1--The Biggest Gamble of All

August 8.

Star*Ship Casino.

ally-Hawk flew out to the Star*Ship Casino, the place where Pokerface ran his gambling operations beyond the Light-Year Limit. Anchored deep in outer space, this ship was shaped somewhat like a blue whale, large at the front and very small at the tail. At the large front were the doors on the landing port. A large sign showed the name of the place with bright, lighted letters. The law of Limbo, the nearest solar system, had no effect beyond the Light-Year Limit, so one could do whatever one wanted without fear of being apprehended by authorities. When the partly-metal partly-real Tally-Hawk arrived, he saw that Pokerface was opening the doors and allowing people to shuffle into the casino, so he started his internal recorder. This would show his masters, the law-enforcing Silver Hawks, what the evil Pokerface was up to.

As people were entering, Pokerface cheerfully greeted, “Come one, come all, into the greatest casino of them all. Ha, ha, ha! The place where you can either go out a billionaire, or go out without your shorts. Yes, yes, people, gamble all you like, for at my casino, you can either play smart by betting tidbits or go for the huge jackpot by betting everything you own. Ha, ha, ha!” Pokerface was a slender human-like android with sunglasses and a black tuxedo. His eyes were like those on slot machines, and he often removed his sunglasses so that others could see him scroll his eyes to various letters or symbols. His little black moustache wiggled whenever he felt like it, and his red bow-tie would twirl whenever he wanted it to. His hair was a shiny black. The man talked suavely, coolly, genially. To everyone including the Silver Hawks, he was trouble, but not as much trouble as was his evil boss, Mon*Star. Pokerface held a straight cane. It became skinnier as it went down to the tip, and the handle was comprised of a black spade, a black club, a red diamond, and a red heart in succession. This cane was most dangerous, for it could shoot out a laser beam interspersed with force-particles made in the shape of the four card suits.

Later, in Pokerface’s tidy and computerized office, the gambling boss was talking with Mumbo-Jumbo. Mumbo was a bull-like android. There was a semi-circular light in the middle of his forehead. Normally it was blue. When it was, he was calm and walked on his two hind feet, towering about a foot taller than a human of average height. When it was red, however, he was enraged, like a bull taunted with a red cloth, and he charged on all four feet. Now, the light was blue. He was not bright, but he was strong and obedient, and that made him a good strongman to Mon*Star and to Pokerface. “Mumbo-Jumbo, this is the life,” said Pokerface. “We don’t have to worry about those blasted Silver Hawks out here because the Light-Year Limit does not stretch this far. Ha, ha, ha! Yes, we have it made.” Mon*Star, accompanied by Yes-Man, unceremoniously burst into the office. “Yaah!”

Mon*Star barked, “Not quite, Pokerface. You still have me to worry about.” Mon*Star was an interstellar crime boss, though he primarily operated in Limbo. As usual when he left his home, he had transformed into a large metal humanoid monster, angular in shape except for his hands, red in color all over. His head had long, conical spikes in several places, and each elbow had a jet that he could use to fly in outer space. His mouth had vertical vents reminiscent of Darth Vader’s mask. His left eye was shaped like a five-pointed star. That eye housed his Light*Star, his most terrible weapon. The Light*Star could paralyze a person or otherwise control that person’s movements for as long as Mon*Star chose to keep the person in the Light*Star. That eye also absorbed the rays of the Moon*Star and allowed Mon*Star to transform into this monster.

“My friend,” Pokerface exclaimed genially, in an attempt to make Mon*Star think his presence was welcome (which, in fact, it was not). “Welcome. What brings you out here?”

“Those blasted Silver Hawks keep muscling in on our operations,” said Mon*Star. “It’s gotten so bad that we must start pulling all of our crimes outside the Light-Year Limit.”

Pokerface removed his sunglasses and scrolled his eyes through hearts, diamonds, spades, and clubs. His eyes stopped on a black club and a red diamond. “Well, Planet Master, I just got an idea,” he said suavely. “You can move Brim*Star and the Moon*Star out here to the Star*Ship Casino, where you cannot be legally arrested by those dive-bombing idiots.”

“Yes,” exclaimed Mon*Star, delighted. “Excellent idea, Pokerface. I’m glad you thought of it. Hee, hee, hee!”

Mon*Star’s servant Yes-Man slithered to his master’s side. He was a member of a humanoid race with an upper body similar to humans’ and a lower body similar to snakes’, except each hand had three fingers instead of five. “Oh, yes,” the snake said agreeably. “Excellent idea. Great idea. Oh, most certainly. Yes.” He was constantly in accord with the boss, thus the name.

“Shut up, Yes-Man, unless you have an idea,” shouted Mon*Star, annoyed.

Yes-Man looked as stricken as though Mon*Star had hit him physically. “An idea. Right, boss.”

Mon*Star said, “Let’s move that planet out here beyond the Light-Year Limit so that those Silver Hawks will no longer be able to stop our plans.”

* * *

Commander Stargazer’s Office, Hawkhaven.

Later, in Commander Stargazer’s office on Hawkhaven, Commander Stargazer, Lieutenant Quicksilver, and Sergeant Steelheart watched this communication after Tally-Hawk had returned. Each Silver Hawk had metal armor covering the majority of his body except for most of his face and stronger arm. Commander Stargazer, whose head betrayed not a strand of hair, had gold armor all around his left arm and down part of his right arm, as well as on the upper left half of his head and face. He had lost his left eye and now possessed a powerful eye that looked like the eyepiece of a telescope, but it functioned to allow him to see the entire electromagnetic spectrum. He wore an immaculate office suit with a white shirt and a long, black tie and long, black slacks. He also wore suspenders and shoes. He was the most dressed-up Silver Hawk in the place. His temper was short at times, but he was a good leader, though he knew he was beginning to get too old to lead this fine group of Silver Hawks. He had his eye on two people that could replace him: Lieutenant Quicksilver and Sergeant Steelheart.

As Tally-Hawk’s recording came to a close, Commander Stargazer exclaimed, “Dag blast it. That Mon*Star obviously has some nerve.”

Sergeant Steelheart said, “Old Mon*Star obviously is audacious to think that we won’t stop him before he moves Brim*Star.” Steelheart was the only female Silver Hawk, but she was also the strongest physically, even stronger than her muscular brother, Steelwill. She had dark-blue steel armor over her muscular body. Her armor covered her entire left hand and the top half of her upper right arm. It also covered her short hair and her neck, but it covered none of her face. Unlike the other Silver Hawks, neither she nor her brother required cybernetic muscular enhancements to be strong Silver Hawks, as their genetic structure was evolved enough to make them powerful naturally. Steelheart and her brother, though, were stronger mentally than physically. They both excelled at science, and Steelheart knew much about many other areas of study, artistic as well as scientific. She also had shown her abilities for diplomacy, essential for any leader.

“If you let me go out in the Sprint Hawk, Commander,” suggested Lieutenant Quicksilver, “I can try to stop them before they make their move.” Lieutenant Quicksilver had silver-colored armor covering his body. His armor, too, covered part of his right arm and his entire left arm. He was an excellent leader and a very good police officer, but sometimes he had a tendency to get himself into hot water. Like he was about to.

“Go ahead, Lieutenant,” ordered Stargazer. “Make your move.”

“If you need some backup, Quicksilver, call us,” said Steelheart.

Quicksilver said, “Don’t worry; I shall.” He saluted Stargazer and left. In the Sprint Hawk, which was downstairs in the hangar, Tally-Hawk was waiting for him. The Sprint Hawk was a small hawk-shaped craft with a red-tinted translucent canopy keeping the cockpit safe. Originally, it had been a one-person craft, but the Steeltwins had changed that because there were now twice as many Silver Hawks as there had been originally. It could now seat two comfortably, one behind the other. “Good boy, Tally-Hawk. Let’s go.” Quicksilver took off in the Sprint Hawk.

Up in the office, Steelheart and Stargazer saw him leave and take off for the planet Brim*Star. “You’re thinking what I’m thinking, yes?” Steelheart said.

“If you’re thinking he’s going to get in trouble, I’m thinking what you’re thinking. Round up your brother, Copper-Kidd, and Colonel Bluegrass and take off after him if you want to. I have a feeling Mon*Star has more up his sleeve than what we just witnessed.” Steelheart left the room to follow Stargazer’s instructions.

* * *

Brim*Star.

The planet of Brim*Star was a heavily cratered, rough-surfaced asteroid of such size that it was often called a planet. In the core of this rough world, Mon*Star was contemplating how to move his massive asteroid and the Moon*Star. The asteroid was a dark, almost evil red, and the most noticeable feature was the huge star-shaped crater. Within this deep crater was Mon*Star’s tall fortress. The Moon*Star, near Brim*Star, was about a quarter the size of the planet, and it gave off strange, red radiation that transformed Mon*Star into the large metal monster that, just a short while ago, paid a visit on Pokerface. Brim*Star was within the bounds of the Light-Year Limit that encircled Limbo, and that was Mon*Star’s problem.

“I must find a way to move this blasted planet to Pokerface’s casino,” said Mon*Star. He was presently in his untransformed form. He had originally been human, but during his criminal youth, he had suffered an accident that mutated him. He had turned into a humanoid creature with dark red fur covering his entire body and grotesquely altering his left eye, making it swell to a red hemisphere with a dark star in the middle. At first glance, it looked much like the surface of Brim*Star, except Mon*Star’s eye was much smoother. This eye was the one that was described previously, except that in his present form, it was much more noticeable. The mutation had caused one cylindrical spike to grow upwards from each shoulder. Many felt revulsion when they set their eyes upon him in this form.

“Must,” agreed Yes-Man. “Yes.”

Hardware entered with Windhammer, who was pushing a rolling table with a cloth over it. Hardware was a member of a short, big-boned humanoid race called Squattoids. He had pointed ears, red hair, and long, skinny fingers. He was intelligent with technical and scientific matters, which was why Mon*Star had hired him, and he was also cunning and devious. Not at all to Mon*Star’s liking, Hardware always expected to be paid generously for his work, and the two often squabbled over this. He wore thick green clothing and a light brown backpack, in which he stored many weapons and tools. Mon*Star could never afford to get rid of Hardware. “I believe that I may have the answer to your problem, Planet Master,” said Hardware. Windhammer pulled the cloth off the table to reveal a small box. “I call it the Push-O-Matic.”

The seemingly innocuous device stirred Mon*Star’s impatience. “I want to move an asteroid and its companion star through the Light-Year Limit, and you bring me a toy?”

Hardware said suavely, “It is not just any toy. Hmm, hmm! It is a super-powerful toy! You see, this baby has the power to produce a force that can start and stop moving the whole Milky Way Galaxy.”

“Demonstrate.”

Hardware said, “There is only one practical way for me to demonstrate: to start moving Brim*Star and the Moon*Star beyond the Light-Year Limit.”

Mon*Star was instantly delighted. “Well, then, demonstrate by all means, Hardware. Heh, heh, heh!”

“With pleasure, boss.” Maybe you’ll give me a raise, too, you underpaying, lazy excuse for an employer, thought Hardware, feeling satisfied that Mon*Star was not telepathic like the Steeltwins. He pressed a button on his device. Brim*Star and the Moon*Star started to move away from the sun with a mild quaking in the fortress.

“We’re moving out of orbit,” Yes-Man declared with glee.

“Very good,” Mon*Star said.

* * *

At this time, the Sprint Hawk arrived at the asteroid. Within, a baffled Quicksilver, with an equally baffled Tally-Hawk, watched as the asteroid and the small star began moving farther away from the sun. Even to the naked eye, this was different from the normal orbital motion. “What in blue blazes is going on around here?” demanded Quicksilver. “Well, whatever it is, I am going to stop it.” He blasted the lasers of the Sprint Hawk at Brim*Star and contacted each time he fired with Brim*Star’s cratered surface.

* * *

Mon*Star almost fell because of the jarring that the Sprint Hawk’s lasers caused. “Yaah! What in Limbo was that?” the Planet Master demanded.

Windhammer looked in the monitor. “It’s that blasted Quicksilver in the Sprint Hawk,” he cried. Windhammer was a Nebulan, a member of a tall, gray-fleshed race who knew how to adjust the frequencies of vibrating objects to control weather beyond the effects of gravity, magnetism, and temperature. He, too, had pointy ears, and he had yellowish hair and bare feet. His outfit, a grayish garment that covered his body down to his knees, was not as protective as Hardware’s, but then his flesh was thick, shielding his internal systems from heat and cold effectively. Windhammer had a Tuning Fork, a long metal staff with a straight handle and U-shaped prongs, which he used to control weather.

Mon*Star exploded, “Someone stop that Silver Buffoon before he stops us.”

Windhammer began to twirl his Tuning Fork in the air. “One Silver-Hawk-destroying space storm coming up.” With a laugh, he brought down the Tuning Fork with force and struck the floor with the Tuning Fork’s prongs. Controlling forces vibrated out of these prongs toward the Star*Crater. Windhammer looked in the monitor to see the effects of his storm. A massive cloud began to take shape near the Sprint Hawk. “No, I said a Silver-Hawk-destroying storm. That’s barely a spring shower.” He again twirled his Tuning Fork in the sky and again struck the floor with its prongs. The Fork vibrated with more frequency and magnitude now, and the storm worsened. Windhammer was still not satisfied. “No, no, no. That is still not strong enough.” He went through the twirl-and-strike process again. This time, the Fork almost vibrated out of his hands. The storm began to emit blistering lightning and massive hail. “Now, that is what I call a Silver-Hawk-destroying storm. Ha, ha, ha!”

* * *

Up above Brim*Star, Quicksilver was beginning to have control problems. “What a storm.” He saw the storm-causing energy flowing out of the Star*Crater. “The Mob is behind this. I should have known.” As the storm got worse, a very strong lightning bolt blasted the Sprint Hawk’s light body out of the sky. Worse yet, thanks to forceful winds, the vehicle began to descend toward Brim*Star. “Oh, darn it. Come on. Rise. Rise!” The Sprint Hawk refused to rise. It crashed on the outer surface of Brim*Star.

Not far behind the Sprint Hawk, however, Bluegrass, Steelheart, Steelwill, and Copper-Kidd were coming in the Mirage. The Mirage was blue-colored, and it had five pods, each with a dark blue canopy. Four of them each accommodated a Silver Hawk lying on his or her belly, and there were handles that the Silver Hawk would pull aside to launch himself or herself out. The fifth pod, in the middle, was the cockpit, and it could detach as a separate vehicle, the Hot Seat.

“Whew,” said Bluegrass, in the cockpit. “That thar looks like a killer storm.” Bluegrass was from Texas, and one could definitely tell from his speech. He had light blue armor covering his entire body except his face and the lower part of his right arm. He wore a brown hat that concealed his permanent mohawk, and he wore a red bandanna around his neck. He played a mean guitar. In fact, he had two; one was a six-string electric tenor guitar, the other was a four-string electric bass guitar that transformed into his weapon hawk, Side Man. Unlike Tally-Hawk, Side Man was completely robotic. Side Man and the Laser Guitar (the tenor guitar) both had laser emitters at the head; the Laser Guitar had one single hole, while Side Man had four emitters at the tuning pegs above his eyes. Both lasers were in the form of standard musical notation, blue in color and potentially more devastating than normal lasers because pitches, tempo, and volume altered the effects of music lasers. Bluegrass preferred late-twentieth-century American country music, but he had been known to dabble a little in more classical guitar music.

Steelheart said, “Quicksilver is in danger, cowboy. We have to save him.” Suddenly, a red, fluctuating music laser shot by the Mirage.

“It’s Melodia,” exclaimed the cowboy.

“Come on, guys,” said Steelwill. “Let’s give that lady some music lessons.” Steelwill’s suit covered his entire right arm but just the left shoulder. It also covered his beard and the rest of his head, except his face. His left hand had a steel bracelet.

“You’ve got it,” said Steelheart, flashing on her visor. “Prepare to launch.” The visor covered the face, leaving a neon light, in a wide V-shape that dipped only a few centimeters, across the area where the eyes were. The light flashed bright blue when the Silver Hawk was speaking, but it was normally a darker blue otherwise. In most of the Silver Hawks, it was pointed at the bottom, like a hawk’s beak.

Bluegrass said, “Standing by to launch.” Steelheart appeared in the upper half of Bluegrass’s monitor.

Steelheart announced, “Ready.”

Steelwill, flashing on his visor, appeared in the lower left corner of the screen. His visor was different from the others’ in that it was like a football helmet. It completely covered his whole head, and the neon light was straight. “Ready,” announced Steelheart’s twin brother.

Copper-Kidd, flashing on his visor, appeared in the lower right corner of the screen. “Ready,” Kidd said. He had a copper suit that covered most of his short body. His suit covered his entire right arm and his left arm down to a point halfway between his elbow and his wrist. His skin color was a light gray because he was of a different planet, and his suit did not cover his pointed ears. His visor light was in the wide V-shape like Steelheart’s.

“Releasing,” Bluegrass announced. He pressed three of the four yellow buttons that were above the long red all-four pod release button that was located in the upper-right area of his main control panel. These opened the pods that held Steelheart, Steelwill, and Copper-Kidd. The three were propelled out of their pods when they pushed their handles aside.

“Wing-it,” Steelheart ordered. The other two flying Silver Hawks followed her command, and she did as they did, putting their arms to their bodies and pulling them out. Silver-colored wings came out, attached to their arms and bodies. Their wings and the jets in their heels allowed them to fly. Bluegrass opened the canopy of the cockpit, then reached to his left with his right hand and grabbed his Laser Guitar by the middle of the neck. He held it in front of him, ready to play.

“I call this one, ‘Bye-bye, Melodia.’ Ha, ha, ha!”

Melodia was, indeed, firing at the Silver Hawks. She was in the green Limbo Limo, which the villainous Hardware was piloting. She was a tall, slender human with shades in the shape of an eighth note. The right lens of the shade was completely surrounded in the note-head, the stem slanted up to the left, and the stem and flag surrounded most of the left lens. The shades had enhancements that allowed her to see at great distances. She wore red gloves. She had a musical weapon of her own, the Sound Smasher, a keyboard built for the left hand to finger the notes backwards. The laser emitter was in the head, which had a handle sticking up that she held with her right hand. There were also two bands behind the handle that she put her right arm through so that she would not drop the handle. She wore a strap that held the instrument when she was standing. Two cords from the instrument plugged into the power supply unit on her belt. Her hair was dyed green—the rear part dark, the front part light—and her provocative black clothing covered the top of her body and about the upper fourth of her upper legs. Pink shoulder-pads were included. She had red gloves covering most of her arms except for her fingers, and she had red high-heel boots.

“Time to rock and roll these Silver Hawks,” said Melodia. “Move this thing faster, Hardware.”

“Sorry, Melodia,” said Hardware. “It’s been a while since I’ve driven a stick-shift. You had to go and change the transmission, didn’t you?”

“Oh well, you’re doing well enough already,” admitted Melodia. “Time to make some Silver Hawk Stew.” With high-pitched laughter, she opened fire on the Silver Hawks with her Sound Smasher.

Steelheart immediately saw the red, fluctuating music laser from Melodia’s lethal instrument. “Scatter.” The Silver Hawks separated and avoided the laser.

Approaching the Limbo Limo, Bluegrass situated the brim of his hat. He turned Hot Licks, his music computer, to a crazy country tune. “All right, Melodia, it’s time for you to get that Limbo Lemon of yours out the way.” As he strummed his guitar, a blue laser beam shaped like a five-line treble staff with notes fired from the head of his guitar towards Melodia. Aiming her Sound Smasher at Bluegrass, she countered with her deadly music. Their lasers collided head-on, counteracting each other. “Okay, time to bring this tune to a close.” Bluegrass switched to a radically different tonality, causing his beam to shoot straight through the middle of Melodia’s laser beam and right into the laser hole at the head of her Sound Smasher. In seconds, the entire Sound Smasher blew up, blasting Melodia screaming out of the vehicle. The limo was sent descending towards Brim*Star at great velocity.

“Uh, oh,” said Hardware nervously. “I forgot how to slow this thing down.” The Limbo Limo descended rapidly, eliciting a brief scream from the mechanic. “Okay, okay, don’t panic, Hardware. What am I supposed to do? Okay. I am first supposed to put in the clutch.” He pushed in the clutch pedal with his foot. “All right. Now, I’m supposed to apply the brakes firmly, or am I supposed to downshift first? Oh, well, I’ll do both.” This was a mistake. He firmly applied the brakes while placing the gear selector into the next higher gear by accident. When he released the clutch, the Limbo Limo jarred violently and increased, rather than decreased, its descending velocity. “Uh, oh. I upshifted when I meant to downshift.” He got the Limo under some semblance of control. “Okay, that’s much better. Whew.” He stopped. He then made another mistake: he released the clutch with the vehicle in a motion gear, causing the Limo to stall. “Blast it. Now, I’ve stalled the confounded thing.” He put in the clutch with his left foot while his right foot was still on the brake and put the gear in Neutral. He then restarted the Limbo Limo by pressing the ignition switch. “Whew. That was too darned close.”

Steelheart landed on the front of the Limbo Limo. “Yes, and thanks to your ignorance of operating a vehicle with a manual transmission, we’ve caught both you and Melodia.”

“You’ll never capture me, Silver Hawk,” barked Hardware. He got out his mechanical carrier-bird to carry him back to Brim*Star. “You won’t get Melodia, either.” He got out a grappler-gun and fired it. The end wrapped around Melodia’s waist and pulled her toward Hardware until she was close enough to grab Hardware’s bird. She did so, and Hardware aimed for Quicksilver, who was on the surface. He was lying there because the Sprint Hawk’s crash had demolished it and sent him flying to the surface. “You have not stopped us yet, Silver Idiots.” As the two entered Brim*Star’s Star*Crater, Hardware grappled Quicksilver and dragged him into Brim*Star with them. “We’ve got your silver pal, so you’d better not be coming to get us, Silver Hawks.”

“Yeah,” said Melodia, “or your silver buddy gets it. Ha, ha, ha!” When they were fully inside the Star*Crater, a door sealed the inside of Brim*Star off from the rest of the universe.

“Well, this is another fine mess we’ve gotten into,” said Steelheart. “Stargazer will not be happy.” Brim*Star continued to fly on towards the Light-Year Limit. Steelheart called Hawkhaven. “This is Sergeant Steelheart to Hawkhaven. Please respond, Commander Stargazer.” Stargazer responded.

“Yes, Sergeant?” asked Stargazer.

Steelheart said, “I’m sorry, Commander. That blasted Mob is getting away with Quicksilver.”

“Darn it. Follow them, Steelheart.”

As Brim*Star crossed over the Light-Year Limit, Steelheart said, “I can’t, sir. They’ve just crossed over the Light-Year Limit. If we went any farther, we would be violating the law.”

“Curse it all. Get back over here to Hawkhaven, Steelheart. We have a report to make together to the guys back on Earth. This is the first time anything like this has happened.”

“I am presently accepting all responsibility for this, Commander,” offered Steelheart.

“No, I am,” said Stargazer. “I am your commanding officer. Now, just get back here.”

“Aye, sir.” The Silver Hawks re‑entered their pods. Then, the Mirage headed back for Hawkhaven.

* * *

Commander Stargazer’s Office, Hawkhaven.

“I have to have a full explanation from you, Steelheart,” said Stargazer. “I need to know what the heck happened out there.”

“When we arrived, Commander, a ferocious storm had been brewing,” Steelheart reported. “We had previously seen Lieutenant Quicksilver crash on Brim*Star. We didn’t know whether he was alive or dead. Anyway, Melodia and Hardware attacked us. We launched, and Melodia made us scatter by using a music laser. Then, Colonel Bluegrass countered with a music laser of his own, stopping another of Melodia’s music lasers from reaching us. The two cancelled each other out until Bluegrass struck a note too quickly for Melodia to react in time. His blue music laser entered the sound hole of her Sound Smasher and destroyed it. The Sound Smasher’s explosion knocked her out of the limo, and Hardware’s inexperience with driving a stick-shift almost cost him his getaway. He flew into Brim*Star on his pet bird and carried Melodia and the seemingly lifeless body of Quicksilver with him. We couldn’t discover whether Quicksilver is still alive or perished from that crash. I would estimate that he is merely unconscious, however.”

“I understand, Sergeant. Copper-Kidd, Bluegrass, and Steelwill, do you confirm this?”

“You know I do, Commander,” Steelwill said. “It’s the truth.”

Bluegrass added, “So do I.”

“Me, also,” said Kidd.

Stargazer said, “Then, I would like to speak with Steelheart for a moment in private. Everyone but Steelheart is dismissed.”

Standing erect and saluting with their right hands, Steelwill, Bluegrass, and Copper-Kidd said, “Aye, sir.” They all left.

Stargazer said, “I don’t know what in Limbo they’re doing, Steelheart.”

“Neither do I, Commander,” said Steelheart. “What would they want with Quicksilver, other than to get revenge?”

“That is exactly what I want to know. And, if they only want revenge, why capture him? He can do nothing to them outside the Light-Year—”

“Of course. Pardon me, Commander. I just realized something.”

“Go ahead,” invited the commander.

“They may desire to get him into trouble,” Steelheart began. “If he attacks them outside the Light-Year Limit, they can press charges, then send him back here via one expendable resource, possibly Seymour, without the risk of being caught.”

“Of course. Then Quicksilver gets the confounded blame for attacking them in neutral territory. That could bring about a heavy controversy and, most likely, a lengthy stay on the Penal Planet.”

“Then, all we have to do is to get the Light-Year Boundary receded.”

“All we have to do? Ha, ha! Now you’ve gone crazy, Steelheart. Do you know what percentage of country representatives in the Earth Interplanetary Alliance must vote to make an amendment to get that act receded? One hundred percent.”

“I know it’s slim, Commander, but it just might work.”

“That’s one huge ‘might.’ ”

“It’s our only hope to save Quicksilver. After his records have been reviewed, double-checked, and triple-checked by the representatives, I think that he may have a chance.”

Stargazer sighed. “It’s too much of a long-shot for my taste, but it’s the best shot we have. Let’s try it.”

* * *

Star*Ship Casino.

Meanwhile, out at the Star*Ship Casino, the planet Brim*Star had arrived and had parked behind the ship that contained the casino. Mon*Star left Brim*Star in the Zoomer with Hardware at the wheel and went to the main entrance of the casino. Mon*Star and Hardware entered the Star*Ship Casino and walked directly to Pokerface’s office.

“Greetings, Mon*Star,” Pokerface greeted genially. “How may I help you?”

His Star*Eye shining, Mon*Star happily announced, “I have one Silver Hawk on Brim*Star. Hardware captured him during an escape from some other pea-brained, problem-producing Silver Hawks. This bird-brain is Quicksilver.”

Pokerface’s eyes spun and came up with: ! !. “Really,” he exclaimed. “May I see?”

“Sure. Why not?”

“Well, I have a casino to run, and—”

Mon*Star interrupted, “Hardware can take care of the place while we’re gone, can’t he?”

Hardware said, “Yes, I certainly can.”

“Of course,” said Pokerface.

“Good,” said Mon*Star. “Let’s go.” They took the Zoomer over to Brim*Star.

In Brim*Star’s control room, Mon*Star showed Quicksilver to Pokerface. “Here he is, my dear Pokerface.” Quicksilver, unconscious, was bound to the wall.

“That blasted Silver Hawk is no longer going to give us any trouble,” laughed Pokerface.

“I have a plan to repay him tenfold for all the trouble he’s given us,” said Mon*Star. “You see, when he regains consciousness, he will not know that we are past the Light-Year Limit. He’ll naturally try to get out, and we’re making sure that he’ll have to put up a fight with his weapons in order to do that. However, since we are beyond the Light-Year Limit, he will be arrested once within the Light-Year Limit if anyone finds out that he attacked us. Is it not brilliant, Pokerface?”

“It’s brilliant, Mon*Star. It’s completely brilliant. In theory, it’ll work, but if he somehow discovers that we are beyond the Light-Year Limit before attacking us, the goose of your plan is cooked.”

“Yeah, but who gives a goose? It’s still a great plan.”

“You have a point, Planet Master. That Silver Dodo will never know what hit him, other than a stiff prison sentence on the Penal Planet. Ha, ha, ha!”

“Luckily for the plan, the law does not make loopholes for ignorance. It will not excuse Quicksilver for not knowing where he is when he will have attacked us.”

“A brilliant master plan by the Planet Master. Congratulations, Mon*Star.”

“Don’t congratulate me yet. Those blasted Silver Hawks are bound to try to do something about that Light-Year Limit.”

“You need not worry. The act making that limit can only be overturned by a 100 percent vote of the Terran Interplanetary Council of Countries.”

* * *

Commander Stargazer’s Office, Hawkhaven.

Stargazer and Steelheart were conferring with that council at the very moment. The two hawks were using the viewscreen in Stargazer’s office in Hawkhaven to confer with the council. “So you see, Mon*Star has moved Brim*Star out beyond the Light-Year Limit,” Stargazer said at last. “Not only can he get away from justice out there, but he can get Quicksilver into trouble.”

“We may already be too late,” interjected Steelheart. “Quicksilver is most likely still alive. If he awakens and tries to break out of Brim*Star, he will be guilty of fighting in neutral territory.”

One council member said, “I cannot help agreeing. Also, too many criminals have gotten away with their crimes because they escaped beyond the Light-Year Limit.” There was general head-nodding among the council members. “We shall confer with the Limbo Council. If they say yes, we’ll take a vote on this. We shall let you know soon what the answer is.” The viewscreen shut off.

“Well, we have only to wait,” said Stargazer. “We should get top billing for that performance, eh, Steelheart?”

“Yes. Let us remember, Stargazer, this is quite serious. This could be the biggest gamble of all.”

* * *

After some time, the council called them back. “We have reached a decision, Silver Hawks,” the council leader said. “The Limbo Council agreed with you, and the vote we took was unanimous in your favor. The Light-Year Boundary Act has been rescinded. In its place is posed the Galactic Boundary Act, which permits you to enforce the law in this entire sixth of the galaxy. It’ll make some people unhappy, but that’s the way things go. We wish you good luck, Silver Hawks.” The screen shut off again.

“I have a feeling that this one was right by the seat of our pants, Sergeant Steelheart,” laughed Stargazer. “Now, get out there, and get Quicksilver out of Brim*Star.”

Saluting, Steelheart said, “Aye, Commander.” She left the room. The Mirage, those in it being Bluegrass, Steelwill, Steelheart, Hotwing, and Flashback, soared out into space. Right behind the Mirage was the low-slung Space Racer, piloted by Copper-Kidd. Finally came Moonstriker and Condor, flying with their flight devices. “All right, guys,” Steelheart said as the group sped off. “Hit Brim*Star, and hit Brim*Star as hard as you-know-where.”

Bluegrass readied the laser cannons with a laugh. “You’ve got it, Steelheart. We’ll make ’em sorry that they tried to do what they tried to do.”

* * *

Brim*Star, near the Star*Ship Casino.

On Brim*Star, the alarm was sounding. “Blast,” said Mon*Star. “What is that, Yes-Man?”

Yes-Man switched on the viewscreen. “I don’t believe it. It’s the Silver Hawks.”

“Those dive-bombing idiots are coming to attack me beyond the Light-Year Limit?” Mon*Star demanded. He erupted into almost convulsive laughter. “All of them will be sent to prison.”

Yes-Man’s terminal beeped. “They’re calling us, boss,” he said.

“This should be good.”

“Howdy, Mon*Star,” Steelheart greeted cheerfully. “In case you’re wondering why we’re attacking, we convinced the Interplanetary Council to recede that nasty ol’ Light-Year Boundary. Great, isn’t it? Now we can put a stop to your stupid plan.”

“You did what?” Mon*Star screamed in panic. “Yes-Man, prepare for transformation; then, get the Mob to the abandoning vessels. Let’s get out of here!” After Mon*Star transformed, the Mob ran to their vehicles. Nonetheless, Mon*Star got on the radio and said, “This is Mon*Star to Mob. Abandon Brim*Star. Repeat, abandon Brim*Star.” The Mob abandoned Brim*Star at top speed.

The Mirage soon arrived at Brim*Star. Steelheart and Steelwill came into the control room to free Quicksilver. He regained consciousness as they were breaking his restraints. “Steeltwins. What happened?”

“A plan that we foiled, skipper,” said Steelheart.

“Unfortunately, the Mob called a bad play and ran away,” interjected Steelwill.

“Oh, great. Now, we’ll never catch them.”

“Never say never, Quick,” said Steelheart. She found a sheet of paper and did some quick calculations that might have taken a calculator a century. “According to my figuring, based on the velocity, range, and direction of the Mob in the vehicles they were using, I’d say that the Mob is going to be hiding out on this small asteroid right here.” She pointed to a specific asteroid on the map. Quicksilver whistled.

“Pretty piece of work, Steelheart,” said Quicksilver. He did not dare to mention that he thought that she herself was a pretty piece of work. Of course, he probably would have if he knew how she felt for him. “Let’s go.” Quicksilver hitched a ride with Copper-Kidd. The Silver Hawks went to the asteroid to which Steelheart had pointed.

* * *

Upon disembarking from the vehicles on the asteroid, Mon*Star said, “Those cursèd Silver Hawks will never find us on this dump.”

Turning around, Hardware saw the Silver Hawks over the horizon. “Then what do I see? Interplanetary balloons?”

“Blast it. Blow them away, Windhammer.”

Windhammer replied by spinning his Tuning Fork, then whacking it against the ground. He shot a blizzard at the Silver Hawks. “Freeze, Silver Hawks!”

As the blizzard approached, Quicksilver ordered, “Scatter, Silver Hawks.” The Silver Hawks’ vehicles separated so that the storm would not get them.

“Darn you, Silver Hawks,” exclaimed Windhammer.

“Sergeant Steelheart, how about the pleasure of personally clipping their evil wings?” suggested Quicksilver.

“Ha, ha! Certainly, Lieutenant,” said Steelheart. She activated her visor. “Steelheart ready to launch, cowboy.”

“Aye, Steelheart,” said Bluegrass. “Releasing.” He pressed the button that opened Steelheart’s pod canopy and propelled her out into space.

“Yaah! It’s the steel-lady,” screamed Hardware.

“You’ve got it, Hardware,” said Steelheart. She surrounded Hardware with a ‘laser-prison’ from her shoulder-laser, a cage made of laser instead of steel. It was a brand new weapon that was working perfectly. “Now, for the rest of you guys.” She blasted the rest of the Mob with a laser-prison. “Relax, guys. Now, it is time to go to the Penal Planet.”

* * *

Penal Planet.

At the Penal Planet, Limbo’s dark and barely penetrable prison planet, the Silver Hawks had finally put the entire Mob behind bars. Steelheart informed them, “You guys will not be leaving any time soon. I’ve been so told by Warden Lockup.”

“Curse you, Silver Hawk,” said Hardware. “How did you find out where we were?”

“Some simple figuring with your heading, Hardware,” said Steelheart. “I used parabolic equations that led us directly to you.”

“We’ll get you guys for this,” promised Hardware bitterly.

Steelheart said, “Good-bye, Mob. After your trial, we’ll see you guys around. In a few hundred years.” The Silver Hawks left for Hawkhaven.

“You will see us much sooner, Steelheart,” Mon*Star promised quietly. “Oh, yes, you will see us much sooner.”

* * *

Command Center, Hawkhaven.

“Brilliant, Steelheart,” commended Stargazer. “Your figuring was absolutely brilliant.”

“Thank you, Commander,” Steelheart replied.

“Why did you believe, Steelheart, that the Light-Year Boundary Act would be receded for our benefit?” asked Quicksilver.

“I knew that on several instances, criminals had gotten away with crimes by escaping into the Light-Year Limit. Since the guys on second-Earth knew that too, I thought that they would balk at the Mob’s going beyond the Light-Year Limit in order to commit an unknown number of crimes. They realized that they had no choice but to recede that act. Besides, I’ve always hated it, anyway. It’s always been a pain.”

Stargazer said, “I quite agree, Steelheart. Well, all of you deserve a rest. You can goof off—legally, of course—for two days. However, at the end of two days, I want to see all of you at attention in my office. Got it?” Everyone saluted him.

All Silver Hawks but Commander Stargazer said, “Aye, sir.” Stargazer returned the salute.