THE JEWEL OF TARGON
By David Wise
Mighty Orbots is heading home from a mission, when Ono scans a satellite in orbit around the dead world of Targon that is overloading and about to explode. At least, Targon is suppose to be dead. Scanners report that there is a life form on the surface. They must get rid of the satellite! Boo uses a telekinetic toss to eject the satellite into deep space, where it detonates safely. But what about that life form? Rob must return to Earth. He separates the Orbots, and sends Bort, Crunch and Bo down to the surface to investigate.
On the surface of the planet, the 3 Orbots find little but the ruins of the civilization that once was there. Crunch, as usual, finds a meal. As Bort and Bo look around, he starts eating the surroundings. Then Bort finds a large crystal gem, and Crunch is on it in a flash. But before he can munch down, Bo grabs the jewel away from him. No way is he going to chew up on this gem! Not finding the life form, the 3 Orbots leave the planet.
As the Orbots leave, they are watched by the life form. His name is Darra, and he is a Shadow Agent. He reports to Umbra that the Orbots found the jewel, and have left the planet. Umbra is pleased. Darra signs off, and attempts to leave the planet in his Shadow scout ship. But the engines fail, caused by the planet’s negatively charged atmosphere. When Darra calls the Shadow Star for help, Umbra informs him that he did his job well, and the reward for such would be for Darra to spend the rest of his life on Targon.
Bo arrives on Earth with the jewel. She shows the gem to Rob and Rondu, who are attending the opening of the Galactic Museum. Rondu senses something from the jewel, an odd feeling that the jewel hides something. He has Bo place the jewel in the Hall of Crystals for examination in the morning.
That evening, while a security droid is making its round through the hall, the jewel starts to crack. While the astonished droid watches, the gem reveals itself to be an egg, and it has just deposited a small reptilian creature in front of it. The droid leaves the hall in a shot. The reptile heads for a large chunk of dylithium crystal and munches down. It instantly begins to grow.Rob and Ono are heading for the museum in the Beam Car when the creature bursts through the roof of the building. Rob calls for the Orbots, but before they arrive, the creature moves to the roof of a building. There, it fires off a burst of energy as it goes through a growth spurt. It is now a winged dragon. As the Orbots arrive, the dragon takes off, heading for outer space. Rob and the Orbots are quickly following the beast.
Rondu calls. He tells Rob that he feels that there is someone on Targon that can tell them just what they are up against. Rob sends Bo and Bort back to investigate.Meanwhile, the creature (who must have warp capabilities) reaches Mars. There, it heads straight for the dylithium mining center based there. It lands on a storage silo that is full of raw dylithium, and starts on a feeding binge. Unfortunately, the pigging down of all that dylithium causes it to begin to generate heat. When the creature reaches 1200º, the overheated dylithium will explode, taking out everything on the planet, including the Orbots!
Bo and Bort arrive on Targon, only to land slap dab in the middle of a giant spider’s web. As the creature approaches them for its meal, Darra appears, offering to rescue them, but only if they will help him. See little options, they reluctantly agree. Darra uses a field generating gun to yank the 2 Orbots off the web, and causing the spider to fall into a pit. Bort transforms into a space vehicle for Darra to ride in, and they all leave Targon. While flying along, Darra explains about the creature that they are now fighting.
Back on Mars, Tor is trying everything he can to get a tank full of cooling water to open. It rebukes all of his attempts. He finally has Crunch eat a trench underneath the dylithium silo. He climbs under the tank, lifts it, then hurls it, creature and all, out into space, where the temperature of the creature reaches 1200º. The dylithium detonates.
Bo, Bort and Darra arrive to witness the fireworks. But just as Tor was beginning to gloat over his heroics, the creature returns! But this time, it has THREE heads, and twice the speed, and it is heading back to Earth! Can the Orbots stop this unstoppable creature before it tears the Earth to pieces?
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