On and on the lingering kiss continued between the Nietzschean and the more-than-willing lady in red. To the others watching – Q, Dylan, the Magog, and the Seefran spectators – it didn’t seem like it was going to stop any time soon. As they continued in their tirade of kissing, growling, and generally making whoopee, Q continued to pace his cage, all the while looking for a weakness or a flaw of some sort in which he could attempt his escape. In the midst of it all, however, Q suddenly had an epiphany that disturbed and embarrassed him, mainly because he wondered why he hadn’t thought of it before now.

‘Goodness me, what am I thinking! I would say I’m getting forgetful in my old age, but since a Q doesn’t age, well…” thought Q to himself with self-directed irritation and surprise. ‘I am Q – all I have to do is zap myself out of here!’ It was sure to be an easy escape too, considering the fact that everyone was basically ignoring him, preferring instead to gawk at Rhade and the voluptuous lady in red, as they continued to swap spittle at an incredible, enormous, and unprecedented rate.

“Stupid humanoids and their petty antics,” thought Q as a pout spread across his face. He didn’t need her anyway. No woman was going to treat him in this fashion and have him continue to grace her with his presence. Q smirked at them and raised his right hand to zap himself away – only to find the lady in red raising her left hand at the same time, all the while never distracting herself from her newly discovered Nietzschean playmate. Much to Q’s anger and surprised shock, he discovered that he hadn’t gone anywhere, but was still in his caged prison, consisting of white-hot energy bars and dirty hay.

‘This is odd,’ thought Q with worry and concern. He tried it again – but instead of a zap, there was only a fizzle…and then nothing. Again he tried – and again the same result occurred. After several dozen failed attempts, a rising panic took hold of Q as he realized the inevitable had occurred – his zapper wasn’t working. Although Q had heard of it happening to others in the Continuum, never before had he personally experienced or even witnessed it for himself – until now, that is. He was Q, and for the first time in his existence, his zapping abilities had been made impotent, rendered useless by the evil lady in red and her powers. Q’s zapper was without a spark…at least until his Continuum batteries had recharged.

“This can’t be happening!” cried Q at the top of his lungs.

Hearing Q’s bewailing startled a previously absorbed Dylan, who had aforetime been watching Rhade and his companion with utter jealousy and rage. Dylan, still fuming from the fact that Rhade had stolen his girlfriend, needed a diversion to help him forget that he was no longer the most important thing in the universe. Remembering that Q had had a hand in this unfortunate occurrence only served to make Dylan even madder – which did not help matters, especially where Q was concerned. Instead of going on his typical charade of hope and how good always wins over evil, however, Dylan decided instead to take a different approach in taunting Q. After all, if it had worked for the scruffy Nietzschean with a bad attitude named Telemachus Rhade (and that was obvious, considering what was happening right now) – what could it do for him – a Paradine?

Dylan decided to put the plan to test. Realizing that Q was becoming agitated and frustrated at his less than impressive zap, Dylan stared at Q with a mischievous grin and proceeded to lift his forcelance, eyeing it with exaggerated curiosity and interest. Once he knew he had Q’s full attention, he then took the forcelance and pointed it at Q.

“Have you seen my forcelance?”

“Oh, I’ve seen it and believe me, I’m not impressed.”

“You’re just jealous because mine works and yours doesn’t.”

Q steeled a look at Dylan, and lifted his hand to point a finger of warning at the Captain.

“I’m warning you, Mr. Paradine Leatherpants! All of you will wish you had never messed with a Q when I get out of this cage! You just wait until the Continuum hears about this!”

Rhade and the woman continued in their liplock, ignoring the both of them. Q looked at the both of them with impatience. ‘She had better get on with what she was doing, and soon,’ thought Q. ‘My zapper is going to be recharged soon and, when it does, we’ll both see who’s zapper is the more potent between us!’

Dylan, so preoccupied with his gloating over Q, had almost forgotten what was happening between the Rhade and the lady in red. Now he was becoming somewhat agitated himself as he realized with dismay that Rhade, being genetically enhanced, might not need to come up for air any time soon. After all, a Nietzschean was the only humanoid species he could think of that could survive the scrubber without any ill effects to his lungs – and this was definitely no scrubber. As for the lady – well, even Dylan the Paradine didn’t know who she was, what she was, or even where she came from. As far as he knew, she might not ever need to breathe. Realizing that this could go on all evening and not wanting to be a spectator to the event any longer, Dylan cleared his throat in protest. The two only ignored him.

Now it was Q that had had enough, and he wasn’t so subtle about it.

“Excuse me! You two can get a room, as they say, later. Right now we have more important business to attend to – ME.”

Rhade and the lady hesitated, and then stopped. Rhade growled in anger as he realized Q and Dylan had interrupted a very pleasurable moment for him. The lady was just as irritated. Sighing heavily, she backed off from Rhade and looked at Q with a glare.

“Patience, mon Q! I’ll attend to your … business … when I’m good and ready.” Rhade and the lady both laughed mischievously and embraced each other yet again, puckering up for round two of their act of passion. Before their lips could meet, however, Q continued his charade of indignant rage.

“I want this taken care of right now!” screamed Q, and then did something that could only be described in accurate terms as a temper tantrum. The lady and Rhade parted lips and turned around to face Q. Together, all three of them watched in disgust as Q stamped his feet, ran around the cage screaming, and even fell on the floor a few times, each instance stirring up a cloud of dust from the straw under his feet.

“Clearly he’s reverted back to childhood,” Rhade proclaimed with a sneer, and turned back around to face his favorite object of attention. “What do you say? Should we ‘take care’ of him, my seductive pet?”

“Whatever you say, you gorgeous hunk of leather clad superior manliness!” answered the lady.

“Pshaw!” Dylan snorted sarcastically. “You two are making me sick!” Rhade, hearing Dylan and getting weary of his barrage of sarcastic insults, responded in turn.

“Bite me, Dylan.”

“But that’s my job,” protested the lady playfully. Rhade let out a laugh and a growl.

“Oh, that’s right!” responded Rhade. “No offense, Dylan – but she looks better than you.” The two embraced and kissed once again. This time Rhade didn’t stop with her lips, but ran his mouth down the front and sides of her neck. He bit her ear playfully and she let out a yelp as he poked her in the back of her ribs.

“Hey, I’m ticklish there!” giggled the woman.

“I know, you’re ticklish all over!” answered Rhade as he began showering her with kisses and tickling her unmercifully. Both Q and Dylan watched with disgust and envy as the woman returned Rhade’s favor by lifting her left leg up the side of the Nietschean, playfully stroking the back of his calf with the heel of her booted foot. Rhade then let out a surprised yelp of his own as the lady reached her hand down to the rear area of his leather trousers and pinched his bottom.

The lady in red giggled with delight. “Hey, you’re ticklish too!” she teased. “And in a very interesting place!”

“You have no idea!” answered Rhade.

“It’s never easy,” grumbled Dylan to himself.