“Dash Daring Conquers The Aniverse” Part 15 of a 15-part serial By Andrew Norris Based on the newspaper strip "Dash Daring and the Starchasers" by Norris Features Syndicate, a subsidiary of Norris Enterprises. THE PLAYERS Buster the Crab as "Col. Dash Daring" Carol von Hughez as "Lt. Venus" Charlene Widdleton as "Empress Tharrita" Frank Sharon as "Dr. Barkov" PROLOGUE: Following the rescue of King Capek from Mankrotia, Dash Daring returns the King to his people and bids farewell to the Occultas Galaxy, preparing to rendezvous with the Warren Solar Fleet. Overhearing this on the radio, Empress Tharrita, enraged that Dash has eluded destruction, sends a group of Menkrite saucers to intercept Dash and... SCENE ONE - Dash Daring's Spaceship, The Aniverse, Earth Year 1955 With COLONEL DASH DARING at the controls and LT. VENUS over his shoulder, a bright glare suddenly fills the cabin, followed by an explosion. The spacecraft spirals about as if hit by something, until it suddenly jerks to a halt. VENUS: (Worried) Dash! What's happened? We've stopped! DASH: (Getting to his feet) We're caught in an ultramagnetic field, Venus. There must be a ship around here that's been parked up in orbit. Several saucers begin to swoop down, ready to attack. Seeing the danger, DASH siezes control of the ship and they zoom off with the saucers in hot pursuit. With DASH so busy attempting to evade the ships that only LT. VENUS notices the Toad Cruiser parked nearby. VENUS: Dash! Look out! DASH Attempts to steer out of the way, but finds the controls are completely jammed, and won't budge despite his efforts. DASH: (Struggling) It's the ultramagnetic field! That's what's been guiding us! All I can do is try and fire the retros and hope we don't hit it. He does so, and thankfully, the spacecraft begins to slow up, but is still heading towards the gaping mouth of the Cruiser, while the Saucers hover nearby planning the next move. SCENE TWO - The Toad Cruiser KOMPLEX (Still in his KOMPLEX-2-GO unit) and TOADBORG look on the bridge as the spaceship is dragged in, while a STORMTOAD returns with the print-out. TOADBORG: What have you to report, adjutant? STORMTOAD #1: (Nervously) W...Well sir, when we activated the Hyperdrive, a slight... glitch occured. TOADBORG: (Irritated) Meaning? STORMTOAD #1: Somehow, we opened up a wormhole within Hyperspace and were transported back half-a-century. KOMPLEX: But it is still possible to return? STORMTOAD #1: Once the fault is located and rectified, we'll return to our own time, mighty KOMPLEX. KOMPLEX dismisses him and begins to walk down the corridors, with TOADBORG behind him. All the STORMTOADS he encounters along the way halt and salute as he walks past before proceeding. TOADBORG: Mighty KOMPLEX, forgive me for questioning your command, but if the fault is aboard the Cruiser, why are we capturing a Warren ship? KOMPLEX: Before we leave, Toadborg, I still hope to acquire some of the Menkritian technology, and the only way we can locate Mankrotia when our equipment is disabled is through Colonel Daring. SCENE THREE - The Royal Palace, Mankrotia The palace itself appears reminiscent more of the Kremlin than of a royal palace. A red star hangs overhead, and along the walls are images of revolutions and socialist uprisings on different planets. EMPRESS THARRITA (a mutated, yellow-furred female Toad) is sitting on a large, Aztec-like throne watching a Balinese dance routine below her. THARRITA is dressed in a figure-hugging leather suit, and claps lightly when the dance ends. THARRITA: (Sly, seductive voice) Send in Captain Brecht! Enter CAPTAIN BRECHT, a wart-ridden grey hare dressed in a uniform reminiscent of Josef Stalin. THARRITA: What is your report, Captain? BRECHT: Dash Daring has eluded the Saucers, your highness, but he has been sighted entering a spaceship with an undeterred origin. THARRITA: (Curious) And where was this, Captain? BRECHT: Over Repitilia, your highness. There is no chance of the Warren Solar Fleet arriving in time. THARRITA: (Smiles) Good! But just to be sure, you will return to Reptilia and monitor this new ship closely. It may be that Dash Daring has allies that we do not know of. BRECHT: (Salutes) It shall be done, your highness. He marches off, while THARRITA rises from her chair and fiddles with a TV monitor nearby, which shows an image of the Toad Cruiser in space. THARRITA: What a strange craft, but it's secrets will soon be mine! SCENE FOUR - The Toad Cruiser DASH and LT. VENUS recover from the shock and arm themselves before moving. VENUS: Why the weapons, Dash? DASH: I want to be sure that we're prepared. For all we know, Tharrita may have flung us into a trap! He opens the door, and the two cautiously steps out into the Hangar, which is completely deserted. Down a corridor, the KOMPLEX-2-GO unit has been plugged into the wall and KOMPLEX is now operating the audio systems. KOMPLEX: (Over PA) Greetings, Dash Daring. DASH: (Looking around) Who are you? KOMPLEX: My name is unimportant, Colonel, but I mean you no harm. VENUS: (Frightened) Dash, it's all around us! He's invisible! KOMPLEX: Tell me, Colonel, have the Menkrites developed the Solaranite yet? DASH: (Firmly) Look, pal, I ain't talking unless you give us the facts! KOMPLEX: (Calmly) Very well. I am from another time, and I have come to stop the Menkrites from using the Solaranite against the Toads. DASH: Well, they have developed Solaranite, an' I'm trying to stop them from using it against Warren! Why would they use it against the Toads? KOMPLEX: It is an event in the future, Colonel. Our navigation system is disabled and we need help to locate Mankrotia. DASH: Well, I guess any enemy of the Menkrites is a friend of mine. Once our ship is spaceborne, we'll guide you there! KOMPLEX: (To himself, on a TV screen) Excellent... SCENE FIVE - Captain Brecht's Saucer, Reptilia CAPTAIN BRECHT, along with a MENKRITE pilot and LT. BRONSTEIN (A duck with reptilian skin), is hovering behind the cover of Reptilia's moon, observing the movements of the Toad Cruiser. BRECHT: (Looking down at the monitor) A full ten minutes and no sign of Daring! BRONSTEIN: Do you suppose that they're planning something? BRECHT: I don't know. That ship looks too Toad-like for anything in the Warren Solar Fleet. It looks nothing like existing Toad ships either. (He notices something) Wait! Look at that! He notices Dash Daring's rocket emerge from the Toad Cruiser, which begins to follow the rocket once it is clear. CAPTAIN BRECHT and LT. BRONSTEIN both look on in confusion. BRONSTEIN: Do you suppose they mean to attack the mother planet? BRECHT: Either that or steal the Solaranite from us. (To pilot) Follow them, but make sure you're out of space-radar range. The pilot complies, and the flying saucer hovers silently behind the cavalcade. CAPTAIN BRECHT moves towards a radio and flicks a switch. BRECHT: Calling all Menkritian ships, calling all Menkritian ships... SCENE SIX - Another Saucer elsewhere in the Aniverse The saucer is accompanied by two escorts. Commanding it is CAPTAIN ULYANOV, an amalgamation of a Newt and a Pig who has a similar physiognomy to Lenin. He is also accompanied by a MENKRITE pilot. BRECHT: (Over radio) ...Dash Daring is proceeding towards the mother planet with a craft of unknown origin. Seek and destroy Dash Daring's ship. I repeat: seek and destroy Dash Daring. ULYANOV: Captain Ulyanov here. We're proceeding to your location. The saucers rapidly change course and speed off in a way defying the laws of physics. It isn't long before they spot Dash Daring's ship, with the Toad Cruiser behind. ULYANOV: (To pilot) Fire the Death Ray! A laser fires from the Saucer and hits Daring's ship. It hits but only causes the ship to wobble about precariously. VENUS: Dash! What's happening? DASH: (Points upward) Menkrites! Prepare the interceptors! VENUS does so by taking her place at the front of the ship, while DASH steadily manouvres the rocket so they are facing the three saucers head-on. DASH presses a button on his control panel, and a missile fires from the front of his ship. It impacts CAPTAIN ULYANOV'S spaceship with a thunderous explosion that destroys all three craft in the process. As this goes on, the STORMTOADS, with KOMPLEX and TOADBORG, watch with little interest in the current events. KOMPLEX: Such child's play. TOADBORG: (Turns away) Mighty KOMPLEX, what is this Solaranite that you seek from the Menkrites? KOMPLEX: A form of explosive, Toadborg, that few civilisations have perfected. It is a means of exploding particles of sunlight that result in destroying a planet and and the star it orbits. There were fears that it would cause a holocaust in whatever universe it was created, and yet the Menkrites have perfected Solaranite and used it successfully against the Sigorett system. (Pause) Just think, Toadborg! If we can lay our hands on such a device, we could destroy those pesky Mammals without firing a single maser! We will conquer the Aniverse through a device that was laughed out of the academies of the past! TOADBORG: But what of the natural resources available on the Mammalian planets you seek, mighty KOMPLEX: Will they not perish in such destruction? KOMPLEX: A small sacrifice, but if it means the conquest of the Aniverse, then all shall not be lost! STORMTOAD #2: We're approaching Mankrotia, sir. KOMPLEX: Excellent. DASH'S spaceship slows, as does the Toad Cruiser, as they slowly approach a metallic world dominated by Proxemis II behind it. From space, Mankrotia looks like a smooth metal ball with a very fine surface, due to it's occupation by the Menkrites over the years. Inside his ship, DASH watches carefully with LT. VENUS beside him. VENUS: That's odd, there's no Menkrite saucers around. DASH: (Frowns) I know. That's what scares me. One of the machines flicker as the face of THARRITA appears on the Tele-Viewer mounted beneath the windscreen on the bridge. THARRITA: (Slyly) So, we meet again, Dash Daring. How many of my Menkrites must I sacrifice before I finally destroy you? DASH: You can keep your Menkrites, Tharrita! All I care about is saving the Aniverse from the likes of you! THARRITA: (Scoffs) The Aniverse?! I *AM* the Aniverse! We have fought many times before, Daring, and yet, despite your efforts, I still rule Mankrotia! You cannot hope to win! My Gravi-Beams can crush your puny rocket into a scrap iron! As she speaks, practically the entire fleet of Menkrite saucers launch from Mankrotia and form a tight loop around both DASH DARING'S ship and the Toad Cruiser. DASH wastes no time in destroying several with the stockpile of interceptors aboard his spacecraft. The Toad Cruiser, with it's advanced defence shields and masers, remains unscathed. On board, another STORMTOAD rushes onto the Bridge and salutes to TOADBORG. STORMTOAD #3: (Salutes) Commander Toadborg, the hyperdrive has been repaired. If we make another hyperspace jump, we can trace our previous ion trail back to the wormhole and back to our own Aniverse, sir. TOADBORG: (Turns to KOMPLEX) Your orders, mighty KOMPLEX? KOMPLEX: Wait for an opening in this noose. Once the way is clear, we shall attack the Gravi-Beams and land on Mankrotia. TOADBORG: Are you certain that such a small Cruiser shall be enough, mighty KOMPLEX? KOMPLEX: You forget, Toadborg, that we still have the Toad-Clones aboard. Outside, things are getting tough. No matter how many saucers are destroyed, more simply appear from Mankrotia. Even the Toad Masers are having trouble keeping up with the fight. And yet none of the ships notice another spacecraft overhead. Unlike the others, this bears some resemblance to the older submarine-style spaceships of the 1930's, and hums loudly as it approaches. At the controls is DR. BARKOV, a bassett- hound in a large white lab-coat and small black boots. He notices the commotion through the scanner and recognises Dash's ship. BARKOV: (Austrian accent) It's Dash! (Steering around) Hold on, old friend, I'm coming! The ship veers around so it is now facing the line of Saucers. After a moment, it stops, and fires a missile that streaks so fast it takes out half of the Saucers in a single shot. DASH: (Amazed) It's Dr. Barkov! VENUS: Dr. Barkov?! He's alive?! KOMPLEX: (To Stormtoads) The way is open! Onward to Mankrotia! The Toad Cruiser suddenly kicks into full speed, leaving DR. BARKOV and DASH DARING to deal with the other saucers. Unfortunately, the other saucers have now taken an interest in the Cruiser and are firing all they can against them, with only minor success due to the shields. Up front, the TOAD-CLONES are released to deal with the Gravi-Beams on the surface, but THARRITA has other ideas. THARRITA: (To Menkrites) You fools! Stop them! Use the Gravi-Beams to kill them! Some of the MENKRITES activate one such gravi-beam, and aim it directly at the oncoming TOAD-CLONES. As a result, they are crushed into balls of pulp that explode when they become too dense. The scene is so horrific that LT. VENUS buries her head in DASH'S arms as he watches with a mixture of worry and disgust. KOMPLEX: (To Stormtoads) Fire the Masers at the Gravi-Beams! I want that Solaranite at all costs! The STORMTOADS comply, but as they open fire, they find that the Gravi- Beam Towers are protected by a forcefield. But with everyone distracted, DASH sees his opportunity. DASH: Lieutenant, prepare all interceptors! With the Menkrites distracted, we can finally save the Aniverse from Tharrita's evil! In the Toad Cruiser, KOMPLEX is beginning to realise that the situation appears hopeless. KOMPLEX: (To Stormtoads) Try and locate the Power Plants! If we destroy them, then we may still have a chance! STORMTOAD #1: We can't, sir! The navigation equipment was damaged beyond repair! We can't even tell where the rest of those Saucers are! TOADBORG: Then we must pummel Mankrotia to submission! We shall destroy everything there and then claim the Solaranite! KOMPLEX: No! If we cannot locate the Laboratories, then we may detonate the Solaranite! We will all cease to exist! (Sighs angrily) There is no other choice. We must return to the Homeworld and hope that our scientists may produce the Solaranite successfully. There is nothing more we can do here. (To Stormtoads) Prepare for Hyperspace jump. Just as he gives the command, DASH'S ship suddenly fires four interceptors that speed to the surface of Mankrotia. Seeing the danger, THARRITA scrambles to the radio. THARRITA: All ships to destroy those interceptors! They are trained on the Palace! Destroy them, you fools! The Saucers obey, and begin to pursue the interceptors, attempting to fire masers at them with little success. With all of the Saucers attempting to destroy the Interceptors, none of them realize that they are now on a collision course with the Palace. When the Interceptors strike, it is too late, and the Saucers either collide with the Palace or are caught in the ensuing explosion. When the smoke clears, all that is left is a pile of smouldering rubble. VENUS: We did it, Dash! We saved the Aniverse from that slanderous cat! DASH: Yes, but in her ambition, Tharrita declared that *she* was the Aniverse. VENUS: Then imagine what the tabloids back home will say: "Dash Daring conquers the Aniverse"! DASH: (Smiles) Maybe. I wonder what happened to our invisible friends. Did they make it out OK? They never even got their hands on the Solaranite. VENUS: Maybe it's for the best, Dash. I'm sure with Tharrita gone, they'll be satisfied to know that the Aniverse has been saved from her evil. DASH: In that case, Lieutenant, full speed ahead! Our course: home! THE END Brought to you by Aniversial Pictures Ltd. in association with Norris Features Syndicate.