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From: darkwnd@starvision.sv.net.au (Brett Handy)
Subject: Bubblegum Shift - Part 5 [FanFic]
Message-ID: <4i0jn3$ikp@sydney1.world.net>
Followup-To: poster
X-World-Archive: BGC/bgc.shift.gz
Sender: megazone@world.std.com (MegaZone)
Organization: AUSNet Services pty. ltd.
Date: Thu, 14 Mar 1996 03:06:42 GMT
Approved: megazone@world.std.com
Lines: 1069



                         A Bubblegum Crisis FanFic

                              Bubblegum Shift


                                  Part 5

                                    by

                                Brett Handy

     High above the Earth orbited the space station Genaros,
officially operated by the SDPC (Space Development Corporation). 
It had recently been the centre of a number of 'unsavoury' rumours
of slavery and strange experiments.  "Great", muttered Keith
Collins as he read the report sitting in front of him.

     His space shuttle was just finishing it's pre-orbital burn and
had settled into low earth orbit.  He glanced for a moment out at
the shimmering earth; a panorama of land and ocean met his gaze. 
He smiled slightly before turning back to the report.  Robert
Kemper had placed it in his hand just before the shuttle had
departed.  Rob had muttered something about 'Genom',  'unusual
reports' and to 'check it out'.  Glancing around at his fellow
passengers he examined them closely; none seemed to be the least
bit interested in him, not surprising really.

     Keith smiled a little thinly and adjusted the thick-rimmed
glasses on his nose.  He was sure that they would have been more
interested in him if he had chosen to travel in his combat form
(eight foot tall armoured figures tend to attract lots of
attention).  He quickly finished reading the report, licking his
lips in anticipation at the amount of money that was being offered
for his services, "Jim", he muttered, "You always had more money
than sense".  He had become involved with Epsilon Industries a
number of years ago; they had contracted his services for a little
argument they had with the Cronos Corporation.  "Let's just hope we
don't run into any salivating monsters this time", he thought,
glancing out to watch their approach to the space station.

     Since he was posing as a technician, Keith followed the rest
into the space station, only separating from his group when they
finally entered the crew quarters.  He ducked into a lab and
waited.

                                  ******

     About half an hour later a confused maintenance technician
found himself pushing a large trolley towards the weapons
development area.  "How the hell did this get out of the high-
security section?", he muttered.  He sighed and continued walking,
"This is gonna be someone's ass", he thought to himself.

     Keying in his password and placing his hand on the security
pa,d he waited the necessary three seconds for the handprint to be
recognised and then pushed the package through the door.  He placed
the case into the Bomb scanner, under the watchful eye of the pair
of C-55 security Boomers at the door.  The light went green to
indicate nothing dangerous, so he was waved through into the
complex.

     He wheeled the box into weapons lab one, "Great", he said,
smiling, "The doctor shouldn't be back for at least half an hour". 
He looked at the case, "Don't go anywhere", he admonished it.

     "Sorry, but I've got places to be", the case replied.

     It took a moment for the response to register and then another
before the surprised man realised that the case had reformed into
a menacing figure.  "What the Fu..", was all he managed to get out
before a large hand closed on his throat.

                                  ******

     Jim Williams was warily looking at the motorcycle that Kathy
had rolled out of the garage, "That's mine?", he asked, running a
hand over the sleek curves of the racing cycle.

     She nodded, "I'm surprised that you don't remember *this*",
she said smiling, "You were riding one of these long before you met
me".

     Jim frowned and experimentally threw one leg over the bike.
"This does feel familiar", he muttered.

     Kathy placed a helmet in his hands, "Take it for a spin", she
insisted, "Just don't get lost".

     Jim nodded, placing the helmet on and revving the engine a few
times.  He jammed down the accelerator, and took off onto the
street in a shower of stones and rubber.

     Kathy dusted off her legs, "Well his driving hasn't changed",
she observed.  It was about the only thing that hadn't.  She had
talked to Jim for a long time last night, he was withdrawn,
defensive and naturally a little scared.  He had no idea about who
he really was and his own abilities.  Moving upstairs it took her
a few minutes to get into her 'work clothes', strapping on the
automatic pistol Jim had given her several months earlier.

     "What's with the gun?", came Jim's voice from behind her.

     She turned around, covering the pistol in it's shoulder
holster.  "I'm doing some work with the ADP", she explained.

     He nodded, "So you're a cop", he reasoned.  "I still can't
understand why you people are interested in *me*".

     Kathy sighed.  "Look Jim, I'm your friend...", she began.

     Jim cut her off with a gesture. "You know, I keep getting that
from everyone, I've heard, 'just trust me, I'm your friend', so
many times in the last two days that I'm sick of it", he fumed.

     Kathy shook her head.  "Well I'm afraid that you'll have to
hear it again", she said, getting angry herself, "Because at the
moment I don't have time for anything else".

     Jim was brought up short and stared at her, "You think this is
easy on me?!?", she continued, "To have one of my most trusted
friends to all appearances *die*?".

     Kathy was shaking in anger, "For the last week, I've been
thinking that you were dead", she said shortly, "And then I find
your alive, but the man I lov.. *knew* is dead".

     She turned away from him, walking over to the door.  "Come on,
I'm leaving you with Rob, let him worry about you for a while", she
said.

     Jim shook himself;  he hadn't thought about it from anyone
else's point of view.  He followed Kathy silently outside and into
her car.  About half an hour later they arrived at The Bunker,
driving through into the hanger-like structure.  Jim noted the
cameras and gun positions flanking the entrance.  "This place is
like a fortress", he murmured, indicating a Defender tank in a
hardened position.

     Kathy nodded shortly.  "You ordered all of this before your
disappearance", she snapped, "Things are getting serious now, so
the more firepower the better".

     Jim watched as a pair of armoured figures set a up minigun
while another team was preparing an anti-tank missile pod.  He
stepped out of the car and got saluted by every person he passed,
with the occasional, "Good to see you sir" and "Glad you're back".

     They reached Robert's office quickly and were waved through by
the two guards.  "What do you mean 'it's been stolen' ??", Robert
shouted into a phone, "When did this happen?".

     Kathy and Jim walked inside and sat down opposite Rob's desk.
"Well can you track the damn thing?", he continued, "If you can't
track it then get yourself back down here as soon as you can".

     Robert slammed the phone down hard. "Geeze", he muttered,
turning to his guests, "You'd think with what we pay the guy he'd
do a better job".

     Kathy raised an eyebrow.  "Keith?", she guessed.

     Rob nodded, "Yeah, I sent him to Genaros to investigate a few
rumours that I'd been hearing", he explained.

     Kathy nodded, "Well I've got a long shift at the ADP, so I'll
leave Jim with you", she said, standing.

     "I don't need a babysitter", Jim grumbled indignantly.

     Kathy smiled slightly.  "He's all yours", she said to Robert
as she close the door behind her.  Jim muttered something under his
breath but remained stony faced as Robert sat down next to him.

     "So...", Robert began, "How'd it go?".

     Jim sighed, "I could have been better", he sighed.

     Robert nodded, "Well I'm sure things will work out in the
end", he encouraged.

     Jim smiled, "I'm sure", he murmured.

     After a few moments Jim frowned.  "What were these rumours
that you've been hearing?", he asked Robert.

     Rob's face fell.  "Well, it seems that Genom and the SDPC have
been secretly developing a new weapon", he explained seriously,
"It's suppose to be the latest development in human/cybernetic
battlemovers.  From the reports I've gotten so far, it's so far
advanced that nothing in current production can stand up to it".

     Jim nodded.  "And it's been stolen?", he asked.

     Robert nodded, "Our agent just got through to me after
discovering its theft from the weapons laboratory.  He also managed
to download the design specifications to me", he said bleakly, "And
I have to say that it scares me".

     Jim shrugged, "If it's just another power-armour, I can't see
how a single unit could cause so much of a problem, just overwhelm
it with superior firepower", he concluded.

     Robert shook his head, "It has a failsafe, if the pilot
becomes unable to function a micro-neutron bomb is activated,
wiping out all life in the unit's general area", he said.

     Jim grimaced, "But leaving the unit and other machines
intact", he added, "That sounds rather ruthless".

                                  ******

     "WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT'S BEEN STOLEN?!?", screamed Quincy.

     "Ahh.. I'm very sorry Sir, but some renegade Boomers escaped
with it on a shuttle", came the stammering voice of the Genaros
station head.

     "Then shoot them down", Quincy insisted, "We can't have the
world discover that unit".

     "Sir, the Orca shuttle is well beyond the range of our
spaceborne missiles, but it looks like it's been damaged", the
station head continued, "It appears to be going down somewhere over
mainland Japan, near a forestry reserve".

     "Get some search units out there then", Quincy insisted,
slapping the cutoff switch.

     "What's the world coming to?", came a sarcastic female voice
from the doorway, "When not even Genom's own, *illegal* technology
isn't safe?". 

     Quincy didn't bother to look up.  "What do you want
Madaline?", he asked bluntly.

     "Oh.. no", she replied sweetly, walking over to his desk,
"It's not what *I* want, it's what the Conclave wants".

     Quincy shuddered at the name.  "Very well then", he said,
turning to meet her gaze, "What does the *Conclave* want?".

     "Oh.. not much really, just ten more of those *special* combat
Boomers", she stated.

     "TEN!", Qunicy excalimed, "But you've already got ten, why do
you need more?".

     Madaline grimaced.  "We *had* ten", she stated, "But thanks
the Knight Sabres and some left-overs from Epsilon Industries we've
only got five operational units left".

     Quincy shook with rage.  "Do you realise how much one of those
things is worth?", he roared, "Even for Genom it's a huge
investment and then to have you waste them unnecessarily...".

     "Shut up!", Madaline said bluntly.

     Quincy spluttered, "HOW DARE YOU...", he began.

     Madaline smiled and shimmered, reforming into a familiar
shape, one that Quincy saw in the mirror every morning.  "TALK TO
ME IN THAT MANNER", she continued, in a perfect imitation of his
voice.

     Madaline winked at him and then resumed her normal form.
"Don't forget", she said, "We can replace you any time we feel like
it - even your bodyguards wouldn't be able to tell the difference".

     Quincy paled and set his jaw. "I can give you *five* of the
new model", he stated, "We don't have any more available at the
moment".

     Madaline nodded, "I know", she said, walking from the room.

     Quincy watched her leave, "This is going too far", he
muttered, "Something must be done about her".

                                  ******

     Nene looked up as Kathy walked into the office; she seemed
distracted and a little depressed.  Nene finished her latest report
and deposited it on the chief's desk.  She innocently walked over
to Kathy to see if she could gain any information.

     "Hello Kathy", she said cheerfully.

     Kathy nodded and managed a brief smile. "Hi Nene", she
responded, "Where's Leon?".

     Nene shrugged.  "Oh there was some report of a space shuttle
crashing to the west of the city", she explained, "So Leon grabbed
a helicopter and decided to investigate it".

     "A shuttle crash?", Kathy asked curiously.

     Nene nodded, "The SDPC was tracking it... so it shouldn't be
too hard for *even* Leon to find", she giggled.

     Kathy smiled back, "Well I'm glad someone's having better luck
than me today", she said.

     Nene leaned against Kathy's desk.  "Oh... what's wrong?", she
asked.

     "Well...", Kathy began, "You remember that friend of mine
who's been missing?".

     "Yes", Nene answered, "That was Jim wasn't it?".

     Kathy nodded, "Well he's finally turned up", she said, "But
unfortunately he's go amnesia".

     Nene gasped, "Oh.. how horrible", she exclaimed.

     "Yeah", Kathy sighed, "It seems that he was hurt in an
accident...".

     Nene nodded sympathetically.  "I'm sure it's rough", she said,
"But I'm sure he'll get better too".

     Kathy smiled warmly, "I'll tell him you asked after him", she
said.

     Nene felt a cold stab in her stomach, "OH no", she thought to
herself, "Sylia's going to kill me".

                                  ******

     Jim sat comfortably at the controls of the Stalker helicopter,
he toggled a few buttons.  "I know this...", he murmured.

     Robert nodded, "Of course", he said, "You can fly most
helicopters and planes, as well as all the ground vehicles Epsilon
Industries makes".

     Jim frowned, "How the hell did I learn all that?", he
wondered.

     Robert grinned, "Well it has to do with this little plane trip
we took a while back", he explained, "It took a rather bad turn
when the pilot decided to leave us unexpectedly.... since then you
almost never let anyone else drive".

     Jim flicked the power switch on, starting up the helicopter's
systems, "Well let's see if I remember anything", he said,
indicating the gunner's seat.

     Robert nervously took his seat, "Ahh.. you're *sure* you
remember?", he queried.

     "Hey.. trust me", Jim replied, "I'm *almost* certain I
remember".

     "WHOA!!!", was Robert's reply as the helicopter went into a
jet-boosted climb.  Jim revelled in the feeling of flight, "This is
much better than the cycle", he thought to himself, as he dodged
around a few taller buildings.

     "Ummm Jim?", Robert asked, indicating a pair of buildings that
had been built uncomfortably close together.

     The Stalker passed close enough to the buildings to set off
the proximity detectors, it dodged left and then hovered for a few
moments, before going into a nose dive.  "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?",
Robert managed to squeeze out under the g-forces.

     Jim was busily watching the controls. "Just testing her out",
he replied, seeming unaffected by the speed.  They flew around
down-town Mega-Tokyo for about fifteen minutes until the were
spotted by an ADP helicopter.

     "YOU THERE IN THE HELICOPTER!!", came an amplified voice,
"THIS IS INSPECTOR McNICHOL OF THE ADP, LAND AT ONCE".

     Jim looked at the ADP helicopter and switched on the targeting
systems of the Stalker, scanning it for weapons.  "Hmmm only got a
single mini-gun", he muttered.

     "Jim?", asked Robert worriedly, "I think we'd better get out
of here".

     Jim smiled, "I don't think they're going to hurt us with a
5.56mm mini-gun", he replied, "That wouldn't even scratch this
thing's armour".

     "THIS IS YOU LAST WARNING!!", came the voice again, this time
accompanied by a burst of gunfire.

     Jim reached out and toggled on the Stalker's own external
speaker.  "Inspector", he said, "I think you're going to have to
catch me first".  And with that the Stalker took off in a flare of
blue afterburners.  The ADP pilot tried valiantly to catch up, but
didn't have much of a chance.

     As the landed back on the heli-pad Robert gingerly got out of
his seat.  "Next time, remember that little thing called
'gravity'", he complained, stretching his shoulders where the
harness had dug in.

                                  ******

     Leon was swearing his head off as he walked back into ADP
headquarters.  "I can't believe that bastard!!", he cursed.

     Nene looked over at him, "What's got you so upset?", she
asked.

     Leon ignored her and continued into the chief's office.  "When
are you gonna get us some decent equipment!", he shouted angrily. 
The door to the office slammed shut and Nene was glad that he
didn't bother to stop and explain.

     Nene looked across at Kathy, who shrugged.  "Men!", Nene
thought, "They're so hard to figure out...".

     A few minutes later Leon emerged, ducking a manual that the
chief had thrown at him, "Old fool....", he grumbled darkly.

     Kathy and Nene walked over to him.  "What's up Leon?", Nene
asked, "Girl trouble?".

     Leon grimaced, "Not this time", he replied, "I just had a run
in with that bloody armoured helicopter again".  There had been
several incidents over the last few months, of ADP pilots
encountering a strange combat helicopter.  It always managed to
outrun the ADP, never firing a shot at them.

     Kathy looked thoughtful, "I wonder what's going on", she said
to herself.

     "What do you mean?", Nene asked, looking at her strangely.

     Kathy shook her head and turned to leave, "Never mind", she
said, "I've got some work to do, bye!".

     Nene watched her friend leave, puzzled by her strange reaction
to the news of the reappearance of that helicopter.  Nene sat back
down at her desk.  "Perhaps Kathy knows more than she's letting
on", she thought to herself.

                                  ******

     Madaline was relaxing comfortably in her quarters when her
commlink suddenly flared to life.  She quickly jumped out of her
chair and raced over to it, flicking the receive switch.

     "Oh", she said wearily, "It's you".

     "I've some information for you", replied a male voice.

     Madaline appeared to look disinterested.  "About what?", she
asked.

     "DarkWind", came the one word reply.

     Madaline's eyes brightened at the mention of her antagonist
and she looked at the screen eagerly, "What have you discovered?",
she demanded.

     "It seems that he's been in a few too many fights lately", the
man explained, "According to what I've heard, he's got amnesia, a
pretty serious case".

     "How much can he remember?", she asked eagerly, feeling
strangely disappointed that he'd be such an easy target after all
these years.

     "Kathy has been put in charge of Epsilon Industries until he
recovers", he voice said, "She is suppose to inform the Circle of
events soon and I'm sure that they'll send a replacement for
DarkWind quickly".

     Madaline mused the problem for a while before replying, "I
think that DarkWind is going to need some new friends before too
long", she said, "I'll inform you when we are ready to move".

     "Very well", was the only reply, before the monitor became
dark.

     Standing, Madaline walked across the room to where she looked
out of the window.  The sea moved gently against the horizon and
she could hardly feel the motion of the ship beneath her.  To
defeat DarkWind had been one of her goals for nearly a century...
but now the idea of using him against the Circle seemed to appeal
much more to her.

                                  ******

     Jim was studying a plan of the city when an *very* angry Kathy
stormed into the room.  "What are you trying to do!?!?!", she
demanded of Robert, "I thought we were going to keep his recovery
slow and steady".

     Rob rocked back slightly in his chair and raised his hands
defensively.  "Hey.. it's not my fault, Jim insisted!", he replied.

     Kathy turned to look at Jim with a furious expression.  "Are
you trying to get yourself hurt or something?", she asked angrily.

     Jim shrugged, "Hey I was just testing out the helicopter,
according to Robert, I *own* all this stuff...", he began.

     Kathy narrowed her eyes at him.  "You named me as the one to
take over if anything ever happened to you", she said flatly, "And
until I can see some more of the old Jim in you, your not to try
that again!".

     Jim bristled, "So I guess that means you're now a rich woman",
he said scornfully, "How much is the net worth of Epsilon
Industries... what about 150 to 200 billion dollars?".

     Robert noticed Jim's questioningly look and shrugged.
"Something like that", he replied quietly.

     "Well it looks like you've come off very well out of my little
mishap", he continued, feeling his anger rising, "And I can't help
wonder if you *really* want the 'old Jim' back".  With that he
stood and walked out of the room, leaving Rob and Kathy sitting in
stunned silence.

     Jim stormed over to where his motorcycle was waiting.  "Damn
them all", he thought to himself, "Let them have the bloody money,
all they have to do is tell me who the hell I am!".  He revved the
engine and streaked out into the night.

     Unnoticed by Jim, a set of mechanical eyes, followed his path,
keeping up with him as he opened up the bike on the highway.  It
followed him as he drove out of the city and into the hills, never
once slowing or loosing track of him.  His silent companion watched
as he stopped at a lookout and screamed his frustration to the
heavens.

                                  ******

     Kathy winced as Jim slammed the door shut and was about to
rise and follow him when Rob grabbed her arm.  "Just leave him be
for a while", Rob said in a comforting tone, "It wasn't easy for
him this afternoon finding that he knew so much about out
equipment, but couldn't remember it".

     Kathy snorted, "He *designed* most of our equipment", she
grumbled.

     Robert shook his head, "Not *him*", he said sadly.

     Kathy sighed, "I'm going to talk to the Circle as soon as I
can", she decided.

     Rob nodded, "Well I'm not really sure what they'll do about
the situation", he said, "After all we still are in the dark about
Genom's intentions....".

     Kathy stood and looked at the map Jim had been studying
earlier.  "Until Jim recovers, we have to keep working against
Genom as best we can", she said, "And that means we are going to
need some help from the Circle".

     The door slammed open and a familiar figure stepped though.
"Honey!", Keith said expansively, "I'm home!".

     Robert gave him a sour look.  "Oh joy...", he grumbled.

     Kathy looked at him tiredly.  "Nice to see you again", she
said unenthusiastically.

     Keith gave them both an exasperated look.  "Oh come on", he
said, "Life can't be that bad".

     At the silent response he decided to just get on with his
report.  "Well according to the USSD's report about the shuttle, it
was a mechanical failure that caused the crash", he began, "But
what really happened was the shuttle was damaged by a Doberman
Boomer while escaping from the station".

     "Can I assume that the Battlemover was destroyed in the
crash?", Rob asked hopefully.

     Keith shook his head, "Neither the pilots or the armour was
found at the crash site, I'm assuming that they escaped before
final impact", he said.

     "What do we know about the pilots?", Kathy asked, bringing
herself into the conversation.

     "Ahhh", Keith said, "that's the strange thing, according to
the information I got, the pilots were a pair of 33-S Boomers".

     Robert sat upright in his chair.  "Where on earth did they get
that model from?", he wondered, "The 'sexaroid' models were
outlawed years ago".

     Keith shrugged, "I have no idea", he replied, "But from what
I was able to discover those particular Boomers were involved in
the project as pilots for the DD".

     Kathy frowned, "Alright then Keith, I want you to find those
pilots", she ordered.
     
     Keith grinned, "Oh.. why not give me something *hard* to do",
he replied sarcastically.

     Kathy shook her head at his attitude, he'd been like this ever
since she'd met him all those years ago.  "Just do it ok?", she
asked.

     Keith stood and bowed gracefully.  "Your wish is my command,
fair one!", he said extravagantly as he left the room.

     Robert shook his head as Keith shut the door.  "That man is
*so* irresponsible", he said, "I can't see why Jim ever hired him".

     Kathy smiled, "You *know* why Jim hired him", she said, "And
you know that without him we would have been breakfast for a bunch
of mutant monsters".

     Robert nodded, "Ok... I just wish he'd take things more
seriously..", he replied, "I can't tell when he's joking and when
he's serious".

     "At least he get's the job done", Kathy said.  She stood and
walked to the door, "let me know when Jim get's back, I think we
need to have a talk".

     Robert smiled, "Oh I don't envy him...", he said teasingly.

     Kathy rolled her eyes, "Please.. and you talk about Keith
joking all the time", she replied, walking out of the room.

     "Who's joking?", Robert asked quietly as she left.

                                  ******

     Jim looked out over the darkening landscape, trying to find
some peace from his inner turmoil.  He'd come here on a whim,
noticing the lookout on a map of the area.  Glancing around he was
glad that he'd managed to find such a isolated area to just relax
in.

     A moment later his silence was shattered by the squeal of
tyres as a bright red BMW pulled into the small parking lot, coming
to rest beside his motorcycle.  He noticed a young lady step out of
the car and examine his bike closely before turning to look at him. 
"You there!", she said in a commanding voice, "Where the hell did
you get that motorcycle?".

     Jim shrugged, "It's mine", he said bluntly.

     The woman shook her head in apparent disbelief and stepped
closer so she could see him clearly in the darkening evening.
"Jim?", she asked in disbelief.

     Jim nodded, "Yes, that's me", he replied.  Jim was quite
unprepared for the reaction the young lady had after he confirmed
his identity.  She threw herself into his arms, sobbing quietly, "I
thought you were dead!", she sobbed.  Not really knowing what to
do, Jim held her for a moment before stepping back out of arm's
length.

     "What are you doing?", the lady asked, concerned at his
apparent lack of recognition.

     Jim felt that the woman *was* familiar but he couldn't
remember anything about her, "I'm sorry", he said, "I've been
having memory problems lately".

     She looked shocked, "You've what?", she gasped, "You don't
even remember me?"

     Jim shook his head, "I didn't even remember my own name", he
said.

     "But your motorcycle and how did you remember to come here?",
she asked.

     Jim shrugged, "I just picked this place at random from a map
I saw", he said, wondering if this place did hold some memories for
him.  "And as for the motorcycle, Kathy said it was mine".

     The woman's face turned bleak at the mention of Kathy's name.
"What else has she told you", she asked bluntly.

     Jim shrugged, "Not really a lot more than my name and the fact
that I'm the owner of a big company", he replied.

     The lady nodded. "That's all she would *want* you to know",
she said, "Jim, you're so much more than what they are telling
you".

     Jim frowned, "What do you mean?", he asked.

     "Well for starters did you know that since you lost your
memory, Kathy has been building up a large amount of military
equipment?", she asked.

     Jim nodded, "Kathy said something about possibly coming under
attack from a company named Genom", he replied.

     The lady nodded, "Of course Genom would be coming after her",
she stated firmly, "After she usurped your leadership of Epsilon
Industries.... Genom is not a company that forgets it's friends".

     Jim's head was spinning.  "But why...", he began.  It was
unthinkable that these people who had been helping him for the last
few days were all looking after their own interests.

     "Money and power", she replied, "Those are two things that
Kathy has been after ever since I've known her".

     Jim sat down heavily.  "But she said that... well she didn't
seem the type to steal all that from me...", he said quietly.

     The lady join him on the bench.  "Of course she tried other
things first", she said, placing an arm around his shoulders, "She
even tried to come between us, but you wouldn't let her".

     Jim was more confused than ever.  "Us??", he asked, "Not to be
blunt, but.. who are you?".

     The lady nodded sadly.  "My name's Madaline", she said gently,
"And we've been more than friends for a number of years".

     Jim was shaken, "Then why didn't Robert or Kathy mention
you...", he began.

     Madaline snorted, "Why do you think?", she asked, "They didn't
want you to know the truth, those two have been scheming together
to get control of the company for years".

     "But.. I can't believe", he began.

     "I understand", Madaline said, "You can't just take my word
for it, you need proof".

     Jim nodded, "For all I know this could be an elaborate trap",
he said.

     Madaline rose and nodded.  "Alright then", she said, "I'll
show you all the proof you need, just follow me on your bike".

     Jim stood and followed Madaline to the parking lot, wondering
what kind of proof she was going to reveal to him.  As he followed
the car down the mountain, he glance around carefully, feeling as
if something was watching him.

     The RU-17 Recon Boomer watched silently from it's position
amongst the trees, leaping up to fly on silent thrusters as it's
target left the area.  The latest development from Genom R&D, it
was nearly invisible as it flew through the night sky.  The air
controllers at Tokyo International detected nothing unusual in the
sky and the ADP helicopters that it passed, didn't even register it
on their super-sensitive tracking systems.

     Madaline chuckled to herself as she sped down into MegaTokyo. 
It had been surprisingly easy to convince Jim to look at her
'evidence' and she just hoped things went as well once she got to
headquarters.  It was dangerous to bring him to the Conclave's HQ,
but if all went as planned, they would have another Class one 
Shifter working for them soon

                                  ******

     Kathy concentrated as the target moved quickly across the
firing range, she quickly squeezed off her nine shots.  Each of
them hit the target in the red area, indicating a perfect shot. 
Kathy looked over her shoulder at the expression on Leon's face and
joined in with Nene's laughter.

     Nene was leaning against a wall to keep from falling over.
"Well it looks like you'll be cleaning out the storeroom this year
Leon", she said between bouts of laughter.

     Leon was still standing shock still, staring at the computer
readout, "How can you.... that's impossible....", he muttered to
himself.

     Kathy shrugged and holstered her pistol.  "All it takes is
practice", she said helpfully.

     Nene had come to her and complained about how she always got
to clean out the office's storeroom at the end of the year.  Since
Leon had overheard and made the foolish assertion that it was
'women's work' Kathy had decided to teach him a lesson.  Getting
him to accept the bet had been easy.  If he won, she'd go out with
him for a week, on the other hand, if he lost he would do Nene's
job this year.

     Kathy smiled sweetly at him, "Have fun", she said.  Grabbing
Nene's arm, they left Leon still staring at the computer.  The two
of them were still laughing when they reached they reached the
parking lot.  "You know", Nene said, "You should come along to one
of the War games that I play with Linna and the others".

     Kathy shrugged, "I'm better at shooting targets than at real
people", she admitted, "When Jim taught me to shoot, I didn't think
I'd ever be using it for real".

     Nene nodded, "He must be a good teacher", she said.

     Kathy smiled and looked far away for a moment, "Well he
*was*", she said quietly.

     Nene placed a hand on Kathy's shoulder, "Hey come on, I'm sure
he'll get better", she said, "You shouldn't give up hope".

     Kathy nodded, "Well Jim's pulled himself out of many a
hopeless situation in the last few decades", she said, "I'm sure
he'll pull through this one too".

     Nene waved to her friend as she pulled away, but her mind was
on Kathy's last comment.  "Few decades??", she thought to herself,
"She must have misspoke".  The it hit her that her friend might be
more than she appeared.  Nene raced home and quickly called Sylia,
"We might have a bigger problem than I first thought", she began.

                                  ******

     Jim followed Madaline into a large building complex, noticing
that there seemed to be a large number of armed guards patrolling
the grounds.  They walked through a large blast door and into a 
hangar.  Sitting in the middle of the hangar was a small
helicopter, painted a midnight black.

     "Are we going somewhere?", he asked, looking at the helicopter
cautiously.

     Madaline shook her head.  "Only if you want to after seeing
what I've got to show you", she said.

     She led him into a room that had several banks of monitors
occupying one side of the room and a large table occupying the
centre.  Seated at one end of the table was an older man, who
looked up as Jim approached, "Jim, my boy!", he said, standing and
shaking hands warmly.

     Jim looked at him and frowned, "I'm sorry sir", he said, "But
I don't remember you".

     Madaline placed a hand on Jim's shoulder.  "I'm sorry Quincy",
she said to the man, "But Jim's completely lost his memory".

     An expression of eagerness flashed across the old man's face. 
It was quickly replaced by one that was consoling and compassion,
"That's horrible", he agreed, "But at least your back with us now".

     Jim sat down awkwardly, "Now what did you want to show me?",
he asked.

     Madaline's expression became serious, "Jim, I'm going to show
you something that is a little frightening, but remember, it's
still me", he said.

     Jim nodded, wondering what could be so startling.  Then he saw
Madaline change, she shimmered like the heat off of desert dunes
and suddenly she was gone, replaced by a large tiger.  The tiger
was pure white, with the exception of it's eyes, they were the same
golden-brown as Madaline's.  Startling slightly as the tiger her
head against his legs, Jim watched in amazement as it began to
change shape again, this time returning to human form.

     Madaline watched Jim carefully as she regained her normal
shape, looking for any sign that he had recovered some of his
memory.  "And that's what we are", she said, "Shapeshifters".

     Jim was sitting shock still in his chair and he looked at his
own hands in disbelief, "We?", he echoed weakly.

     Madaline nodded, "Yes Jim", she said, "You are one of us".

     Quincy placed a hand on Jim's shoulder.  "It's alright my boy,
there's nothing to worry about", he reassured, "It took me a while
to come to grips with it when you showed *me* for the first time".

     Madaline looked at Quincy sourly, "I think we'd better leave
Jim with some time to think", she said, "Let's give him a bit of
privacy".  The two quickly exited the room, leaving a very confused
young man behind them.

                                  ******

     "Don't you think your taking this 'uncle' act a little far?",
Madaline asked Quincy pointedly.

     Quincy shrugged, "Look, I don't know why you insisted that *I*
participate in this, couldn't one of your lackeys impersonate me?",
he complained.

     Madaline thought about it for a moment.  "No, Jim will
probably regain his ability to tell the difference between a human
and a Shapeshifter before too long", she said, "And there must be
nothing to arouse his suspicions".

     Quincy nodded, "I still don't understand why we can just kill
him", he said.

     "Look", Madaline sighed, "If we kill him now we loose the
opportunity to get our hands on Epsilon Industries and I *know*
that your technicians are just dying to get a look at their
technology".

     "Well I've had enough acting for one afternoon", Quincy said,
"Tell him that I had important business to take care of".

     Madaline frowned at him, "I'll be taking him out to the boat
this evening", she said holding up a small hypo, "One way or
another".

                                  ******

     Jim looked around the silent room, he was still coming to
terms with the fact that Madaline was not human.  He shuddered to
think that he was the same.  Standing, he walked over to the bank
of computers, noticing that the symbol occupying the monitor was
that of Genom Industries.  Now that was one thing he was finding
hard to accept, everyone he'd talked to said that Genom was
horrible, building war machines to take over the world.

     "Well let's see about that", he murmured, sitting in front of
the console and typing in a few commands.  Working quickly through
the security programs, Jim managed to enter Genom's database and
bring up his own file.

*********FILE FOR AUTHORISED USERS ONLY*********

Name: James Williams III
Date of Birth: <RESTRICTED>
Sex: male
Personal Information:  James Williams is the head of a large
financial/industrial group known as Epsilon Industries (last fiscal
estimate of net worth approx 192 billion US dollars).  His
grandfather founded the company in 1952 and was the driving force
behind most of it's early accomplishments.  Handing the company
over to his own son (James Williams II) in 1997 the original
Williams disappeared from public life.  Again the company made
substantial gains throughout the early years of this century,
becoming the leading supplier of computer equipment for military
applications.  In 2025 James Williams II retired and the current
owner of Epsilon Industries took control.  In the last five years
the company has been making record profits and has been involved in
assisting Genom Industries with the development of Boomers.  James
Williams is a loyal friend to Genom Industries and his integrity
and honesty are beyond reproach.

******ALL FURTHER INFORMATION IS RESTRICTED TO THE CHAIRMAN******

     "Well that didn't tell me much", he observed to himself as he
continued through the records.  There were several news items,
picturing him and Quincy opening all manner of buildings, visiting
trade fairs and generally promoting themselves and their business. 

     Jim jumped slightly as a hand closed over his shoulder, "I'm
sorry..", he began.

     Madaline smiled gently at him, "That's alright Jim", she said,
"I was sure that you'd try and find out more by yourself".  She sat
down beside him, "Is there anything you'd like to ask me?", she
asked.

     Jim nodded, a little uncomfortably.  "Ahh... well your saying
that *I'm* a Shapeshifter like you?", he asked.  At Madaline's nod
he continued, "Well what exactly does that mean?".

     Madaline ran a hand through Jim's hair, caressing him gently.
"You poor thing", she said quietly with a curiously tender
expression on her face, "You really haven't got a clue, have you?".

     Jim pulled away from her.  "No, of course I haven't", he said.

     Madaline shook herself and nodded.  "Well a Shapeshifter can
reorganise themselves on close to a molecular level", she said, "By
changing our outer form we can assume the shape and feel of nearly
any object".

     Jim nodded, "So this form I see sitting and talking to me
might be another of your 'forms'???", he asked.

     Madaline shook her head, "No, this is my true appearance", she
said, "If at any time you become unconscious you return to your
original form".

     Jim sat for a few minutes, considering what to do, "Well what
do I do now?", he asked her.

     Madaline stood and offered him her hand.  "Come with me and
I'll teach you all about being a shifter", she said firmly.

     Jim hesitated for a moment, but then took her hand.  She led
him outside and towards the helicopter.  Gesturing for him to get
in the pilot's seat, at his confused expression she gave him a wry
smile, "You *do* still remember how to fly?", she asked.

     He gave a quick nod and then got into the indicated seat. 
Madaline smiled and sat down beside him in the co-pilot's position,
"Well, let's get going", she said.  Jim nodded and quickly started
the little machine, he took off carefully and slowly gained
altitude.

     Madaline passed him a map, "We want to go south-west", she
said, indicating a place out at sea.

     Jim frowned, "What's out there?", he asked.

     Madaline just grinned, "You'll see", she said.

     They flew for about an hour, and Jim was beginning to get
worried about their fuel situation.  The ahead on the horizon he
saw a sight that took his breath away.  It was a ship, but not
anything like he'd seen before (well he assumed that he *might*
have, but this was new at the time).  It seemed to be skimming
across the water, it's large twin-hulls cutting through the waves
easily.  As they came closer, Jim was amazed at the size of the
ship, the two hulls were the size of aircraft carriers and the area
that Madaline directed him to land was more like an international
airport than a carrier.

     He flew in close once, passing within a few meters of the
slowly shifting hull.  "It's incredible", he murmured.

     Madaline nodded, "It took nearly a quarter of a century to
build, but it is the Conclave's greatest accomplishment, a floating
fortress that can move anywhere in the world", she explained.

     "The Conclave?", Jim asked.

     "I'll explain all that later", she said, "Let's land and I'll
show you around".

     Jim eagerly placed the little helicopter down on the pad, and
he looked out across the starlit sea, realising that perhaps he'd
finally come home.

                                  ******

Author's Notes:

     Well it's been a while since I released the last part of
Bubblegum Shift - several months at least.  I hope it was worth the
wait and you'll want to read more.  The number of FanFic's that I'm
writing at the moment is getting a bit much to handle - so I'm
going to finish off Oh My God, before I write any more Shifters
(don't worry, that shouldn't be to long).

     Now.. you might have noticed the character of Keith Collins,
he's someone that I've used in another FanFic - Shifting Guyver
(don't look for it.. I've not released this to anyone yet).  I
guess it's a bit strange making references to a FanFic that no one
but myself has read, but you'll see that eventually it'll make
sense.  Besides I like Keith as a character and I couldn't resist
using him in this one.

     OK - well again, all comments appreciated..

-----Brett (5/2/96)

darkwnd@sv.net.au
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Address: darkwnd@sv.net.au   WWW page: http://www.sv.net.au/~darkwnd

Spock: Sir, what these people are saying is logical; If we use up a 
       finite resource, logic dictates that eventually all 
       resources will be exhausted and the resulting calamity 
       will expunge all life forms...
Kirk:  Meaning???
Spock:  We're rooted....

  -----Fast Forward (1989)
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