Douglas Adams' Starship Titanic

By the time The Journalist was thrown at his feet, Bolfass had become quite angry - not as angry as if he had known about the sub-standard materials used for the railing around the Central Well, or if he had known about the scandalous lack of finish in the bilge and rubbish-disposal wastes (where the Unmarried Teenage Mothers had been told not to rub down or even apply any varnish!) - but still pretty angry.

'What have you done to Titania's brain?' he roared.

The Journalist stuck his chin out and said: 'I can only give you my name, rank and number.'

'This isn't The Great Escape!' * exclaimed Bolfass, swivelling a light into The Journalist's eyes. 'Tell me what you know! Or I shall let Horst here do his worst!'

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* The Great Escape - the name of a famous Blerontin film celebrating the true story of how the cream of the Blerontinian spacefleet, held prisoners in the supposedly impregnable fortress of Drat-Kroner, contrived a mass escape. Oddly enough it also starred Steve McQueen.

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'My lips are sealed!' countered The Journalist, turning his head away.

'Very well! You leave me no choice!' snarled Bolfass and he struck The Journalist across the face with his leather glove.

'All right!' said The Journalist. 'I'll tell you anything you want! Anything!'

'Don't you want to be tortured a little more first?'

'No! I'd rather tell you now.'

'Very well! We know you've sabotaged Titania's brain to prevent us returning to Yassacca! Tell us what you've done with the parts!'

The Journalist looked surprised. 'Scraliontis didn't tell me about that part of the plot!'

'What plot?' Bolfass secretly admired his Blerontinian adversary for his ability to remain cool under circumstances when a lesser man would have cracked. 'It's a pity,' he thought, 'we aren't fighting this war on the same side. On the other hand, we're not actually fighting a war at all.' Bolfass made an effort to pull himself together.

The Journalist then told everything he knew about Scraliontis's and Brobostigon's plot to scuttle the great Starship and claim the insurance. Bolfass listened in white-laced anger. Nettie could see the rage boiling up within him.