Upon their return to the Phoenix, the Q Force reassembled on the bridge for Qwark's debriefing. "Well team," he proclaimed, "I believe some congratulations are in order."
Ratchet rolled his eyes, fully expecting Qwark to try and take all the credit.
"I believe the MVP of this mission was definitely Twilight," Qwark continued, "as she was able to acquire the entirety of Nefarious' stored data, which Al is currently decrypting, without leaving a trace of our presence! Let's give her a big hand, everyone!" At that, he began to applaud.
Twilight blushed as the whole team began to applaud. Ratchet raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"Ratchet, Clank, your teamwork at penetrating the base's defenses was superb as you went through the interior corridors, clearing paths for each other as you went," Qwark continued. "And Skidd, you showed courage above and beyond the call, proving your value to the team." More applause greeted. "According to Al, we should have a report on where the Tyhrranoids are coming from within the hour. We will have a plan of assault by then." He raised a hand. "One thing I feel I must point out here. As said before, Nefarious has a personal grudge against me. Now, I know I can't best him alone this time around, since he'll be gunning for me specifically. So, as soon as I make a public appearance fighting him, I will be claiming all credit for our accomplishments specifically to ensure all his attention is focused on me, leaving the rest of you to sneak around behind him and give his backside the Boot of Justice!"
Twilight blinked. "Did...did Qwark just justify being an unbearable show boat in public?" she asked.
"You are not the only one shocked," Clank agreed.
"The plan for the assault on the Tyhrranoids should be ready in 75 minutes," Qwark finished. "Until then, dismissed!"
(1)
As Ratchet, Clank, and Twilight made their way back to their quarters to rest and rejuvenate, Sasha caught up to them. "I was wondering if I could ask you something regarding your report on the Aquatos excursion."
"Sure, Sasha," Ratchet replied eagerly. "What's up?"
"May I ask why you took that side trip in the sewers?" she asked. "None of you are exactly hurting for money, and I don't see what other purpose you could have in fetching those sewer crystals for...The Plumber?"
"Our actions there were actually two fold," Twilight explained. "First, we've encountered him several times before in our adventures, both here in Solana and in Bogon, and he always seemed to be a little more aware of events than he should be, and seemed to possess abilities not exactly defined by standard physics."
"Like your own abilities, you mean?" Sasha asked.
"Not exactly," Twilight replied. "But we all feel its best to complete whatever side trips he presents. It may prove helpful in the long run, whether it seems to or not."
"Alright, I can accept that," Sasha replied. "I've encountered my own share of 'more than they seem' characters. But why take his money when you don't need it?"
"Fundraising for our friends and allies here on the Phoenix!" Twilight chirped happily, bouncing the bag of bolts as she turned towards the shop terminals.
"Indeed," Clank agreed. "I went through the mission accounts and discovered that the bulk of our official funding went to the Phoenix itself."
"And until the ship is completed, stocked, and staffed, the three of us are the only ones with decent equipment, mostly what we brought with us," Ratchet added disapprovingly. "Even the Rangers assigned to us have only stock gear and training, and probably would have gotten wasted in previous missions if Twilight hadn't lent them some of her weaponry. So we decided to help them out a bit, you know?"
Sasha's eyes widened in surprise, then narrowed as she thought through the arguments. "So...any future side missions not directly related to thwarting Dr. Nefarious are essentially going to be resource acquisition runs to support Q-Force?"
"Indubitably!" Clank agreed.
"I'm even going to donate any of my winnings from Annihilation Nation!" Twilight squealed happily.
"Well, that and maybe getting some 'on location footage' for Derek Tovid," Ratchet pointed out as the rest of the team passed by towards their own quarters. "It might be better if Nefarious assumed Clank and his assistants were here as part of his acting career."
"Ooh!" Clank piped up. "I hadn't thought of that!"
Twilight gasped happily. "Oh, this is going to be so much fun! I can whip up a copy of my costume prosthesis rather easily, and Al can help me make it so it stays on and actually functions like a cybernetic enhancement to the naked eye instead of just on camera! Oh, and once Qwark goes public, we can send some of his footage too for his heroic comeback!"
Qwark's eyes widened in surprise. "You...you'd really want me to be a part of your movie career?" he asked, shocked. "Do...do you think your agent will take me on as a client when the time comes? Mine kinda dumped me after the whole Drek contract fiasco."
Ratchet smiled easily. "I'm sure we can work something out. Anyone else want in?"
"You know it, dude!" Skidd proclaimed eagerly. "Don't even need a new agent, though that guy still owes me an apology. 'Celebratory fireworks' my ass..."
"Um...maybe, I guess?" Al offered as he looked up from his decryption work. "I don't know if I'm cut out for film..."
"You'll do fine!" Twilight assured him. "Clank needs a Q type character."
"But I don't have reality warping powers," Al pointed out. "Though those might be cool..."
"It's a spy drama," Twilight pointed out.
"Oh, that Q," Al replied, somewhat disappointed. "Yeah, I can do that."
Helga sighed in exasperation. "Bah! Holovids and glory hounding are vat nearly ruined Keptain Qvark! Still, you three doing okay with films. If the Keptain is in, then so am I...if only to make sure he stays in shape and on track!"
"What about you, Miss Phyronix?" Clank asked. "Do you want to be part of this?"
Sasha looked away, rather flustered. "I don't know...pretty sure I'm not cut out for film...and it wouldn't really be appropriate..."
"Are you kidding?" Twilight demanded. "It'd be great! Not only would it add that touch of realism to the film, it would seem like the entire project is making a holo-vid rather than fighting Nefarious. Since he's such a huge fan, he might even stop fighting so he can go over the script and participate!" She smirked. "Besides, 'out of my league' romance sub-plots are really big right now, and you can't get much more than that than the butler and the starship captain."
"Twilight!" Ratchet complained as Sasha turned away, hiding a blush.
"I'm talking the movie, Daddy!" Twilight pointed out, smiling to herself as she saw the blush. Walking over to the terminals, she chuckled. "You only play a butler, after all."
After an hour spent acquiring new equipment for the Galactic Rangers under their command - including new weapons, better quality armor, and an hours worth of training in a crash course of 'how not to die a screaming coward' - the Q Force gathered on the bridge for the new mission briefing.
"Now that we know where the Tyhrranoids come from," Qwark began, "I have devised a brilliant plan to put a stop to this alien menace once and for all!" He brought out the crayon drawings for the powerpoint presentation. "As the smallest targets with planetary assault experience, Ratchet, Clank, and Twilight will go in first, backed by their new crack unit of Galactic Rangers, code named the Sparkle Squad!"
Twilight groaned and face-hoofed. "Are they really called that?"
"They've even painted their armor lavender with a star insignia," Qwark pointed out, causing Twilight to groan even further. "To avoid damage to the ships, you will all have to free fall down to take out the mortar launchers. Once the path is clear, the rest of us will come in on the dropship. Next, Ratchet, Twilight, Skid and Clank will each take a specially designed assault vehicle to take out the four plasma cannon turrets. Once the turrets have been knocked out, they will join together to spearhead the assault on the Tyhrranoid main base while the Rangers keep the main force distracted outside. That will be when I join in, to annihilate the Tyhrranoid control points, ending the threat once and for all!"
Ratchet smiled. "This is going to be fun."
(1) The majority of this scene (through to the next page break) crafted by - and used with permission from - Tangent, who presented it in a comment as an Alt-script, which I felt had to be canon.
The comment can be found here.
Sparkle Squad assemble!
I just adore how this is progressing.
Twilight is literally a shipper on deck at this moment because they're on a ship!!!!
Nice chapter, glad to see the side quest plot bunny being implemented. I'm finding myself liking Qwark's plans more and more, his idea to keep out of the spotlight until the time is right works well.
Another enjoyable chapter. Good job.
Oh hey, I remember reading that comment, glad to see it got used!
5985916 I am reminded of this. 2:36 (Volume warning for what comes a bit afterwards)
Are you planning on doing an arc on Deadlocked? Even though it's one of my favorite everyone else seems to hate it.
I don't understand. I'm...I'm actually starting to like Qwark! What sorcery is this?!
" as she was able
"it'd be great!
1. Extra spacing.
2. Forgot to capitalise.
I wonder how the Sparkle Squad will perform under Twilight's Star Spangled Banner. No doubt they already have a flag too showing her plot mark to the world. Twilight has come and the enemy awaits.
5986050
Yeah, is weird.
Also, i wonder what kind of life Tatsurou has that allows him to write like 20.000 words or more a week.
5986362
...none...
The Sparkle Squad... never has there been a more terrifying and efficient force in the Space Ranger community, inspired by a great leader, with a genius mind, they wear her symbol as a sign of respect, in honor of her own efforts in protecting the galaxy. Rigorous training and no expense spared in their weaponry and technology, they are the galaxy's true defenders, the security of the realm.
They are... the Sparkle Squad.
NOW BOW ON YOUR KNEES PEASANTS!
5985916 as Twi said, its the monkey whos the actual brains of the operation, not Quark, hes just the figurehead
5986460 True, but I'm fairly sure the monkey needs Qwark to tell him about things he hasn't seen before to plan around them. And Qwark does have experience, which means he can help make plans.
5981365 information about Picards past is given in the show at various points. he was captain of the USS Stargazer prior to being given the Enterprise-D. while on that assignment, he encounter a Ferengi ship and developed what would come to be termed the 'Picard Maneuver' after it attacked for no apparent reason. it was during his days at Starfleet Academy that he received his artificial heart after getting knifed in the chest. additional data is there if u look for it...
5986505
I need more than just 'data'.
I need either novelizations or episodes. I can't write a story from just data.
now i can't stop thinking the now purple rangers with Megaman arm cannons with crazy twilight upgrades and wearing dusters with twilights cutie mark on the back of each of them.
5986525 Hmm. Maybe you could expend the Stargazer accident to include getting Tia. There is at least 2 episodes and books that can give you some data on the accident and the trial that followed. Oh, and Picard's first meeting with Gaignum.
YES!
Tatsurou, I am just loving your stories and the rate at which you update them. I wish I was capable of such a feat, juggling six well written stories about and keeping nice, consistent story lines. You say you have no life, but to me... This IS your life. And we are all VERY thankful for it.
Never stop writing, never feel dead. If you're ever depressed, just know that you have us. :)
The sparkle squad...well silly they may sound and look, but considering they been trained and upgraded I'm betting they going to be the type you mock at your own peril.
Great chapter by the way!
Sooooo ffffing true
HE MUST BE AN ORACLE....OR JUST A GUY WHO READS SPACE-WIKIPEDIA ALOT
Came in late after an evening with my friends, but saw this was up and had to read it before I went to bed.
Nicely done! I like how this arc of the story actually seems to be incorporating Quark's redemption. Sure, the missions are functionally the same, but this time he's presenting them seriously, and without the subtle hints of jealousy and/or dislike - No, this Quark gives credit where credit is due, and though he does have plans to "hog the spotlight" once he can start openly performing missions of his own, he has a valid reason for doing so and warned his team well ahead of time and explained his reasoning.
Anyway, since it was stated in this chapter that Captain Sasha Phyronix has command of the Phoenix, while an earlier chapter had Captain Quark as being selected as the mission commander (which he is, both in the game and in this story, albeit far more competently in this story than in the game), her father has yet to fully displace her from the position in favor of Quark, which left her in a liaison role in the game (if I remember correctly). As it stands, while there may be some initial chain-of-command confusion due to their being two captains, with the one not in command of the ship being in command of the mission, this should straighten out without too much trouble.
Although I suspect that such confusion may have been why the crew of the Phoenix was caught so flat-footed during a certain section of the game...
Both Captains have effectively equal rank. Captain Phyronix's duties have her commanding the Phoenix itself and most of the personnel assigned as crewmembers and officers for the purpose of operating and maintaining the ship. As she and they are actual members of the military, most of the official budget assigned to the mission is prioritized towards getting the Phoenix fully operational, since Q-Force is currently close to (and might actually be) off-the-books.
Captain Quark has command of the mission itself, with a team of hand picked personnel as his command crew, with most of them likely being warrant officers due to their positions and skills (Al & Skidd probably), or sergeants (Ratchet, Twilight, and Helga), with Ratchet possibly being considered to be a Master Chief instead. Ratchet and Twilight, with their commando training, experience, and willing to lead right up front alongside those in their command, have their own squads of highly loyal Rangers (Yes, Ratchet should have his own squad, just like Twilight has hers, his would just likely be less flamboyant about showing their affiliation). Helga would maintain her role as over all training and fitness instructor (thus her own sergeant status as drill instructor), thus only has direct command of any raw recruits while also being assigned to keeping certain individuals in fighting trim (or getting them there in the first place). Clank, essentially being on board as a special agent, is not actually part of the chain of command as such, especially since he frequently works in tandem with Ratchet and often defers to the decisions of Ratchet and Twilight anyway.
And now that I'm done overanalyzing that mess (and likely getting some observations wrong), I'm off to sleep!
5974986
AHAHAHHAHAHA I REMEMBER THAT "FIREWORK"....even though i didnt speak/understand english back when i played the first 4 games......
and an hours worth of training in a crash course of 'how not to die a screaming coward'
Sounds like something General Daddy Sir would come up with.
5987342 MAGGOTS! THE ENEMY IS THAT WAY! YOU ARE A DISGRACE TO THE THE UNIFORM!
5987023 a point here, u r mixing military ranks for Army and Navy and not doing it very well at that...
a listing of Naval ranks can be found here, while a listing of Army ranks may be found here
5988821
While I do acknowledge that your response to my post is valid, and appreciate the links, I have two things to say in my defense:
First, as noted in the post, I made it while I was dead tired before going off to sleep. That means an increased chance of errors such as mixing navel and army ranks happening. I'd be surprised if there weren't other errors as well, but I thank you for pointing out the ones that you did.
Second, how do you mix ranks in the military force of an alien culture when e only have bare-bones clues as to how their normal chains of command even work? The ranks I remember being mentioned throughout the series, in no particular order are: Captain, General, Private, and Sergeant, with possibly a Lieutenant thrown in there somewhere, and no indication as to whether they were all part of the same over-all military structure or even part of the same government's military.
All I can guess is that Quark's rank of Captain is either an honorific awarded to him for his previous defeat of Dr. Nefarious or some similar service to the public good, he was actually part of some government's military or paramilitary force, or he was a civilian ho referred to himself as "Captain" either because it sounded cool or by right of owning and operating a ship. From what I understand Ratchet could technically claim civilian captaincy due to his own spaceship, but either hasn't or doesn't make a big deal of it because he's fully aware that it's not the same thing as the military rank of the same name.
Anyway, general convention holds that it is most likely that any military force primarily operating is space will most likely follow either navel or airforce rank structures.
5989878 technically, a space ship is still a ship, so Navy rank would apply. from what i have seen of the Ratchet and Clank series (admittedly, just the cut scenes from the games on You Tube), i can conclude that the ranks u mentioned were used by ground forces, making them Army. i am actually taking my cues for this thinking from UNSC protocol as seen in the Halo games and books. the SPARTAN II program was a Navy SpecOps project, thats y John holds the rank of Master Chief Petty Officer, despite the SPARTANs being deployed for only ground ops and not space ops.
logically, other military outfits would adopt a similar outlook on space born combat assets verses ground operations
Why am I always a day late getting these updates?
anyway great chapter!
5986025 I love deadlocked....
You know, when you get to Deadlocked I am going to be excited, since is my favorite game in the series, with my favorite character. Sadly, I don't see how said character will survive unless he is rebuilt.
Sorry Shellshock, you never stood a chance.
Also curious about what you are going to do with Ace. I know that by All 4 One he is reformed. But he was kindof a prick in Deadlocked.
Still riding the hype train, waiting for Future.
5986978 it implied the Plumber is a relation to Pinkie Pie...
..... Star Trek References in My Little Pony?
mlpforums.com/uploads/post_images/img-2471950-3-commission___palace_discord_by_jamieswiftrunner-d49wiqj.png
For Shame on you~
6058279 i0.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/546/006/d8b.png
5986453 ......AND HOLD ONTO YOU ASSES!
I lost it at that, because John de Lancie, who played Q on star trek, also voiced Discord
6058279 James Bond / 007 references in My Little Pony? Again?
I'm not familiar with this Q.
All in favour of The Plumber being a Old One?
7269571
Bah. Pinkie is an Old One. ...as in race/species, not age.
7269571 aye
7269571
Let's see.
Know everything
Is basically a toadman
Is an astral projection
Made the Orks while forgetting an off switch
Annihilated by the C'tan abusing the Necrontyr
...
Eh, close enough.
How sad is it that I only just now understood that reference? Seriously, I used to sit and watch Star Trek with my family as a little kid. I am thoroughly ashamed of myself.
Sparkle squad
Hahaha! Huzzah!
What does that mean exactly? I can’t find it with searches. Is it basically support/home command? (Just guessing, don’t know for fact.)
11133133
Al concluded Star Trek Q. Twilight meant James Bond Q.