Slave Planet: WAR OF THE BLOOD FIENDS!

************fast forward 44 years****************************

The retirement home was located on Omega 44, a smallish backwater planet not much good for anything else. The old man called Riddick was having a really shitty day. He'd coughed, causing him to piss his pants right before breakfast. That meant he had to return to his room and change ...a cursed slow process these days. The delay had allowed his cornflakes to get really soggy...dammit! After a few bites, Riddick screamed in rage and pushed the stuff away. It took incredible self-control for the ancient man to resist the urge to throw the soggy shit in the floor. As it was, the orderly and the kitchen staff shot the pathetic figure a few hard looks at the sudden outburst. Oh shit, this might mean another visit from Dick....fuckin' hell! That was the last thing he needed.

Back in his room Riddick sat dejected and stared aimlessly out the window. The sky was certainly blue as it could be. The sight only made the once mighty outlaw even more depressed. What a life he'd had....and it all come to this....damn. Nurse Jones came around a bit later with his medication. Riddick hated taking all that crap...whatever it was. It made him feel like shit, and he really didn't need anything that made him feel even worse than the advanced age that was already kicking his ass. He took the stuff anyhow, bitchin' about it wouldn't accomplish a damn thing except gettin' himself strapped down and sedated. The nurse bent over to check out his mouth, making sure he'd swallowed the stuff. Riddick got a nice long view of her big tits. He really wanted to grab himself a handful but trouble was already on its way most likely. A familiar throbbing between the old man's legs reminded him that he was still a man...at least for the time being.

"Hello nurse," the voice was one that Riddick despised. It belonged to the king asshole that ran this human garbage dump. His name was Richard Dastardly, or Mr. Dick as he liked to be called. Dick Dastardly...what a fucked up name for a human. As the nurse turned to leave she rubbed her chest up against the man with the thin black mustache and prominent nose. He smiled in appreciation and fondled her ass in plain view of the old man. Riddick's semi-erection shrank in disgust.

"I believe I need to have a word with you Mr. Riddick. It seems there was some sort of uncalled for outburst in the dining room this morning. I would like for you to explain what that was all about if you would." Dastardly's tone of voice and his condescending way of talking enraged Riddick. The former outlaw's knuckles grew white as the once powerful fists clenched in frustration.

Dastardly prodded his hapless client on the shoulder, "well, what do you have to say for yourself Mr. Riddick?"

"My breakfast was terrible, I knew it was pointless to ask for something else so I became upset. Hunger will do that do you." Riddick spoke without looking at Dastardly. Fuck that bastard, he didn't deserve eye contact.

"I see," said Dastardly. His voice became even more insidious. "Perhaps, you are just depressed again. I'm sure that I can ask the doctor to give you another round of electro-shock therapy. You are so fortunate that this is one of the few facilities in the galaxy where this type of treatment is still available. Does that sound like a good idea to you Mr. Riddick, or might I assume this was simply an isolated incident and not likely to happen again...ever. I owe it to the rest of our clients to insure them a nice quiet place to dine, without the annoyance of an uproar. Do we have an understanding, or should I go ahead and schedule your "treatments"?"

Riddick wondered if he still had the strength to grab this asshole by the throat and chock him to death before additional staff would arrive to beat him senseless. He had tried once before but Dastardly was as quick as he was rotten. It took a monumental effort before the old man could mutter the words. "No, I don't need any treatments, I was just upset because I pissed myself and got to breakfast late again. I was my own fault, I shouldn't have made a fuss."

Dastardly shrugged and turned to leave. "Very well, but we will keep our eye on you Mr. Riddick. Everyone likes it quiet around here, and it's going to quiet...it's just a matter of doing what we must to insure our client's peace of mind. Good day."

The old man sat without moving for the rest of the day. He didn't even make an effort to return to the dining room. One of the few, nicer techs, a young boy name Pete, brought him a glass of juice and an apple. Riddick thanked him before consuming the snack. He wondered why he should even make an effort to keep himself alive. If he didn't eat, they would cram a feeding tube down his throat, that was reason enough.

Riddick took off his special glasses and cleaned them. He missed his good ole' goggles.
Dastardly had said they didn't look uniform...whatever that meant. These new specs were heavy and hurt his nose. He stopped cleaning and dozed off in his chair. Nurse Jones woke him up when she brought his evening meds around. After she left, he got undressed and went to bed. Fuck it, there was nothing else to do anyhow. He turned on his tiny little tv that didn't even have cable, there was nothing he wanted to watch, but the noise sometimes took him away from his own brooding. Besides, the color was so fucked up that he saw tv as more of a psychedelic experience than anything else.

A few hours later Riddick wakened. He had pissed himself again...damn, he'd forgotten to go to the bathroom before going to bed. Oh well, Pete was on the morning shift and he'd help the old man change the wet bedding. There was really noting else to do except go back to sleep...if he could sleep on the damp linen. Riddick reached for the remote to turn off the tv which was nothing but a blue light as this point, the day's programming was over. Somebody had already turned the lights off in the room and the old man figured he might grab a couple more hours of shuteye if everything was totally dark. He clicked off the set and tried to imagine himself somewhere else..far, far away from this hellish existence. Before he fell asleep, for some unknown reason, the ancient warrior glanced at the surrounding blackness. He was surprised to find it wasn't all black. The bluish light was still there, only it had moved. Instead of being high on the wall it had somehow moved over in front of the bathroom door. This was very strange, sometimes the old man's thinking could get a bit scattered, especially after taking his medication. Then something long forgotten clicked inside Riddick's aged brain.

This wasn't the tv at all, it was a different blue light...one that he'd seen before. Yeah, a long time before. Groaning with effort, the old man pulled himself up to sit on the edge of the bed. His mouth gaped open with disbelief as the light changed into a form....shit! Was it possible. Riddick pinched himself hard..ouch. Still, it had to be a dream...didn't it? The vision continued to flicker and wave, the old man stared, barely blinking. "Is....is that you?" he asked, his voice sounded hoarse and rasping. Riddick became aware that his breathing was rather labored.

The old man repeated his question, a little louder and clearer, but not loud enough to carry beyond his closed door. "Is that you? Can it really be.......?"

The blue light was all but gone. The large shadowy figure that had emerged thereabouts moved over to the window. The darkness did not seem to hinder it. The shades were slowly and quietly drawn back. Bright moonlight flooded the room, illuminating an eerie face and figure that would have drawn stares in the best of lights.

"Yes, it is I Riddick," spoke a voice in a deep rumbling tone. Riddick didn't really need the moonlight to see the gaunt face and piercing blue eyes. After all, the old outlaw still had his own silver eyes.

The voice spoke again, "I see you've aged a bit Riddick, tell me, do ye still recall your old comrade in arms Solemnity O'Kain"?!

Riddick felt embarrassed for O'Kain to see him in this state. Most likely, it was all just a bizarre dream due to another medication error by Nurse Jones. Regardless, Riddick tried to speak. "Wh....what are you doing here....O'Kain. I see you still got your stick, I always wished I had one like it. It must be nice to be able to travel through time and space like you do."

O'Kain's eyes moved downwards to the ancient stave he held. He briefly massaged the anubis head before answering. "Aye, this object has its uses to be sure. Sometimes it be worrisome to me making use of black magic. Still, all powers black or otherwise, are subjected to the will of the Allmighty Lord." O'Kain's steely gaze returned to the old outlaw.

"I have come Riddick because I sensed yee needed help. Now what can I do for yee?"

"A quick painless death would be nice," Riddick answered before slumping back on the bed. Then suddenly his eyes lit up with a strange fire.

"Hmmmm, maybe you can help....just maybe you can help a helluva lot." Riddick sounded more energetic all of a sudden. He got out of bed and went to a small chest. There he pulled out a sheet of paper and a pencil. "They put this stuff here in case you want to write a letter...never had any use for it until just now." The old man put his head down to concentrate, writing steadily for several minutes. He then read back over his work and made a few corrections. Satisfied, Riddick struggled over to where O'Kain stood and put the paper in the puritan's hand.

"Here's what I want old friend. I don't care how you get it...that's up to you. My advice is to deliver that paper to the jerk that runs this hellhole...one Mr. Dick Dastardly"

"Is he that be the one troubling you?" O'Kain asked. Riddick nodded. "Tell me where and when I can best have an audience with this squire Dick.....an audience with just the two of us?" O'Kain asked.

Riddick smiled and sat down in his armchair. "He will be in his office in a couple of hours.....the place is pretty deserted then, he just comes in to see how much money he's raking in...let me give you some directions and tell you a little more about Mr. Dick."

At that point the two old friends sat down and had a long conversation....and Mr. Dick Dastardly's name came up more than once!