Under the Rim (Verses 161 to 184)
Under the Rim. An epic galactic romp.
Intro and verses 1-20
Verses 21-40
Verses 41-60
Verses 61-80
Verses 81-100
Verses 101-120
Verses 121-140
Verses 141-160
Verses 161-170
Looking about with omniscient eyes
The plasma took in all it saw
And then without trace it withdrew from that place
No-one knew what the hell it was for
The Cap'n by now, a cunning old devil
Had rapidly mustered his crew
His ship disappeardo as the rest watched this weirdo –
The Undaunted to safety fast flew
The slime cottoned on and fast slithered up
To fix for itself a chauffeur
It just got aboard as the Grey Overlord
Took his fleet off – he sure weren't no loafer
The Undaunted had gone, via hyperspin drive
To a totally different sector
The Overlord was baffled, his prize was not snaffled
He cursed at his ship and near wrecked her
The Xylplixians watched and were fast getting bored
For the fun had all now disappeared
The Sagonimone too finally withdrew
Though it wasn't the plasma they feared
The Cap'n was now apparently safe
His pursuer was nowhere in sight
So he went with Callest' to his cabin to rest
Pulled the blinds then turned off the light
For now he had shaken the onerous creep
And could try out his shining new wisdom
But somehow he thought as Callester he sought
It could wait till after she'd kissed 'im
So all became quiet on that great ship at last
As it hacked along – man it were goin' some
It was all rather dead so the crew went to bed
The computer was all on its lonesome
For some reason lost in the deep depths of time
The computer was called Auntie Flo
And now on its tod as the crew had a nod
A secret or two it would show
You see, when it was built many decades before
The technicians weren't quite on the level
One of these berks had quite a few quirks
And made a huge goof-up, the devil
Verses 171-180
So now, Auntie Flo, reliable mostly
Occasionally did something bad
And here in the night with the crew out of sight
Went totally utterly mad
She delved in the secretest part of the ship
And primed up the ultra-spin drive
Like throwing dice 'twas a random device
But it rarely left gamblers alive
It could only be used at the utmost of times
An incredibly dangerous tool
And then only when the most gifted of men
Was behind it, not no-one at all
So old Auntie Flo, grinning mechanically
Threw the drive into fast operation
But there was a hitch for the stupid old bitch
Hadn't handled the cruiser's rotation
The drive worked within the fabric of space
And the ether itself was used
It was incomprehensible to any sensible
Man, so was seldom abused
But old Auntie Flo, of course knowing best
Switched it on: Surprise! It worked
She cackled a bit as the ship had a fit
In a strange Universe they were jerked
Here time went backward, an interesting concept
Which many strange dreamings have stirred
At midday the crew, as they slowly came to
Were wondering what had occurred
They were heading back to Galaxy Nine
Apparently chasing the Fleet
Then the drive burnt out, wrecked beyond doubt
And dripped to the deck in the heat
Suddenly all was as 'twas before
Well, maybe not quite the same
The Grey Fleet was running away from the cunning
Cap'n and his simpering dame
The Fleet got sucked into the Gulf of Tor B
The Overlord though, he escaped
His ship was equipped with a lifeboat which slipped
From its grasp, with his life he just scraped
Verses 181-184
The Undaunted found the base of the Fleet
And razed it right down to the ground
The Cap'n were pleased as Callester he squeezed
And a glass full of liquor he downed
The Sagonimone rescued the Grey Overlord
Although he was seethingly livid
They fixed him up too, 'twas a big job to do
The change was really quite livid
The Undaunted set off with a sigh of relief
To explore further regions of space
To go to the home of the Sagonimone
And discover more of that race
There is yet a secret one should tell
About the Rim of Galaxy Nine
About the dearth of life on Earth
But this will be told at a different time
Image: Pixabay
