Well, folks, here's the latest piece of 'Mi Vida Loco' for you to read,
enjoy (if it's to your taste, that is) and comment on.

	For those of you who've missed the earlier chapters, the entire rewrite
has already been uploaded to my homepage at http://www.henge.com/~eabecerr/

	That's my main page. For those who want to skip it, and go straight to the
fanfics (and thereby bypassing my page counter.. WAAAAAAH!) simply go to
http://www.henge.com/~eabecerr/anime1.html

	Several people from the Mailing list guest star in this section, so I'd
like to say hello before we start.

	I'd like to thank the following victims.. err.. people (yeah, honest!
that's what I meant, people! really!) for volunteering to appear in this
story. Lara Bartram, Ben Harrison, Jon Farber, Barry Cadwgan, and of
course.. Zen, the master of the perfectly polished fic, 'The Bitter End'.
(Note: before reading, take all required anti-depressant drugs as
prescribed. ^_^)

	I'd also like to thank my pre-readers. especially Sean Gaffney, Zen, Bert
Van Vliet,   Jeanne Hedge, Firehawke, Donny Cheng, and everyone who took
the time (whether they HAD time or not) to stand by my side during my
recent troubles.

	As I write this, it's three days and 18 hours until my appointment with
Dr. Ewing. (Yes, I'm counting the hours.) He'll then tell me whether I have
a) viral menningitis, b) Rheumatiod inflamation of the brain, c) Multiple
Sclerosis, or d) Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (Lou Gerhig's desease).

	The first two are curable. The third, I'm told, is treatable. The last..
well, I'll have enough time to settle my affairs and say goodbye to my
friends.

	But no matter what, I intend to keep pushing until there's nothing left to
push.

	Hope you enjoy this portion of the story. And Jon? could you and Ben get
in touch with me, okay? Got some questions I need to ask.

	Well, that's it for the opening credits.. enjoy the show, folks

	Ed Becerra

	"Dreamers may die, but the Dream is eternal.."

	Odd, how that .sig has come to haunt me..

========================================================================

                    ***********************************

   "Ready?"
   "Why do your people always ask if someone is ready right before you are
    going to do something massively unwise?"
   "Tradition."
      - Sinclair and Delenn in Babylon 5: War Without End, part 1

   "Being a hero is about the shortest-lived profession on Earth."
      - Will Rogers

   The next morning was a rather tentative time.  Ed was cautious about how
he approached Minerva, and her actions were similar.  As a result, breakfast
was..  awkward.

   "Min?  Do you..  I mean, is there anything further on _why_ I'm here?"

   The ACI frowned ever so slightly.  "Will you be able to control your
reactions this time?"

   "I'll do my best.  But that's all I can promise," he warned.

   "All right.  First, you're not going to like this.  Despite what happened
last night, I've kept the probabilistic projections running, and the family
of solutions they've produced are all converging.  But _not_ tightly.  The
best I can get is a level of confidence around 88 per cent."

   "And that is...?"

   "We have to go along with the Lovely Angels.  It's not so much meeting
them, as it seems to be a case of meeting someone else _through_ them." She
paused for a moment.

   "Boss?  You spilled your cereal in your lap.  Boss?  Boss?" She waved a
hand in front of his eyes, then finally snapped her fingers next to his
ears.  That did the trick.

   "We have to go with the Angels."

   "Right, b'wana."

   "We have to go with the Angels."

   She sighed.  "You're repeating yourself again, boss.  Do you need a cold
shower?"

   "We have to go with the Angels."

   Minerva sighed again, and a bucket of cold water shimmered into existance
over his head.  It tilted itself, and deluged him.  "Better now?"

   He sputtered, shaking the water from his hair.  "Thank you.  I think I
needed that." He stood and reached for a large linnen napkin and started
toweling his head dry.  "So you're saying it's not the Angels themselves
we're here to meet, but someone that we'll encounter only if we GO with
them?" he asked from under the cloth in a slightly muffled voice.

   "The light dawns!" she replied dryly.

   "Ouch.  No need to be so sharp, pretty lady.  I haven't had my morning
coffee yet.  My brain's probably still stuck in neutral."

   "I _could_ say something, but you taught me it wasn't polite to kick a
person when they're down," she smirked.

   "I'm glad I did.  For my sake.  Okay.  I have to.." He paused.  "God, I
NEVER thought I'd hear myself saying _this_.  I have to arrange to get
caught by Kei and Yuri."

   "Now _there_ is a phrase that will echo down the corridores of time,
boss.  'I NEED to get caught by the Lovely Angels.'" She began to snigger
uproariously.  "The hentai possibilities alone are overwhelming."

   Ed gave her a dirty look.  "Despite rumors to the contrary, I am NOT a
pervert.  I just need to convince them that I'm throwing in the towel.  And
remember..  they want my 'proscribed technology', Min.  That means the
Calypso.  And lest you forget, that means _YOU_."

   She urked slightly.  "I hadn't thought about that part of it."

   He grinned.  "Tsk, tsk.  And you a computer, too.  Whatever would Alan
Turing have to say?"

   She simply stuck out her tongue.

                                   * * *

   Above the planet, the `Lovely Angel' entered a parking orbit.  Kei was
smiling fiendishly as she contacted the local authorities.  Closing the
channel, she turned to Yuri.  "That should do it.  All outgoing traffic will
be halted and turned back.  Incoming traffic won't be affected, so Goulet
shouldn't be TOO upset."

   "How long can we get away with that, Kei?  This planet's run for a
profit, remember?" asked Yuri.  "If we get in the way of their business for
very long, they're going to bitch to 3WA headquarters.  That's the _last_
thing we need for this case."

   "True, but we can hold this longer than we could a total system
quarantine," grinned Kei.  "As long as customers are coming INTO the system
and spending money, the owners of this world shouldn't complain too loudly.
They're still making a profit, after all." She snickered.  "Besides, we've
been doing pretty good on this one.  No one's died, there's been no _major_
property damage, and we haven't shot up anything.  Hell, Goulet's probably
getting the first decent night's sleep he's ever had while we've been on a
case.  We haven't done thing one worth keeping him up."

   Zen raised an eyebrow.  "If that's what you call a success, then taking
Captain Edwards and his ship intact should rate as a full blown miracle."

   Kei's face darkened slightly, but rather than snap at Zen, she tried to
reply politely.  "It would, Zen-chan, it would.  I'm _tired_ of having a
reputation as a blood-thirsty brain-dead gun-girl who shoots first and asks
questions later.  And I _am_ going to lose that stigma, starting with THIS
case!"

   Zen shook her head.  "Bets, anyone?"

   Yuri and Kei both thwapped her.

                                   * * *

   "Bailey?"

   "Yes, sir?" responded the urbane concierge.  "May I help you?"

   "I have a rather unusual request, Bailey.  I hope you can handle it." Ed
looked pensively at the majordomo's image in the screen.

   "The Croessus endevors to serve, sir.  How may I assist you?"

   Ed took a deep breath and dove right in.  "Bailey, the Worlds Welfare
Works Association is interested in me.  Interested to the point where a
Trouble Consultant team has been dispatched to `invite' me to the 3WA HQ for
some `polite' questions." He held up a cautioning hand.  "Before you ask, I
do _not_ want you to help me escape them, evade the law, go on the lam, or
anything like that."

   Bailey nodded.  "As a privately owned planet, the law on Repose is
whatever the owners declare it to be, sir.  It is, quite literally, private
property.  What authority the 3WA may have here is only that which the
owners choose to give them.  However, I do understand.  What is it that you
do wish for me to do?"

   "Hard as it may be to believe, I want you to help them."

   Ed smiled as he saw the mannerly concierge struggle to control his
expression.  "Last thing you expected me to say, I'd wager."

   "Indeed, sir.  If I might inquire...?"

   "You may.  And it's really quite simple, Bailey.  Due to circumstances
beyond my control, I find that I need to go with the TC team that's been
sent to bring me in.  Not so much as I'm compelled by the 3WA as it is a
case of my needing to find something that they'll lead me to.  If I go with
them, I'll find what I'm looking for.  If I don't, I won't."

   Bailey caught on quickly, as would be expected from a person in his
position.  "And were the trouble consultants to suspect that you came along
willingly, you might not find the person or item you are searching for.  I
see.  So you need the hotel staff to coperate with the 3WA agents in such a
manner as to cause them to believe that you've been surprised, and that your
`arrest' is not an pre-arranged act."

   "That's right." Ed grinned.  "Bailey, if I didn't have a highly skilled
and extremely capable assistant already, I'd be seriously tempted to try to
hire you out from under the owner of this hotel." He named a figure.

   Bailey bowed and smiled faintly, "Sir, I am greatly honored, but my life
is here.  I will be certain to inform the staff members of the situation, so
please rest assured that when the expected parties arrives, they shall
receive the proper impression."

   "Thank you, Bailey.  And I'll be down to the front desk shortly.  I want
to pay my bill in advance, just in case.  It never hurts to be prepared."

   "Indeed, sir."

                                   * * *

   The word went out quietly, and subtlely.  The people employed by most of
the hotels, shops and other businesses of Repose were, for the most part,
carefully screened for their ability to remain quiet and to manage things in
a discreet manner when needed.  Instead of the polite and slightly
obstructionist greeting a 3WA team would normally receive, the Lovely Angels
were quietly welcomed to Repose, and informed that they would have the
co-operation of the local security forces.

   The chief executive officer of the Repose Corporation did inform them
that this co-operation _was_ contingent upon their ability to, as he put it,
`avoid scaring the cash customers'.  Then he turned them over to the head of
the local security force.

   Kei glowered at that, but Yuri smiled at the man, and went into full
kawaii mode.

   "We'll do our best to avoid that, Commandant..  err..  I'm sorry, I
didn't catch your name, sir." smiled Yuri.  Her beaming face could have
softened the heart of Darth Vader.

   Security Commandant Benjamin L. Harrison wasn't buying it.  A spare man
of medium height, he glared at Yuri from behind his glasses.  His goatee
quivered in barely supressed rage.  "I've got some news for you three
'ladies'.  This is MY world, and _I_ am the law here.  The ONLY people who
can tell me what to do are the CEO and the Board of Directors of Repose.
They make the regulations, I _enforce_ the regulations, and you will OBEY
the regulations or I'll toss your undoubtedly lovely assets off of this
planet so fast, your HAIR will hurt!"

   Kei stepped forward, he face dark, and began to say something.  Yuri
quickly stomped on her instep and smiled even harder at the commandant.
"I'm certain there won't be any such problems, sir..  we're only here to
invite Captain Edwards to WWWA headquarters to answer a few questions.  How
could that _possibly_ cause any trouble, sir?"

   Harrison snorted.  Lifting a old-fashioned manila folder, he shook it
accusingly at the Angels.  "I'm not some raw recruit who just fell off a
freighter.  The two of you are known throughout human space.  And probably
to any existing _alien_ races, for all I know.  Wherever you go, trouble
follows.  And I REFUSE to allow your nasty habit of solving your problems
with massive doses of firepower to endanger the people I'm here to protect!"

   He slapped the folder down on his desk, spilling a number of photos and
faxes from it.  Both of the Angels looked at the papers with some
embarrassment, while Zen bit her tongue and kept reminding herself that some
comments were far too dangerous to ever be used.  There was an orbital shot
of the late planet Agerna, destroyed in the Vizorium case.  Another of the
world of Ukbar where a city had died.  Kei's face flushed a dark and angry
red.

   "How the HELL did you get your hands on those?" she shouted, before Yuri
could silence her.

   "How I got them doesn't matter one bit, Agent Kei.  What _does_ matter is
that you're going NOWHERE on this world without a security escort, AND a
professional witness.  That will keep things fair for _both_ sides."
Harrison swept the papers from his desk.  "If you have any problems with
this arrangement, speak up now.  I'll be happy to have my men see you back
to your ship, along with an armed police craft to escort you out of this
system."

   Yuri smiled at him, while her right arm snaked behind Kei's back,
grabbing her hand in a painful thumb-lock.  "That's fine, Commandant.  No
problem whatsoever.  We accept your terms gratefully.  Can you have your men
take us to the dock where Captain Edward's ship currently is?  We'd like to
make certain that he can't use it to escape us again."

   Harrison nodded his assent and stabbed at the intercom button.  "Ms.
Friesner.  I want the Special Ops team to report to my office in full
_covert_ combat gear, and I want them here in ten..  no, make that FIVE
minutes.  Those who can't make it, can consider themselves on traffic duty
for the next two weeks."

   "A Special Ops team?" snarled Kei, who took the opportunity to massage
her aching thumb now that Yuri had released it.

   Harrison matched her snarl for snarl.  "I protect Repose, young lady.
>From EVERYTHING that threatens it.  Even when those threats have red hair
and a figure that would earn them a staple through the navel."

   Yuri's smile grew a little more strained, but didn't falter.  "So, may we
impound the 'Calypso'?"

   "Just as soon as the team arrives, Agent Yuri.  After you're done there,
they'll acompany you to the Croessus Hotel, where Edwards is currently
residing." He waited impatiently until the Ops team arrived, then briefed
them on their assignment.  To their credit, not a single man flinched when
they learned they would be accompanying the Lovely Angels on an arrest.  A
few of them paled slightly, but their self-control was admirable.

   It also helped that every single man on the squad could have moonlighted
for the Chippendales dance team.  Kei started to visibly salivate.  Yuri was
having a slight problem with self-control as well.  She inhaled suddenly,
and started to cough.  Zen, however, simply looked bored.

   Yuri jabbed her in the ribs with an elbow.  "What the hell's the matter
with you?!" she hissed in a disbelieving tone.

   Zen whispered back, "Zen is a _guy_, remember?"

   Yuri nodded absently, her eyes still on the Special Ops team.  "Too bad..
what a waste," she sighed.

   "I'm sure the two of you won't let it go to waste, Yuri," snarked Zen.
She looked at the Angels.  "Shall we go?  If Zen is not mistaken, we have a
ship to impound and someone to take back to headquarters."

   Kei and Yuri reluctantly pulled their eyes away from the unexpected
display of beefcake, and nodded.  Yuri turned to the leader of the squad.
"What's your name, Lieutenant..  Lieutenant..?"

   "Jon Farber, Miss Yuri." His hazel eyes twinkled.  "Don't worry, we'll
have the ship AND her captain all wrapped up for you, no matter what it
takes." He bowed in a melodramatic fashion, causing the Angels (Zen
excepted) to take another deep breath.  "Shall we be off?" he asked.

   Zen nodded her agreement and tugged on Yuri's arm.  "Come on, you can
ogle them later.  We've got a job to do!" she hissed in Yuri's ear.

   The three women headed out the door, closely followed by the SO team.
The last thing Commandant Harrison heard them say before they turned down
the hall made him groan and reach for some aspirin.

   It was Kei's voice, saying "Yuri, do you suppose we could get them to
help us investigate a strip joint after we capture Edwards?

   *Maybe this situation won't turn into a disaster,* Harrison thought as he
dry-swallowed the tablets.  *I believe this will turn out all right.  I
_believe_ that.  I also believe that somewhere in the hills of Tennessee
there is a pig that really can whistle.*

                                   * * *

   The screen set in the wall chimed softly, and when Ed answered it, Bailey
appeared.  "Sir, you requested to be informed as to the progress of the
trouble consultant team.  They are presently headed back to the spaceport,
to secure your ship."

   Ed rubbed his chin thoughtfully.  "Then, once they've run into the
surprise waiting there, they'll head straight here to 'encourage' me to
accompany them to 3WA headquarters.  Unless they're unusually stubborn, that
means about an hour." He smiled.  "There's no one else on this floor, is
there, Bailey?"

   "There is no one _left_ on your floor, sir.  However, the owners kindly
request that, if at all possible, you attempt to hold the damage to an
absolute minimum."

   "Better than that, Bailey.  I'll take it outside to the garden.  When the
Angels arrive, tell them my assistant and I have chosen to take a late
brunch in the garden."

   "An excellent choice, sir.  That will do nicely," replied the concierge.
"What will you be having?  You _do_ wish this to look as realistic as
possible, do you not?"

   Ed blinked in surprise.  "Hadn't thought of that.  Steak and eggs for
myself, a Denver omlet for Minerva.  Hash browns.  Toast, pastries, and
fresh orange juice all around."

   Bailey smiled.  "Very good, sir.  We will have everything prepared by the
time your guests arrive." The screen went dark.

   Minerva tapped him on the shoulder.  "They're approaching my slip,
b'wana.  How do you want me to play it?"

   "Non-lethal, of course..  other than that, have fun, pretty lady.  Go for
the Three Stooges routine.  After all, the Angels are very proud women.
True, they have every right to be, but that's going to make them all that
much more furious if someone makes them look foolish."

   "And an angry person makes mistakes that others can exploit," she smiled.
"Something I keep trying to remind _you_, boss.  You're learning.  I'm
proud."

                                   * * *

   "The police are not here to create disorder, they're here to preserve
    disorder."
      - Mayor Daley of Chicago, 1968 political convention.

   Kei sucked on her tingling fingers and used some words that even the
experienced members of the Ops team weren't familiar with.  "Damned thing's
got a static shield!"

   "I _told_ you it was probably booby-trapped.  But you never listen." Yuri
shook her head and waved to one of the security team.  "Bring up a grounding
cable."

   One of the men came forward with the requested item and handed it to
Yuri.  She threw it towards the shock field protecting the Calypso,
expecting it to ground the charge.  But to her surprise, the cable bounced
back from the ship as if it had struck an invisible wall.

   A pleasant female voice emanated from the bow of the ship.  "Naughty,
naughty, girls.  This ship is private property.  I thought you were agents,
not thieves."

   Kei did a double-take and looked back at Farber.  "I thought you said
there wasn't anyone on board!"

   Farber looked confused.  "There wasn't."

   "Then it's just a computer." She turned back to the strange looking ship.
"I am a Worlds Wide Welfare Agency Trouble Consultant.  Your owner is under
arrest and I officially order you to stand down all defences and prepare to
be boarded."

   She was answered with a loud and wet sounding rasberry.

   Kei became rather upset at that point.

                                   * * *

   Minerva shook her head sadly.  "The girl simply has NO sense of humor."

   Ed raised an eyebrow.  "Excuse me?"

   "Kei is just a little over the top, boss.  Yuri seems to have a handle on
her emotions, though.  And the third woman with them seems to be quite level
headed." She arched an eyebrow. "I wonder who she is. I don't recall the
Angels taking on another partner."

   He ahhh'ed.  "The Angels didn't take to your gags?"

   "Kei didn't.  Yuri figured out early on that I didn't intend to hurt them
OR let them in.  She seems to be taking it well.  They've given up on trying
to disable me, and have simply ordered a detachment of the local security
force to stand guard over me and fire if I try taking off."

   He grinned.  "I'd enjoy seeing that.  Or watching them _try_, at least.
Anything that can make it through YOUR shields wouldn't leave much of the
planet left behind."

   "True." She tilted her head, listening to something he couldn't hear.
"Mmmm..  I believe Kei is still upset over being day-glo purple."

   "Purple?  You don't mean...  You didn't use the paintball autocannon
again?"

   Minerva gave him a lazy grin, and didn't say a word.

   "I _never_ should have let you read my journels.  That was NOT a Good
Idea."

   "Oh...  I don't know about that.  _I_ certainly enjoyed it."

   "Arrrgh!" Ed rubbed his eyes.  "Anyway, they _are_ on the way over,
right?"

   She nodded.  "Just left the slip."

   "Then call Bailey for me, Min.  We're off to brunch."

                                   * * *

   In his room, the tall young man grinned as he pulled off the expensive
italian suit and donned a white t-shirt, a battered black leather jacket,and
a pair of heavy jeans.  "Just about perfect.  All that's left is to get them
all together in one spot, and then I'll be _free_!  No more 'do this, do
that, go there, come here' from the old windbag." He laughed.  "The best of
both worlds.  I get all the benefits of my position, and none of the
drawbacks.  I'm going to LOVE this!"

   He threw his head back as if scenting something in the air.  "They're
almost here.  Perfect." His eyes lit up and he chuckled.  "Custard pies?
HA!  He really IS my grandson after all.  I had my doubts there for a while.
He _really_ needs to dump the angst and learn to party!"

   The air in the room suddenly began to whirl violently around him.  When
it settled, he was gone.

                                   * * *

   Kei muttered baleful threats as she stalked along behind Yuri and the
somewhat bedraggled security squad.  The solvent-soaked sponge she wielded
in one hand was slowly removing the purple stain from her skin; much too
slowly, in her opinion.

   Yuri looked back at her.  "It's not _that_ bad, Kei.  As soon as we take
Captain Edwards into custody, we can get you to a bath, and you'll be fine."

   Kei glared back.  "YOU got no room to talk.  All YOU got hit with was a
Key Lime pie.  And that's your favorite flavor, too!"

   The blue-haired trouble consultant smiled and licked a tiny bit of crust
from her lips.  "Can I help it if I got lucky?"

   Kei growled, causing some of the soaked security men to take several
more steps away from her.  They sighed, and tried to gather together what
little self respect they had left. 

   Unfortunately, that wasn't much.  A young reporter had spotted the squad
heading for the landing slip and had followed them, only to witness their
ignominious defeat.

   Not only had the junior reporter follwed them without being detected, Ms.
Bartram had managed to capture their embarrasing encounter with the Calypso
with her camera.  She'd even managed to uplink the recording to the Galactic
Enquirer before they could stop her.

   They might have felt better if Ms. Bartram hadn't smirked at them while
they were arresting her.  The fact that they currently smelled _very_
strongly of butyl metacarpate wasn't helping them.

   This had NOT been a good day for Commandant Harrison's elite special
operations squad.

   They entered the main lobby of the Croessus, and approached the desk.
Yuri smoothly cut Kei off, and addressed the clerk first.

   "We're the Lovely Angels, a team of Trouble Consultants on assignment
from the 3WA to this world.  We'd like to know where one of your guests
happens to be at the moment."

   The clerk looked at the young woman who still had a few pie stains on her
3WA issue battle bikini, and the red-head next to her who, it seemed, was
still struggling to wipe off some sort of purple body-paint.  Behind them
was a third red-head who was doing her best to look inconspicuous, and a
group of soaking wet young men who bore uniformly glum expressions.  One of
them approached the desk, holding up a police ID folder.

   "I'm Lieutenant Jon Farber.  Commandant Harrison has authorized these two
trouble consultants to question one of your guests.  Would you please tell
us where Captain Edwards currently is?"

   The clerk wrinkled his nose slightly at the.. _unusual_ odor coming from
Farber's uniform, and glanced in Bailey's direction.  Receiving a nod from
the concierge, he tapped an access code out on his console and peered
closely at what scrolled up the screen.

   "He's in the gardens, Lieutenant, taking a late brunch with his
assistant." The clerk tapped some more keys and a curl of paper slid from a
slot in the console.  He circled something on it with a stylus, and handed
it to Farber, tapping the circled area with a finger.  "A map of the hotel
gardens, sir.  This is where Captain Edwards is taking his brunch."

   Behind him, Bailey nodded, and mentally noted to give the clerk a better
than usual performance evaluation before the next round of job promotions.
Initiative was rare, and to be fostered whenever and wherever it was
encountered.

   He watched as the trio studied the map closely, then headed out the main
door towards the hotel gardens, the security team following closely (but not
TOO closely) behind them.  Once they had left the lobby, he flipped open a
small phone.

   "They are here, Captain Edwards."

   "Thank you, Bailey. I appreciate everything you've done."

   Bailey smiled, and disconnected.  Turning towards the desk clerk, he
waved the younger man over.  "Alert hotel security, and have all services
prepare for plan Epsilon, Level 3.  Also, have the output from the security
cameras in the gardens backed up.  It might prove convienient to have extra
copies, in the unlikely event this situation should ever wind up in a court
of law."

   He returned to his desk, smiling.  "It's been a very long time since
anything interesting happened around here," he murmured, in a voice too low
for the clerk to hear.  "It will be nice to have a little excitement again."
His smile widened, and using his personal override, he switched the view
from the garden cameras over to his personal console.  "Time to watch the
fireworks."

                                   * * *

   A smiling young man was quietly slipping through the garden towards one
of the many breakfast patios located in there.  It would have been hard to
mistake him for a guest now, unless he was a very eccentric one.  The
leather biker's jacket along with the greasy t-shirt and jeans were a dead
give-away.

                                   * * *

   Kei, Yuri and Zen were approaching the same patio from the opposite
direction, their accompaning security squad following at a slight distance.
A distance Kei had insisted upon with wrinkled nose.

                                   * * *

   Ed mopped up a bit of egg yolk with a piece of toast, and finished off
the last bite of his breakfast steak.  Washing it down with a mouthful of
milk, he wiped his lips.  "How far away are they, Min?"

   "They'll be announcing themselves any moment now, boss," replied Minerva.

   "CAPTAIN EDWARDS!  REMAIN WHERE YOU ARE, AND RAISE YOUR HANDS OVER YOUR
HEAD.  YOU ARE UNDER ARREST, IN THE NAME OF THE 3WA AND THE SECURITY FORCES
OF THE PLANET OF REPOSE," blared a tremendously over-amplified voice.

   Minerva's eyebrows twitched dangerously.  "What am I, chopped liver?"

   "OH, YEAH...  YOUR ASSISTANT, TOO.  SHE'S UNDER ARREST AS WELL."

   The irritated brunette snorted.  "That's better!"

   Ed rolled his eyes.  "Min..  they're talking about _arresting_ us.  It's
not a bleedin' _honor_!"

   She humphed.  "It's a matter of respect, boss.  I _refuse_ to be treated
like some unimportant second rate flunky."

   "Good point."

   "UUHM...  WE'RE TRYING TO ARREST YOU HERE.  COULD YOU *PLEASE* TRY TO
TAKE IT JUST A LITTLE MORE SERIOUSLY?"

   "Oh.  Sorry about that.  You did want me to raise my hands, right?" Ed
lifted both arms and rested his hands on top of his head.  "This better?"

   "MUCH, THANK YOU.  HEY, WHAT THE *HELL* AM I SAYING?"

   "Don't ask me, buddy, _you're_ the one with the bullhorn.  And could you
turn down the volume a bit?  It's annoying."

   Kei slapped the officer with the loudspeaker across the back of his head.
"Quit clowning around and let's _arrest_ them already!"

   The three trouble consultants stepped out from behind the decorative
screen of foliage surrounding the small patio, followed by Lieutenant Farber
and his men.  There was a positively gloating smile in Kei's face.  She
rubbed her hands together with relish.

   "Captain Anthony Edwards, I am Trouble Consultant Kei, and you are wanted
for questioning in regards to the possession of proscribed technology.  This
time, it IS an arrest, and we would prefer that you come UNwillingly." She
smiled sweetly.  "Please resist arrest."

   "Now why would I want to do that, Agent Kei?  You've _obviously_ got the
upper hand.  I mean, just look at the situation," Ed said calmly.  "On my
side, there's just Minerva and myself.  We're alone, and unarmed.  On the
other hand, you have a team of three trouble consultants, and what looks to
be a team of officers from the local constabulary.  In addition, you're ALL
heavily armed." He paused, and a small rumble emanated from his midsection.
"Pardon me.  I really should lay off the tabasco sauce during breakfast.  It
gives me gas.  Anyway, I'm perfectly willing to come along peacefully."

   Kei gave him a suspicious glare.  "Why _now_, and not earlier?"

   "What, you don't think I have any respect for the law?" he noted with a
faint grin.

   Kei started to raise her pistol, only to stop when Yuri touched her on
one shoulder.  "Remember what you said before we touched down, Kei?" she
whispered urgently in Kei's ear.  "You said 'I'm _tired_ of having a
reputation as a blood-thirsty brain-dead gun-girl who shoots first and asks
questions later.  And I _am_ going to lose that stigma, starting with THIS
case!' Well, now is your _chance_, Kei!"

   Kei paused and, arm trembling, slowly re-holstered her Electro-Mag.  She
held out an arm to a member of the special operations team.  "Cuffs,
please."

   "Are those really neccessary?" interjected Zen.  "He seems willing enough
to come along peacefully."

   "I don't intend to take any chances," Kei said flatly.  "He may be
surrendering honestly, or it may simply be another trick of some sort.  If
he's willing to wear the cuffs now, I'll consider taking them off later."

   Ed nodded and slowly held both arms out, wrists parallel.  "If you'll
accept it as a sign of my peaceable intentions, then I'm happy to oblige."

   Yuri took the cuffs from Kei and approached the table.  She looked over
at Minerva.  "You're not going to give us any trouble, are you?"

   The tall brunette shook her head.  "He gives the orders.  Right now,
those orders are to co-operate with the authorities.  At the moment, that
means you." She leaned back into her chair, adopting a deliberately
non-threatening posture.

   Yuri nodded, and slipped the shock cuffs around Captain Edward's wrists
with a metallic click.  She gave a slightly astonished sigh.  "I don't
believe I'm saying this, Captain, but thank you."

   That caused him to raise an eyebrow.  "Thank me?  Are _you_ all right,
Agent Yuri?"

   She shook her head, nodding towards her partners.  "For once, a case of
ours has NOT ended in all-out mass destruction.  No cities going up in
smoke, no planets exploding, no mobs howling for our deaths..." Her
shoulders slumped.  "You have NO idea how it feels to have finished a case
peacefully, Captain."

   She noticed him giving her a very strange look.  "Curiously enough, I
know _exactly_ how you feel.  Trust me, Ms. Yuri, I KNOW what it's like to
have chaos move into your life and take over."

   Yuri looked at him, at the oddly sympathetic expression on his face.
Somehow, she felt convinced that what he was telling her was the truth as he
saw it.

   Kei smiled and waved an arm towards the hotel. "Now, let's get you to to
the spaceport, and aboard the 'Lovely Angel'. I want to get back to HQ and
get this over with before something comes along to ruin it for us."

   Yuri and Zen both winced.  Yuri clapped a hand over her partner's mouth.
"DON'T SAY THAT!" she hissed in Kei's ear.  "Do you want to tempt fate?!"

   "Oh, it's far too late to worry about that, Yuri.  It was too late when
you agreed to take this case," interjected a smoothly arrogant voice.

   The three trouble consultants looked across the clearing in surprise.
Kei's pistol leapt into her hand.  She leveled it at the smirking young
man facing her, then shifted her aim back to Captain Edwards, who'd spun
around and was snarling at the newcomer.

   "YOU!" Ed growled.  "I _knew_ you had to be behind this.  What is it this
time?  Another 'practical joke', Grandfather?  Or perhaps a sob story that
I'm supposed to swallow, and come rushing to your rescue?" His face grew
hard.  "Not this time, old one.  You've worn out your welcome in my life."

   "It's not like you have a choice, boy.  If you don't come with me, you'll
have to go with them," said the other man, nodding towards the trouble
consultants.

   Ed laughed harshly.  "I prefer the Dirty Pair to you, you sick joker."

   Kei interrupted at that point.  "I don't know who the hell you are, but
you're interfering in an arrest.  If you don't shut up and get the hell out
of here, we're going to arrest you too."

   The young man in the leather jacket smirked.  "I don't think so." He
lifted both hands and to the Angels' shock, began to sketch symbols in
midair with glowing hands.

   "Whatever it is that you're doing, you're going to stop it RIGHT NOW!"
shouted Kei.  Her eyes were on the stranger, so she failed to see Ed snap
the duralloy shock cuffs with a single twist of his wrists.  Before either
Yuri, Zen or any of the security squad could stop him, he dove towards the
stranger, arms outstretched, roaring "DIE, COYOTE!"

   Startled by the roar, Kei opened fire.  Captain Edwards and the shot from
her Electro-Mag struck the glowing airborn symbols in front of the man in
the leather jacket in the same instant.  A brilliant sphere of light
expanded from where the three met, growing brighter and larger until it had
engulfed the entire clearing.

                                   * * *

   Yuri was the first to recover, finding herself on her hands and knees.
She hadn't felt like this since the last time Kei had taken her out drinking
in singles bars.  It was hard to focus her eyes, and there seemed to be
something in front of her face that attracted her eyes.  She also felt a
full body ache that that made most of her previous hangovers seem tame.

   Turning her head, she spotted Captain Edwards ripping the table from the
ground and throwing it at the man in the leather jacket.  His target leapt
over it before it could strike him, and vanished into the garden as Edwards
lunged for his throat.  Edwards dashed into the garden after him before Yuri
was able to speak.

   She started to put a hand to her aching head, then stopped in shock when
she saw the fine reddish fur coating it.  She gasped, then stopped when she
heard the snarl coming from her throat.  Off to one side, she heard another
astonished gasp.  Looking that way, she saw what looked for all the world to
be some sort of anthropomophic being - a large, humanoid animal - dressed in
a regulation 3WA battle bikini.

   The figure staggered to its feet, looked her way, and squeeked "Yuri? Is
that you?"

   Yuri couldn't get out a word. The person (?) raised a forelimb, examining
it closely. "How curious," it whispered. "Zen seems to have become a rather
fetching example of a large-busted female anthropomorphic squirrel." Then
Zen fainted dead away.

   Yuri crawled to her feet and looked around.  Zen (?) was right.  Her
trainee now resembled nothing so much as a cartoon squirrel of the female
persuasion.  She looked around, and spotted a second figure in a battle
bikini.  By process of elimination, it had to be Kei.  Yuri began to laugh
in a slightly hysterical fashion.

   "What the hell are you laughing at?" demanded Kei, who was holding her
aching head. "And who the hell are you?"

   "You, girlfriend!  I don't know if you've noticed, but if all the men who
ever called you a vixen in the past could see you know, they'd probably be
laughing their asses off.  Kei, you've a fox!"

   "Yuri?!  Is that YOU?!" sputtered the vixen.  "You're a damned CAT!"

   Yuri blinked, and her laughter died down.  "A cat?  Really?  How
interesting." She shook herself.  "I don't know what's happened here, Kei,
but Captain Edwards is gone, chasing after that guy that interfered and
we've been changed somehow.  We need to take charge of the situation, right
NOW!  Can you..  I mean, do you feel up to it?"

   She took a step towards her transformed partner, then swore as she felt a
painful tug at the small of her back. "What the hell..?"

   Kei struggled to repress a giggle. "Your.. ahh.. your tail's caught in a
chair, Yuri."

   Yuri carefully disentangled her tail from the wrought-iron chairback and
offered Kei a paw up. "What the hell just happened to us?"

   Kei shuddered slightly. "I don't know, but it wasn't just us. Take a
look." She pointed to where the still stunned security squad still lay.

   Yuri looked, and giggled. "Fitting," she smirked. "They always _did_ call
them gorillas." The men of the squad were now a mixed bag of mountain
gorillas, wolverines, and three rather large Kodiak grizzly bears.

   She looked back towards where the table had stood, and to her surprise
spotted Minerva, also holding an aching head, still seated in her chair.
"Hey!! Why's _she_ still human?"

   Kei stepped over to the taller woman quickly and grabbed her by the
shoulder.  "I think *we* need to have a little talk...  What the hell is
going on here?  I want some answers, now."

   Minerva winced, and glared at the trouble consultant.  "I have a
splitting headache, and I happen to remotely control a starship that has a
minimum firepower rating of one teraton per second.  Do you _really_ want to
piss me off, Ms. Kei?"

   Kei lifted her hand (paw?) from the woman's shoulder and took a half step
back, watching her carefully.

   Minerva stood slowly, wincing.  "Good, I didn't think so.  Now, if what I
suspect is correct, the shit just hit the fan in a major way.  If you want
to understand what just happened, I suggest we return to my boss's hotel
room.  I'll fill you in on what I _think_ just happened, and what I believe
is GOING to occur very shortly if we can't stop it."

   Kei did a slow burn.  "I have a fugitive from justice to arrest, and you
want to go to a hotel room?!  Goddess only knows where Edwards and that
freak are by now, and every second we wait makes them that much harder to
find!"

   Minerva gave her a sharp look, then turned to Yuri.  "If you want my
boss, all you have to do is to follow me.  Wherever I am, that's where he'll
eventually return to.  And since I don't believe he'll be able to catch the
'gentleman' who interfered with your attempted arrest of us, he'll be coming
back very soon.  He'll head back to the hotel room, since that's where he'll
expect to find me."

   Yuri looked into the eyes of the tall, pale woman.  "Kei?  I think I
believe her."

   Kei gave Yuri a shocked look. "Have you lost your mind? She's the
employee of a wanted fugitive! We're supposed to ARREST them, not TRUST
them!"

   "We still have HER, Kei. It's only reasonably to assume that he will come
back for her," replied Yuri.

   "You may not have noticed, Kei," said Minerva dryly, "But you've become a
vixen, your partner is a cat, your assistant over there is a squirrel, and
there is a godling and a meta-human, both of whom posess incredible powers,
loose on this planet.  Whether you like it or not, I'd say your plans have
_changed_."

   Kei yipped in frustration, then looked embarrassed at the sounds coming
from her throat.  "Dammit, dammit, dammit," she swore.  "Lemme guess..
we're going with the bimbo, right, Yuri?  Then we'd better pick up Zen and
start walking."

   Minerva flushed an angry red, then bit her lip and exhaled.  "Allow me.
It's faster this way." She blinked, and two small floaters appeared over the
unconcious Zen.  They hummed to life, and Zen's body gently floated upwards,
stopping about three feet above the ground.

   "Just touch one of the disks with a finger and guide it in the direction
you want to go.  It will follow."

   Yuri nodded, and guided the disks back towards the hotel.  Kei followed,
still grumbling that the whole situation was completely ridiculous.

                                   * * *

   The engineer was strolling through the bowels of the hotel, wandering
through service levels and poking his nose in where it probably wasn't
wanted.  He'd already found one poker game..

   Building services wasn't exactly where he had expected to wind up, but it
was work that he could take pride in.  The locale didn't hurt either.  The
perks were..  he smiled to himself..  great!

   He'd been called in recently on a rush job to arrange additional
soundproofing on one floor.  Money for jam he'd thought until he'd seen the
specs they wanted.  What was the occupant doing?  Testing jet turbines?

   While he was on site again, he'd taken the opportunity look over some
earlier work he'd been involved in.

   It was a satisfying feeling, wandering among the great humming machines
that maintained the luxury outside, knowing that he had helped to build
this.  Very satisfying.

   The money he'd cleaned up in the poker game didn't hurt, either.

   A distant rumble caught his attention, and he noted a shower of dust from
the ceiling.  "An earthquake?  We're not near any fault line.  What's
going.."

   This train of thought was interupted by a loud smashing sound, as
if someone had crashed a hovercar into the side of the building.

   "What the bloody hell was that!" he exclaimed.

   A door at the other end of the roon was torn open, and a man in a black
leather jacket came rushing through it.  He sprinted across the room as
though his life depended upon it, knocking down and running over the
engineer in the process.

   "Who the HELL was..  AAAAKKK!!!"

   A second person, this one in a torn and scuffed shipsuit followed the
first, screaming various threats and imprecations at the first.  In his rush
to catch the first man, he failed to notice the groggy hotel employee lying
on the floor in his path.

   The engineer, now covered with assorted bootprints staggered up and
leaned groggily against a bit of now non-functional equipment.

   "Anyone get the name of that donkey cart?"

   He looked around at the trail of destruction left behind by the two, and
after a moment grinned.

   Barry Cadwgan flicked open his mobile phone and speed dialed a number.
"Guys, I think we just got a new job."

   He failed to notice the slight metallic shimmer that his skin was taking
on.

                                   * * *

   Minerva sighed with relief as they entered the hotel lobby. "That's much
better. It was becoming slightly painful."

   "What was painful?" asked Yuri.

   "The sun."

   Yuri gave her an odd look. "Pardon?"

   "Can we get into it when we get up..  to..  the..  room?" Minerva's voice
trailed off as she spotted the other people in the lobby.  "Oh, dear.  The
boss is _really_ going to be upset with _this_."

   Kei just goggled at the sight before her.

   "This isn't good.  I think we'd best get to your suite as quickly as
possible.." Yuri paused.  "What do we call you?"

   "Minerva.  And you're right.  The stairs, I think.  The lifts might not
be reliable." She waved an elegant hand at the two floating pods supporting
Zen, and they rotated until Zen was being held in a somewhat more
conveinient upright position.  "There.  That helps."

   They hurried to the stairway, easing the still unconsious Zen through the
door and headed up to the suite as fast as they could.

                                   * * *