Info For New Readers

In Episode 1, Zik was exploring a new solar system, not far from his home planet of Zoz, when he ran into something unexpected: other humans! You see, Zoz has been cut off from the rest of humanity for over 1000 years!

But these were no ordinary humans; these were Zernabian Clonoids, semi-sentient, networked drones that only look human superficially! They serve the evil Queen Elcyra, who took over her Zernabian civilization, and imprisoned the survivors on a desolate planet in the backwaters of her territory.

This Prison Planet was what Zik stumbled on, literally. His ship was shot out of the sky by the Clonoids, and he crashed into the prison world. There, he met the imprisoned Zernabians, and tried to rescue them.

In Episode 2, your favorite space hero Zik told Amelia stories of his past life on Zoz. Recounting the incidents that led to his rise to fame in Zoz society, he began with the tale of how he barely saved his home planet from a spinning asteroid.

Next, he told the tale of the Battle of Baker Mine, which took place on a nearby planet. Socialist dissidents called Jairians tried to seize the mine, killing and maiming several workers in the process. Through a combination of quick thinking, grit, and persuasion, Zik managed to fight them off, becoming quite rich and famous in the process!

At that point, Amelia was curious about Zik’s personal life, so he told her a third story about his most recent ex-girlfriend, Haven. A marine biologist who cracked the secret of how to communicate with dolphins, Haven ran into trouble when an underwater avalanche trapped her in her lab. The gallant Zik was her knight in shiny (half-naked) armor, and rescued her from certain doom.

In Episode 3 of our story, Zik and the crew of the warship Kodiak fought the Jairian communists for control of a supply convoy! Amelia had a close call when she became trapped by one of them, and Trent made a huge mistake because he’s never been to space before.

Our hero Zik was kept busy rescuing and defending people in the hallways of the Kodiak against a Jairian boarding party. The battle was fierce, both inside and outside the warship, and the Jairians did a lot of damage to the Kodiak. The Jairian leader, Fleet Coordinator Rachelle, had a cryptic message for Captain James Anchor after she surrendered.

During Episode 4, Defender Zik finds himself in quarantine on his Bastion Space Station while the residents of Zoz prepare their immune systems for contact with the rest of the galaxy.

To stay productive during this downtime, Zik builds a new, bigger ship, the Temerity, and creates new body armor to help him withstand future fights against Clonoids. To test the ship, Zik and his crew explore a rogue planet passing a day’s travel away, and they make a startling and revolutionary discovery!

(Strangely, I wrote the first rough draft this episode in 2013, without knowing I’d actually be in quarantine when I started the story — simulation theory: PROVEN!).

Then, in Episode 5, Tanaka is struggling with the loss of his entire clan, and the fact that he’s gone from Shogun to Ronin, a Chadee without a purpose. A new shuttle design is flight-tested by him, Zik and Ryan, to establish whether it’s fit for service by both Kodiak Security and Zik Enterprises.

But during the test of this new ship which can be converted to serve a Search And Rescue role, they encounter someone actually in need of a rescue! In the process, they make a startling discovery that threatens the entire planet Zoz!

In the exciting Episode 6, the crew of the Temerity embark on a perilous rescue mission! The evil Jairian socialists hijacked a small Zik Enterprises cargo vessel to steal the medical supplies it was transporting. The vessel managed to send out a distress signal, and to the horror of Gordon, the head of Zik Enterprises Merchant Marines (ZEMM), the vessel was copiloted by his daughter Lia!

The Temerity flies out to the rescue, with Gordon along to rescue his daughter. But an old foe is lying in wait, eager to ambush the hated Butcher of Baker Mine (or so the Jairians call your favorite space hero). Zik and his crew must survive the Apodian Ambush!

Coming soon, Episode 7 returns Defender Zik to the Zernabian Prison Planet, on a daring raid by a fleet of Zozians to rescue the slaves being kept there by the odious Queen Elcyra and her Clonoid thralls!