.
.	Episode Description: Blue Earth has risen into the skies again on its first test flight since being re-built. Noal is clearly pleased with its performance as he, Aki and Balzac return to base and disembark. D-Boy is being examined in sick bay yet again as the doctors try to find a key to his gradual deterioration. Elsewhere, a red-haired woman uses a combat knife to cut short her long hair; she looks at a picture of Sergeant Barnard, and picks up a pistol as she speaks to another Space Marine, who addresses her as "Athena". Freeman addresses the people who will be going on the mission to re-take the Orbital Ring. Athena is one of them; she is the Marine's new commander since Barnard's death. They discuss the operational plan, trying to make sure everyone knows where to go and what to do. D-Boy arrives in uniform, limping into the room and going directly to the Chief. Athena starts as she hears his name. "I know I'm not in the best of shapes, but they'll need Blade, especially when Sword and Evil show up," he says. The others cheer his request, and Freeman agrees to let him go. Athena doesn't look to happy at this turn of events, and Aki isn't very pleased, either. Radamu eggs are maturing in vast cocoons woven around the Orbital Ring. Hun Rii arrives in the "nursery" and talks to the Radamu which seems to be in charge (it seems to be more of an egg-laying queen than a nurse, but it's hard to tell for sure). The Radamu responds to the Tekkaman's request, releasing young Radamu and mutating them to Hun Rii's needs. Below, the Space Knights and Marines are preparing to take off for the Ring, all dressed in space suits and carrying various weapons. Soon they are landing on the ring. D-Boy feels Sword's presence, the tekkaset symbols on their foreheads glowing. "I'll be waiting for you, Blade," she says silently over that link. The two Tekkamen Sol are soon blasting away at the larger Radamu, and the new firearms are fairly effective against the smaller aliens. They arrive in a control room to find the computers in near ruins, and know they've got a lot of work ahead of them if they are to complete their mission successfully. D-Boy hears Sword speak in his mind again, and runs off to face her. Balzac and some of the Marines, including Athena, go after him. "Barnard was right - he's brave but crazy," she says. They catch up to him, Athena persuading D-Boy to ride with them in one of their hovercars. She tells him she knew Barnard very well, and the Marine thought very highly of him. "Barnard," D-Boy whispers. Athena shows him a picture of herself and Barnard. They had been lovers for years, always knowing that their soldiering profession could separate them - perhaps permanently - at any time. She remembers their last night together, with Barnard departing quietly in the morning, leaving her his pistol. The pistol she carries with her now. "He knew he probably wouldn't survive this mission," she says, "Just as you know you may well die soon. He never let that stop him, any more than you're letting it stop you." Quietly, she starts singing Johnny Boy, and glances up in surprise when Pegas joins in. It is the song that convinces D-Boy that she's telling the truth more than the picture or any of his other words. "I may die in this mission, but death no longer holds any fears for me. It just means I'll be rejoining my love," she tells D-Boy. "But I don't want my death - or any of our deaths - to be for nothing. Just as Barnard bought you the chance to eliminate one of our major enemies, so I hope to go out assisting in our achieving victory over the aliens." "I think I understand," D-Boy says slowly. Rebin is working frantically on the computers, complaining vociferously over the fact the Radamu have left him "piles of junk" to work on. One of Hun Rii's specially engineered Radamu warriors attacks D-Boy and the Marines. D-Boy wants to change into Blade, but Balzac tells him to forget it. "We can handle this; save Blade for fighting any Tekkamen who show up," the older man tells him gruffly. "Don't play hero until it's needed!" Balzac's confidence is soon proved misplaced as the huge Radamu warrior continues its advance despite their attacks. The BEM spews acid that literally eats away several of the Marines, suits and all. D-Boy calls on Pegas and armors up. Even his initial attacks barely phase the new Radamu. Blade is entrapped by a tentacle, and Balzac knocked unconscious. Athena rushes in to save them, and is fatally injured. Before she dies, she realizes the creature's weak spot and shoots it with Barnard's gun. The Radamu convulses, freeing Blade; he transforms to Blastor and uses his 'vortex' blast on the creature. It is a trap of sorts, however. The gengineered Radamu explodes in a fiery blast. Rebin finally gets the internal monitors working just in time to catch the after-images of the explosion. Aki immediately guesses that D-Boy is involved. Sword laughs quietly; Blade has been caught by her trap. She starts to make her way toward her enemy. In a darkened, debris-filled room, separated from his comrades, a shaken D-Boy emerges from Pegas. "Balzac, Athena, where are you?" he asks dazedly, but the only thing he finds is Barnard's pistol, the one Athena had been using...	.
	.

	.
.	Episode Images:	.
	.