Dean "Meeting Python... wow, conference call!"
Deano took sip from his coffee and flipped the page whilst the Blue Dwarf sat in a lazy orbit around the planet at the centre of the universe. With a sudden, (and somewhat alarming) flash of inspiration, he called up on his monitor the BD log, so he could catch up on what he had missed during his hangover/depression stage. From what he could glean, the Dwarf had landed a whole bunch of simulants on a planet. Then the simulants had disappeared. Then Jay and some others had gone to rescue the stranded pilot. Now Jay and the others were gone.
<SNIP>
"This is Paskevich to Jay Chrysler's team, please respond. I think we're a bit late please advise!"<END SNIP>
And now, it seemed, there was a whole new bunch of people who had been sent down to get the men who went in to get the men.
"Well, not quite. Dean Thomas here. Jay's currently unavailable due to him being mauled by crazy space things. Can I help?"
"We're being mauled by crazy space things!" shouted Paskevich. "Where's Jay?"
"Hold on, he's just sending me a message, please hold." Dean put the rude guy on hold whilst Jay filled him in on the story proper. "So you're coming back to the Dwarf now right?" asked Dean, after Jay had told him the tale.
"Yup." said Jay, "there'd better be a medicrew and a large beer standing by for all of us."
"Ok, I'll see to that. Incidentally, some chap named.. Peskybitch... or something, he wanted you. Said he was down on a planet being mauled by space things. Ring any bells?""Paskevich?"
"Yeah. That's it."
"On a planet. Being mauled.... oh smeg."
"I'll put you guys through. I've got the hang of this conference call thing you know."
"By the love of Smeg, finally?" asked Jay
"Yeah. Whilst you've been down there I've read a magazine and the manual for the comm system. Look."
With a click, and a hiss, suddenly a lot of clanging filled the channel.
"What on Io is that? Distortion?" shouted Jay
"No. It's the starbug being pummeled by weird aliens from Efof's planet intent on killing us all!"
Jay sighed and bashed his head off a nearby wall. It had been one of those days.
Dean "Conference Call" Thomas