The asteroid that's being mined
Whenever we're mining it

"I wanted to explore strange new worlds," Smegg grumbled, "and now I end
up mining them!"

Actually he wasn't doing the mining, but doing the slightly less
strenuous and monotonous work of operating the machinery that turned the
raw ore into much-needed supplies. He recalled that once he'd considered
how the ship could virtually refit itself like this; he didn't know he'd
actually have to do it!

Then some sort of creature that sort of looked like a two-foot-long slug,
only it was made of almost red-hot rock, chewed its way out of the
ground.

"YOU KILLED OUR BABIESSS!" the monster somehow hissed.

------------------
Inside Smegg's brain
A bit before

"How is the plan working?" Yellow blinked to Cerulean.

"This demon-god is ready for the first phase!" Cerulean blinked back.
"Activate the nidomene transmitters!"

Immediately thousands of other micros each moved toward a neuron and
emitted the hallucinatory fear-producing neurotransmitter.

------------------
Back on the asteroid

"Eep!" Smegg gulped. Why was everyone else off duty?!

"YESSS YOU KILLED OUR BABIESSS!!!" the rock creature hissed again.

"Killed - killed your babies?!?" Smegg stammered.

"YESSSSS!!!!! AND SO WE ARE EATING YOUR SSSHIP!!!"

Smegg looked up...

only to see two ships in the sky...

the Blue Dwarf...

and the Red Dwarf!

The Blue Dwarf looked pretty damaged, but the Red Dwarf was in even worse
shape - even from ten miles below, its hull appeared to be... CHEWED on!

------------------------------------

Are the rock-monsters real or only a hallucination?
Is the Red Dwarf really an orbital snack bar?
Will anyone figure out where I stole the ideas of the rock-creatures and
the micros from?

Find out sometime in the future on...

BLUE DWARF

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SELF CONTROL IS JUST CONDITIONED APATHY.
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