Old Wounds by Hooty
The next few days passed quickly for Hooty. Slowly, he was putting his plan into motion. He had been having secret meetings with Galactor's personal body guards, and many of his troops.
"The organization," He would always rationalize, "is suffering at the hands of G-Force. And it is because of the incompetent leader of ours, we are giving up our lives for a lost cause. How many units of troops do you know of that have lived through just one encounter with Galactor?" He would always wait and then start again, "None. If you don't want to die, come to my aide. Together, we will restore Galactor back to being the organization it once was." He would always win over recruits with this little speech. He was slowly gaining support from the men. His hardest group to convert was Galactor's personal body guard. Lately, he noticed, the organization had been suffering many losses at the hands of G-Force. The group was devastating their rebuilding facilities and the moral of the men was dropping. It had been almost two years now since he had left G-Force. Still no one except Danny knew of it and Danny probably didn't know where he was or what had happened to him. The time was passing and he knew that the time was right.
He slowly walked into Galactor's office, giving a nod to the body guards on duty. Hooty had a sword strapped to his side. He entered the office unannounced. Galactor rose from his chair.
"What is the meaning of this Lieutenant?" He was clearly enraged by the intrusion. Hooty hesitated for a moment, but felt something pushing him to continue.
"No longer am I a Lieutenant of yours Galactor. Consider yourself, from this point on, powerless. I am in command now and you can't do anything about it." Galactor for once had a genuine look of fear on his face.
"You can't do this to me! I am the commander of Galactor. Tell me, how do you intend to go through my BODY GUARDS!!!" As he called out for them, the entered the room and made a tunnel with Hooty on one side and Galactor on the other. Hooty drew the sword quickly and silently.
"I can do this to you Galactor. The only way for you to remain living after this ordeal is to get by me, unarmed. If you can do that, you will be allowed to run, but if you are ever caught attempting to come back to the organization, you will be killed on sight. That is if you live past this point." Hooty put an extra stress on if, so he could get his point across. Hooty stood ready, and Galactor made a dash for it. He was coming closer and closer to Hooty with every split-second passing. Hooty made two quick motions with his sword. An instant later, the former leader of Galactor lay dead on the ground in front of him, beheaded and disemboweled. Hooty had seen men killed in worse ways, so this didn't bother him much. He told the guards to take Galactor away and to make the announcement to the men. He turned and walked out of the room.
Deep inside of him, he felt as if someone was pushing him along. He kept wandering through the halls on a path to a place that he had never seen before. He found a room with a golden door. He went to knock but it opened as soon as he neared it. Inside of the room stood all kinds of machinery. Hooty kept walking and was halted by a voice.
"Welcome Galactor. You have been a long time coming. I have been waiting for you. Now that I have brought you here, you will do my bidding and destroy G-Force." Hooty looked up and saw a face hovering in front of a fiery background. The voice was not speaking out loud, but in his mind he heard it loud and clear. He responded to the machine without thinking.
"It shall be done master. I will destroy them." Deep down, Hooty realized what he said. He knew that he owed loyalty to the team, but then again, he knew that they had cut all ties with them. He felt torn apart inside. He was about to give into the voice telling him to destroy what he knew were his former comrades. Something in him fought back. He suddenly remembered all of the good times that he had with the team. A glimmer of hope appeared. He kept resisting the voice.
"You cannot resist me Hooty. Yes, I know who you are. You will not win. I am all powerful. I made the mistake of giving your predecessor the ability to make his own choices. I will not make the same mistake with you." Hooty snapped. He felt the grip on him loosen for a split second. He took the chance and broke free using all of his mighty will. He did what came naturally to him. He started smashing things up. His fighting spirit renewed.
"Listen you hunk of garbage. No computer is gonna control me." He was smashing things right and left. The computer started to sputter. He felt it try to regain it's former grip on him. He easily fended it off and continued to smash the computer and all of it's innards to pieces. He broke the last main board from the inside of the computer and turned around to see his personal body guard standing there.
"You have just destroyed Computor!" Hooty half expected them to attack him. They came closer and started to explain. "You see Galactor, a long time ago, Computor was built to help rule Galactor, however, our scientists made a fatal error. They gave it free will, and the power to evolve and gain intelligence. It became too powerful, but when we tried to stop it, it killed all of our true warriors. We became it's slaves. You have just freed us. Our other warriors should be feeling the effects of freedom. Let us go and see." Hooty followed them. On his way, Hooty was given a report from one of his men that G-Force had just destroyed another base, killing a hundred men in the process. Hooty started thinking. When he got all of the men together, that is when he made his confession.
"Fellow Galactors! I have finally done what was needed and destroyed Computor. You are now a free race once again." Hooty waited for the inevitable.
"What do you mean we, Galactor?" One of his men from the ground below called out.
"I am going to come clean. I am not a Galactor. I am an ex-member of G-Force. I was brought here in one of your raids. I soon became close to my predecessor and killed him. That is how I came to power. I understand now that you are not a warlike race, but your leader, Computor, was. I would like to propose a plan." Hooty waited for the commotion to die down before he continued. "I want to capture G-Force and negotiate with them."
Another commotion broke out below. "We have been trying to capture G-Force. We haven't succeeded so far, what makes you think that we could succeed now?" The group fell silent.
"As I said before, I am an ex-member of G-Force. I know how they work in our bases. I want to capture them and negotiate. I can head up the base that they will attack, just as long as I have the support of the Galactor organization behind me when we do it." The crowd was cheering for him. They were chanting Galactor over and over. He turned and headed into his office.
It was about midnight at the G-Force base. Peewee was sleeping deeply, but he awoke with a start. He was about to call Casey, but he thought better of it. He tried to go back to sleep but he failed to do so. He just lay in bed, staring at the ceiling. A few hours later, the wake up call sounded and he jumped up and ran out of the door. He arrived in the morning ready room with the rest of the team. None of the other members were doing much talking either. Casey obviously didn't feel like the rest of the team. He was happily trying to carry on a conversation with Ace, but he was not succeeding. The doctor walked into the room, equally as silent as the others.
"G-Force, we have intercepted another Galactor base location, but we are unsure of the importance of it. I best send you out to check it anyway. We can't leave anything unchecked. Galactor is getting desperate and we don't need them to do anything that would catch us off guard." The team nodded. They gave the traditional salute and headed to the Phoenix.
On board, there was an uneasy feeling amongst the members. Peewee could stand it no longer.
"I just don't feel right about this mission Ace. I feel like something is going to go wrong. If it does, I want you to know that I had fun while it lasted." Peewee was about in tears. Aggie moved toward him and put her arms around him.
"I think that we should turn this mission back if you guys aren't feeling up to it. I am sure that we can put it off for a little while, so we can get a little more moral in the group." Casey hadn't even turned around to face the group. Instead, he was faced straight forward, watching the sky. He felt someone grab him from behind. He turned and faced Ace.
"Listen Casey, we are going to follow through on this mission, whether it turns out okay or not. We all have a destiny and we are going to follow through on it. If we don't go through with this mission, we are just delaying it. If something is going to go wrong and we avoid it now, it is just going to happen later. Do you understand me Casey?" Casey nodded slowly, clearly shaken up by the show of anger from Ace. Ace turned back to the team.
"I think we all have the same feeling about this. Something is going to go wrong. Let's go out with a bang if we go out now." The team nodded slowly. Casey alerted them.
"We are at the base now team. What do you want to do?" Casey turned to face them and Ace motioned for him to follow. They all slowly piled into the elevator.
Inside of the Galactor base, Hooty watched as the team tripped off the silent alarms and triggered the cameras that were watching them. He grinned and mumbled.
"Twice in a row. When do they learn?" He kept watching them. He sat comfortably in his chair, with his body guard on either side of him. He waited. They were going to have to come directly through his room to get to where they wanted to go. He waited.
"This base is so deserted. Something is wrong here Ace." Hooty could hear Aggie's voice whispering. He signaled his men and the lights flared up again, leaving no corner with a shadow. He stood up, watching the shocked team.
"Welcome G-Force. We meet again for the second time. And I can assure you that it will not be the last." He was doing a good job disguising his voice. Ace stepped forward.
"When we are done here, Galactor is going to punish you for failure so badly, that you will probably never see battle again." Hooty was grinning beneath his face mask.
"That is where you are wrong G-Force. I will fight again, because I am the superior power in this organization. I am Galactor." Hooty stepped forward. Ace was about to protest, but Hooty signaled for silence. Ace and the team abided. "Now I would like to keep this as blood free as possible. I want to negotiate with you." Hooty was relaxed and ready to talk, but one of his men got nervous and fired one round. Casey fell victim to his fear and he charged toward Hooty.
"I'LL NEVER NEGOTIATE WITH A MURDERER LIKE YOU!!!" He was charging sloppily like a madman. Hooty's bodyguards reacted like they were trained. Before Hooty could react, the gunman had already pulled the trigger. Casey lay on the ground a dying, a bloody death.
Ace ran over to his fallen comrade. "Casey! We'll get you out of here. Just hold on. We'll get you out." Ace wasn't crying but he was close enough. Casey grabbed him by his suit.
"Forget it Ace. I remember what you said about destiny and I figure that it is my destiny not to make it out. Go ahead. Do what you must." As his sentence ended, so did his life.
G-Force jumped on the chance and started to attack Hooty's men. They expertly rounded the G-Force crew up into a small group in the middle of the room. They were put into a holding cell and taken away. Hooty followed them slowly.
At the cell's destination, Hooty waived away everyone, including his personal bodyguard. He walked over to the cell. Ace had not lost any of his fire.
"Let us go, Galactor, or we will be forced to use the whirlwind pyramid to free ourselves." Hooty put his hand against the force field of the holding cell, which responded by showing a tight web of green lasers that made up the force field.
"That, Ace, will be unnecessary." Ace dropped back in fear.
"How do you know my name, Galactor? Have we been that sloppy in your little game? Have we made that many mistakes?" He was angered at Hooty's knowledge of his name.
"The game is over Ace. Neither side has won. As a matter of fact, both sides seem to have lost in some aspect or another. I guess it was destiny that the team and I face each other in the end, even after all that I did for you." This statement brought the other team members closer to the cell wall. "Yes G-Force, in case you haven't guess by now, I am you former member, Hooty." He removed his mask, letting his long brown hair fall out behind him. He had let it grow out since his days in G-Force, and it made him seem completely different.
"How could you betray us like this Hooty?" Dirk was yelling at him. "After what we did for you?" Hooty was taken back by the sudden show of rage from his former comrade. "I suppose you are going to kill us now?" Hooty was struck low by that remark.
"No Dirk, I will do no such thing. Believe it or not, I still have loyalty to the team, but I also have loyalty to Galactor now. That is why I am doing this." He turned and started to run his fingers over the Galactor logo. "You see, the Galactor are not a violent race, it was just their leaders that were. I have restored peace among their ranks and I would like to negotiate with you." He continued running his finger over line after line. Ace spoke over Dirk's next comment.
"We would like to negotiate but we can't. Not after all the crimes that the Galactor have committed against us. It would be dead wrong for us to do so." Hooty turned his head over his shoulder.
"It doesn't look like you have a choice now does it, Ace. I am hold the reigns here. I want to negotiate to prevent anything else like this from happening." Hooty put fire behind his words. Dirk interjected before anyone could stop him.
"WHY SHOULD WE NEGOTIATE WITH A MURDERER LIKE YOU?" Dirk was screaming with rage.
"WHY? WHY, DIRK DARING, SHOULD YOU NEGOTIATE WITH A MURDERER' LIKE ME? I'LL TELL YOU WHY." Hooty had turned around full and was facing them, his face red. He took a few deep breaths and started talking in a normal tone again. "Dirk, don't you ever forget how many people that you have killed either. You went through base after base, killing hundreds of men at a time without the slightest guilt. The Galactor did the same in the world's countries. I want to keep this from ever happening again. If I can at least give peace in my lifetime, I will feel as if I have done something right." He walked forward. "I want to negotiate with Doctor Brighthead personally." His hand moved to the keypad. A few quick movements later, the force field was down and the team moved from the holding cell.
Dirk was about to say something but Ace silenced him with a glare. "We will take you to the base." Hooty nodded. Slowly he put on his helmet and followed them. Once in the phoenix, Ace took the controls of the phoenix, where Casey should have been, and expertly piloted them home.
"Do not tell the Doctor that it is me, for I fear that if he knew, he would attempt to push me into doing something that would only hurt the Galactor." He brought his body guards with him. Ace nodded his agreement. When they entered the base, the team dismounted and Hooty followed. They reported quickly to Doctor Brighthead's office.
"Doctor, you have a visitor." The Doctor turned around, not really paying too much attention. He looked up and saw Galactor and his men standing there. He jumped slightly and attempted to regain his composure.
"To what do I owe this honor, Galactor?" He signaled for the team to leave. When they were gone, he spoke again. "Have a seat Gentlemen."
"My bodyguards prefer to stand." Doctor Brighthead nodded. "Now as you might have guessed, my predecessor is no longer. I am the new leader of Galactor. I am here because I want to negotiate with you. I know my predecessor did some very awful things, but I would like to atone for them and make our peace with you." The Doctor's eyes were seemingly sharp and aware. Hooty knew he was going to have to think fast if he were to win out on this.
"Well Galactor. You are right. Your predecessor did do many awful things, and you will need to atone for them. But I think that we would be willing to forget all that has happened if you were to make a major contribution to humanity." His hands folded into his lap.
"Such as? Doctor? I cannot do much, seeing as how your G-Force has almost crippled my resources, but I will do what I can." Hooty had a burning sensation in him.
"Nothing less than full access to all of your scientific research centers will please me." An triumphant gleam ran through the Doctor's eyes. Hooty was taken back by the request.
"I cannot do that Doctor. For the sake of Galactor and for the sake of the human race, I cannot let you have unrestricted access to all of our deepest secrets." The Doctor's eyes burned with anger.
"If you do not let us have unrestricted access, I will have no choice but to annihilate your organization and force entry upon your research centers." Hooty slammed his fist down.
"Damn you Doctor Brighthead, I didn't want it to turn out this way. I do not want to fight you, and I will not fight you." Hooty slipped up and let his true voice ring out.
"Hoot Owl? Is that you?" The doctor's eyes were wide. Hooty reached up and removed his mask.
"Yes, Doctor. It is me. I am the new leader of Galactor. Kind of ironic, don't you think? That a once member of G-Force, now leads their arch-nemesis, Galactor? I will not fight G-Force, but nor will I give you what you have requested." Hooty stood up. The doctor met his gaze and stood up as well.
"I give you two days to contact me with a resolution to this problem, or else we will start attacking you without remorse again, Galactor." Hooty a mess inside, he didn't know what to do. Part of him wanted to give in, and part of him said to hold out. He left the complex with a heavy heart as he waited for the Galactor Transport to pick them up. He didn't know what was in store for the Galactor, or himself. He knew that as much as it saddened him, he would have to continue to protect Galactor, even if it meant fighting his former comrades to do so.
***
Hooty was sitting in his office. He hadn't slept but a few minutes in the last two days. He was trying to decide on a course of action. He didn't want to give unrestricted access to Doctor Brighthead, but he knew that the Doctor would send G-Force after them, and he would eventually gain what he wanted anyway. Hooty was torn. He was crying. He had never cried much before, but he was so confused at this point. He was on the verge of giving up, when one of his body guards spoke up.
"Galactor, if the team is as virtuous as you claim that they are, you have nothing to fear." Hooty looked up and saw that one of the two members of bodyguards in the room was facing him. "Since you were once a part of the team, why would they attack us. You claim that they do what they feel is right, but you are so worried that they are going to do what is wrong. Have faith in them." Hooty sat upright. He had a wild grin on his face. He grabbed his bodyguard and shook his hand.
"Thank you. I don't know what I would have done without you. I have an idea." He started on his way out of the room and his bodyguards followed. "Call all of the troops at this base together. We are going to win this battle now." He was wildly grinning to himself. He sped off to his war room. Back at G-Force's base, the two days went quickly. The Doctor called the team into his office.
"We have received no reply from Galactor as of yet. I must hold true to my promise of the destruction of the organization. You are hereby ordered to destroy all Galactor bases and you are given orders to use whatever means necessary to carry these orders, even if it means killing some civilians to do so." The Doctor expected the traditional salute, but it didn't happen. He looked at the team and spoke in a harsh tone. "Go. You have your orders." Nothing happened. This time he yelled. "GO G-FORCE! YOU HAVE YOUR ORDERS! NOW CARRY THEM OUT!" Still nothing. He was about to do something else, but Dirk pushed him back into his chair. Ace took over from there.
"Listen Doctor. There was a time when we would have attacked Galactor without remorse, and we would have followed those orders without a second thought, but things are different." The doctor looked at Ace then Dirk took over speaking.
"Back then, Galactor was under other leaders. I hated them for all that they have done. I still hate them for all of it, but I will not fight against Hooty. Anyway, we are helpless against them because of the fact that Hooty is in control of Galactor." The doctor's face was pale white in this ghastly situation. He turned his head and looked hopefully in Aggie and Peewee's direction. Both of them shook their heads in sync with each other.
"No doctor." Aggie was speaking now. "I will not fight against Hooty. He did so much for us and us for him, so much so that I will never fight him, no matter what side he is on." The doctor looked forlornly at Peewee.
"No doctor." Peewee was staring him hard in the eyes. "I will not fight. He is my brother and I will never fight with him. His cause is the right cause now. Before, yes, your cause was right, but that was when Galactor was under control of Hooty's predecessor. I refuse to fight this war any longer." The doctor regained some color and stood up.
"If you will not fight the war, then all is lost. Give me your amulets and I will find other who will be more willing to carry out my cause." He didn't ever get to say anything after that. He collapsed into the chair, knocked out from a well placed hit by Dirk.
"Get the extra amulet. And let's get to the Phoenix before he knows what happened." Ace was on the way out of the room with Aggie and Peewee behind him. Dirk followed close behind with the extra amulet in hand. Aboard the phoenix, Ace took the bridge and Dirk took the controls of the Phoenix.
"Now, you realize that there is no turning back now." Ace turned to the team. "If you want to go back, I will not stop you, but once we leave this base, our fate is sealed. We will be branded rogue and will probably have many forces out to get us. Are you all with me on this?" He slowly scanned the cabin. Everyone's head, including Dirk's, nodded.
***
"Sir, we cannot let you do this. Why won't you let us all stay with you when they arrive?" One of Hooty's men was questioning his decision to face G-Force alone. "If you were to die in this conflict, what good would it do? We would probably fall under a new leader, and it would not be good for the organization." Hooty silenced the man with a wave of his hand.
"I must do this. I know you all disagree, and for that reason, I will keep one member of my bodyguard with me. If you were all with me, G-Force might feel threatened and something like our last encounter might happen again. I cannot afford for that to happen. I need to be at peace with them, no matter what the cost." He looked around and saw heads nodding in agreement. They all took off on their way to get people out of the base. Hooty walked slowly to the master lobby, where he would meet G-Force, unarmed, and almost completely alone.
The time passed relatively slow for G-Force. Doctor Nambu had transmitted many requests for the team to return home. He told them that their punishment would be minimal at first, but then as the time wore on, the punishments became worse and worse. Finally, Aggie disconnected the radio and video transmitters so they could be renegades in peace.
"We're close to the base. There's no turning back now. Let's hope this works, or all we have done is for naught." Ace spoke it softly from his chair. Dirk skillfully maneuvered the Phoenix into a landing position that was concealed somewhat from ariel observation. They all rose and went for the elevator. Once outside, they headed for the base. Inside, Ace halted them in the master lobby.
"This just isn't right. It's too quiet. Have you seen a single person here since we entered?" The heads slowly shook. Their thoughts were interrupted by a voice.
"Your right about no one else being here, but there is nothing wrong." Hooty stepped into the light, wearing his old G-Force civvies. "I sent everyone in the base away. I am alone here, except for one bodyguard, who is a little preoccupied at the moment." Ace stepped forward from the group, who had relaxed from their crouched positions and were now standing. Ace put his hand out, holding Hooty's old amulet in his hand.
"We are no longer G-Force Hooty. We just ran away from ISO headquarters with the phoenix, and our amulets. We want you back on the team. We couldn't fight against you, so we would like to be on the same team." A brief silence interlude came into the conversation and Dirk stepped forward.
"If you would have us that is." Hooty grinned. He grabbed Ace's hand and the amulet and embraced his comrade once again.
"Come to my office. We have to talk." They followed Hooty. Once in the office, he called back his men, and while they waited for them, G-Force was given quarters. Hooty and the team spent the night in the training room, exchanging stories and retraining Hooty's old skills. They were just waking up in the morning, when an alarm went off.
"Galactor! There is a group that has entered the base calling themselves G-Force. They demand to see you." His bodyguard stiffly awaited orders.
"Well team, it looks like it is what we've been waiting for." They all gathered around. As if on cue, they transformed and walked out of the door to the master lobby. Doctor Brighthead was standing in the room, with a group of people with identical bird-styles on.
"G-Force. Surrender yourselves or die by the hands of G-Force." The Doctor stood defiantly in front of the group. Ace stepped forward and met him in the middle of the room.
"You can't expect this group to be better than we are. You yourself taught us and spent all of your time with us. Where did they come from anyway?" Ace was about 2 inches from the doctor's face.
"Well Ace, we needed a back up incase your team was killed or captured in combat. We couldn't risk not having a backup plan, so a few months after you started, we started training a new team of younger members. They are at their peak right now. They have been training and perfecting everything that your team learned. I never expected you to last, as a matter of fact, after a while, I wished that you would fail so I could get some real fighters into the war. Either surrender now, or die here, along with Galactor." The doctor's breathing was heavy and his forehead was perspiring. Ace glared back at him.
"I prefer to win with my comrades than surrender to you and lose everything. If I surrender now, I've lost everything. At least with my comrades, I have a chance of winning, and if I die, I die in combat." Doctor Brighthead backed up and muttered a little under his breath. He looked at Ace and the crew.
"Don't say I didn't give you a chance to surrender, because I did, and you didn't take it. You chose your own fate." He turned around and walked back to his team. Ace did the same. They stood in the same formations as each other, and watched silently for about ten minutes. The silence dragged on. Finally, the g-1 made his move. He threw his birdrang out toward Ace. Ace responded instantly, and expertly knocked the other birdrang out of the air, shattering it. Ace's returned to his grasp. The bolos flew next, nearly hitting Peewee, but he was quick enough and he dodged them. He didn't throw his back at the enemy, instead, he just held onto them. The tension finally broke between the two.
The imposter team rushed at G-Force with all speed. Ace met his attacker with full force. Ace fought with all intensity, landing a punch here, a kick there. He knew it was going to be a long, hard fight, and he was ready to go all the way.
Peewee was matched evenly with his opponent, neither of them could get the upper hand. Both of them were bound and determined to win out, so it was getting nowhere fast.
Aggie was matching blows with her enemy, testing her opponent's abilities against her own, and finding much to her disliking that they were too even. She didn't know if they were going to win or lose, but she didn't care, she just kept fighting.
Dirk had started ripping into his rival with everything he had. His opponent was taken by surprise at first, but managed to keep a cool head, and fight back, countering Dirk whenever he had a chance.
Hooty stood back from the fight, watching his comrades locked in mortal combat with the imposter team. He didn't even think that there was still another enemy. He was too engulfed watching his friends being matched blow for blow. Suddenly the blow came, and Hooty found himself looking at the ceiling.
"My, my, my. It looks as though the mighty leader of Galactor has fallen much easier than I thought." An imposter in his birdstyle was standing over him, with a threatening fist. "You know, killing traitorous scum like you is what makes this job fun." Hooty snapped. For the first time in a long time, his fighting spirit returned full force. He felt his anger build toward Doctor Brighthead and what he was doing to the real G-Force. He reached up and grabbed the imposter by the neck and threw him to the ground.
"If I'm gonna go down, you're gonna have to fight to bring me down." Hooty was now standing face to face with the imposter. G-5 let out a sloppy left hook that Hooty easily dodged. Hooty grappled g-5 from behind and picked him up off of the ground. He threw him, but g-5 was quick to recover, and didn't hit the ground. He came diving down at Hooty, but Hooty was faster. He grabbed g-5 out of the air and this time, he slammed him into the ground, this time with force, and g-5 didn't make a nice landing. He hit the ground, his face mask shattering on impact. G-5 got up from the ground and the last thing he ever saw was Hooty barreling toward him at full bore. He felt the wind expel from his chest as Hooty hit him and drove him into the wall.
Hooty backed away from the lifeless body of what used to be the new g-5. The other members of the imposter team were hit very hard by the death of their comrade. They gave up the fight. Ace and the others disposed of them quickly, each one lay dead on the ground. When the air had cleared, they looked around and saw Doctor Brighthead to be gone.
"We have to go get him." Dirk was already on his way out of the room, but Ace stopped him.
"Let him go. Even if he does managed to get back to ISO, it'll be months, even years before he can get another G-Force trained enough to even be able to come close being combat ready, and by that time, Galactor will be so solid again, that no one will ever be able to disrupt it." Suddenly, Hooty's only bodyguard broke into the room, carrying a body on his shoulder.
He put it down on the ground and then spoke. "He was trying to leave to base. I stopped him and he attacked me, so I snapped into combat mode and killed him. I'm so sorry." He backed away from the lifeless body of Doctor Brighthead. Ace bent over the lifeless body.
"Our mentor and our enemy. May you rest in peace." He cover the doctor's eyes with his labcoat. "Take him and give him an honored burial. And send a message to ISO telling them the circumstances of his death." The bodyguard stood pat. Hooty stepped forward.
"Do it. It is okay to take some orders from him at a time like this." Hooty started on his way to his office with the team following solemnly behind him.
***
60 years had passed, Galactor had passed back out of human civilization. Hooty was still leading Galactor with a just, firm hand. The only remaining members of G-Force were Hooty and Peewee. The others had gone peacefully, finally seeing peace on earth in their life. Hooty was 80 years old. He had been kept alive for more than 20 years by mechanical means. His body was more cybernetic than flesh now, his mind the only thing that was still himself. Peewee was still in good health, and was reasonably intact. Together, with the old team, they had created the council of five. A council that was designed to run Galactor with no problems. They had succession figured out, and managed to keep it considerably corruption free. Peewee and Hooty were still serving on it. Hooty's last days were passed in trouble.
"Peewee, I fear for Galactor." Hooty was staring out the window through Cybernetic eyes. He turned around and Peewee met his gaze. "I fear that my days are growing shorter, and I will not be able to serve Galactor anymore. My mind is dulling and my thought not as clear as it once was. I fear that our scientists may be recreating a fatal error that brought Galactor to war with the human race in the first place." Their gazes never broke away from each other.
"What would that be, Hooty? I don't understand." Hooty readjusted in his chair.
"I have been receiving reports from the science lab that they are working on a new kind of artificial intelligence. If I remember correctly, it was the same kind of work that lead to the war. I never want to see Galactor and the human race fight again. I want this work stopped." Hooty was trying to finish, but his metal body shuddered in a mockery of pain. Hooty was silent for a moment, and Peewee stood, watching. Hooty motioned for Peewee to come closer. Peewee leaned closer.
"What is it old friend?" Peewee's voice was concerned, yet soothing to Hooty. "What do you need?" Hooty reached up and grabbed Peewee by the shoulder.
"My time is through. Pull my lifeline. I will open the panel for you. I do have one last request though." Hooty's speech was becoming staggered and ragged. Peewee was silent. "Stop the research on artificial intelligence." Hooty's last words were almost impossible to understand, but Peewee understood them by the passion put behind them. Slowly, painfully, Peewee broke his lifeline, and Hooty's metal body was lifeless forever in the chair.