It started in August of 1980 when established anime studio, Studio Nue, was contacted by Uizu Corporation to create a new science fiction anime series. A deal was quickly struck, with Studio Nue responsible for the planning and design of the series while Uizu would be in charge of the production.
Uizu wanted to create a transforming robot show, and since the anime movie "Be Forever Yamato" was a recent hit, why not make a space ship that can transform into a giant robot. Of course lead mecha designer, Shoji Kawamori, added some of his own ideas, mainly adding a city of around 56,000 people into the ship. The name of the show was Battle City Megarodo (or just Battle City Megaroad).
It was going to start in 1999 with an alien vessel crashing to Earth, and humans rebuilding it over the course of the next 10 years. The builders started off being sentient robots, but became a race of giants. And, to top it off, Uizu wanted it to be a parody of giant robot shows.
Other concepts were added, of course. One plot thread would have involved an all female bridge crew (including the captain), where an alien spy would have an affair with her. To make sure they would be of compatible sizes, the concept of Micronization was born.
That evolved into a trio of micron spies and a female ace spy (Miriya) falling in love with a (non lead) Bishonen pilot (Maximilion Jenius).
Another character came into being when Shoji Kawamori was looking through the sketch book of his friend, Haruhiko Mikimoto, in February of 1981, and saw a sketch of a cute chinese girl. He was quickly hired as the character designer for Battle City Megaroad, and his creation was originally going to be a chinese restaurant delivery girl who would deliver food to the bridge, but she became more and more popular with the planning staff, and eventually evolved into the idol singer we know as Lynn Minmay. And her role in the parody concept was that broadcasts of her music and films would be intercepted by the aliens who would go ga-ga over her interpretation of Earth culture, eventually become Microns, and defect to the Megaroad.
It never saw the light of day as Uizu Corporation was dissolved in 1981, and Studio Nue was left with sole custody of the show.
But the story doesn't end there.
Studio Nue wasn't comfortable with the parody angle, so they made it a more serious story, added some transformable mecha designs they shelved because they didn't want them used for something silly, and changed the name to "Super Dimension Fortress Macross".
And thus the story truly begins . . .
| Height: | 6ft/182-185cm | Weight: | 130lbs (58.97 kg)(RPG) |
| Hair: | Violet | Eyes: | Blue Violet |
Robotech Art Three by Carl Macek "The Liberation of Haydon IV and Edwards' Invid Pact"
Back on the moon of Fantoma:
Notes on Haydon IV from Art Three and the RPG
The fourth world in the Sentinels' campaign.
An open world. An artificial world. Never conquered. Defended by a planetary defense system where even the intention of harm will be met with deadly force.
The Regent has arrived on a planet that the Invid didn't take by overwhelming force, but through politics and diplomacy (and the threats of trade blockades).
Haydon IV.
The former seat of his wife, the Invid Regis.
Following in his trail, the SDF-7 "Ark Angel" also arrives, but with a far different mission of it's own. Four of the Sentinels' human members have fallen into comas from exposure to Garuda's atmosphere (Admiral Rick Hunter; Admiral Lisa Hayes-Hunter; Lt. Karen Penn, and Commander Miriya Sterling), and only the medical technology on Haydon IV can revive them.
Because of the Invid presence, the Sentinels only have one option to get them the treatment they need. They must go down under the white flag of surrender.
Rick, Lisa, Karen, and Miriya are escorted to the planet below by Col. Wolff, Dr. Jean Grant, Commander Vince Grant, Commander Max Sterling, and Cabell, while a second team is chosen to go down in secret to rescue the first group after they recover. The second team is commanded by Lt. Jack Baker and consists of Burak, Kami, Learna, Bela, Gnea, Lron, Crysta, and Janice. They also bring along Tesla and the two Invid scientists they captured on Garuda, just so Janice can see what happens when Tesla and the Regent come snout to snout.
Unbeknownst to the Sentinels, the Zentraedi have stolen the monopole ore needed to repair the SDF-3's fold system and are on a search to find, and join with, the Sentinels. Actions like this, according to Major General T.R. Edwards, are acts of treason, and thus should be met with deadly force. He requests the permission to hunt down and destroy the Zentraedi from the Plenipotentiary Council, and a mission is launched to retrieve the monopole ore.
Minmei, who has been watching the meeting through the R.E.F.'s television system and been getting drunk on Edwards' private stash of "Weed Whacker", a 150 proof vacuum distillate soaked in fibers from a plant related to the Flower of Life, runs from his arms, and straight into an elevator containing her personal guardian angel, R.E.F. Pilot #666-60-937. He offers to take her off the SDF-3, and anywhere else she wants to go.
Back on the Ark Angel, a still pissed off from killing the "SimulaRegenttm" Tesla is gorging on fruit from the Invid Flower of Life grown on Garuda and ranting. In the midst of all of this, he releases an incredible amount of energy and transforms. His snout shrinks, his head becomes more defined, his skin gains a more human-like texture and becomes green, waxy, and smooth. He ate to much.
The Ark Angel makes contact with the Regent, and his mood improves upon hearing of the Sentinels' surrender. He now has a plan. Medical treatment in exchange for the location of Protoculture Matrix and Earth.
Both teams launch, and as Jack's fighter group launches, Haydon's planetary defense system activates.
The second shuttle from the Ark Angel lands on Haydon IV, and is greeted by Haydonites led by Vowad, the leader of the Haydonites and Sarna's father. He disapproves of Veidt's rebellious ways. The Haydonites board an anti-gravity device resembling a flying carpet, and take the Sentinels to the Halls of Healing.
Minmei, and her guardian angel, Lt. L. Isle R.E.F. #666-60-937, make their way to the flight deck, and encounter some resistance from some members of the flight crew. Within heartbeats three members of the flight crew have been knocked unconcious, and an Alpha launches for the surface of Tirol, and given chase by members of the Ghost squadron.
As they land on Tirol, Edwards reports that Minmei was kidnapped.
Haydon IV's defense system is forming rigid energy barriers over Jack's Team's fighters, and they only manage to escape by "hatching" from the energy eggs by transforming into Battloid mode, and making and emergency splashdown, and emerge in Haydon IV's underground catacombs.
They begin their journey to Glike in their Battloids, and are promptly fighting energy snakes fired by Haydon IV's defense systems. They can't get a break.
Back on Tirol, Edwards' men pursues Minmei and Lt. Isle, and are quickly surrounded by their pursuers. As Minmei surrenders to Edwards in exchange for Lt. Isle's freedom, he disappears. She realizes who he really was.
"Edwards had been about to inflict new fear upon Minmei, some threat to scare her back into line. But Minmei's sudden, maniacal laugh put fear into him instead. 'You know what you've finally done?' she screamed, frothing. 'You've awakened the dead! And now your life is finished!'
"Minmei, gamine though she was, almost pounced on him with fingers extended like claws; it took several groundpounders to hold her back.
"'Straitjacket,' Edwards said harshly, watching the struggle on the wet pavement.
"Rain ran from his alloy cowl and glistening eye-lens, and from the pale fury of his face. 'Put her in a straitjacket and get her over to my headquarters.'"
On their way to join with the Sentinels on Haydon IV, the Valivarre encounters trouble. Two SDF escort class vessels. The Tokugawa, commanded by one of Edwards lick-spittles, Commodore Renquist, and the Jutland. Renquist orders Breetai to surrender, and the warrior giant refuses. Breetai doesn't run from a fight. The Ghost squadron, bullied by the fact that they know the Zentraedi Mecha's weaknesses and their enemy's tactics, are surprised when they don't make short work of the Battlepods. The Zentraedi have retrofitted the Battlepods to eliminate the weakpoints and they are all veterans of the Robotech War. The Zentraedi have the advantage in initial combat, but are quickly losing the battle due to the R.E.F.'s numerical advantage.
Jack's battle with Haydon IV's defenses aren't going that well either. They are forced to ditch their mecha and protoculture based weaponry to escape.
While the energy snakes destroy their Alphas, the group is surprised as Dr. Lang's programming asserts itself, and Janice reverts to her "sexy android" form. She seeks to make contact with Haydon IV's Awareness.
After weeks of being in a Hin induced coma, Karen Penn is the last one of the patients to recover, even though Miriya is still in the woods due to her pregnancy.
Within moments, the patients are summoned by the Regent to answer to the charges of war crimes against them.
The Zentraedi battle against the R.E.F. isn't going well until the Zentraedi pull another trick out of their hat.
"What Renquist didn't know - what the Zentraedi had chosen to keep to themselves - was that a return to Fantoma and their former way of live had resulted in a resurgence of their memories, the ones the Robotech Masters were supposed to have submerged forever. The grueling mining operations forced a reflowering of the Zentraedi innovative genius."
Even though all of the Quedlunn-Rau had supposedly been converted into mining equipment, Breetai orders Kazianna Hesh and her Quadronos into battle.
They make short work of the Ghost Squadron, and Breetai politely requests that Renquist let the Valivarre go in peace. Renquist refuses and states that he'll see Breetai in hell first.
Breetai's response: He signals Kazianna and she lets loose on the Tokugawa's bridge, killing Requist and his command staff.
The commander of the Jutland, Captain De Cruz, takes command of the mission. She doesn't believe Edwards accusations against the Hunters, and offers to join with Breetai so she can escort the R.E.F. contingent of the Sentinels back to Tirol so that they might defend themselves.
The Valivarre assists in repairs to the Tokugawa, and all three ships begin their journey to Haydon IV.
An alliance is also struck between Haydon IV's Awareness and Janice, and despite Tesla and Buraks misgivings, Jack and the team head towards Glike.
Also, Edwards has, after listening to Minmei's insults about his manhood, begins to realize who his new enemy truly is.
Sarna has discovered something on Haydon IV. Even though their planet has been destroyed, the Praxians have survived. In slave encampments on Haydon IV.
She notifies Vince, Max, and Wolff just before Vowad and the Inorganics arrive to take the humans into custody. She convinces them to play along, and they are taken.
Vowad's reason for helping the Invid, he doesn't want Haydon IV destroyed in the battle between the Invid and the planet's defenses, and he is the only Haydonite who can activate them without hostilities.
Back on Tirol, thanks to Dr. Lang's hoarding of monopole ore, another SDF-7 class vessel is launched under the command of Major Carpenter, despite Edwards protests. Secretly he wants the Earth softened up by the Masters' before he returns with a fleet of ships to conquer.
Invid Enforcers arrive at the Haydonite Halls of Healing to take the Hunters, Karen, and the rest into custody, but Cabell gives the humans a signal in a language the Invid won't understand, but the humans will. "We must ayk-may a eak-bray. Eidt-Vay will be aiting-way".
"We've got fifty-skillion bucks worth of taxpayers' money in Robotech paraphernalia, it occurred to Rick, and now the whole shebang's riding on one old alien coot talking in pig latin! Somehow it seemed appropriate."
And thanks to Jean's tweaking the medical scanners, and her patients faking a relapse, they make an escape (Jean gets an Invid to examine the scanners with her and she yanks a power cable loose and thrusts it into one Enforcer while Vince shoots the other one with a secreted pistol).
While heading out the door, they grab the Invid's weapons and encounter Veidt, who disguises them in Haydonite robes and they make their way to the Central Slave Pen where Veidt's Haydonite sabatours have been at work.
Each slave wears a headband which the Invid use to give them electric shocks when they misbehave or rebel, but now they aren't working like they are supposed to.
They aren't working at all, and the Praxians begin to rebel.
The Sentinels save them from the Invid's sonic-lashes and weapons fire.
The battle for Haydon IV begins.
While Rick and his group begin to make their way into the Central Slave Pen from the surface, Jack and his crew enter the command center through a hidden elevator in the Slave Pen, and they begin to fight also.
Some of the freed Praxians make their way to the Invid Armory in the Slave Pen while the rest go with the Sentinels to free the Praxian Queen, and Bela's mother, Arla-Non, and Sarna takes command of a gigantic flying carpet out from under Vowad to use to aid the Sentinels and Praxians.
Rick's and Jack's team reunite as the Inorganics enter the Slave Pen to put down the rebellion.
As Sarna begins to land on the roof of the Central Slave Pen, Vowad tries to stop her as a group of Praxians, including Veidt, make their way up to the roof followed by a Crann Inorganic. Weapon's fire from the Crann Inorganic hits Sarna and she is critically wounded. As she dies both Veidt and Vowad mourn her loss in different ways. For the first time, thanks to his exposure to other races, a Haydonite weeps, and Vowad activates Haydon IV's planetary defense system against the Invid.
Haydon IV sends waves upon waves of tiny energy Zors against the Invid while Vowad heads down the lift to help bring more Praxians to the roof.
Haydon IV has never been conquered, due to the defense system, but the Invid have an advantage that others have not. They are already on the surface of Haydon IV, and the Regent sends his forces against Haydon IV's power systems.
There is still one Sentinel who is a prisoner of the Invid Regent, the Zor-clone, Rem. Jack, Karen, and Veidt head toward the Regent's land cruiser, as other outworlders begin to battle against the Regent's forces, and three ships enter into orbit around Haydon IV.
The Regent receives a simple message from the commander of one of the three ships. "We're coming for you." The message is from Breetai.
To distract the Regent from Jack, Karen, and Veidt's rescue mission, Haydon IV sends a gigantic energy Zor against the Invid Land Carrier. The Regent orders his pet Hellcats to feed on Rem, but Jack, Karen, and Veidt are already there, and they rescue the clone.
As they are leaving on their flying carpet, two objects land on the deck of the Regent's Land Cruiser. The collars from his pets.
The Regent makes his escape from Haydon IV via his flagship, and makes his way back to Optera, devolving to a more base nature along the way while Tesla gorges himself on Haydon IV's fruits and evolves even more.
The Invid have been beaten, and Haydon IV has been freed, but another Sentinel has been lost and Miriya falls into a deep coma. Veidt and Vowad take Sarna's body to Haydon IV's shrine to Haydon. They finally make amends with each other, and a friendship is born.
Edwards and the Regent strike a deal as the Valivarre, the Jutland, and Tokugawa make planet fall on Haydon IV.
Breetai wants the Sentinels to return to Tirol to defend themselves from Edwards charges and take control of the R.E.F. again. The Sentinels want to continue on their mission. Rick suggests a comprimise. A coin flip.
Heads: Breetai will head to Spheris and continue the fight while the Sentinels go to Tirol.
Tails: Breetai will return to Tirol and the Sentinels will continue their mission.
The coin lands in Breetai's hand as Tails.
The bulk of the Praxians, Jean, Max and Miriya, and Cabell will stay on Haydon IV while Vince and Col. Wolff will return with Breetai to Haydon IV.
The rest of the Sentinels bolstered by Praxian volunteers head off to Spheris in the Ark Angel.
All throughout the Tirol and R.E.F. controlled space a meeting of the Plenipotentiary Council where Maj. General T.R. Edwards is asking for complete control of the R.E.F. and for martial law to be declared. This will be Edwards victory.
The meeting is interrupted by the return of the Tokugawa, Jutland, and Valivarre. Wolff opens a connection with the council, and his plea for a fair hearing is shown to all. By a public vote Wolff and the Sentinels are allowed due process, despite Edwards and his allies on the council's objections.
On the Ark Angel Teal finishes shaping Baldan's infant, and both Teal and Bela breath life into Baldan II.
Differences from Art Three
Differences from Art Three and the Novels
Week Five: Robotech Art Three by Carl Macek
We have left Robotech Art Three's episode by episode guide for the first two weeks, and now we are onto the week by week synopsis for the next ten weeks. So, I'm just going to list the plot points from Week Five entitled The Liberation of Praxis.
After a relatively easy victory on Karbarra, the Sentinels Flagship, the Farrago defolds in a distant orbit over the home-world of the amazonian warriors of the Sentinels, Praxis.
The Sentinels are wary of anymore surprises, and are shocked by the complete absence of any signs of an active civilization on the planet's surface. The Sentinels command along with Tesla (aka the Main Characters) board the GMU, and it detaches from the Farrago to investigate the surface of the planet, leaving the bulk of the Sentinels forces onboard to guard the ship from a potential surprise Invid attack.
The Sentinels leadership meets to discuss the lack of Praxians on Praxis and the lack of Invid in their hives. The Praxians have decided to stay, even if the rest want to continue to Geruda, while Burak seeks to detach the Perytonian Module and head to his world. The meeting is cut short as they members of the Sentinels are notified that the Farrago is under attack by a massive Invid fleet.
The Invid make short work of the Sentinels forces in orbit, wiping out all of the ships defenders, and destroying the Farrago with a single shot fired at the ships Achilles' heel pointed out by the data provided to the Regent by General Edwards. Only a lone Spherian Drive module survives. The Sentinels leadership along with a skeleton crew are left stranded on Praxis mourning their loss as the Invid depart leaving only a token force behind to make sure there are no survivors.
Back on Tirol, Edwards is pleased when the Regent notifies him of the destruction of the Farrago.
The surviving Mecha battle the Invid again on the surface and emerge victorious, but many mecha are badly damaged, some are lost, and the rest are depleted of their Protoculture reserves. Afterwards the only thing left for the survivors to do is to lick their wounds and try to find away off the planet.
It has been only two months since the launch of the Sentinels mission, and it has meet with disaster.
Four Months Later.
The Invid, including the Invid Regent, once again arrive in Fantomaspace, not to conquer, but to negotiate with the REF.
And, as soon as Edwards meets the Regent he realizes that he is meeting with an impostor, a Simula-Regent, and is pleased when the "Regent" informs the Plenipotentiary council of the Farrago's destruction.
Meanwhile, on Praxis, the Sentinels survive, and the GMU detects the surviving Spherian drive module, but unfortunately, they don't have enough Protoculture reserves for even one Alpha to get to it.
And, if that isn't a big of enough problem, tectonic quakes have begun upon the surface of Praxis, and they are getting stronger as the days go on and Tesla is transforming into something more.
Rick isn't exactly happy with the current situation. He feels that the survivors are becoming complacent, and is confused with Lisa's growing relationships with the Praxian contingent of the Sentinels. His moping is interrupted by the return of a recon unit (featuring Jack, Karen, Lron, and Kami). It seems they may have found the solution to the survivors problems in an ancient Praxian cave.
It appears that an long-thought extinct of Praxian life has returned. An orb-like creature that has the ability to resist the pull of gravity, and seeks escape from the planet's death throws. Veidt convinces the orbs to help the group escape Praxis, and plans begin on how to use the orbs to reach the drive module.
Oh, and Tesla and Burak plan to hijack the module for their own ends.
They volunteer to join the mission to reach the drive module and are joined by Sarna (to help control the orbs), Janice (pilot of the module), and Col. Wolff (pilot of the Alpha that will be used to reach the module.
Meanwhile, back on Tirol, the negotiations with the "Regent" aren't going smoothly. The "Regent" will only meet with Edwards and makes demands that further convince Edwards that this is not the real ruler of the Invid.
As Praxis dies, the mission is launched to retrieve the drive module. The plan is to have Janice pilot the module lower into the atmosphere where it will be easier for Alpha's to take 5 people at a time up to the module, and then fold either to Karbarra or Tirol, but it seems that their be more than just the orbs in the cave.
As Baldan merges with planet to discover the cause of the planet's turmoil, he discovers the Regiss's Genesis Pit experiments are the cause, and something else was created by her experiments, a giant spider-like monster which also seeks escape from the planet.
As the Alpha/Beta combo gets closer to the module, Tesla takes control of the Beta from Janice (who isn't pleased), and separates it from the Alpha. The Alpha drifts off course, and the Beta rendezvous with the module as the survivors battle against the spiders.
Tesla quickly boards the module, and as he and Burak argue about the destination of the module, Janice programs it to, no matter what course is plotted, to defold in Fantomaspace, and Wolff maneuvers the Alpha to dock with the module.
Just as Wolff and Sarna board the module, it folds.
Back on Tirol, the Regent orders his Simula-Regent to return to Optera, Dr. Lang and Breetai meet to begin to plan an eventual Zentraedi Uprising should Edwards get to powerful, and the meeting is broken up when the Spherian module's defold is detected.
Upon boarding the SDF-3, Wolff is notified of Edwards rise in power and the negotiations with the Invid, then Wolff meets with the Plenipotentiary Council, who are not that concerned with the rescue of the Sentinels from Praxis. Edwards succeeds in convincing them that it could endanger their talks with the Invid.
The only way for Wolff to rescue his friends is to follow Dr. Lang's plan. To "steal" the prototype SDF-7 class vessel, and use that to rescue the surviving Sentinels.
Tesla and Burak escape the SDF-3's brig, and make their way to the Regent's quarters onboard the ship, and Tesla kills the "Regent" not realizing he is a fake, and with the help of Exedore, make their way to the shuttle taking Wolff to the SDF-7.
Col. Wolff, Sarna, Janice, Burak, and Tesla succeed in "stealing" the ship and Ghost Squadron gives "pursuit".
Edwards is pleased with how events are turning out. Wolff has stolen a ship and murdered what the Plenipotentiary Council to believe to be the Invid Regent. Wolff, and the Sentinels, are now deemed traitors, and it will be easier for him to completely take control of the REF and return to Earth as a conquerer.
The story continues next week.
Differences from Art Three and the Novels
Robotech II: The Sentinels Book Two Issue 21 and Book Three Issues 1-8 by Tom Mason, Jason and John Waltrip published by Eternity.
Week Four: Robotech Art Three by Carl Macek
We have left Robotech Art Three's episode by episode guide for the first two weeks, and now we are onto the week by week synopsis for the next eleven weeks. So, I'm just going to list the plot points from Week Four entitled The Liberation of Carbonara.
Notes from Character Profiles
The Farrago has left the Valivarre star system on it's first mission, to liberate the planet Karbarra from the Invid, and upon defolding in the Yirrbisst star system, find themselves in the middle of an Invid fleet.
This fleet is commanded by an Invid known as Senep, and he has been commanded by the Regent to take a force from Karbarra's garrison as reinforcements to the defense of Tirol (which has already been freed from the Invid).
And because Senep believes the Farrago to still be under Tesla's control, he is caught by surprise as the new captain of the Farrago, Admiral Lisa Hayes-Hunter, orders the GMU to fire upon Senep's command ship, destroying it immediately.
The Invid are loosed from their clamshell carriers, and once again, Alphas and Invid Battle in space.
The battle is over fairly quickly, and the Sentinels begin to plan a quick strike offensive on Karbarra with the Karbarrans objecting for reasons of their own. Something to do with the Shapings of Things, their version of Fate or Destiny. Vice Admiral Rick Hunter and Lron argue, but they eventually form a consensus. The Sentinels will send a recon party down to the planet's surface. The party will consist of Lron, Kami, Rick, Bela, Gnea, Lt. Jack Baker, Lt. Karen Penn, and Rem, and within a few hours they board a Karbarran Shuttle for the planet's surface.
The recon party lands in a "safe" area on the barren surface of Karbarra, an abandoned mining facility a few hours away from Karbarra's only major population center, Tracielle.
Meanwhile on Optera the Regent orders forces from the outer fringes of his empire to reinforce Karbarra, and on the Farrago, Vince notices that Crysta gets morose when he mentioned children, and urges Jean to talk with her, while the Sentinels command staff are puzzled by the obvious lack of fighting on the planets surface.
As the recon party enters the abandoned mine shafts and tunnels of Karbarra to make their way to Tracielle undetected by the Invid leaving Rem and Gnea to guard the shuttle and act as a communications relay with the orbiting Farrago, more Invid Clamshells defold, and the Farrago once again launches the Skull Squadron to battle the Invid in space, while Col. Wolff's Hovertanks take up positions on the Farrago's Hull to defend the ship. The battle is short however, and the Sentinels are once again victorious, but the victory is short lived as Jean discovers from Crysta that the Invid are keeping the Karbarran cubs as prisoners in order to keep the Karbarran adults docile.
The Farrago sends the message of the cubs imprisonment to the shuttle, but before Rem and Gnea can relay the message to the recon party in the mines, they are attacked by two Hellcats. They manage to fight them off, but one made it into the shuttle and destroyed the communications relay.
Rem and Gnea cannot contact the party in the mines.
Concerned over the lack of regular communications with the shuttle, Rick's group in the mines set up camp at the entrance of a mine shaft and send Bela's Falcon-like pet bird, Hagane, with a message capsule back to the shuttle, and take a rest.
Before Hagane returns, Kami abandons his post as guard to follow a Gerudan Atmosphere induced vision, and is quickly captured by the Invid.
Not long after that Hagane returns with a message from the Farrago and the Shuttle informing them of the plight of the Karbarran cubs and Lisa's plan to free them, and liberate Karbarra from the Invid.
In the Karbarran Invid hive, the living brain receives a message from Tesla. In front of Tesla, chained, sits Learna, Crysta, Veidt, Sarna, a Praxian warrior, and Lisa. He requests permission to land the Farrago after fighting off the Sentinels in space so he might repair his vessel. Unbeknownst to the Brain, Veidt and Sarna are using their telepathy to help give Tesla's words the ring of truth, Tesla is wearing a collar made of jewels and explosives, and that this is all part of the Sentinels plan.
As the Farrago descends towards the planet's surface, Skull Squadron and the Wolff Pack are launched and ordered to find the Invid prisoner camp while the recon shuttle picks up Rick's party, and Kami is taken to the camp where they are holding the Karbarran Cubs prisoner.
In the camp, Kami meets Lron and Crysta's son, Dardo, and comes up with a plan to escape and notify the Sentinels of the location of the new camp, in an abandoned Sekiton processing plant. He covers himself with the peat, and uses it to protect him from the Invid's energy barrier, as the Farrago lands in Tracielle, Tesla exits the ship followed by REF Destroids, and the surface battle begins.
Before the Invid Brain orders the extermination of the Karbarran cubs, Kami recovers his weapons, deactivates the barrier, and manages to build a Sekiton powered signal fire, which attracts the recon shuttle to the location of the camp, while the Skull Squadron discovers the original camp to be abandoned.
The battle to free the cubs is a long one, and is almost a failure, but upon finding out that their cubs are safe, the Karbarrans take up arms against the Invid, and Karbarra is liberated from their conquerors.
Elsewhere in the universe, Breetai returns to his residence in Zarkopolis, the city Zentraedi miners built on Fantoma, and is seduced by his traveling companion, Kazianna Hesh, General Edwards has pretty much taken control of the REF, Minmei opens a service club in Tiresia, The Invid Regent makes contact with Edwards and Edwards readily gives the Regent all the intel data on the Farrago and tells him that the Sentinels are on their way to Praxis after Karbarra, and the Regis leaves Praxis for Haydon IV.
Back on the Farrago, Tesla convinces Burak that only he can save Peryton from it's curse and convinces him that he should bring Tesla the Fruit of the mutated Flower of Life growing on Karbarra.
The Farrago departs Karbarra once repairs are complete, and begins it's journey to Praxis.
Robotech Art Three by Carl Macek "The Liberation of Spheris"
Spheris.
The planet whose population is made of living crystal.
A world where Protoculture weapons will have a devastating effect on the planet's surface.
The next world in the Sentinel's campaign to liberate the Local Group from the Invid.
And that is what Teal and her son, Baldan II, tell the the rest of the Sentinels when they volunteer for a mission to the planet's surface for general recon and to attempt to gain support from the Spherian population.
Meanwhile on the moon the Robotech Masters abandoned, two rivals meet in Dr. Lang's Robotech Research Complex. General T.R. Edwards has arrived to meet with the good doctor. He seeks to convince Lang that he has the best interests of the Earth in mind.
But, Dr. Lang doesn't believe him, and he is attempting to record the meeting, despite measures that Edward's has implemented to prevent any recording.
The meeting goes well, until Lang asks Edwards to remain neutral during Col. Wolff's hearing and that he be allowed to examine whatever it is he and his Ghost Squadron are containing within the catacombs underneath the Tiresian Royal Hall.
Of course, Edwards is pissed, but not quite as pissed as he becomes when he is informed that another SDF-7 class vessel has been completed and sent to Earth under the command of Maj. John Carpenter.
Edwards attempts to strangle Lang, but is quickly stopped by Lang when his wrists are grabbed by the doctor, and he is forced to his knees.
Dr. Lang releases the General, and demands that Edwards serve his oath and give up his plans.
Edwards retort:
Edwards drew himself up, lips coming away from his locked teeth. He would perhaps never again have a chance to tell Lang off in private; this would be the only moment when the two stood alone together out of the spotlight, as it were.
"Here's the oath I'll serve," he said in a voice so low it was barely audible. But as he spoke it became louder. "I swear to kill Wolff. I swear to exterminate Rick and Lisa Hunter and Breetai, after I've made them suffer enough. The rest of you will either bow at my feet or die. I swear to have Obstat and Huxley and all the rest of them on the council as my personal slaves-"
It was on the tip of his tongue to say that he meant to subjugate Minmei, but that secret he managed to contain. "I swear to have the galaxy as my personal domain."
He backed away, flexing partially paralyzed fingers. "I swear revenge."
After a few more choice words, Edwards leaves, and as he is leaving the compound, he believes he sees someone on a building's rooftop, who quickly disappears.
And, to make matters worse, Dr. Lang's godchild, Scott Bernard, reports that the recording equipment was flux.
Back on the Ark Angel, Jack is in search of an invid who missed the previous planning meeting, the Regent's former chief scientist, Tesla. During his quest he rounds up Gnea, and they head for the storage compartment where he is being quartered, where they don't find him, but clues on where he might be.
The head towards the nearest power compartment where they find the evolved Invid, who now looks more and more like the Regis, and his Perytonian companion, Burak.
And Tesla quickly brings them under his control, and they become his slaves and spies amongst the Sentinels.
And other things are also changing when the young Baldan II interrupts a female only combat training class held by the Praxians. He asks for some training from Bela, but is refused.
According to Praxian custom, males aren't allowed to be trained in the Praxians' advanced hand to hand.
He reminds her that if it wasn't for her and Miriya, he would not be alive now, and according to Praxian custom, that makes him her god-child, and she cannot refuse him of anything.
She agrees to train him as a Praxian Warrior.
Things change.
And not just in orbit of Spheris.
On board the SDF-3, the trial of Commander Grant and Col. Wolff begins, and is being transmitted all throughout R.E.F. controlled space. And right off the bat, Edwards accuses them, and the Zentraedi of mutiny, and the General's little speech elicits applause from a good portion of the audience.
Then Dr. Lang presents some evidence in their defense.
Edwards thought he was blocking all of Lang's recording devices, but soon realizes that the preeminent Robotech scientist only let him think that.
The video of Dr. Lang's meeting with Edwards is played in front of the Plenipotentiary Council, throughout the SDF-3, all over Tirol and Fantoma, and even in Minmei's cell.
Of course, the stunned public is stunned, and the council orders Edwards be taken into custody.
Edwards flees, and Wolff gives chase.
A young Scott Bernard attempts to tackle the General, but Edwards pulls him off and attempts to break his neck.
Col Wolff saves the boy, but is quickly downed by Edwards.
Edwards bolts as the MP's close in. He kills two MP's using one of their own guns, and signal's the Ghost Squadron, and they make good their escape to the Catacombs beneath the Royal Hall, as one man watches, and continues on his mission to save his cousin.
Upon reaching the chamber containing the Invid Brain, Edward's contacts the Regent and asks for the Invid's assistance.
The Regent reminds him of the Invid Brain, and how he can use it for himself.
The Regent signs off, and Edwards mobilizes the Inorganics against the R.E.F.
The mission to Spheris is launched from the Ark Angel using a new drop capsule using newly devised "Shadow" technology to prevent it from being detected by the Invid's protoculture sensors. Eventually it is hoped they can miniaturize the technology to be used within the Alpha's.
Teal and Baldan II return to his home world, and they meld with the surface of the planet and enter the Crystal Highways which will take them to the others of their kind.
Before we go any further, a quick update on the Sentinels left on Haydon II.
Miriya's pregnancy is a very unusual one. She's only 2 months pregnant, but it is already difficult. She almost falls into a coma, but it is Max's words about their other daughter, Dana, that keeps her with him.
She is only 2 months pregnant, but she is almost ready to give birth.
Now, back to Baldan II and Teal.
They arrive at their first destination, and are greeted by Tiffa, Baldan's mother.
She is impressed by the changes wrought within the formally vain Teal when Teal speaks to the Spherians about the Sentinels need of help in freeing their world.
Most of the Spherians object. They are still alive, and can hide indefinitely within their world, away from the Invid.
Then Baldan II speaks in the voice, and with the memories of his father.
But there were voices from the crowd now. "Leave us in peace and go!" "We want no war!" "We're not fighters!"
"Yes, you are."
Teal had been about to try to shout the doubters down, but Baldan spoke first. Now he took three steps forward, so that they could all get a good look at him.
"Yes, you are," he repeated. "The memories that Baldan gave me tell me that. These nice safe strongholds in the planetary womb are no protection anymore; the Invid will crack this world apart with their Protoculture devices if it comes to that.
"Spherisians have fought before, long in our past. Now it's time to fight again-that, or kneel and wait for the hammer to fall on our naked necks."
He walked a few steps to one side, to where a spar of shimmering agate stood out from the wall of the sanctuary. "I mean to raise rebellion. I mean to rally every Spherian who remembers how to fight or is willing to learn. I mean to throw the Invid off this world or die trying."
Teal went over to stand by her son proudly. A wisecrack of Jack Baker's came back to her, and she decided this was a good time to use it. Putting her arm around her son's strong young shoulders, she fixed Tiffa with her gaze.
"Maybe we're not much to look at, but we're all you've got."
"From here we go to the Great Geode, to ask for aid there," Baldan announced. "Follow us, any who are willing, or carry the word to other sanctuaries." He hesitated, unsure if the last thing he wanted to say was fair, but the impulse was too strong to deny.
His voice dropped an octave and became the voice of Baldan I; a different look came into his eyes. Through him, his father said, "It is good to see you this one last time. I love you all."
Baldan II vibrated a little, coming back to himself, then turned to merge with the spar of agate. A moment later, Teal was gone too.
The Spherisians looked at one another, the sanctuary resonating with the hurrahs of some, the doubts of others. There were troubled glances everywhere.
That was when Tiffa stepped to the outcropping where her grandson and daughter-in-law had disappeared. She spread her arms like a high-diver, leaned slowly, and melded with the stuff of Spheris.
In another few seconds, people were thronging to the walls of the place, or lying flat to dissolve into the very floor. Those who doubted or had other reservations found themselves in a dwindling minority. Many remained behind, but now the sanctuary was a hollow-sounding, mostly deserted place of more silence than sound, more emptiness than life.
Back on Tirol, a Lt. Lincoln Isle, known as Linc Isle, has failed to report for duty, and has disappeared from his quarters leaving only the remnants of his beard behind.
He is watching Edwards official Headquarters as the Ghost Squadron decamp from the SDF-3 and head towards a new SDF-7 class vessel that is near completion in orbit, and the Inorganics reek havoc on Tirol.
Jumping onto the back of a Scrim Inorganic as it makes a door where there wasn't one before, and leaps back off when he's inside, and begins his search for Minmei.
Edwards has also made his way into his former headquarters, also heading for Minmei, and he reaches her first.
She shrieks as the General makes his way into her cell . . .
Edwards pounced on her as Adams and two lesser officers brought up the rear, guarding the door. The general cuffed her face, back and forth. "Shut up, shut up!"
Then he had her shoulders, shaking her, as she shuddered with long, wracking sobs. "Minmei, you're coming with me! Do you hear? You're mine!" He slapped her again. "Not Hunter's! Not Wolff's! Mine!
Somehow she stopped crying. Minmei raised her eyes to Edwards with a look he had never seen from her before. She wiped away the tears and saliva and mucous with the back of her hand.
She looked her foe in the eye. "If you don't leave me alone you'd better kill me, T. R. Or else I am going to kill you."
He felt such sudden misgiving that he raised his hand to hit her again, expecting her to flinch. But she kept her eyes fixed on him. "I'm going to make you beg me to forget what you just said," he whispered.
Minmei drew a deep breath. "No, you're not."
A hand closed around Edwards' upraised wrist from behind; a voice told him, "No, you're not."
Edwards was pulled aside, his wrist nearly broken. He was spun at the cell wall like a child's top, his burnished face-mask ringing against it, his nose banged so that he smelled metal and blood. He clawed for purchase but found himself sliding down the cold alloy, leaving a red stain. A foot pressed his head to the deck, nearly crushed it, then relented. Then the foot was abruptly gone.
The general shook his head to clear it, glancing about drunkenly. Adams lay sprawled in the doorway, perhaps unconscious, perhaps dead. Edwards could see the upturned toes of one downed guard's boots in the corridor beyond. Minmei was on her feet with a look on her face that Edwards had always longed to force her to direct at him. But it was for the man in the REF flight suit who had appeared out of nowhere.
Edwards felt numbed in certain ways, super-alert in others. The light danced in Minmei's eyes as she slowly raised her hands to her rescuer.
"Lynn-Kyle! Oh, Lynn-Kyle..."
Edwards continues to fight one of the best, if not the best, martial artist in recent memory, but is quickly defeated by the man formally known as Lt. Linc Isle, and Kyle gets ready for the kill.
Minmei convinces her cousin to spare Edwards, and is quickly grabbed when Adams awakens.
Kyle attempts to save her, killing Adams in the process, and is shot twice by General Edwards.
Kyle spun on Edwards, but the general already had his derringer in his hand. It didn't make any difference; Kyle leapt at him anyway.
The gun was small, only good for two rounds, but graphically effective at short range. Edwards shot Kyle twice while he was in the air; the body that landed on the general was almost dead.
Edwards pushed Kyle off, while Minmei came to her cousin's side, knelt, and brushed his raven's-wing forelock out of his eyes. She took his head into her lap tenderly, as Edwards labored to regain his breath and get to his feet.
Kyle's eyelids fluttered. "Minmei..."
"Shhh."
There was no saving him; she kept her trembling hand at his chin, so he couldn't see the melted fabric and bloody mess that was his chest. Kyle coughed, "The war was almost over. We'd won."
"We'd won." She nodded. "You won it for us, Kyle." She was about to faint, holding a human body that was half blown open, but she found reserves of courage from someplace she had never delved into before, and smiled down at him instead.
There was a final, galvanic bit of life to him. "Tell me you love me, Minmei. Let it be the last thing I hear. Please."
Once, she would have hung back from conceding that, but she had suffered so much since joining the Sentinels...it seemed that last words were all she knew anymore.
"I love you, Lynn-Kyle. Now and forever."
Minmei locked her mouth to his, and felt Kyle go cold and lifeless. She held him close, rocking as she embraced his head, crooning a little children's song he had taught her a thousand eons ago.
There was the sudden grip of bloody hands, and Edwards dragged her away from Lynn-Kyle's corpse. He was speaking into a rover commo unit through his smashed face. "Rally here! Rally here! Make pickup at this location at once!"
There was a burst of static as someone acknowledged from the assault units. Minmei knew she was still a captive and that Edwards might still win the day, but all of that was unimportant to her now.
I'm not a prisoner anymore. I have my own part to play now.
She glanced around the room, and everything she saw seemed to be an edged weapon or a bludgeon. Edwards, still trying to arrange for a rendezvous, was suddenly troubled when he saw Minmei's slow smile.
Back on the Ark Angel, Tesla's slave, Jack Baker, is making preparations for Tesla's grand address to the Sentinels, when he is confronted by Karen Penn.
Of course, she is quite put off by his current subservient attitude, and readies herself to clobber him, only to kiss him, passionately, Jack pressing her to the wall as his will begins to assert itself.
Tesla quickly regains control over his slave, and he leaves her to continue his preparations for his address.
When Tesla finally arrives before the Sentinels, he offers to use his more evolved nature to take control of the Invid garrison on Spheris and order them to lay down their arms.
The Sentinels command don't trust him, but the rest of the Sentinels do. They are forced to agree with his plan, and they contact Baldan II and Teal.
The Spherians, other than Baldan II and Teal, believe that this is the best plan, and agree. They don't want to fight, and Teal is wary.
Tesla is once again with fitted with the explosive collar, and Jack is given a firing switch (while a second is secreted into the control console of the Ark Angel),
Jack, Gnea, Burak, and Tesla are then taken down to the planet by Veidt in a Haydonite flyer to the Invid Hive where Tesla quickly takes control of some of the Invid in the hive.
Tesla orders that the Invid Fruit be secured, while Veidt objects and attempts to contact the Ark Angel. Gnea is ordered by her Master to deal with him, and she blasts the console of the flyer.
Like I said, Tesla was only able to take command of some of the Invid. The rest remain under the control of the Invid Brain, and it orders in an Invid Dropship to deal with the traitors.
Tesla orders the ones under his command to combat the ones loyal to the Brain, Jack and Burak to secure the Fruit, and Gnea to keep watch on the Haydonite.
Invid fight Invid in the capitol city of Beroth, ravaging it in the process.
During the combat, the R.E.F. Sentinels order Karen Penn to perform some recon, and see if she can determine which Invid are Tesla's and which aren't. She makes contact with Gnea, and is told that Tesla's Invid will blink their sensors, and requests a pick up for Jack and Tesla.
She arrives at the location of Jack and Burak, and Jack signals her for assistance. He says that Burak has been hit, and he needs her help.
She lands, and exits the Alpha to assist, and is ambushed by Burak, who knocks her out.
Within the surface of Spheris, Baldan II attempts to rally his people again, but fails. Their spirit for fighting is now gone, for the moment.
Karen awakens, and discovers that she has been tied up.
She tries to talk some sense into Jack and Burak, but they are ordered by their master to kill her.
Jack begins to fight the spell, and as he approaches Karen, she makes her move, kissing him deeply, and breaks Tesla's hold over him.
Burak notices this, and goes after the humans.
Jack fights the horned Perytonian as Tesla attempts to re-exert his control, which only manages to knock Jack off balance. It gives Burak the advantage that he needs, and he gores Jack with his horns.
During the fight, Karen managed to grab a weapon, and fires it at Burak, causing the young bull to flee in Karen's Alpha, leaving her to tend to a dying Jack Baker.
She can't get him back to the Ark Angel, and can't contact them because her helmet was destroyed during the fight.
Tesla orders some Inorganics to deal with the human couple.
As the Sentinels join in the fight, Tesla pulls back his troops so save them for the eventual battle with the Regent.
Upon Burak's return, Tesla informs him that he is planning to go to Optera, and Burak refuses, his finger on the collar's detonation switch. Tesla unlocks it with his mind, and tosses it aside, then regains mental control over Burak, while Veidt escapes.
Tesla, Burak, and Gnea depart the hive with the fruit, and head to the Invid Troop Carriers on the other side of Beroth, followed by his troops.
Unable to convince his people of their need to fight back against the Invid, Baldan II and Teal enter the Invid's armory via the Fiber Optic cabling which connects it to the hive.
They both grab Protoculture powered weapons, and make their way to the Invid Brain.
The two Spherian Sentinels fire Protoculture weaponry on the surface of Spheris.
Three Hellcats have been assigned the task to deal with Karen and a wounded Jack, but only one has arrived, the others having been destroyed by the Brain's Invid.
As it prepares to pounce, it is pulled back by two Odeon's under the Brain's control, and is quickly pulled apart. The two Odeons are about to have their fun with the humans, when they are destroyed by Bela in her Alpha.
The Sentinels realize that they have been double crossed, and the Ark Angel begins to make planet fall just as Baldan and Teal are firing at the Brain.
The planet cries out in torment, and begins to tremble
Baldan and Teal then flee, having failed in destroying the brain, and escape back into the crystal highways when a quake causes the armory to be punctured by a piece of the planet's surface.
The Brain orders the use of Protoculture weaponry, and Invid gun turrets unleash waves of annihilation discs upon Tesla's soldiers and the Sentinels alike.
As Tesla bolts for the Troop Carriers, Veidt assists Gnea in breaking free from Tesla's grasp, and they escape, knocking Burak out, and taking him with them.
As they return to the Ark Angel, two Spherians, Teal and her son, emerge from the planet in front of the hive, to close to it to be fired upon by the Invid.
They are soon joined by more and more until they surround the Invid Hive.
They link hands, and as if it were being commanded, the planet Spheris itself swallows the hive, trapping the still living Invid within the bowels of the planet.
Tesla takes complete control of the remaining Invid, and escapes with three Invid Troop Carriers full of soldiers, and plots a course for Optera.
The Ghost Squadron make their way to the new SDF-7, and hijack it.
Edwards orders his men to pull back, and rendezvous with the SDF-7.
Col. Wolff, who has been giving Edwards chase with the Wolff Pack, makes contact with Edwards and is shocked when he sees that Edwards has a hostage. Lynn Minmei.
Edwards makes it to the SDF-7, and orders a course for Optera.
The Valivarre, loaded with loyal R.E.F. soldiers, is ordered in pursuit of Edwards vessel, but can't catch up to Edwards faster ship. Wolff once again attempts contact with Edwards, and is once again shocked by the scene before him.
He was about to give up in despair, the SDF widening its lead on the Zentraedi ship. But to everyone's surprise Edwards's contemptuous smile appeared on the main screen.
"Jonathan, old man! Sorry I can't dawdle, but tempus fugit, and so must I. You understand."
"I challenge you," Wolff said again. "One on one. VTs, Hovertanks, bare hands-name it."
The Zentraedi on duty on the bridge grunted a certain grudging respect for Wolff then, even though he had shown certain weaknesses; this was a challenge worthy of a Zentraedi!
But Edwards shook his head in mock exasperation. "Still the romantic, eh, Jonathan? Well, I'm afraid I haven't got time to play black knight to your Galahad. I've other things to do, as you can see."
The camera angle shifted to a long shot, and Wolff moaned.
He and the others in Valivarre were staring at the most outlandish wedding scene conceivable. Inorganics formed a guard of honor. Ghost Riders stood in ranks in a "chapel" that was a vacant hold. The altar appeared to be the unadorned spacefold mountings, presided over by Benson, one of Edwards's aides.
The pickup followed Edwards as he went to the altar. Waiting for him there was Minmei, still wearing the clothes she had worn in her cell but with the addition of a veil improvised from gossamer antivermin netting.
The pickup zoomed in on Minmei. She seemed a little pale, but her eyes were bright and adoring as she took the general's hand. She turned to the camera for a moment.
"Good-bye, Jonathan. I've found happiness at last. I do really think it's time you go home to the family you deserted and try to make amends to them, don't you?"
Then she and Edwards knelt before Benson, as he raised his arms to the crowd and intoned, "My fellow Edwardsian warriors, we are gathered here-"
The commo link was broken at the SDF's end.
Wolff was sobbing and shaking his head. "It's a trick! It's a phony tape, or he's got her drugged!"
"Intel officer?" Breetai snapped crisply, turning to his staff.
"Voice-stress and imagery-interpretation computers confirm authenticity," a giant tech officer answered. "No indications of coercion or chemical manipulation."
"That can't be!" Wolff howled, then put his face in his hands. Some of the other Humans got him off the bridge.
Breetai's eyes stayed with his instruments in the vain hope that a power failure or a change of mind would put Edwards back within his grasp. He castigated himself for not giving in to one of his hundred impulses to kill the man, despite his Zentraedi oath of fealty to the REF.
And he felt a pang of sorrow for Wolff. Breetai, as much as anybody, knew what hurt the love of Minmei could inflict.
The Crann, Scrim, and Odeon watching the wedding service hadn't the vaguest idea what it meant, so they weren't surprised when the bride went berserk, just as the soft music began to play.
The Humans did understand, but tried to ignore her rising shriek as she leapt up from her kneeling position and turned on Edwards, trying to claw out his good eye. Edwards hissed out a few perfunctory vulgar words as he fended her off. The two Hellcats flanking the altar backed away, spitting.
He had come so close. Experimenting with the power of the Invid Brain he now controlled, he had learned how to bend Minmei to him. The effort had taken the major part of his will-to the point where the Inorganics were little more than awkward puppets-because somewhere deep inside, Minmei was fighting him every inch of the way.
Edwards knocks Minmei out, and she awakens chained to a crude wooden "X" on the ships bridge, and silently swears to kill Edwards when she has the chance.
The third battle for Tirol is over, and the R.E.F. is licking it's wounds.
Dr. Lang surprises the R.E.F. once again by revealing that he has many completed fold drives, including those that were meant for the ship that Edwards stole.
Planning for a second mission to Earth begins, and Wolff is offered the command.
Differences from Art Three and the Novels
Future story plans from Robotech II: The Sentinels Book Four #0
Synopsis of Robotech II: The Sentinels Book Four Halloween Special
The Sentinels arrive at Spheris and enter low orbit, where they detect an astroid in low orbit
They decide to use it as cover and have power redirected to repairing ship from damage sustained by Black Death Destroyers
Lron objects.
"I have heard stories from Karbarran Belt Miners about such things. Asteroids that appear out of nowhere, follow no regular orbit, moving independently of all gravity fields, defying all known laws of astrophysics and then . . . . disappear without a trace."
"And strange things always happen when one is close by. I beg of you Admiral, don't go near it."
Crysta objects to Lron's objection, and they use the asteroid as cover
Upon failing to detect the underground shelters on Spheris, they detect cavities filled with gas inside the asteroid, and Rick is anxious to test out the Haydonite Disk Armor and explore the asteroid.
Rick sets the armor for EVA mode, and along with Jack, Karen, Bela, and Gnea, they set out to explore the asteroid, leaving a very miffed Lisa behind.
The EVA group can't determine what the gas is made up of from the surface, so they enter a fissure, and gather a sample from deep within.
During the journey, Jack is up to his old tricks of tormenting Karen (pic).
As they journey deeper, they are surrounded by the gas, and it enters their suits, alarming those on the bridge of the Ark Angel.
As Lisa prepares to mount a rescue, the gas dissipates, and they depart the asteroid, samples in hand.
They are taken to the bio-lab where they are analyzed (and word bubbles are misplaced [pic]), and no foreign substances are detected.
As the crew of the Ark Angel sleeps, and Janice and Veidt analyze the gas samples, some gas leaks from Rick's and Karen's disks, taking over the minds of Lisa and Karen.
As a hypnotized Karen walks down a corridor, Jack encounters her, and begins rambling at her, even confessing his love.
He kisses her, but she is a complete blank, and runs.
Lisa is at the computer terminal in her and Rick's quarters, going over all the data contained within the ships computers. She copies the data onto a Haydonite sphere, and knocks Rick out with it as Karen enters the bio-lab, taking the gas samples with her.
Bela and Gnea, also under the control of the gas from their discs, join Karen and take the analysis of the gas with them.
Janice and Veidt contact a just awakening Rick, and notifies him about Karen, Bela, and Gnea's strange behavior.
Jack and Rick are both alright, but the gas has taken control of some of the female crew while they were asleep, and they head towards the airlock.
The girls activate the EVA mode of their disks, but are stopped by Veidt's locking of the airlock.
Just as Lron arrives, Bela activates her Haydonite Sword, and slices through the airlock, sucking Rick, Jack, Janice, and Lron into space. They barely activate their disks in time.
They follow the girls to the asteroid, where the samples have been released, and the girls awaken, the data spheres gone.
A gaseous creature escapes from Jack's disk, and returns to a vent in the asteroid.
The asteroid begins to tremble, and the Sentinels barely escape from within before it flies away.
The asteroid was a ship, and now they have all of the data from the Haydonite ship and the R.E.F. SDF-7.
Week One: Robotech Art 3 by Carl Macek
It has been around 10 years since the destruction of the SDF-1, and since then humanity and it's Robotech Defense Forces have been planning for two great events: the launch of the SDF-3 and it's mission to Fantoma; and the wedding of Admiral Lisa Hayes to Major General Rick Hunter.
Unbeknownst to the REF however is that the Invid have just conquered Fantoma. And as the preparations for both the wedding and the mission of the SDF-3 continue, the Invid Regent interrogates the surviving civilians of the Robotech Masters home world, murders them after he doesn't get the information he desires, and leaves a detachment of Invid Inorganics on the planet's surface under the direct control of the Invid Brain.
During this time of occupation on Fantoma, an aged Robotech Master scientist named Cabell and his assistant, Rem, capture an Invid Cougar Inorganic for analysis, and back in Earth-space, Rick Hunter and Lisa Hayes are finally wed.
The day after the ceremony, while the civilian guests are returning to the planet below, things aren't going that well on the former home of the Robotech Masters.
The Cougar Rem and Cabell have captured disintegrates during it's examination, and the Invid discover that the Robotech Masters have left their empire on a quest to find the last Protoculture Matrix.
As the SDF-3 begins it's journey to Fantoma, Minmei, still in love with Rick, flies her fan jet towards the SDF-3, and it's captured in the SDF-3's fold sphere, and both Minmei and Janice are knocked out as the SDF-3 arrives in orbit of Fantoma, and is promptly attacked by a fleet of Invid.
While the Veritechs of the REF battle the Invid in space, Col. Wolffe leads the rescue of Minmei and Janice, and shortly afterwards, the REF is victorious in that first battle.
And as the REF plan the ground mission to the planet's surface, the Invid prepare their defenses, while Cabell and Rem wonder what to do.
Robotech The Sentinels Book One "The Devil's Hand" by Jack McKinney Chapters One through Eight
The general plot of the first eight chapters of The Devil's Hand is similar to the episode outlines provided in Robotech Art 3, but there are some differences in the details, as the novel has the advantage of being more descriptive with character's motivations.
Differences from Robotech Art Three:
Like The Devil's Hand, the comics plot does not differ all that much from Robotech Art Three's episode guide and the first eight chapters of The Devil's Hand, but there are some small differences, as the comic's writers were trying to differentiate the comics from the novels.
Differences from Robotech Art Three and the Novels
Robotech Book 15 "Death Dance" Chapters 9-13 by Jack McKinney
Garuda.
A cold and barren world full of glaciated mountain ranges, steppes and tundra. What life exists on this planet inhabits a heavily forested narrow equatorial band.
The atmosphere of this world if full of airborne spores and microorganisms which prove toxic to most other forms of life save the native Garudans and relatively few others.
The Invid Flower of Life grows on Garuda, and it is considered a primary source of the much needed nutrients for the battered Invid empire.
But, there is some bad news for the Invid. The Sentinels have arrived in Garuda space.
To assess the situation on the planet, a small landing party consisting of Rick Hunter, Lisa Hayes-Hunter, Jack Baker, Karen Penn, Cabell, Rem, Lron, Crysta, Gnea, Burak, Kami, and Learna, escorted by the Skull Squadron, lands on the planet only to be greeted by the Garudan's protectors, Bioroids. When the Invid came and defeated the Robotech Masters for the possession of Garuda, the pilots were cut off their masters on Tirol, and eventually came to learn the meaning of freedom from the Garudans and how to survive the atmosphere, without the aid of breathing apparatus.
Kami and Learna are the first to debark from the shuttle, and are quickly greeted by members of their own village, and, after a brief celebration by the native populous, the Garudans and Sentinels meet on how they can defeat the Invid and free the planet. Orbital strikes from the SDF-7 are quickly dismissed as the Invid have taken much of the population as slaves to harvest the fruit of the Flower of Life, as the Invid cannot survive in the atmosphere without wearing EVA suits.
The first Invid to arrive on Garuda tried to survive, but they quickly went mad. Then they died.
To gauge the situation before coming up with a plan of attack, it is decided that a small team consisting of Rick, Lisa, Jack, Karen, Rem, and Kami will recon the hive, and make sure that the Invid do not have any hostages. They leave before dawn the next day on hovercycles for the nearest Invid Farm Hive, roughly 100 miles away, encountering occasional patrols of Hellcats.
As they begin to examine the perimeter of the hive on their hovercycles, they are ambushed by Invid Scouts, and all are quickly captured, save for Jack. During the battle, Lisa's EVA suit is torn open, exposing her to the atmosphere. The Invid's prisoners are taken into the hive.
The prisoners are quickly interrogated by the Invid Scientists who have been left in charge of the hive, but since they aren't talking, the head scientist decides that it might be a good idea to analyze the prisoner's dreams using the devices that the Robotech Masters abandoned on Garuda. The best way to awaken their inner dreams, expose them to the atmosphere.
Rick dreams of being chased by giant eagles with only Lisa willing to aid him. Lisa has nightmares of being chased down a spiral staircase with no end by hungry cats. Karen has visions of being buried alive. None of these dreams are telling the Invid what they want to know. Where have the Masters gone, and where Zor has sent the Protoculture Matrix. But, there is one person's dreams the Invid find interesting.
They are dreams of Optera. They are dreams of the Regis. They are dreams of a time before Protoculture was conjured from the Flower of Life, before Tirol's Great Transition, before the Zentraedi defoliated the planet.
They are memories from Zor's life. They are Rem's dreams.
Needless to say, the Invid Scientists are quite shocked, and the Regent needs to be informed that they have discovered a clone of Zor.
The Regent is pleased with his scientist's discovery, and orders Rem to be brought to Optera, but his scientists suggest that Haydon IV might be better. It is closer to Garuda than Optera, and it has far better equipment to analyze the clones mind. Also, the Regis is there.
The Regent orders Rem to be sent to Haydon IV as ". . . a gift for her - a gift from her loving husband!"
Meanwhile, after watching his friends getting captured and then exposed to Garuda's atmosphere, Jack makes his way back to the Garudan village and notifies the rest of the landing party of Rick, Lisa, Karen, Rem, and Kami's current situation.
Max Sterling quickly formulates a plan to rescue the group. Attack the other hives on the planet to divert the Invid from the hive Rick is kept in, then send a small rescue party in to free the scouting party and making sure they get the proper medical attention they need.
Cabell objects stating that the Invid hives are far more complex than anything the humans have encountered, but Burak has a plan of his own. Exchange Tesla for the scouting party.
After returning to the SDF-7, Burak explains his plan to Tesla. Tesla claims to be more evolved than the Invid Regent, and now that the Regent is "dead", Tesla can use his more evolved nature to take control of the Invid on the planet. Sounds good, but Tesla objects to that plan. The Regis is still out there, and she might be more than a little miffed that he killed the Regent. He doesn't want to go, but he's taken to Garuda by force.
The bulk of the Sentinel's forces return to Garuda's surface leaving Col. Wolff in command of the SDF-7's bridge. As the shuttle departs from the ship, an Invid shuttle is detected leaving the surface, and a drunk Jonathan Wolff decides to ignore it. Rem is now on his way to Haydon IV.
Meanwhile, in the Valivarre system things aren't going so well either.
The Plenipotentiary Council has placed Edwards in command of the mining operation on the surface of Fantoma, taking command away from Breetai. Edward's meeting with the Zentraedi commander goes smoothly, with no signs of violence from the warrior giants, but that is because Breetai has a plan.
After Edwards leaves, the Zentraedi load up their ship, the Valivarre, with fake Monopole Ore for delivery to the R.E.F., and keep the remaining ore, the last ore Fantoma had to offer, for themselves.
Breetai doesn't believe that the Admirals Hunter are traitors, and plans to find them.
After meeting with Dr. Lang and Exedore, where Dr. Lang somehow knows that they are on their way to Haydon IV. That is where Breetai is going to begin his search.
On Haydon IV, the Regis is shocked to discover that the "gift" from her husband is a clone of Zor, she uses Haydonite technology to peer into Rem's memories as Zor, and after finding out that Zor sent the last Protoculture Matrix to a small blue and white world far removed from the local systems, she dispatches a sensor nebulae to find that world, and then departs Haydon IV, before the Regent arrives.
The Sentinels plan to rescue their friends from the Invid hive is to use Tesla in a hostage exchange, but Tesla objects quite quickly. He has another plan. Use Max's plan, but he'll join up with the infiltration team to guide them through the hive. He also informs the team that the Hive's defenses can detect Protoculture emissions, that is why Rick's team was captured so quickly, so they should use more traditional weapons, including the Karbarran weapons that they had sent to Garuda during the final days of the Master's empire.
The mission is launched.
The Wolff Pack and Skull Squadron attack the Invid's orchards, diverting the Invid away, and a small rescue party composed of Lron, Crysta, Bela, Gnea, Learna, Jack, Janice, and Tesla enter the hive.
The diversion starts off well, with the Skull battling Invid mecha in the skies, but it turns sour when the Inorganics begin attacking the Garudan Labor Camp, forcing Skull and Wolff to break off their attack in an attempt to defend the Garudans. Many Garudans die in the ensuing carnage, but the tide is turned as thousands of armed Garudans all over the world join in the battle and begin to attack the Invid with the Karbarran supplied weapons and their friendly neighborhood Bioroids.
During the battle Miriya's Alpha is shot down, and she is attacked by Hellcats hungry for prey. Max quickly rescues her, but only after a Hellcat has broken through the Veritech's canopy, and removed her helmet, exposing her to the Garudan atmosphere.
The only resistance the infiltration team encounters are a couple Invid sentries, which they make short work of, and, after threats of being exposed to Garuda's atmosphere, are lead by the two remaining Invid scientists to Rick, Lisa, Karen, and Kami. The humans are still unconscious and delerious due to the affects of Garuda's atmosphere.
After being treated by Jean Grant back at the village, it is decided that Rick, Lisa, Karen, and a pregnant Miriya Sterling need to be taken to Haydon IV for treatment.
Leaving the bulk of their forces on Garuda to protect the world from further Invid invasions, the Sentinels leave Garuda for Haydon IV.
Garuda has been freed, but at great cost.
Differences from Art Three
Robotech The Sentinels Book Three Issues 11-20 by Jason and John Waltrip
Differences from Art Three and the Novels
Synopsis of Robotech II: The Sentinels Book Three Issue #18
After being rescued, the Garudan's attempt to stabilize Rick, Lisa, and Karen's minds by going into the dreams-realm of their minds.
The Dreams-realm for Lisa and Rick is Macross City. A destroyed Macross City.
Kami encounters Rick, and Rick blames the Sentinels and himself for the destruction of Macross at the hands of the Robotech Masters.
Kami knocks Rick out after Rick attempts to strangle him.
Lisa's nightmare is of Rick leaving her for Minmei.
Lisa beats on Minmei, shattering her face revealing Learna who guides her back to the others.
Karen's terror is her father. Her overbearing father. (pic)
Qwazi convinces Karen that her father does love her (pic), and Learna brings Lisa to them.
Kami returns with Rick a short time later, but they are not out of danger yet.
To prevent Rick, Lisa, and Karen's collective nightmare from killing them, Qwazi calls upon the animal spirits of Garuda. (pic)
The Garudans ride the mecha spirits against the nightmare, then unify them into one spirit. (pic & pic)
Because the Garudan's are using the Hin to battle the nightmare which is a manifestation of the Hin in their minds, the best the Garudan's can do is to separate Rick, Lisa, and Karen from the nightmare.
They have been stabilized and the Garudan's return to their bodies.
Veidt suggests that now that they are stabilized, Haydon IV will provide the cure.
Week Six: Robotech Art Three by Carl Macek
We have left Robotech Art Three's episode by episode guide for the first two weeks, and now we are onto the week by week synopsis for the next ten weeks. So, I'm just going to list the plot points from Week Six entitled Final Battle On Praxis and Journey to Garuda.
Differences from Art Three
⁃ Praxis explodes with the Sentinels barely being rescued
⁃ The Invid have no plans to invade Tirol
⁃ Oh, and pretty much everything else except for the Sentinels heading to Garuda.
Week Three: Robotech Art Three by Carl Macek
We have left Robotech Art Three's episode by episode guide for the first two weeks, and now we are onto the week by week synopsis for the next eleven weeks. So, I'm just going to list the plot points from Week Three entitled The Coming Of The Sentinels.
Differences from Art Three
Here's a summary of what happened in the first nine chapters
As the REF celebrates Earth's New Years Eve, and just as the Admirals Hunter take to the dance floor, the party is over. The SDF-3 detects an alien, and possibly enemy, vessel entering the Valiverre Star System. The REF promptly goes on combat alert.
Because the REF is on a diplomatic mission, the SDF-3 hails the alien vessel and prepares to launch the Skull Squadron to buzz the alien vessel when it does not respond to the calls, when the alien vessel decelerates, enters into Tirol orbit, deactivates it's weapon systems, and hails the SDF-3 with a message: "Respond, please. Alien vessel, please respond. We come in peace. We come in friendship. Do not fire! We are desperately in need of your help!"
Upon the SDF-3's request, they identify themselves as the Sentinels.
Despite opposition from General TR Edwards, Admiral Hayes-Hunter allows the alien vessel to land (while the SDF-3's main cannon and the GMU's main gun are trained upon it).
While the alien vessel begins the land upon the moon's surface, the REF's scientists analyze the vessel and determine that it is made up of many different types of technology, including what appears to be technology from Earth's steam era.
Admiral Hayes-Hunter, Vice Admiral Hunter, Breetai, Exedore, and Dr. Lang are there to greet this vessel upon Tirol's surface and are surprised, and initially terrified, of the truly alien appearances of the vessel's occupants.
The Sentinels a loose alliance of many aliens who were captured by the Invid and meant to be trophies of the Invid Regent. They overtook their captors, took control of the ship, and came to Tirol, after finding out that the REF managed to defeat the Invid, to seek the REF's assistance. They took the name, The Sentinels, as it means "The Watchman. The sentries who say, 'This place, I protect! Protect with my life! Meddle here, and you start a war only one of us can survive'" in Zentraedi.
And they request the REF's aid in the form of supplies, weapons, and allies to free their worlds from the Invid.
As the REF Plenipotentiary council meets to discuss a possible alliance with the Sentinels, the SDF-3 detects an Invid vessel heading towards Tirol, the Invid Pursuer. It is quickly decided by a five to four vote that the REF will ally themselves with the alien Sentinels, and both team up to destroy the Invid Pursuer, which has been chasing the Sentinels since they commandered their ship.
The plan, fire the GMU's cannon and the SDF-3's cannon at the Pursuer at the same time, but there needs to be an REF liason onboard the vessel.
Edwards volunteers, but Rick is chosen due to his experience and knowledge of the SDF-3.
The Sentinels' vessel, the Farrago, launches, and is pursued by the Pursuer in Tirol's atmosphere, and is destroyed when the Farrago breaks up into it's individual ships, revealing it's Protoculture homing device and the SDF-3 and GMU fire upon it.
Afterwards, it's time for the Sentinels new ally to find out what they have taken prisoner, their captor, the Invid scientist, Tesla.
Over the course of the next three days around 1000 REF soldiers are included in the Sentinels mission; all the Zentraedi, save for Exedore, are resized for the Fantoma mining operation which completely wears out the last remaining Zentraedi sizing chamber; Dr. Lang reprograms Janice to join in the Sentinels mission and then, upon the urging of Bela, builds a Pegasus mecha as a morale booster for the Praxians; command of the SDF-3 is given to Captain Forsythe; Ensigns Baker and Penn are promoted to Liuetenant Junior Grade; the Zentraedi return to their old home of Zarkopolis on Fantoma; and Edwards begins his plan to take over the REF while Rick and Lisa are away.
And, as the REF's newest recruit, Lynn Minmei, sings a soulful version of We Will Win, the Farrago departs the Valivarre system for Karbarra.
The R.E.F. Contingent of the Sentinels
The Alien Sentinels
Differences from Art Three and the first nine chapters of Dark Powers