7. Jack’s Electronics

Ryan and Sandy’s apartment

	Ryan picked up the ringing phone.  “Hello?”
	“Who the hell is this?” asked a raspy woman’s voice.
	“This is Ryan.  May I help you?” he asked.
	“Ryan who?” the voice snapped back.
	“Ryan Noctan,” Ryan replied patiently.
	“You related to Sandy?”
	“Yes, I’m her brother.”
	There was a pause, then the woman said.  “This is Sandy’s 
landlady.  I need to talk to her about her rent.”
	“I will go get her,” Ryan said sweetly.  He set the phone 
down and went to Sandy’s bedroom door.  “Sandy, telephone.”
	“Just a sec,” Sandy said.  Ryan saw a small flash of light 
through the crack under the door.
	“What was that light?” Ryan asked.
	“What light?”
	“I saw a light under your door.”
	“I did not see anything.”
	Ryan shook his head.  “I guess it was nothing,” he said.  
“Anyway, it is your landlady on the phone, and she sounded 
upset.”
	“She always does,” Sandy said, opening her door with a royal 
blue silken robe wrapped around her.  Picking up the phone, 
Sandy’s voice became honeyed.  “How may I help you, Ms. 
Cravis?...yes...yes he is...six weeks...the lease is for two 
people, Ms. Cravis.  Check it again.”  There was a long pause.  
“Is there anything else, Ms. Cravis?...yes I did...it did?”  
Sandy looked surprised.  “How could that have happened?  My bank 
account has more than enough money to cover it...I am going to 
call my bank right now.  I will call you back...Bye Ms. Cravis.”
	“What is it?” Ryan asked as Sandy hung up the phone.
	“My rent check bounced,” she answered.
	“That is not possible,” Ryan said.  “There was plenty of 
money in it three days ago when I paid your credit card bill.”
	Sandy gasped and sat down.  “Did you give the credit card 
company my account number?”
	“Yes,” Ryan said.  “They said it would speed things up.”
	Sandy shook her head and laid it in her palms.  “Ryan, do you 
have any idea why my bank account number would speed the credit 
card company up?”
	Ryan thought for a moment, and then it dawned on him.  “Isn’t 
it illegal for them to wipe out your account?”
	“Not if I owe them money,” she said.  “It may have been 
illegal for them to do that a long time ago, but this day and age 
is colder in more ways than just the temperature.”
	“How are we going to pay the rent?” Ryan asked.
	“I get paid this week, and all of it will have to go to the 
rent.  I am sure Ms. Cravis will wait until Friday.  We will have 
to tighten our belts and only eat the things we have sitting way 
back in the cupboards until my next check comes in.  Until then, 
your job search just became a lot more intensive.”

***

The Streets of New Rome

	Ryan put his gloved hands into his pockets and hunched up his 
shoulders to keep the warmth in better.  It was strange for him 
to think that, for once, Sandy was at home while he was out 
attending to business.  It was her day off, though, and he was 
looking for employment.  
	The next building on the block was an electronics store.  
Didn’t these people know that there was an electricity shortage?  
Ryan just had to go in on principle.
	The store was warm enough for Ryan to have to take off his 
coat.  There were hooks right by a rack of stereo equipment where 
he hung up his coat.  After he did, his lowering arm caused his 
hand to brush one of the receivers and a strange feeling came 
over him.  He reached down to touch it again and this time there 
was a definite queasiness in his stomach.  He reeled.
	A hand grabbed his shoulder and steadied him.  “Are you all 
right?” the man’s voice said.
	“Yes,” Ryan said, shaking his head.  “The poor thing is ill.”
	“What are you talking about?”
	Ryan realized that what he was saying would sound psychotic 
to anyone else - it sounded crazy to him as well.  “I’m not 
sure,” Ryan said.  “I think I need to lie down for a while.”
	“We have a cot in the back.  Can you walk?”
	“I think so.”
	The man led Ryan into a small lounge area where Ryan sat on a 
neatly made cot.  He had no idea what had happened.  He had 
touched the stereo receiver and felt some sort of sickness, which 
he knew came from the machinery somehow.  Could this be another 
of Saggitarius’ powers coming forth?
	He looked up at the man who had helped him.  He had to have 
been in his late teens or early twenties.  His hair was very 
short and very dark and he wasn’t bad looking for a guy.  His 
name tag said his name was Scott.  “Can you do me a favor?” Ryan 
asked, hoping to find out what had happened.
	“Sure,” Scott said, “what?”
	“Could you check that receiver I touched?  I think there 
might be something wrong with it.”
	“I’ll go ask my boss to take a look at it,” Scott answered.  
“You lie down while I do.”

***

Ryan and Sandy’s apartment

	Sandy set her mug of coffee down on the coffee table and 
picked up the remote control.  As much as she enjoyed a peaceful 
afternoon to herself, she wished Ryan was there to keep her 
company.  She liked having him around, and despite their first 
encounter, he was the one man over eighteen on this planet she 
didn’t think of as a sex object.  She laughed at herself for 
beginning to believe their own story about being twins.  Of 
course, if she convinced herself, then no one else could doubt 
it.
	She was worried, of course, about their financial situation.  
She could have lasted a long time on the money she had had in the 
bank, while her job paid off the credit cards she had used to 
outfit herself and Ryan, and to pay for the first couple weeks of 
rent, and to buy the used truck she had almost killed Ryan with.  
That truck had done the most damage on the card.  She had had 
enough money in the bank to live off of comfortably and pay rent 
with, but Ryan had forced her hand, and now she needed him to 
help with the bills.
	She turned on the television.  Flipping past all of the 
midday talk shows, soap operas, and game shows, she finally 
decided to just watch the all news network.
	“...and here is some footage of last weeks ferocious battle,” 
the newscaster said.  There on TV, Senshi Saggitarius battled 
with a creature that looked equal parts man, goat, and raspberry.  
Sandy had no idea that the battles had been taped.  She made a 
note to call in to the station and ask for copies of them.
	“The popular rumor right now is that Senshi Saggitarius is, 
in reality the long missing Prince Ryan.  Here are photos of both 
the prince and the Stellar Senshi.”  The screen showed two 
pictures side by side - the resemblance was uncanny.  In fact, 
there was no difference.  Sandy was stunned.  Could the man 
posing as her brother actually be Senshi Saggitarius?  She would 
have to find out.

***

The electronics store

	Ryan shifted on the cot.  He had been sitting there for quite 
a while and he was becoming uncomfortable.  He wondered if he 
should leave the store or find and talk to Scott, but his 
irresolution was solved by Scott, who walked quickly into the 
room, followed by a man who looked about thirty and wore a store 
uniform.  He had a scraggly goatee and looked unwashed.  His name 
tag bore the name Jack.
	“Is this the one?” Jack asked.
	“Yes,” Scott said, “but I still don’t know how he did it.”
	“Dude...” Jack began.
	“Ryan.”
	“Ryan,” he continued, “how did you do it?”
	“What did I do?”
	“You’re kidding, right,” Jack said.
	“No,” Ryan said quietly.  “That has never happened to me 
before.”
	“Seriously?”  Ryan nodded.  “Well, there was some faulty 
wiring in that receiver.  If anyone had tried to use it, they 
would have caused a fire.”
	“So it was sick,” Ryan said.
	“Yeah,” Jack said, “I guess it was.  Do you think you could 
do that again?”
	“I don’t know,” Ryan said.  He stood and walked into the main 
room.  As he made his way through the room, he placed his hands 
on every piece of equipment he could find, checking to see how 
each one ‘felt’.
	He reached out and touched a video camera.  “Ouch!” he cried, 
grabbing his shoulder, which briefly felt like it had been 
broken.  “It is hurt,” he told Jack and Scott, who were right 
behind him.  Jack picked it up and took it to the front counter.
	After about fifteen minutes of tinkering with the camera, 
Jack said, “amazing.  You see these two pieces right here?  Well, 
that’s supposed to be one piece.”  
	He set the patient aside and turned to Ryan.  “I have a 
shipment of parts coming in on Friday,” he said.  “I’ll give you 
two hundred bucks to go through the stuff and set aside all the 
stuff that is sick or hurt.”
	“I might have to step out for a while on Friday,” Ryan said, 
“but I can do it.”
	“Great,” Scott said.
	Ryan took a step toward the door, but suddenly remembered 
something.  “Wait,” he said.  “I came in here in the first place 
to ask why you would sell things that use electricity when it is 
so scarce.”
	“Since when is it scarce?” Jack asked.
	“Didn’t you hear about the shortage?”
	“What shortage?” Scott asked.
	Ryan realized then that no one outside the palace had heard 
about the electricity shortage.  Why would they have?  Telling 
the people would have caused an uproar and a panic.  There would 
be no reason for anyone to believe him now without giving up his 
identity.
	“Never mind,” Ryan said finally.  “Just, as an insider tip, 
try not to rely on electricity too much.”
	Jack nodded in an understanding manner.  “Any other tips?”
	“None that I could think of right now,” Ryan replied.
	“What are you two talking about?” Scott asked.
	“He’s one of us, Scott,” Jack said.
	“Oh really?” Scott said with skepticism.  Ryan had no idea 
what they were talking about.  “Ryan, what was your biggest 
score?”
	“I am sorry,” Ryan said.  “I really don’t know what you two 
are talking about.  I worked in the palace a while back.  All I 
know is what went on there.”
	“See,” Scott said.  “He isn’t one of us.”
	“But he has information,” Jack said.
	“What kind of information?” Ryan asked.
	“Like how things work in the palace,” Scott said.  “I get you 
now, Jack.  Ryan, you know how strict the hiring policy is at the 
palace, right, and that almost no one new makes it onto the staff 
because of the security?”
	He didn’t know the policies, but he nodded anyway, knowing 
what they were asking for.  He had a pretty good sense now of 
what ‘one of us’ entailed.  “I will have to think about your 
request.”
	“Remember,” Jack told him, “there is nothing criminal about 
this store or in this building, just in case you decide to inform 
the police about our little conversation.”
	“I understand,” Ryan said as he left.

***
Ryan and Sandy’s apartment

	Ryan opened the door, walked in, hung up his coat, and 
collapsed on the couch.
	“Rough day?” Sandy asked, walking out of her room in red, 
silken, Chinese dress.
	“Not really rough,” Ryan said, “but long.”
	“Any luck?”
	“Well,” Ryan said, “I got a small job for Friday at Jack’s 
Electronics checking their inventory for faulty equipment.”
	“What do you know about electronics?” Sandy asked.
	“Enough to know when something is wrong with them,” Ryan 
said.  He didn’t want to spread the full truth around and 
possibly uncover himself.  He figured that this was close enough 
to the truth, without brining the supernatural into it.
	“I learn something new about you every day,” Sandy said, 
strangely introspective.
	“Is that not how things are supposed to work?” Ryan asked 
with a smile.  “Anyway, I will try to find something more 
permanent tomorrow.  Do you know I found some people who want my 
information on the internal workings of the palace?”
	Sandy’s eyes widened.  “How did they know you lived there?”
	“Do not worry,” Ryan said.  “I told them that I worked there 
before.  I had to in order to cover up for the slip I had made  
earlier.  I had told them something only someone in the palace 
would know without thinking.”
	“You have to be more careful about that,” Sandy said.  “There 
have been many occasions when you have said something offhand 
about the palace while the two of us were talking.”
	“But you know who I am already,” Ryan protested.
	“I know that,” Sandy said.  “But I do not think you knew you 
said them at the time.  I am worried that you might talk to 
someone else the way you talk to me and leak some important 
information about your past.”
	“I promise,” Ryan said, smiling, “I will try to keep my mouth 
in check from now on.”
	“Good,” Sandy said.  “Now I have something interesting you 
might want to know.”
	“What?” Ryan asked.
	“I was watching the news today and they seem to think that 
you are Senshi Saggitarius,” she told him.
	Ryan laughed.  “Yes, I know,” he said.  “Ayre told me a while 
ago, except he didn’t know that he was talking about me.”
	“Are you going to do anything about it?” Sandy asked.
	“Why bother?  If they want to think that their prince is a 
Stellar Senshi, let them.  That person doesn’t exist any more - I 
am Ryan Noctan now.  What they say about Prince Ryan has nothing 
to do with me.”
	Sandy looked sad.  “So you are disowning your family.”
	“I...I did not think of my family,” Ryan said, looking down.  
“I have not thought of their feelings at all through this.  But 
what can I do now?  I have been gone too long to just call them 
up and tell them I am all right.  They would try to find me 
anyway, and I do not want to be found.  I like my life now.”
	“I understand not wanting to be found,” Sandy said, “but I do 
not understand not wanting to see your family.”
	“I do want to see them,” Ryan said.  “I miss my father and 
brother a bit, and I miss my mother dearly.  With my father 
always off ruling with my brother at his side or training my 
brother for his duties, my mother was all I had.”
	“This is eating you up inside, isn’t it?” Sandy said softly, 
putting her hands on his shoulders.  Ryan nodded and sobbed into 
her shoulder as she embraced him.

***

Jack’s Electronics

	Ryan came out of the back room and found Jack at the counter, 
talking to the last customer of the day.  “Jack,” Ryan whispered 
to him, “when you’re done, close up.  I need to talk to you and 
Scott in the back room.”
	“How bad?” Jack asked quietly.
	“Very.”
	Ryan walked back into the rear of the store and was soon 
joined by Jack and Scott.  “You closed now?” Ryan asked.
	“Yes,” Jack said.  “What did you find?”
	“Close to sixty percent of the shipment is worthless.  It 
isn’t sick or hurt, just junk.  I got no feeling from it at all, 
instead of the vitality I get from the other equipment.”
	“I knew it,” Jack said.  “Franco would try to pull one over 
on me like this.”
	“This load is from Franco?” Scott asked.  “I could’ve told 
you he’d rip you off, Jack.”
	“I have to call him, Scott,” Jack said.  “You and Ryan go to 
the front room for a bit, ok?”
	“Sure,” Scott said.  Ryan followed him out.
	When they were alone, Scott asked, “so, have you thought 
about what we talked about last time you were here?”
	“I have,” Ryan said.  “I may not work at the palace any more, 
but I am still loyal.  I care a lot about the royal family and I 
will not do anything against them.  You may do what you like as 
far as the palace is concerned, but please do not include me.”
	“That’s too bad,” Scott said quietly.  “Why is your ring 
blinking?”
	“It is?” Ryan said, looking down and seeing it was true.  “I 
have it set up as a pager,” he lied.  “It flashes when someone 
calls me.  Is there another phone here?”
	“No,” Scott said.
	“Then I have to go,” Ryan said, going to the back room to 
tell Jack that he was leaving.  He opened the door and saw Jack 
sprawled on the cot.  He had the look of a person who had just 
had their energy stolen.
	“What happened,” Scott said behind Ryan.
	“Get out of here quickly,” Ryan told him, but it was too 
late.  The door slammed behind the two of them and some black 
liquid oozed in and sealed it.
	“Is there a back door?” Ryan asked.
	“Don’t bother,” said a bot, growing out of a puddle of the 
ooze on the floor, “all of the exits are tarred.”
	“Good job, Blacktop,” Stardust said, coming out of a shadow 
in the back of the room.  “Do you not love it when your prey 
cannot escape?”
	“What do you want?” Ryan asked.
	“Just your energy,” Stardust said.  “It is just about time 
for Senshi Saggitarius to show up, do you think, Ryan?”
	“How did you know my name?” Ryan asked.
	“Your name tag is on,” Scott said in his ear.  He had 
forgotten the other man was still there.
	“I think we need to give Senshi Saggitarius a little more 
incentive to show up,” Stardust said.  “Get the dark-haired one, 
Blacktop.”
	The bot shot a stream of black ooze at Scott, coating him 
from the neck down.  He was soon in a large pile of the foul 
smelling substance, which was quickly hardening.
	“I can’t move,” Scott said.
	“Why will that bring Senshi Saggitarius faster,” Ryan asked.
	“Because,” Stardust said, “that tar is cool right now...”  
She was cut off mid sentence by Scott’s cry of pain.
	“It’s burning me!” he yelled.  “Get it off!”
	“You’re hurting him,” Ryan pleaded.
	“It will kill him in fifteen minutes,” Stardust said.
	Ryan knew he had no choice now.  He could keep his identity a 
secret only by allowing Scott to slowly and painfully fry in the 
pie of tar.  “Saggitarius Power, Make Up!” he said, raising his 
ring high.
	“Ryan,” Scott exclaimed, “you’re Senshi Saggitarius!”
	“I knew it,” Stardust said.
	“Saggitarius Lightning Arrow!” Senshi Saggitarius said, 
catching the monster off guard.  As it turned into a pile of 
dust, all the tar vanished.  “Now how did you know?” he asked 
Stardust.
	“I will contact you tonight, Ryan,” Stardust said, “when we 
can talk privately.”  Then she left through a portal.
	Senshi Saggitarius transformed back into Ryan and turned to 
face Scott.  “Senshi Saggitarius came and rescued both of us,” he 
told Scott, who nodded.
	“This will remain between us,” Scott said.  “Though it does 
explain your affinity with electrical devices.  And here I 
thought that the Stellar Senshi was...your majesty.”
	Ryan caught Scott before his bow could get very low.  “Don’t 
bow to me,” Ryan said.  “Prince Ryan died two months ago, got 
it?”
	“You know that’s not true,” Scott said.  “You still care 
about your family, which means that you’re still Prince Ryan, no 
matter how well you hide it.”
	“Just keep it a secret,” Ryan told him.  Scott nodded.  “Jack 
will be fine in a while.  Will you stay with him?”
	“Yeah,” Scott said.  “Be careful.”

***
Ryan and Sandy’s apartment

	Ryan opened the door to find Stardust standing in his living 
room.
	“What did you do with Sandy?” he growled.
	“Ryan,” she said, “I’m Sandy.”
	She took off her hat and veil and Sandy stood before Ryan.  
He was speechless.
	“Now what do we do?” Sandy asked.
	“We pay Ms. Cravis,” Ryan said, pulling out the check he had 
gotten before starting that morning.
	“But what about...?”
	“I do not wish to think about that tonight,” Ryan said 
without letting her finish.  He walked past her and went to bed.

***

	When Ryan awoke, Sandy was sitting by his bed.  He began 
fidgeting with his ring, making sure it was still there.
	“I am not going to hurt you,” Sandy said.  “I never was.”
	“We are enemies,” Ryan said.
	“Only one day a week,” Sandy said, “and this is not it.”
	“We can not live like this.”
	“Why not?” Sandy asked.  “There is no great book of super 
hero rules that says you cannot be friends with the enemy.  In 
fact, I can think of a few heroes who were best friends with 
their nemeses.  They all worked as rivals, but their friendships 
were like what you and I have.  Being friends only made the 
rivalry fun.  If you leave now, you will resent me, and our game 
will have to become enmity.  You will not trust me, and I will be 
hurt.”
	“Silence,” Ryan said.  “I have no intention of leaving.  
Senshi Saggitarius is famous - I am famous.  I am finally doing 
something my father would think of as respectable, and I do not 
wish it to end.”
	“So you want me to make you more famous?”
	“Yes.”
	“You do know that I am really here to take over this planet, 
right?”
	“And what better way than by becoming a superstar,” Ryan said 
with a grin.

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