STAR FIGHTERS BUMPER SPECIAL EDITION: Stealth Force

  Contents

  Map

  Star Fighters

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  In case you missed the first STAR FIGHTERS book . . .

  Chapter 1

  Which Star Fighter are YOU?

  To Matthew Crosby – wishing you a lifetime of adventure!

  Special thanks to Brandon Robshaw

  It is the year 5012 and the Milky Way galaxy is under attack . . .

  After the Universal War . . . a war that almost brought about the destruction of every known universe . . . the planets in the Milky Way banded together to create the Intergalactic Force – an elite fighting team sworn to protect and defend the galaxy.

  Only the brightest and most promising students are accepted into the Intergalactic Force Academy, and only the very best cadets reach the highest of their ranks and become . . .

  To be a Star Fighter is to dedicate your life to one mission: Peace in Space. They are given the coolest weapons, the fastest spaceships – and the most dangerous missions. Everyone at the Intergalactic Force Academy wants to be a Star Fighter someday.

  Do YOU have what it takes?

  Chapter 1

  ‘I’ll tell you something interesting,’ Anurack said, his four heads bobbing enthusiastically. He held up his fork. ‘Something very similar to this green vegetable – which you call a “pea” – grows on Torganora, one of the planets of the Shantanian system in the Crab Nebula. But on that planet it’s called a “blarp”. That’s very interesting, isn’t it?’ One of his heads looked at Peri, another at Diesel and another at Selene. The fourth just smiled at nothing in particular.

  ‘Erm,’ Peri said. ‘That’s quite interesting.’

  ‘Yes, I knew you’d find it interesting,’ Anurack said. He popped some chips into the mouth that had just spoken and began speaking from a different head. He was always switching his voice from one head to another. Keeping track of them made Peri dizzy. ‘Now, you see this fork? On the planet Sklomp, they don’t use forks – they use hollow wooden tubes to suck their food up. Of course, they eat porridge mainly. Isn’t that just fascinating?’

  Diesel rolled his yellow eyes. Selene snorted, trying to suppress a giggle.

  Peri shot her a warning look. It was very important not to offend Anurack: General Pegg, the head of the IF Star Fighters, had told them that Anurack’s Galactic Federation were old allies of the Milky Way. The Star Fighters’ assignment was simply to return him to his home planet of Koring, keeping him safe and happy. At cruising speed the trip to the Clajoxti galaxy took five days, but there were times when it had seemed more like five months to Peri. Anurack talked non-stop, and was surely the most boring life form in the universe. And that was including the Talking Worms of Betelgeuse.

  They had almost reached Koring and were having their last meal together in the Phoenix’s restaurant: a classic Earth-style feast of steaks, chips, peas and ketchup, with fruit and ice cream to follow.

  ‘This tomato ketchup,’ Anurack said, as he dipped a chip, ‘is red, which I believe is the colour of Earthlings’ blood. On Jangananx they have a strange superstition that they can’t eat anything the colour of their own blood, which is yellow. That means they can’t eat bananas. What do you think of that?’

  ‘I think it’s really boring,’ Diesel muttered.

  Oh no! Peri thought. Diesel’s cracked – and we’re so close to the end of this endless journey!

  General Pegg had promised the crew of the Phoenix that if they carried out this mission on time and without incident, there would be another, much more exciting mission for them. But if they offended Anurack, they’d probably all be grounded indefinitely.

  All four of Anurack’s heads swivelled in Diesel’s direction. One of the heads looked puzzled, one looked suspicious and one looked hurt. The fourth looked all those things at once as it spoke. ‘What did you –’

  ‘Diesel said it was really, really enthralling!’ Peri cut in, with a burst of inspiration.

  Anurack’s four heads smiled.

  ‘That’s it!’ Diesel said. ‘And very useful. If I ever go to Jangananx, I’ll know not to go around offering everyone bananas!’

  ‘Oh, but you could offer them bananas if they were peeled,’ Anurack said. ‘They love fruit on Jangananx. Do you know, it’s been calculated that they eat 5,734 varieties of fruit there?’

  Peri stole a look at his watch. They would be docking in fifty-three minutes. Fifty-three long minutes, each filled with sixty long seconds.

  ‘Here we are!’ Peri said, fifty-two minutes later. The grey-and-brown sphere of Koring filled the 360-monitor. ‘Soon we’ll be landing on planet Boring – I mean, Koring.’

  Selene snorted, just managing to contain her laughter. Diesel had gone and locked himself in his sleeping quarters on Peri’s orders because they couldn’t risk him upsetting Anurack. Diesel was the spaceship’s gunner and much better with weapons than people.

  ‘Koring’s a very interesting planet,’ Anurack said. ‘It orbits our sun at a mean average distance of 121 million kilometres. The atmosphere is composed of 17 different gases . . .’

  Peri tuned Anurack out as he concentrated on easing off the boosters and adjusting the Nav-wheel to line the Phoenix up with the docking bay below. His special bionic connection with the ship made the tricky move feel simple and instinctive, as though he was manoeuvring his own body into position. Peri’s parents were the IF’s highest-ranking astronautical engineers, and when they upgraded the legendary spaceship they created a telepathic bond between it and their son. Peri was part bionic and part human, and the Phoenix couldn’t function without him. A few moments later, it came to rest neatly between the gates of the docking bay.

  Peri breathed a sigh of relief. ‘Welcome home, Anurack.’

  Peri and Selene led Anurack off the Bridge and down a mauve-lit corridor. Peri sent a telepathic order to the Phoenix and watched the wall open noiselessly. A ramp extended itself down to the floor of the docking bay, where a group of four-headed Koringers were waiting.

  ‘It’s been a pleasant voyage,’ Anurack said. ‘I’ve enjoyed talking to you.’

  Peri raised his voice to cover Selene’s giggle. ‘We enjoyed it too.’

  ‘I’ll let General Pegg know what a good job you did,’ Anurack said. ‘I only wish you could come and visit for a little while – I know everything there is to know about Koring, so I could give you a guided tour of the whole planet. You’d find it really interesting.’

  ‘I’m sure we would, but we don’t have the time,’ Peri said.

  He noticed a small timer had appeared in the bottom corner of the Mission Update screen on the control panel. It said, 120 hours, 0 minutes, 0 seconds and 0 tenths of a second. As he watched, it began to count down, the tenths flickering away at lightning speed, the seconds ticking away steadily after them.

  ‘Well, goodbye, then,’ Anurack said.

  Peri and Selene waved as Anurack walked down the ramp and the Koringers came forward to greet him.

  ‘Welcome home, Anurack. Did you come back via the Horsehead Nebula?’

  ‘No,’ said Anurack, shaking all four of his heads. ‘We used the intergalactic highway as far as Rigel, where we turned right on to the hyperspace bypass.’

  ‘You should have gone via the Arcturan Wormhole,’ another Koringer said, his heads frowning. There were so many heads now, Peri lost track of who was who. ‘That’s a quick
er way. And there are more interesting things to see . . .’

  Peri sent another telepathic order and the Phoenix’s wall closed, blocking the Koringers from view.

  Selene punched the air. ‘I’m glad that’s over!’

  Diesel emerged from his quarters. ‘S’fâh! Thank the Spirit of the Universe – Anurack’s finally gone!’ Diesel kicked his legs in the air for joy. He was half-human, half-Martian, and tended to speak in Martian when he was excited.

  There was a faint tap on the Phoenix’s wall and it opened silently. Anurack was standing in the entryway.

  Diesel, who had his back to the wall, carried on his high-kicking dance, chanting, ‘He’s gone, gone, gone!’

  Two of Anurack’s heads coughed. Diesel turned around and stopped laughing. His strip of hair turned pink with embarrassment.

  There was an awkward silence.

  ‘Erm, Diesel was just . . .’ Peri faltered for a moment, before his bionic circuits buzzed with an idea. ‘Performing a traditional Martian farewell!’

  ‘I’m acquainted with the customs of Mars,’ one of Anurack’s heads said, while the other three frowned. ‘And I’m not aware of any such dance.’

  ‘We do it all the time,’ Diesel said. ‘But only when the visitor has left . . . that’s why you wouldn’t have seen it.’

  Three of Anurack’s faces smiled. The fourth said, ‘Ah, that explains it. An interesting fact to add to my collection! Well, I just forgot my hoverbag.’ He beckoned, and the hoverbag rose up and floated along beside him as he exited once more.

  Peri closed the wall. ‘Let’s get out of here before he comes back!’

  Soon the Phoenix was cruising through outer space.

  Peri spoke into the com-system. ‘Bridge to Otto – the coast is now clear.’

  A section of wall slid open and Otto came slouching on to the Bridge. He had had to hide while Anurack was on board because he wasn’t an official member of the team. He was a former bounty hunter from planet Meigwor, who helped the Star Fighters on their very first mission and never left – but General Pegg could never find that out.

  ‘Has he gone?’ Otto said. ‘It’s been really boring staying cooped up in my quarters all this time.’

  ‘Not as boring as being with Anurack!’ Selene said.

  ‘What’s that?’ Otto pointed with his long black tongue at the timer ticking down on the Mission Update screen.

  ‘That’s the countdown until our next mission,’ Peri explained. ‘We have to get back to the IF Space Station before it reaches zero or General Pegg will give our next mission to someone else.’

  ‘Should we go Superluminal?’ Diesel asked.

  ‘No need, it’s a waste of energy,’ Peri said. ‘We’ve got plenty of time, even if we travel at cruising speed.’

  ‘We’d better!’ Diesel said. ‘I’m looking forward to another mission.’

  ‘I hope I don’t have to hide out on this one,’ Otto grumbled. ‘It’s about time I got the chance to use my skills.’

  ‘You haven’t got any skills,’ Diesel said.

  ‘Oh, really?’ Otto boomed. ‘Well, let me tell you, you Martian misfit . . .’ He hissed and uncoiled one of his long arms, waving it above his head.

  Diesel squared up to him, jutting his chin out and clenching his fists.

  ‘Ssshh!’ Peri said, holding up his hand. ‘What’s that noise?’

  Strange, low, rhythmic knocking sounds filled the Bridge.

  Peri closed his eyes and tuned into the Phoenix’s computer. He felt an electric tingling as the noises gradually began to make sense. Peri had never learned Morse code, but the Phoenix knew it.

  Dot dot dot dash dash dash dot dot dot . . .

  ‘It’s an SOS!’ Peri said. ‘Someone’s calling for help!’

  Chapter 2

  ‘Where’s the SOS coming from?’ Selene asked, leaning over the control panel. She was the Phoenix’s engineer and knew almost as much about their state-of-the-art spaceship as Peri did, having secretly explored it when she lived on the IF Space Station. She frantically tapped on some keys then straightened up. ‘It’s being transmitted from an Earth-like planet called Westrenia that orbits a yellow dwarf star in the Jonxter galaxy.’

  ‘Let’s see what we can find out about it in The Space Spotter’s Guide,’ Peri said.

  Selene tapped some more keys. The Space Spotter’s Guide appeared on the monitor, followed by Enter search terms. She typed in Westrenia. Within seconds, images of a blue, green, yellow and orange planet, and its inhabitants, came up. Underneath was an InfoBox:

  Westrenia

  DESCRIPTION: A medium-sized planet, 11,566 kilometres in diameter. Atmosphere is a mixture of nitrogen, oxygen and trace gases, and is breathable by humans. Has a variety of plant and animal species, including the dominant humanoid species. Westrenia’s humanoids are intelligent but their technology is limited. Westrenians only have simple agricultural and manufacturing techniques. Many earn a living by rearing and tending cattle. They recently invented a type of railroad (an early form of mechanised transport – see entry in The History of Railways). These humanoids aren’t expected to discover interstellar travel for at least another 400 years.

  CAUTION: Star Fighters should not interfere with the development of this planet.

  RECOMMENDATION: Avoid contact.

  ‘That’s impressive!’ Peri said. ‘Westrenia doesn’t have any spaceships, but somehow they’ve managed to send an SOS into space. We have to go and help them.’

  ‘What are you talking about, you lamizoid?’ Diesel said. ‘We’re not allowed to interfere with less developed species – we learned that in week one at the Academy. It’s the most basic IF rule!’

  ‘We also dedicated ourselves to Peace in Space,’ Peri said. ‘We have to help aliens in need.’

  ‘That would be tough,’ Selene said. ‘I’m not sure how to help anyone without using my gadgets.’

  Diesel’s band of hair turned an angry red. ‘If we go down in the Phoenix, wearing our Expedition Wear, it would totally disrupt their way of life. It would freak out the whole planet!’

  ‘So we’ll go in disguise,’ Peri said.

  ‘Ridiculous!’ Otto said. ‘Let’s not waste our time helping less developed species. We should get back to the IF base before the clock runs down.’

  Peri turned to Selene. ‘What do you think?’

  ‘I think it sounds like an adventure!’ she said. ‘And we can always go Superluminal on the way back if we have to.’

  Peri nodded and began to plot a new course. ‘Destination: Westrenia!’ He watched the stars wheeling around on the 360-monitor as the Phoenix changed its direction. ‘If we want to help, we’ll need to find out more about this planet.’

  Four red velvet seats silently rose up from the floor of the Bridge. At the same time, the lights dimmed. The section of wall directly in front of the seats lit up as a pleasant, polite voice came over the speakers: ‘Please take your seats. The show is about to commence.’

  ‘What’s going on?’ Otto asked suspiciously.

  ‘Don’t worry,’ Peri said. Through his connection to the Phoenix, he could already tell what was about to happen. ‘The ship is going to teach us what to expect on Westrenia.’

  Peri sat down in one of the red velvet seats. The others sat beside him. Life in Earth’s Old Wild West: A Short Introduction appeared on the screen in front of them.

  ‘This is cool!’ Diesel said. ‘It’s a pity there’s no popcorn.’

  A bucket of popcorn instantly materialised by the side of his seat.

  ‘Some sparkling Sirian lushberry juice would be nice,’ Selene said.

  A cup of sparkling Sirian lushberry juice appeared next to her.

  ‘I wouldn’t mind some Meigwor-maggot blood!’ Otto said.

  Nothing happened.

  ‘This stupid ship hasn’t even got any Meigwor-maggot blood!’ Otto boomed.

  ‘Sshh!’ Peri said. ‘Just watch the film.’

  An old-fashi
oned Earth cowboy movie started, with an image of a crowded saloon bar. A man in a waistcoat and a big moustache was pounding a piano in a fast, jazzy style. A group of cowboys played cards at a table with a heap of money in the centre. Suddenly, an argument broke out. One of the cowboys stood up so abruptly that his chair fell over. He angrily pointed at the player opposite – a man with a beard, a large belly and a checked shirt.

  ‘Why, you low-down, cheatin’, yellow-bellied snake,’ the first cowboy said. ‘You can’t have an ace – I got all four aces right here!’

  The bearded man stood up, pushing the table aside and swinging a punch at his accuser. Within seconds, everyone at the card table was fighting.

  ‘I hope we don’t end up in a bar-room brawl like this on Westrenia,’ Peri said to the others.

  ‘That’s my kind of place,’ Otto said. ‘A rough, tough place where arguments are settled with fists!’

  ‘You’re totally right!’ Diesel said, grinning.

  Peri couldn’t remember Diesel and Otto ever agreeing about anything before. They looked surprised and slightly embarrassed.

  After a short, awkward silence, Diesel said, ‘You may be right but you’re still ugly.’

  Otto flexed his double-jointed arms. ‘Shut up, Martian moon-head!’

  That sounds a bit more normal, Peri thought.

  ‘We have a problem,’ Selene said. ‘We’re not dressed like those guys in the film.’

  ‘Undercover Mode engaged,’ the Phoenix announced.

  The film flicked off. Robotic arms shot out of the ceiling and lifted the Star Fighters up off the floor. Steel arms dressed them in what looked like Expedition Wear but with a hint of the Wild West. The suits clicked and rustled as they tightened to fit. Space-cowboy boots were slipped on to every foot – except Otto’s, as his were too big and not really foot-shaped. Peri stretched his legs and heard his metallic spurs clink.