaping! I hastily grabbed my valise and nudged my way past the other passengers to get to the front of the bus. (Zaius)

The woman was already out the door by the time I reached the front of the bus. I aimed for the door myself only to see it close right in front of my face. I turned towards the bus driver and gave him my best sheepish, innocent looking shrug. He replied with an impatient grunt but pulled the lever anyway and I was out the door in a flash.

“Excuse me ma’am,” I said as I grabbed the woman by her shoulder. “I’m sorry but I believe that you have my box there.”

“Your what?” she replied in a shocked gasp. “No, this is my box. See, it has this P on it, that stands for Persephone. That’s me.”

“I really must insist,” I insisted. “If you would just open the box and look inside, I’m sure that the contents will show you that it’s mine.”

“I’ll do no such thing. You’ve got a lot of nerve, mister.”

Just then, I looked up as the bus began to pull out into traffic. There, looking out of the back window was a small boy armed with an impish grin and proudly holding a cardboard box with a golden “P” on the side.

I hereby infect the following: Professor Xavier, Captain Picard, Dr. Nemonok, MWB, and Wolverine.

Monday, December 15, 2008

On Space Station Alpha, Part VI

The two torpedoes raced to the station. They grew brighter and brighter as they grew closer and closer.

“Oh man…” Hudson stared at the ordinance coming straight at us.

“This is going to suck…” I added.

The torpedoes exploded in a bright flash. I winced and turned away. There was a moment where I expected to feel the explosion or get sucked out into space, but nothing happened. I turned and looked back out the window and I saw another ship shooting past. Energy bolts lanced out from her cannon straight at our assailant.

“Look there,” Major Rocksun pointed. “Who is that?”

“That looks like the Pegasus Elite!” I shouted out. “It’s Jan the Intergalactic Aviator.”

“Game… not over?” Hudson asked.

“We are truly indebted to her for her actions here,” Queen Galacta said.

The attacking craft quickly maneuvered away from the Pegasus Elite and the two ships quickly locked into a dangerous dogfight. They arced and turned and twisted around each other

“Go get ‘em, Jan!” Hudson shouted.

“They’re heading into that asteroid field!” Major Rocksun called out.

“They’re circling that big rock!” Hudson added to the play-by-play.”

“It looks as if they have the angle on Jan!” I said.

“Look out, Jan! Look out!” Queen Galacta couldn’t help but to get into the fight as well.

The aggressor fired several shots at Jan’s ship and an explosion flashed through the darkness. We couldn’t see the Pegasus Elite anywhere.

“Is she…?” Queen Galacta asked.

“That explosion…” Major Rocksun shook his head. “Too large for just a rock.”

Monday, December 08, 2008

On Space Station Alpha, Part V

The facehugger launched itself right at me. It was barely inches away from my when it exploded in midair. Acid blood rained down on me as I attempted to dodge the splattering goo.

“Ow ow,” I grimaced as I pulled the shirt off me and threw it to the floor. I stood there in my t-shirt and watched the acid-splashed one sizzle on the desk. “Nice.”

“I didn’t have to shoot it,” Major Rocksun said with a slight grin.

“No, thank you,” I replied. “I appreciate it.”

“Uh… little help?” Private Hudson was still stuck fast with the Xenomorph resin. I dashed over to him and started pulling the goop off his arms.

“Why don’t you get your crotchal area,” I suggested.

“I got it,” he grunted as he pulled the stuff off him.

“You OK?” I asked. “I expected you to be freaking out right now.”

“Well I was,” the private admitted. “But then it was like my brain just shut down. It didn’t let me think about what was going on or let me get scared or nothing.”

“Interesting.”

“Hey, maybe I’m not scared of giant space bugs anymore,” he said eagerly. “Maybe I’m cured and oh my God look at all them freakin’ eggs! Ahhhh game over!”

“So much for that.”

“Hey of you two are done poking and tickling each other, we’ve still got some work to do.” Major Rocksun pointed that the eggs with his rifle.

“Yeah, you got it.” I unslung Hudson’s rifle from my shoulder and handed it to him. We unloaded our weapons into all the eggs until nothing was left but a massive puddle of Xenomorph parts on the deck.

“Take that! And that!” Hudson yelled.

“OK OK, that’s enough,” Rocksun waved his arms. “We got ‘em all.”

“Heck yeah!” Hudson yelled. “I am state of the badass art! All gone bye bye!”

“Calm down there, Private,” Rocksun added.

“That was a lot of eggs,” Queen Galacta stated as she surveyed the mess. “How did they get here?”

“I’m guessing that Demon Claw planted them here to get to us,” I said.

“They must have brought them in in some kind of stasis or something,” Rocksun added. “I would imagine that these things would set off all kinds of alarms.”

“One would think,” Galacta replied.

Suddenly, the deck shook and explosions rumbled.

“That came from outside.” Rocksun dashed to a large porthole to look out into space. “There!”

A space craft was perched several hundred meters from our position and had its weapons aimed right at us.

Rocksun cursed under his breath. “We’re sitting Galvorian ducks here. Another couple hits will breach the hull.”

The ship’s torpedo tubes lit up as it fired at us again. Two proton torpedoes raced right at us.