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  "My dear colleagues," Breetai announced as a closeup of the factory appeared in the projecbeam field, "we have arrived."

  Lisa, Claudia, and Exedore looked up from their duty stations. "It's incredible!" Claudia exclaimed breathlessly.

  Lisa made a sound of amazement. "Whatever powers created that must be light-years beyond us," she said softly, recalling her first glimpse of Dolza's command center and the surveillance vessel they had left behind only hours ago. "It's still hard to believe that such things exist in our universe."

  "Well, all I can say is you better believe it, Commander," Max Sterling chimed in from Lisa's monitor, his helmeted image filling the screen. Max and Miriya's Veritechs were in position on the docking bay elevator, preparing for launch.

  Lisa went on the com net. "Max, remember: You must convince Reno that we possess the Protoculture."

  "Right, Captain." He saluted and signed off.

  "Exedore," Breetai said from behind Lisa. "Summon Commander Hunter to the bridge immediately."

  Lisa swiveled in her seat to face the commander while Exedore carried out the order.

  "What do you have in mind, Commander?" she asked him.

  Breetai showed a roguish smile. "I must apologize for not having informed you sooner, but you are of course aware that diversionary tactics will be necessary if our plan is to be successful."

  "I support the tactic," she said warily. "But I thought we had agreed to broadcast Minmei's voice."

  "Correct," he responded, suddenly turning to Exedore. "However, we have devised a small modification."

  Lisa didn't like the sound of it, especially when she saw Exedore return the commander's grin and add, "Your Lordship, that was your plan from the beginning, was it not?"

  Breetai issued a short laugh. He was pleased to see that his adviser had not been completely changed by the Micronian ways; Exedore still refused to take credit for a plan, even when his inspirations had guided it.

  "Your modesty equals your intelligence," Breetai told him. Then, turning again to Lisa: "Captain, we have decided that the kiss would be a more effective counterattack. Wouldn't you agree?"

  Lisa's eyes went wide and unfocused; she began to slump down in her chair, her stomach in knots. "Umm...I suppose..." she managed.

  "I'm sure you recall the extraordinary effect produced when you and Commander Hunter touched lips," Breetai was saying.

  Claudia meanwhile had left her station and was coming Lisa's way, a sly smile already in place. "Liisaaa..." she said playfully, putting her hand on her friend's shoulder. "Come on, Captain, can't you see it's a brilliant plan! Nothing to get upset about."

  Lisa was staring blankly at the monitor. Plan? she asked herself. Yeah, but what plan were they all talking about: the one to fool the Zentraedi Reno, or were these galactic events suddenly taking second place to a universal conspiracy meant to bring her and Rick together?

  "Lord Breetai," a Zentraedi voice announced. "A transmission from Commander Reno. Shall I put it through, sir?"

  Breetai raised himself out of the command chair.

  "Yes. And use the translator so that our friends can understand him."

  Reno's face and shoulders took shape in the projecbeam field. A swarthy male with large eyes, dark busy brows, and a square jaw, Reno wore a blue uniform with red piping and a green command tunic. He opened with formalities, although wariness was suggested by both his voice and his stance.

  "Welcome," he told Breetai, the English translation out of synch with the movements of his full lips. "It has been a long time, Commander."

  "Indeed," said Breetai flatly. They hadn't seen each other since that fateful day long ago when Zor had been killed; when Dolza had ordered Reno to return the scientist's body to the Masters; when Zentraedi and Invid had fought to the death...Breetai unconsciously stoked the faceplate that concealed scars from those less confused times...

  "Do you come as friend or foe?"

  "We have retrieved the Protoculture matrix from Zor's dimensional fortress, Reno. Our powers are limitless. I have come to demand that you surrender the satellite to me. Join me and my friendship is yours. Oppose me and perish."

  Reno snorted. "So you've stolen Zor's science, have you?...And of course you and your new Micronian playmates plan to keep it from the Masters...Any other amusing anecdotes you wish try relate, Breetai?"

  The commander smiled knowingly. "Actually, I do have something else you might enjoy-it should be arriving at any minute."

  "I'll attempt to contain my boundless excitement," Reno responded

  sarcastically.

  Rick was at just that moment arriving on the bridge. He saluted Breetai from the curved walkway.

  "Right on time," said the pleased commander. He turned to Reno and issued his ultimatum: "This is your last opportunity to comply."

  "Ridiculous!" Reno started to say. "The very fact that you have rejected the ways of the Robotech Masters indicates-" But his own projecbeam now closed on Lisa and Rick standing together on the walkway. Reno's bushy brows went up. "What?! A female talking to a male?!"

  Breetai's one eye sparkled. "Yes, that's right, Commander. And now..."-like a master of ceremonies-"if you watch closely, you will witness the strange and glorious freedom that comes from Protoculture."

  Rick meanwhile was baffled, casting confused looks to Breetai and the projecbeam image of Reno. He turned hopelessly to Lisa and whispered, "What the heck is going on?"

  "It's all right," Lisa said soothingly.

  Rick stiffened. If Lisa was telling him it was all right, he was really worried!

  "Max," Miriya said over the tac net after hearing him laugh, "is there any chance Rick won't go along with the change in the diversionary tactics?" Their Veritechs were wing to wing in deep space, closing fast on Reno's command ship, thrusters blue in the eternal night. The drama on the bridge

  was being carried over the com net.

  "I don't think I'm going to like this one little bit," Rick was grumbling.

  Max grinned. "Don't worry about him, Miriya. Remember: Rick Hunter is a professional." The humor was of course lost on her.

  Miriya recognized Lisa's voice now: "Yes, mister, I'm making it an order!"

  "It's his job to take orders," she heard Max comment. He's so serious, she thought. Perhaps there was another side to kissing that she wasn't aware of-some strategic method Max had yet to teach her. As a mother she

  was somewhat alarmed; but the warrior and fighter ace was downright angered. This was, after all, a dangerous mission they were flying. There might not be another opportunity...

  "Do you think we'll ever have a chance to touch lips again, Max?"

  Max regarded her red-suited image on his commo screen and smiled. "I promise we will," he assured her.

  "The Veritechs are within range of the tracking systems now," Claudia reported from her duty station.

  "Commence broadcast," Breetai told Exedore, ignoring for a moment the minor battle that was in progress on the walkway below him.

  "No, Lisa!" Rick was shouting. "I'm not going to consent to the kiss, orders or no orders! I'm sorry, but my mind is made up!"

  Diversionary tactic, Rick said to himself with distaste. Of all the cheap shots Lisa could have taken! Just something to divert him from thinking about-

  Minmei?!

  Rick blinked: Minmei's "Stagefright" was booming over the bridge PA system, and he seemed to be the only one surprised by it.

  Although that wasn't quite true: Reno's crew wasn't prepared for this, either. Nor had they the chance to become gradually accustomed to singing, as Breetai's crew had. Consequently, they reacted as though a combination of nerve gas, high-frequency sound, and unbridled electricity had suddenly been leveled against the ship.

  "Aaargh! Blast it!" screamed Reno, throwing his hands up to his ears. "Can't stand it!" yelled his crew members, who were dropping like flies

  at their duty stations.

  "No more!" Reno pleaded. "Please turn it off!
"

  It never failed to amaze Rick that Minmei's voice could elicit such contrary responses from beings who supposedly had common ancestors; but he had scarcely a moment to dwell on it. Lisa had grabbed him by the shoulders and was now putting all she had into offensive osculation. And

  whew! this was a different Lisa from the one who'd kissed him closed-mouthed in front of Breetai three years ago!

  "Well, Reno," Breetai was saying at the same time, a self-satisfied smile on his face, "perhaps this will please you."

  Reno, who had averted his gaze from the projecbeam, turned back to it now that Breetai had lowered that "sound weapon." But the image that greeted his eyes was even more debilitating: Here were two Micronians...

  "-touching lips??!!" Reno wailed. He stared at the field, nauseated by confusion and some feeling even more alien to his system. From the ship's astrogation hold came shrills of protest, pain, and caterwauling. Reno covered his eyes with his hand: He had barely enough strength to deactivate the projecbeam and felt close to fainting when he managed to do so. Below him, several of his troops had collapsed. But he would never admit to defeat.

  "Breetai," he said into the mike, his voice a harsh croak. "That display gained you nothing."

  Breetai looked exulted nonetheless, ready to lay down his trump card now.

  "Reno has discontinued transmission," a tech informed him.

  Then Claudia relayed that the Veritechs were approaching their mission objective.

  "Contact in three seconds..."

  Reno was just regaining his composure when a fiery explosion breached the starboard hull of the astrogation hold, the force of it throwing several of his goliath crewmen clear across the vast chamber. He cursed and at the same time complimented Breetai for the brilliant execution of his plan; his diversionary tactics-those Micronian secret weapons-having completely disarmed his crew. Regardless, he had the presence of mind to bellow:

  "Attack alert!"

  On Breetai's ship, Claudia updated that the Veritechs had made a

  successful entry.

  "The baby is with Max and Miriya," Lisa said worriedly to a still dazed and confused Rick.

  "Huh?!" he stammered in response, promising this was the last time he'd permit himself to be so far removed from mission planning.

  When the smoke and fire had been sucked from the hold of Reno's ship, the hull self-repaired, and two Micronian battle mecha, one red, one blue, rested side by side on the deck, fully encircled by Zentraedi troops wielding pulsed-laser rifles.

  "All units prepare to destroy Micronian fighters on my command!" Reno growled, his troops snapping to and arming their weapons. He asked himself just what Breetai was hoping to gain by the insertion of such a small strike force, then directed his orders to the pilots of the Veritechs, using what little he knew of their language. "Micronians! You are completely surrounded! Surrender immediately and you will be allowed to live!"

  The augmentation packs of the fighters elevated.

  "This is it, Max," Miriya said over the net. "Wish me luck."

  "You've got it," Max returned. "Everything'll be fine-I'm right here."

  From the observation bubble high above the deck, Reno watched as the canopy of the red fighter went up. The Micronian pilot stood up and removed its helmet, shaking its long green mane free. Reno's mouth fell open when the Micronian spoke.

  "I am not a Micronian," Miriya announced in Reno's own tongue, "but a micronized Zentraedi warrior."

  Reno didn't doubt it for a second; in fact, he recognized her. "You are Miriya Parino!" he said in disbelief. "You were second in command under Azonia!"

  Miriya pointed to Max's Veritech. "Allow me to present Lieutenant Maximillian Sterling, an officer with the Earth Forces...and my mate. "

  Max removed his "thinking cap" and stood up in the cockpit.

  "What is this thing, 'mate'?" Reno was asking. "He is merely a Micronian."

  Max said loud enough for Miriya to hear: "Show him the baby."

  And Miriya did just that, lifting Dana from the cockpit and raising her into view. The infant was cradled in her arms, wearing the same helmet and Dr. Dentons EVA suit.

  For a moment Reno didn't know what he was looking at, but there was something about the thing that filled him with fear nonetheless. From his vantage it appeared to be some sort of...micronized, Micronian!

  "But this is impossible!"

  His rough and ready troops were similarly nonplussed. "What is that thing?" one asked.

  "By the twelve moons-it's deformed." "Look-it moves!"

  "A mutant!" someone insisted.

  In an effort to rub her eyes, Dana had brought her tiny gloved fists up to the helmet faceshield.

  Miriya resumed, "In the Micronian language, this is what's called an 'infant'-actually created inside my own body. By both of us," she hastened to add, indicating Max.

  Max nodded, humbly, and smiled.

  "It is love that is the basis of Protoculture," Miriya continued. She lifted Dana over her head, the baby smiling and cooing in response. "You cannot conquer love!"

  Reno's face began twitching uncontrollably at Miriya's mention of the shibboleth-Protoculture!

  Still holding Dana aloft, Miriya pivoted through a 360-degree turn, preaching to the full circle. "Observe the power of Protoculture-the power of love!"

  "It's a mutation," one of the troops shouted, letting his weapon fall and fleeing the hold.

  "It's contagious!" said another, also fleeing. More discarded weapons crashed to the deck.

  Dana, innocent, continued to wave her arms and smile.

  Overcome, the troops began to desert their posts.

  Beads of sweat pouring from his face, Reno was ranting into the mike: "Stay where you are, you cowards! Come back! It must be a trick!" Ultimately he backed away, turned, and ran from the observation bubble.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Love, like size, had lost all meaning-love was a battle maneuver, kissing a diversionary tactic. The only one among us who seemed to know anything about that elusive emotion was Miriya, wedded to the infant she'd given birth to as much as she was Max.

  The Collected Journals of Admiral Rick Hunter

  Reports from Max and Miriya verified the success of the third stage of the ruse.

  Breetai reasoned (correctly, as it would unfold) that Reno would retreat just far enough from the cruiser's command center to restabalize himself and sound general quarters. It was possible that the three-act tactic had convinced him to surrender-and indeed, Breetai was more than willing to give him the benefit of the doubt before mounting a full-scale assault on the heavily guarded satellite-but unlikely.

  At her duty station well below Breetai's thoughtful look, Claudia Grant laughed. "I can't imagine why Reno's crew reacted like that," she was telling Lisa Hayes. "I think Max and Miriya's baby is pretty cute, don't you?"

  "Oh, stop it, Claudia," said Lisa.

  Breetai noticed that Commander Hunter appeared somewhat debilitated by the kiss he performed with Lisa before he had rushed from the bridge. It was no wonder that Hunter had expressed such initial reluctance, Breetai thought. Obviously, kissing is something not to be taken lightly.

  "None of you should underestimate the opposition's capability," Breetai warned the humans now, putting a quick end to the jokes. "Inform your mecha pilots to stand by."

  Claudia followed through immediately, ordering Blue, Green, and Brown teams to their launch platforms. And not a minute later Max reported that Reno had called for a counterstrike; he and Miriya were going

  to make a break for it.

  Dana! Claudia recalled, suddenly full of concern. "Launch all mecha!" Breetai bellowed.

  Human and Zentraedi mecha launched themselves from the warship's bays while the vessels of Reno's fleet massed for attack.

  Rick led his small squad of seven Veritechs against them, side by side with the Zentraedi's ostrich-like Battlepods, tri-thrusters, and pursuit ships. Two years had passed since he had engaged
any enemy in deep space, but it suddenly felt like no time had elapsed. The silence, the zero-g spherical explosions that bloomed in the night like flowers of death, the eerie glow of thruster fire, the disinterested shimmer of starlight, the cacophony that poured into his helmet through the tactical net-a hallucinatory symphony of panicked commands, frenzied warnings, and final screams.

  He knew that he would need to clear his mind of all thoughts, righteous and otherwise, to come through this unscathed. Out here thoughts were a pilot's number one enemy, because they invariably impeded productive interface with the Veritech. So he let it all go-the questions still there after four years of combat, the faces of those left behind-and the mecha picked up that vibe transmitted through the sensor-studded gloves and "thinking cap" to its Protoculture heart and led him once more through hell's gates.

  "I don't want your excuses!" Reno screamed, slamming his fist down on the substation console-an elaborate control center even by Zentraedi standards, salmon-colored and organic in design with no less than a dozen circular monitor screens. "Now order your troops to battle stations! Do you understand?!"

  The face of Reno's red-haired lieutenant seemed to blanch in the projecbeam. He raised his shaking hands into view.

  "But sir, our troops are terrified of Micronian contamination!" "Nonsense!" howled Reno. "You have your orders: Destroy the infected

  mecha at once! I have spoken!"

  "We are within range, m'lord," Exedore reported calmly.

  Breetai regarded the projecbeam. Reno's fleet had foolishly formed up on the commander's own cruiser, now itself bracketed in Breetai's deadly sights. So much the easier, then, he said to himself.

  At one time the strength of Breetai's conditioning would have made such a thing impossible, but the Zentraedi imperative had been altered beyond recognition by the campaign directed against Zor's dimensional fortress. To remain on the side of the Robotech Masters was to be Breetai's enemy.