10. The Wabbit and the Sinking Train

The train travelled slowly up the mountain in reverse. It came to rest beside a lake. But the ground was unstable and the train began to sink. "Everyone off!" shouted the Wabbit. Quantum hovered beside it as the team hopped across. One by one they came aboard except for the Wabbit. "Come on Wabbit!" shouted Lapinette. The Wabbit paused, saluted and then hopped. "The crew takes precedence, " he gasped as he clambered into the cabin. "You're not supposed to go down with the sinking train!" yelled Lapinette. Quantum snorted as he lifted off. He made a quick circuit above the mountains. They looked down. The nuclear train was beneath the water - only bubbles remained. They shook slightly as Quantum switched to lattice drive. "Steady as she goes," murmured the Wabbit then, "I didn't get a response." Quantum snorted again. "It's all automatic, Commander. You know that." The Wabbit smiled, "Tradition." Reduced to fractals, space objects whizzed past the window. "I can see something," said Skratch. His cat's eyes blinked. He blinked through the fractals. "The mosquitoes. Dead ahead." The Wabbit grunted. "Slow Quantum. If we hit them, their debris will clog the drive." "I could alter course," said Quantum, "But I'm concerned about fuel." Wabsworth chipped in. "Sling shot from the two available planets?" Quantum nearly grinned. "A rabbit after my own heart. It only calls for a minor adjustment." Lapinette and the Wabbit spoke together. "Make it so." 

9. The Wabbit and the Nuclear Train

Lapinette was happy to be on firmer ground. No frogs, no insects. no moss. As they continued to trek across the planet surface, they came upon signs of life. Railway tracks crossed an arid desert and in the distance stood a train that looked the worse for wear. The Wabbit bounded on board. "I think it's nuclear." He pressed buttons. "Careful Commander!" said Wabsworth. "Wabbit! Leave it alone." Lapinette was horrified. She looked up as Quantum dropped from lattice drive. Lapinette's walkie talkie crackled. "Lapinette, what is that monstrosity?" Quantum could be ultra stiff. "It's Marchesa if you don't mind." yelled Lapinette, "And I'm in charge - so please adopt a different tone." "Quantum's radio crackled. "I cross dimensions, dodge space chases and here you are with a rust bucket locomotive." Lapinette shrugged. She looked at the Wabbit, "Kin you start it?" The Wabbit poked around and found a row of buttons and switches. He looked at Wabsworth. Wabsworth hunkered down with his paws above his head. The Wabbit pressed the switch on the left. The train belched a dense sludge. The next produced an attenuated whine. The next a Zap and a Fizz. Smoke poured out. Lapinette coughed. The train began to move in reverse. "Everyone on!" yelled the Wabbit. Reverse gears whined as the train pushed back. The Wabbit hit the last button. There was a detonation, a flash and an attenuated fart. "We're moving towards the mountains," cried Lapinette. She hung from a window. Wabsworth gave up and joined the Wabbit in the cab. Quantum hovered above the train. His engines seemed to sigh. "When you get fed up, I'm ready to pick you up, Commander." The Wabbit grinned, "When I'm having so much fun!"

8. Quantum and the Inter-Dimension

"Where's this, it looks familiar?" Skratch was puzzled. "When we heard a bang we came through a lateral shift," said Quantum. "And what's that thing?" replied Skratch. They paused as the creature crossed the road in front of them. "It's another Buzzak," said Quantum, "he must have hitched a ride." They watched him amble. "Is he going to McDonald's?" ventured Skratch. "I certainly hope so," sneered Quantum, "It'll be the end of the species for this dimension." Quantum throbbed gently. "I'm going to gently lift off. The creature will be left behind." Skratch meaowed vaguely. "Is this a probability echo?" "Probably," said Quantum. He chortled to himself. Skratch touched the controls, He could see another set of paws. "We're looking for a Lattice Drive Rift?" Quantum began to lift. "Easy does it." Skratch was amused. "You sound like the Wabbit." Quantum lifted higher. Have you heard of the Brane and the Bulk?" Skratch purred quietly, "It's a pub in Chatham, near the Slug and Lettuce." Quantum shook with mirth. "Yes, string theory is outdated." Skratch fondled the controls. "Exactly how long is the string?" "Twice half its length," responded Quantum. Quantum gained height rapidly and the Buzzak looked up, enraged. Its wings buzzed. "Time to go," said Skratch. Quantum shook and vanished. "Skratch laughed. "Will we disappear into the undifferentiated chaos of the space time continuum?" Quantum's engines roared as fractals lashed the windows. "Only if we're lucky." 

7. Quantum, Skratch and the Buzzaks

Far off in space, Quantum and Skratch remained on the lookout for a more suitable planet. They dropped out of Lattice Drive to inspect a likely planet but spotted strange creatures on the horizon. "Buzzaks!" snapped Quantum, "I thought they'd been cleaned out by the Hydrolytes of Gamma 3." Skratch tried to appear nonchalant. "The whosis?" Quantum fired up the lattice drive, but it was infested by fluttering twisting wings of the buzzaks. "Filters clogged," said Quantum, "I'll have to reverse thrust and back again." A bang and a gurgle shook the Manifold. With an enormous whoosh, two giant buzzaks shot out. They coughed, they wheezed, they fluttered and of course they buzzed. Static was everywhere. It filled Quantum's cabin and Skratch covered his ears. "There are no sounds in space - except for the Buzzaks," said Quantum. "Whheeee. Squeeee. Bzzt. Wheeee." They were light years away now, but they could still be heard. "Do they bite, Quantum?" Quantum scowled as only a locomotive can. "Oh, Buzzaks are semi-androids and yes, how they bite! They deliver nano particles of breakfast, rendering victims stuporous." Skratch was horrified, "Let's get the Hell out of here." Quantum fired up the Lattice Drive. They shimmered and were gone. Skratch took out a notepad and pen. He struck the whole region from his list and glanced from the window. Fractals flew past. But hanging from the underside, just out of sight, was a giant buzzak - bigger than a tractor - with six toothed needles and fangs like saws ...