Once Twilight got over her issues with being called 'old', the group followed Susie back to the native village using a Swing-hele-carrier, like what they'd ridden back on Igliak. Thankfully, this one didn't take anywhere near as long as the one back then, due to the altered gravity of the area. Once there, Glob Lobbers allowed them to pull down a bridge to a new area, in front of a wide, dark cave. As they approached, the entire area began to shake.
"Get down!" Susie hissed warily, grabbing Qwark's hand and tugging him into the brush, as everyone else present had dived for the nearest cover the moment everything began shaking, Nefarious following Twilight and Alister's lead.
Just as everyone was concealed, a glance up revealed a large circular space craft flying overhead resembling UFOs from Old Earth science fiction from below, large enough that the wake of its passage was causing the shaking. As it flew further, Twilight was able to recognize it as the ship that grabbed the four of them back on Igliak. Nearby, Qwark pulled Alister into a hug to try and suppress his own fear, much to Alister's irritation.
Inside the cave, the Elder of Susie's village explained things to them around a campfire. "We call it...Ephemerus, the Creature Collector." His deep, sonorous voice echoed through the cavern. "It's been around for over 100 years, snatching the universe's most dangerous beasts and bringing them here...to our planet."
"Who's in control of it?" Alister demanded, immediately seeking the necessary answers.
"No one knows," the Elder replied. "But that tyrant you saw in our village was its emissary, Commander Spog. He has been protecting Ephemerus for years." He looked up hopefully. "But, now that you're here..."
Twilight thought about that for a time. "Well, I do want a better look at that ship's tech...and maybe figure out what's going on with the planet's gravity fields while I'm at it..."
"Hey! I thought I had first dibs on the ship!" Nefarious complained.
"Nope, I'm the one who originally suggested stealing it back on Igliak, so I've got first dibs!" Twilight countered.
"Good old fashioned hero work, saving an entire planet?" Qwark asked eagerly. "Count me in!"
"I suppose I might as well see what it is about 'hero work' you lot find so appealing," Alister grumbled. "Besides, someone has to keep you two out of trouble." He sighed in resignation. "So...where do we find this Commander Spog?"
"The path to Commander Spog leads through the Dead Grove beyond this cave," the Elder explained.
Qwark looked a little nervous as he stared into the dark, overcast forest, filled with all sorts of creepy crawlies and other dangers. The flora alternated between dark and dreary and deadly bright colors, and some of each had teeth. The fauna looked even less inviting, as glowing eyes peered out from amongst the plants and shadows, hoots and howls echoing amongst the branches. "Doesn't seem...too bad," Qwark murmured. "Why do you call it the Dead Grove, anyway?"
"Because legend has it that the spirits of fallen warriors walk the hallowed paths amongst the trees," the Elder intoned, "seeking those who wander in, hoping to claim their lives for their own so they can complete the tasks they failed at in life. None who enter have ever returned..."
Qwark swallowed convulsively, slowly backing away from the barely visible trees. "Yeah...I'm not so big on the whole 'haunted forest' idea," he whimpered, twisting his hands together and glancing back and forth worriedly. "It's...kinda hard to punch ghosts..."
Twilight rolled her eyes in mild frustration, silently asking for patience. "That's why we have guns, BBBFF," she pointed out dryly. "All FTF weapons are equipped with the Theta Disruptor modifications that let them damage ethereal beings. We have nothing to worry about."
"Really?" Qwark asked, stunned.
"Yup!" Twilight replied, perhaps just a tad too quickly. "It's part of the FTF charged discharge system. If two or more weapons of the same type are locked onto an ethereal being, it'll be frozen in place, and the explosive discharge of a fully charged focal point will tear them apart."
Qwark's fearful expression slowly changed as he listened to Twilight's words, gradually becoming a wide grin. "You put the best tech in these things, LSBFF!" Qwark proclaimed happily, charging into the forest with his weapon out, Alister matching pace.
Nefarious watched Qwark until he was out of hearing range, thenleaned down to Twilight's side. "How much of that was total BS to make him feel better?" he whispered conspiratorially.
Twilight chuckled softly before responding out of the corner of her mouth without moving her lips. "As long as he believes it, none."
Nefarious grinned widely, suppressing his own desire to cackle madly. "Sneaky, using his abilities to our benefit like that. I like it!"
"Does that mean you're coming along?" Twilight asked teasingly, glancing sidelong at him from under her eyelashes. "I didn't think you wanted to be a hero?"
"And leave your safety in the hands of those two?" Nefarious countered derisively. "I haven't looked forward to anything as much as Friday in a long time. I'm not letting some upstart villain get in the way of that!"
Chuckling, Twilight set off after Qwark and Alister, not wanting to let them get too far ahead. Priming his own weapons, Nefarious quickly followed, grinning from ear to ear. "So...out of curiosity...how large is the area of effect of Qwark's 'I think, therefor it is' abilities?"
Twilight paused, scratching her chin thoughtfully. "You know, I'm not sure. I never bothered to test it, because I didn't want him to get the impression there were limits to it..."
"Well...it's not like there really are such things as ghosts...right?" Nefarious offered nervously.
"I'm the Captain of a bloodthirsty crew of space pirates," Twilight replied. "Half of them are undead ghosts bound to technological forms through an ancient curse vulnerable to magical discharge, such as the Theta Disruptor I mentioned."
"The...one you don't have with you?" Nefarious asked worriedly, his eyes darting about.
"Umm...no," Twilight admitted.
They glanced at each other for a time, then quickly took off, running at top speed to catch up with Qwark.