Not long after the adventure at Planet Hypnos, Bastion Station is alive with activity. It’s always a busy place, but Tanaka, visiting the station, has taken a moment to have a talk with Mizhakwan. She’s been concerned for his wellbeing after the explosion that wiped out the Kodiak Chadee clan, and Tanaka is opening up about his grief and his sense that he no longer has a purpose. As Shogun of the Kodiak Chadee, he was respected and had the duty to safeguard his family. Now that they’re all gone, he feels lost in failure. He describes himself as Ronin.

Mizhakwan suggests that perhaps founding a new family, or carrying on by founding a new clan might help, but Tanaka doesn’t see that as a path for him. He finds himself just watching other people as opposed to taking action himself. He says that nothing is worth doing, which alarms Mizhakwan. She cautions him against the dark path of nihilism, which can only obliterate the soul. In stead, she suggests the happiness of pursuit; Tanaka should find a way to help someone close to him, even in a small way. That will help him find his emotional footing again.

Just then, Zik sends Tanaka a message about being ready for him to come to the hangar. Mizhakwan suggests that this is a great opportunity to try finding joy in helping. Tanaka is skeptical, since he’s really just here for work, but Mizhakwan insists that he can find purpose and joy in the act of helping his friends.

WELCOME BACK, DEFENDERS! After a short break to get things prepared, we’re in full swing on production for Episode 5: Endarkenment! Sorry for the grim opening, but it gets lighter very quickly! I promise to give you a LOL on the next page to make up for it. Speaking of the next page, I’m going to get to it right away! See you soon!

A week after the dramatic rescue of the living crystal from planet Hypnos, a lot has transpired! News of the newly discovered alien species has Zozian society awestruck. The people on the planet have prepared their immune systems, and it’s now safe for the Zernabians to come out of quarantine, but the new debate is where to house this new alien… or is it even alive? As the debate rages as to whether a crystal can be alive, a decision is made to grant the crystal a local moon to call home. There is a moon of one of the local gas giants called Aletha which offers a very similar environment to what Hypnos was like before the cataclysm that made the crystal homeless, and the decision is made to allow it to call Aletha home.

Mizhakwan has been interacting with the crystal intensely during the week, and has helped it to pick out a name for itself. Mikigaazo, which means “he is found (by them)”, is the name it chooses, although everyone immediately shortens it to Miki.  Todd has the bright idea that Miki should have a humanoid robot to control, so that it can more easily interact with humans, and he and Dakaasin whip up the Mikibot 1.0 platform for it to try out.

With all this out of the way, it’s finally time to introduce the Zernabians and Miki to the planet Zoz! Zik quickly organizes a big party at his father’s house on Talia Island, inviting Francisco’s band Anaconda to play. During the concert, Vera and Tanaka hang out by the fire with Dr. Taylor, as they’re still recovering from their medical ordeals. Tanaka, sporting a new cybernetic arm, strikes up a conversation with Windrunner, a champion Coup player. Another Coup player, Heavy Club, invites Vera to come to the potlatch he is holding soon to celebrate the wedding of his daughter.

Meanwhile, Zik is helping Miki calibrate the Mikibot by teaching him to dance, the awkwardness of which sends Amelia and Trent into gales of laughter. Seeing them laughing and enjoying themselves is a welcome relief for Dr. Taylor, who’s been worried about them.  He remarks to Vera that the two Zernabians seem to have a good chemistry together, which reminds Vera to ask him a question…

Crank the volume!! The song being performed by Anaconda is Panama by an old Earth band called Van Halen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuKDBPw8wQA

That’s a wrap for Episode 4: The Hypnos Hiatus, my dear Defenders! I will be taking a small break as I prepare for Episode 5: Endarkenment! See you soon, and Happy New Year!!

There’s been a mighty explosion just outside the Sendlinger Hill Pub! The whole front wall has been blown in, and poor Tanaka has been knocked nearly senseless to the ground!

As the building groans, from outside in the smoke, a figure appears. Is it someone come to help look for survivors? Yes, but not to render aid!  The stranger grabs Tanaka gruffly and shoves a pistol against his head.  He wants Tanaka to know the horror of what has happened before he pulls the trigger.

The Jairians have taken a gruesome revenge on the Kodiak Chadee clan! While they all waited in the shuttle outside for Tanaka to talk to the pub owner, the Jairians snuck up, planted explosives, and blew them all sky high!  The brutal massacre was in revenge for the huge toll the Jairians suffered during the recent battle with the Kodiak.

Outside, someone calls to the stranger to warn him of the unstable building, foolishly shouting his name. Johan flees, laughing at Tanaka’s imminent demise. Just before the building collapses on him, Tanaka repeats Johan’s name, committing it to memory forever…

And there you have it! The end of Episode 3! Will Tanaka survive? What will happen next?  Find out soon, when we begin Episode 4: THE HYPNOS HIATUS!

It’s been almost a week since the massive space battle between the Kodiak and the Jairian fleet. All the humans aboard the Kodiak are in quarantine, to make sure the thousand-year immunity gap between the Zernabians and the general population on Zoz doesn’t start a plague. The Kodiak itself is undergoing an evaluation by the insurance company, and it doesn’t look good. However, James Anchor and Zik are already presenting plans for a planetary defense force for their home world to investors.

The Zozians themselves are astounded that they have managed to make first contact with other humans after so long, but there’s a great sense of foreboding at how badly it went. Some have criticized Defender Zik for his handling of the situation, prompting him to release all his video recordings of the events of the past few weeks. Vera has done her best to relay what she knows of galactic history to the people of Zoz, but since she was imprisoned as a little girl, she doesn’t know a whole lot.

While the humans deal with all this, Tanaka and his Chadee clan are on some much-deserved shore leave. There is no danger of them carrying any of the Zernabian diseases, so they have been released from quarantine and are looking for some fun. But before they can start, they have to find a place large enough to house a rowdy clan of Chadee, something not every pub is able to handle. Fortunately, after some searching, they have found the Sendlinger Hill Pub in Port Rothbard, a German Oktoberfest themed bar. The bartender assures Tanaka they can handle his clan, and he opens the door to invite them in when…

KABOOM!

Tanaka leaps from the bridge tower of the Kodiak and glides silently towards his prey.  The unsuspecting Jairian is so busy sabotaging the cannon that he has no idea his fate is at hand!

SLICE!

Zik tosses the Jairian helmet down the hall on top of what’s left of his three attackers.  After lowering the gravity again, he continues escorting Travis to the infirmary to get his broken leg fixed up.

Meanwhile, on the bridge, a frustrated Trent tells Gerald that one of the cannons isn’t responding.  Gerald checks the cams and discovers that a Jairian is on the hull of the ship!  The Jairian has removed an access cover and is smashing the rotation mechanisms inside!

Gerald calls up to Tanaka, who is on the roof blasting away with his sidearm.  Once he sees the Jairian saboteur, Tanaka promises to take care of the problem…

Meanwhile, outside the ship, Tanaka’s fighter has taken critical damage! He ejects in the nick of time, and his ship explodes behind him.

Trained for just such an emergency, Tanaka engages his EVR system. He uses his grappling hook and rocket boots to get to safety. Landing on the roof of the Kodiak’s bridge, he draws his pistol, and prepares to continue the fight!

Tanaka opens fire on the Jairian fighters, killing two in the opening seconds of the battle!  When his full battle rage is unleashed, bad guys beware!

Meanwhile, on the Kodiak, Weapons Officer Jason is training Trent on how to use the Kodiak’s guns by assigning him one to get the hang of how the system works.

When that’s done, Jason announces to the Captain that the howitzers are ready to fire.  James Anchor gives the order, and the howitzer incinerates one of the Jairian breacher ships in a single shot!

Tanaka and his fellow Chadee pilots exit the Kodiak and head to the Jairian fleet. They’ve been told to hold their fire in case the Jairians decide not to tempt fate and retreat.

Rachelle isn’t backing down, however! For whatever reason, she doesn’t want to return empty handed. She decides that their best odds of success lie in attacking and boarding the Kodiak directly. She orders most of her fleet to do just that, but the Vigilant Gaddi has some teeth that need to be pulled! Along with a handful of fighters, she hangs back to neutralize Ramesh’s ship, promising to join the main fleet in the assault on the Kodiak once she’s done. Her ship opens up on the Gaddi!

That’s the sign James Anchor was waiting for! It’s time to dive in and drive off the attackers! He gives the order to Tanaka, who leads the charge into the main group of Jairian ships! The battle is on!

Zik wraps up his story about chasing off the Jairian thugs who tried to steal Baker Mine! After rescuing the miner stuck under the elevator, Zik runs back out to help fight off the remaining Jairians.

After the Jairians leave, one of the mercenaries, a man named Clint Donovan, steps out and reveals that he had been helping defeat the them! Clint had recognized Zik from the news after the asteroid incident and decided he wasn’t going to kill the man who had saved an entire planet.

Zik goes over some of the major changes that Zoz went through after the Jairian uprising. People everywhere started carrying weapons to protect themselves. Zik became known as Defender Zik in the media, and he became the new head of Delta Mines! He built a stronger security station and renamed Baker Mine to the Frank Cooper Memorial Mine, in honor of poor Frank who was murdered by the Jairians in cold blood. Zik Enterprises went on to become a pivotal company in the progress of the Zozian civilization!