h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I've been trying to write but real life and writer's block has kept getting in the way.

Solving how the last scene played out was my last major headache because I essentially ditched all I had in mind before and started over.

I think we're now within a hair's breadth of getting into space for the denouement and then the end!

I agree Indy IV should be our deadline!

forgot to mention had a day operation today removing all my wisdom teeth, so shall be convalescing in bed and looking and sounding every bit like Vito Corleone.

http://www.theraider.net/news/fullstory_indy4.php?id=289

Just posting because it might be useful for true diamonds

Have developed a post-op infection after my operation so am feeling particularly unwell at the moment.

I will try to get back to writing once my jaw isn't the size of small grapefuit nor my right ear trying to explode with the pressure.


Clive ~ ow!

Still not very well, but devoid of anything to hold my attention, I'm sitting down to try and scribe some more.

*bump*

I got better.

and have just started uni - so guess what - suddenly I'm busy again, but I've been thinking about starting writing for this again so look to my ading some more this weekend hopefully.

Oww You didn't have to bump my head!

I did however get hold of the original and complete raiders of the lost ark score the other day.

Last time I posted here I really was quite ill.

Now I'm better but just busy.

but writing ST3 was and is my way of winding down so, I'll be glad to come back to this.

Sitting down to write an essay today so I'll be sat in front of the 'pooter - and plan to use ST3 as my creative reward (like I did for the prologue triple) so we'll see how far I get. <--good intentions

*Waits with baited breath*

How much is there left to write anyway?

Right.

I've written the shuttle take off but nothing past there. (except for an interjection by Legion involve the space laser miss-firing when Daltmooreby and Arthur struggle.) I also wrote Von Trapps' after-life sequence and planned but have not yet written the counter-part for Grobsvaughn (cos the laser's going to have to expode and their will only be so many lifeboats but he's a good ancient egyptian cultist so his afterlife will be rewarding. But for all that what happens in Space is still largely unmapped.

Where I've edited up to (see below) is Daltmooreby disabling Sreka and getting on board the shuttle alone. (intent on disrupting the cult's plans BUT using the space laser to destroy the agency hence the big slo-mo zero g fight between Arthru and Sean as a finale)

Sreka meanwhile is now awake and fighting with Arthur and X preventing them getting on the shuttle. This is a personal and viscious fight which ultimately Sreka has to loose so that he can flee from Annabell's wrath (he was her nominated champion) and ultimately follow Ody and jamila to safety.

I intend to try and complete the fight between Sreka and Arthur and X today and thereby tie up the getting the agents onto the shuttle ready to go into orbit, and liberate Sreka as a free-agent essentially on the run and I've set up a booby trap Daltmooreby left on the door closing mechanism to see that Arthur and X are sealed inside and cannot get out and liekwise that Sreka is locked out and cannot get in. Hence has to flee to avoid being caught by Annabel for failing *again* or being incinerated by the rocket launch.

Ody and Jamila meanwhile are trying to make life difficult for the Pilchard Cult by attempting to hack into the Cult tanoy network with the help of a disaffected cultist in substation digamma and then take the train back to Washington DC and being hunting for the REAL Turqoise Moon (Daltmooreby deliberately accepted one of the fakes which won't fire straight, remember.)

Ody and Jamila's distraction ("testing...testing hello - is this on? etc.) will ultimately serve to rattle Annabel but can provide the distraction that a) keeps from noticing what's going on on the shuttle and gives Sreka his cover to escape (and the location of the train).

Read A20651276 & A22893564 to refresh thy memory.

Hope that all helps.

Clive

Well I've done some editing today of the backlog. I reviewed some of the material set inside Alpha Complex and saw that it needed rejigging slightly.

I'm now going to turn my attention to writing the fight scene between Sreka and Arthur.

I've also gone back through this forum and plucked out all the bits that refer forward but aren't in any chronological order. they are all collected together in this guide entry:

<./>test27221663</.>

a quick scribe this morning - the fight isn't finished but I think I've gotten the ending worked out, just still writing the middle bit.

Right, I've re-written and finished the fight between Sreka, Arthur and X this evening.

Have caught the sniffles of the kids at school (Bleh! ) also did I say PGCE's were busy, try time-consuming. It's like having a bad case of The Langoliers, time just gets eaten up FORE as well as AFT.

So anyway. Just to add to things, there's some kid of glitch in h2g2 that means I can't edit or update entries so this will just have to sit here for a bit until I can get it working again.

Until then.

This is chapter 63 - The Final Confrontation with Sreka.

Sreka, even with one arm fractured and a mild concussion courtesy of Daltmooreby, was still a dangerous and lethal opponent to take on in a fistfight.

Arthur and X were also not without training however, and though battered and beaten themselves they readied themselves for Sreka's assault.

Sreka returned their animus with a blank and inhospitable stare. Suddenly he lashed out at Arthur a swinging club with his injured hand, Arthur ducked but was early caught by Sreka's left hook.

The Agent caught it with his left hand and twisted, flexing the bones in Sreka's forearm. He grunted as Arthur tried to hook his arm under his elbow. Sreka responded by grabbing Arthur's back, pressing his fingers into the soft areas where Arthur had been blasted with shot. Arthur gave a silent wheeze of agony at feeling Sreka's clawing at his bullet wounds and released his grip. Caught off guard, Sreka was able to reverse the hold Arthur had on him. He used Arthur's own momentum against him. Pulling him forward and around. Sreka lifted Arthur and flipped him over the side rail of the gantry.

X was horrified to see his partner vanish over the rail - foolishly he rushed in to help, Sreka was prepared for this and brought a swift elbow up and caught X under the nose. Steam erupted up from the side. and X staggered backward and collided with a wall.

Sighting a hand clinging to the metal causeway through the mist, X rushed Sreka who clearly anticipated the move by bending, preparing to drop X over the side. X delivered a swift kick to the side of the Russian's head. Sreka shuddered then pulled X's feet out from under him as the Agent felt his back smack against the floor. X quickly rolled from Sreka's boot as it pounded down with an audible clang where his face should have been.

Meanwhile....

Arthur, suspended precariously, looked down forlornly at the spanner he'd dropped as it sat inches away. Just out of reach caught in a mesh of jutting pipes. Arthur's again felt helpless. It wasn't that he hadn't faced imminent death before but this was different. He'd never had anything he'd cared about before. Well...there was X, but that was different. They were partners. This was about Anna. That poor innocent girl X had nearly driven over in Switzerland. How long ago now? He was ashamed that he couldn't remember. So much had happened since then. Anna. She was dead. He'd seen Sreka kill her in front of him. Anna. The thought revived him. He couldn't die like this. It was enough.

With a snarl of rage, pain and fear Arthur reached upward and caught the rivets of a girder by the tips of his fingers. Every sinew of muscle complained but he pulled himself to safety gave a satisfied grunt of success when he got a foot up onto the side and found himself no longer about to fall to his death. He'd fight Sreka again. For Anna.

Arthur was startled back to reality by his partner colliding with the rail. Arthur could see Sreka was throttling X. The agent was gasping for breath and Sreka's free hand was locked around his throat, the one Arthur had fractured was tucked painfully into his side.

Arthur was crouched on the rim of the girder that supported the walkway that led to the shuttle airlock. X's eyes rolled upward and he saw Arthur there and grimaced a smile.

Arthur stood up and confronted Sreka, who surprised looked up from killing X and hesitated at seeing Arthur. The moment's pause cost him as Arthur delivered a thunderous swinging punch, cracking Sreka's nose with the palm of his hand. The Russian reared backward screeching and gargling blood. He released X. As Sreka stumbled about gagging, Arthur slid across the rail and down next to X who had collapsed onto the gangway.

Though tactics had had little to do with this strategically the agents were better off. Sreka was no longer blocking their path to the shuttle.

"Come on" Arthur said, stumbling and half dragging his partner toward the Cult's rocket.



The doors of the shuttle slid open and the Agents collapsed through them into the airlock that led into the shuttle interior.

X rubbed his hand around his neck and preening like a cat winced at where Sreka had held him. "..'anks" he croaked at Arthur.

"X!" Arthur pointed.

X turned as the doors slid open and Sreka entered behind and above him.

Time slowed down.

X started to rise, his calves were half-unfurled in a desperate attempt to stand, when Sreka seized him by his hair and yanked his head backwards stretching his already bruised throat.

X watched as Arthur waded as if through water toward him, fists clenching slowly like retreated anemones, knees rising as if running over boulders his face twisting into muted battle cry, ready to engage.

Normal temporal service resumed and X was suddenly tipping forward as Sreka took his head and slammed him face-first into the wall comprising a battery of control panels and lights. As X slumped knees-first to the floor his head wedged into the dent Sreka had created.

Arthur leapt over his stricken friend and partner and engaged Sreka in hand-to-hand, close quarters fighting. Each was a master of several martial arts and fighting styles and each dodged and weaved, hemmed in by the constricting space of the airlock. Elbows and fists flew and bodies twirling, their heads bobbed and bodies ducked: blocking turning, hit and hitting. Sreka fought hard and Arthur gave as good as he got.

X clawed at the wall trying to free himself, his fingers found an edge and he pulled. The control panel gave way and he tumbled down onto the floor. He gazed up at where his head had been rammed by Sreka and saw something he recognised and blinked twice.

Behind him the grunts of effort of Sreka and Arthur slowed by did not dwindle. They were tiring but each wanted the other dead and a single lapse would give the other victory. Move and counter move, Arthur held Sreka at bay.

X looked again at the slim black device attached...no...hacked into the control panel. He'd seen one before. The ceramic dials revolving, the roman numerals. It was an Agency surge device. He'd seen them in R&D. The sheer queerness of what it was doing in their brought him back to the few senses he had left.

"Arthur!", he called out, "what does LXVII mean?"

Arthur ducked an elbow from Sreka and tried to stamp on Sreka's left kneecap. "Little busy here X!" he called back, catching Sreka's punch to his heart and wrenching Sreka's arm.

"I see. After a few seconds X called back: "what about LIX?"

Arthur stepped to the side and watched with interest as Sreka's club-like fist chopped down trying to connect with his head. He took Sreka's open palm turned it upwards and tried to break his elbow from underneath.

"Err...59. WHY?"

"It's counting down." X muttered to himself. I think...no...that's impossible."

The dials rotated and settled down to XLIII.

X tried standing up. "Arthur when I say NOW! I want you to duck!"

Arthur took a hard right from Sreka to the jaw and staggered. He turned from the force and looked at X.

"What?"

NOW!

Arthur's eyes grew wide as X charged at him. He did as he was told and threw down his head curling into a little ball Just as Sreka closed in for the kill coming in low to snap his neck.

X threw a colossal straight kick over his partner's head that caught Sreka on the point of his open and protruding jaw.

The Russian's head snapped backwards and he stumbled out of the automatic doors that drew open and deposited him on with a metallic thump the gangway outside the airlock.

X looked over to the surge device.

XI, X, IX

"Get down!" he cried. Arthur hit the deck.

Sreka crawled onto his front supporting himself on his good arm. With the other he reached gingerly back toward the airlock.

The surge device fizzed purple sparks and triggered the locking mechanism.

The automatic doors snapped shut, closing on Sreka's fractured wrist, grinding the fragments of bone against each other.

The Russian let out a cry that was more animal than human. It spoke of white-hot agony.

Sensing the obstruction, the doors retreated and Sreka withdrew his shattered arm, ashen and grey with pain.

The doors closed properly this time and locked, trapping Arthur and X inside the shuttle. Sreka was left writhing on the gantry outside.

A small light above the doors went green with a little 'ping', causing X to look up, and indicating that the doors were sealed.

He and Arthur gazed through the pressurised seal at Sreka, who stood up slowly, cradling his useless limb close to his chest.

Through gritted, bloody and missing teeth, The Russian extended his good hand and pointed at X through the glass, the tip of his index finger hovering over X's brow separated only by a sheet of tempered and vacuum proof glass. Menace was something Sreka new well. He mouthed the words some words that X could just make out as 'something...dead: and in the relative quiet of the pressurised airlock chamber, X new that this wasn't over yet.

Outside, and by way of contrast, all was noise and heat and activity as steam vented, pipes shook and scaffolding wobbled as various systems prepared to launch the shuttle.

Sreka looked at Agents shut inside way from him. He knew he'd lost this battle. Worse, still that this injury was significantly more dangerous than many he had had before. He had to get out. But where could he go? Annabel would not forgive him a second time.

Daltmooreby's cruel jibes returned to sting him. He'd have to run.

He backed away slowly, not taking his eyes of X, not until he was at the end of the walkway through which Arthur and X had earlier entered. A burst of steam and Andrei Sreka had vanished.

Shall attempt the tried and tested formula of being academic and writing as a reward to myself.

I now need to plan out what happens to Arthur, X, Daltmooreby and Grobsvaughn on board the shuttle before the launch.

and of more pressing focus: what Ody and Jamilla manage to come up with to cause the distraction that let's Sreka locate them and sneak on board the train to Washington.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/also_in_the_news/7035208.stm

If that isn't ST3's version of the Raiders crates ending I don't know what is.