his ship, then oozes through the hull.
XENON
It changed your ship to let our enemy take remote control of it. It also planted a time machine for our enemies to control.
JANUS
(alarmed)
Was my ship the only one they did this to?
XENON
I'm afraid not. It looks like they did this to most of the ships in your fleet, including the Command Battleship.
JANUS
Then why didn't they simply shut off all our ships and clean us up?
XENON
They couldn't, because we jammed their radio communication with the parasites.
JANUS
Oh. But then how did they, did they pull be back? In time?
XENON
We began to lose the battle--
JANUS
Hold on. How many of you are there? I mean of you who are fighting for us? Why didn't we notice your kind fighting each other?
Idan shrugs.
IDAN
Hard to notice? Not even something you were looking for?
JANUS
How many of you are there?
He looks over the playback of the battle, to see fly fighters dogfight and destroy each other with laser and missile fire all over the place.
JANUS
How could we not notice this?
IDAN
Even if you did notice, what would your people think?
Janus considers, and frowns.
JANUS
We'd think you're just fighting among yourselves for control over us, that you still want to kill us, either way. Argh.
Idan nods.
XENON
Janus, because we blocked their radio, they began to lose the battle, and only control what remaining part of your fleet they could. Which included your ship. They started to control your squadron leaders just before you destroyed their worms.
JANUS
Wait! Some of those worms are yours, aren't they?
He looks over the battle, and sees the same lettering, markings of Salamanders friendly to his people, on some of the worms.
JANUS
No!
Janus watches in silence, sorrowful and helpless, and weeps.
IDAN
But they altered that outcome.
JANUS
XENON
Then they made your ship stay still, and not go under the shield which your fleet made around the worm. And they made your ship launch a nuclear warhead outside the worms' shields, so that while their worms were protected, the nuclear blast destroyed your entire fleet--except for you.
JANUS
Wait, their worms? So they destroyed your worms, but not their own?
IDAN
Of course.
JANUS
And you think that's a better outcome?
IDAN
Even if most of my kind left alive are filled with hate, at least they're still alive.
Janus shakes his head, and almost laughs.
JANUS
Wow. But why didn't that nuclear blast destroy me? And how did you rescue me?
XENON
When you fell to the planet, you were very fortunate to fall into the shadow of the worm's shield. The worm's shield protected you, indirectly.
A memory flashes through Janus' mind.
An eclipse shadows the planet. Light ripples in it like water.
XENON
As for our rescuing you--the parasite we planted on your ship and the parasite our enemies planted apparently destroyed each other, so that neither of us could gain control of your ship. Then your ship free-fell, survived in the shadow of the nuclear blast, and--
JANUS
This is beyond nuts.
Xenon smiles.
XENON
You only need to know two more things.
JANUS
Okay.
XENON
One: we have reason to believe that our enemies intended to use your hijacked, time-traveling ships as ferries to go back in time, physically pick up fighters, and bring them forward in time to create an army so numerous it would dwarf even the extremely large army your people were already battling.
JANUS
That's what that was! They did that! There was a flash, my ship docked a fly--against my will, it took it from a huge cube where a million fly fighters were parked--and then there was another flash, and I was back here!
In the battle playback, there's a brief, bright flash around Janus' ship, and a fly fighter appears apparently from nowhere, docked beneath his ship. The fly lights, releases from his ship, and drops behind it--
JANUS
There, that!
XENON
Correct. On to point two--
JANUS
Wait, if they could time-travel to create an army, why use human ships to do it? They could just use their own.
XENON
Salamanders expect each other to time travel, but they don't expect humans to. So that was to surprise us. And it appears they used your ship to ferry a fighter from the past, just before our parasite neutralized their parasite's control over your ship.
JANUS
Okay. But if you all time travel, why is this great end-battle even taking place? Couldn't you just go back in time and kill Adam, so to speak?
XENON
Adam?
IDAN
The first human, you remember.
JANUS
According to many.
IDAN
Many of your people doubt the historicity of Adam, but I can tell you for a fact he is the first human.
Janus stares at him. Then, it's like puzzle pieces click.
JANUS
You?! They?!
Idan nods, and smiles. Stunned, Janus shakes his head.
XENON
If everyone time-travels, strategic advantages equalize. Whatever one side does--
Idan raises a hand.
IDAN
Please save the details for later. On to point two. You, Janus--may I call you Janus?
Janus shrugs, and nods.
IDAN
You, Janus Thaddeus, appear to be the only human gifted with the ability to merge into an alternate time-stream.
JANUS
What?
IDAN
A Salamander can regenerate a limb if it loses one. Cut off a hand, and we'll grow an identical hand back.
XENON
I've grown my right hand back four--
IDAN
Yes, yes, your valor is great, but you're distracting from the point at hand.
Xenon laughs. Idan modestly tries to hold back his own laughter, and mostly fails to.
JANUS
Oh. My Heck. What am I witnessing?
He laughs despite himself.
JANUS
Punny frogs. Oh. My. Heck.
(to Xenon)
And really? Four times?
Xenon nods.
JANUS
Wow!
IDAN
You seem to say that a lot. Do you find your new frog friends impressive?
JANUS
Very much so.
IDAN
Back to the point--
XENON
The point at--
IDAN
Zzzhht!
Idan raises a hand in a gesture which clearly means: stop! He gives Xenon a stern look, but then breaks, and he and Xenon laugh again.
IDAN
I'm sorry. As I was beginning to say--when anyone travels by way of a time machine, they lose time forward or backward, in a sense. But we Salamanders are able to regenerate that time, like limbs. Human time travelers instantly merge into whatever time-stream they are cast into, destroying others. Except you. You retain the ability to "regenerate" yourself into an alternate time-stream, at will. This is an enormous advantage because your ene
mies sent you back in time, and then forward in time, and apparently never noticed the appearance of time-travel ripples around you as a sign that you are innately resistant to the process. Part of you fought a bit, automatically, against the imposed time-changes--tearing against the alterations, as if to merge, but then not merging, as you had no conscious awareness of, or control over, the process.
JANUS
You say our enemies didn't notice my resistance--
The Salamanders perk up at these words.
JANUS
What?
They don't answer.
JANUS
Oh. Our enemies. Well, they are. I mean--
In the battle playback, a brilliant explosion and flash dawns over the entire fleet. Janus watches, mesmerized and horrified.
IDAN
Perhaps we should not play this back--
JANUS
No, I want to remember this...
In the battle playback, an eclipse shadows the planet. Light ripples in it like water. Janus' fighter free-falls toward it.
JANUS
Born again...like water...
IDAN
Water and fire.
Janus regards Idan with surprise.
In the battle playback, Janus' ship crashes on the planet's atmosphere in brilliant, fiery streaks of blue, green, yellow, and white--while a smaller trail breaks off it and burns brilliant blue.
A memory flashes through Janus' mind.
He stargazes on the roof of his house with his Father. A meteorite streaks overhead in blue, green, yellow, and white flame, while a smaller trail breaks off it and burns brilliant blue.
Xenon pauses the playback.
XENON
Those ripples don't appear for every human when they time travel.
JANUS
What?
IDAN
The ripples that appeared around you when our enemies brought you back through time. You are the only human we've ever seen that happen to. For a Salamander with the gift of merging, those ripples appear. The ripples appear for you because you have the same gift.
JANUS
But hold on. As I was saying, you said our enemies didn't notice my time-resistance, but in that playback, I