Ultimate Astro Rangers
---Ultimate Power Rangers
---Season 05
---Digital Task Force Astro Rangers
---Chapter Twenty-four: Secret City
The
Megaship drifted alone in space near Aloc. Plasma leaked from its war-torn
vents. The vessel’s engines whined with protest. The five rangers were at their
bridge stations within the vessel.
“Report,”
Tommy said.
Kat’s
fingers moved across her control panels as lines of data flashed across her
console. “We’re broadcasting distress signals on all frequencies.”
Chris’
monitor blinked. His finger pressed on the red flashing light and a status
report downloaded onto his display. “A patrol of Tark ships just dropped out of
hyperspace. There’s three of them.”
“Polarize
the hull plating,” Tommy said. “Weapons?”
“Hull
plating is at 30 percent,” Justin said. “Plasma cannons and Megalasers are
offline.”
Cy shook
his head. “Our thrusters are offline. We’re not going anywhere.”
Chris
gave another report. “The Tark are coming into firing range.”
“Hold
onto something,” Tommy said as he and the others braced themselves.
The Tark
ships, spear-shaped vessels with tan-tinted hull plating, move forward towards
the Megaship and fired streams of particle energy. The blasts exploded against
the Megaship’s hull as the enemy vessels passed by.
Before
the enemy ships could come about for another place, two vessels de-cloaked and
thrust forward. The ships, resembling two-pronged forks with sweeping
green-armored wings, moved forward and fired bursts of jade disrupter blasts
that ripped across the enemy ships.
“Now,”
Tommy said on the bridge. “Hull plating to full. Megalasers and plasma cannons,
online. Thrusters ahead. Target the lead ship and fire.”
The
Megaship’s systems came up to full power and the saucer-shaped vessel streaked
forward. Darts of blue and red energy shot from the Megaship’s weapon turrets
and exploded against the lead ship, piercing through its armor and destroying
the vessel in a cloud of fire.
The two
allied ships opened fire with bursts of torpedoes that exploded against the
remaining ships, gutting them with fiery explosions and shrapnel.
“Stand
down,” Tommy said. “Kat, tell our new friends good job. And bring in the Delta
Mega to help us with repairs. We may have been playing dead, but we didn’t have
to act too hard.”
The
pronged vessels were Basf ships. The Basf lived on the outer rim of the galaxy
near the Prizelus sector. The apparently emotionless race was the latest
addition to the Allies efforts against Sauron. The Basf had cloaking technology
that made them a valuable asset.
The Basf
people were mostly humanoid in appearance. Their eyes were solid black slits.
They had sharp, angular facial features.
The
Delta Mega moved into position and started repairs on the Megaship. The Delta
Mega downloaded a cache of information and data files into the Megaship’s
computer during the repairs.
***
Tommy
sat alone in the Situation Room. He reviewed a set up data pads on recent
battle campaigns across the galaxy. Each data pad had the same basic theme:
engage and retreat. The Allied forces were constantly on the defensive. No one
had any word of Zordon’s whereabouts.
The
sleeves on his jumpsuit were rolled up. His zipper was down to his stomach,
exposing his red undershirt.
The
doors slid open and Justin walked in. His appearance was similar. He tossed a
data pad onto the main table. He didn‘t look happy. “Here’s the last of the
reports from the Delta Mega.”
“I take
it it’s not good news,” Tommy said as he lifted the data pad.
“That’s
one way of putting it,” Justin answered. “The Confederation’s Second Fleet lost
the Prizelus Sector. Only 13 ships survived…out of 220.”
Tommy
sighed with frustration and dropped the pad. He leaned forward, his elbows on
the table as he placed a hand over his forehead. The Confederation, an Allied
group of pirates and smugglers, was vital to holding the fourth quadrant of the
galaxy from Sauron.
“That
was one of our largest fleets,” Tommy said, rubbing his eyes with frustration.
“All those people…”
Justin
took a step forward, his brow knitted with anger. “We can’t keep going on like
this, Tommy. We’re losing, and we’re no where close to finding Zordon. We can’t
just stay on the defensive like this. We need a solid victory.”
“I
agree,” Tommy said as he slid the data pads aside and looked up to Justin.
“We’re rendezvousing with a mixed battle group near the Drilax System. We’re
going to regroup and cut hard into Sauron’s territory.”
***
The Dark
Fortress spun through the black void of space. The fortress opened fire with a
barrage of neon-green energy blasts that exploded against an attack wing of
raptor-like Crinyte assault ships. The attack ships exploded in spheres of
fiery death.
Astronema
stood on the bridge of the Dark Fortress. She watched with a cold and
emotionless face as the enemy ships went up in flames. The victory was
meaningless to her.
Astronema’s
plan to use the Psycho Rangers to drain Sauron of his power - while destroying
the Rangers - had failed. She needed a new plan, but inspiration alluded her.
Eclipter
walked over to Astronema’s side. “Princess…Pratorite Rashanar has sent word
from Vongnar. He has reported success with the Xynzon Plot.”
A cold
smile crossed Astronema’s face as a thought struck her. The Xynzon Plot was one
of the many projects that Sauron’s underlings oversaw. Each project was
designed to gain favor in the Dark Monarch’s eye. But Astronema had different
plans in mind for Rashanar and his Xynzon Plot.
“Tell
Rashanar not to proceed until I arrive,” Astronema commanded. “I need to
provide him with some new direction.”
Rashanar
designed the Xynzon Plot to gain favor with Sauron. But when Astronema was
finished…the plot would be the end of Sauron.
***
The
Graveyard was a whirling mass of broken starships that stormed through the
darkness of space. Gutted vessels twirled around a cluster of gravity anomalies
and other spatial tears.
The
ships were ancient and nearly unrecognizable. The vessels were all that
remained of a battle that raged eons ago. The story of the battle was one of
time’s oldest and strangest mysteries.
One of
the hollowed out cruisers was serving as a meeting ground.
Vea’ra
walked along a narrow passage that ran along the spine of the dead ship. The
lights on her EV suit illuminated the battle-scarred deck plating and walls.
Bits and pieces of steel floated through the weightless environment as if
propelled by air.
Vea’ra
was one of the few Taileon to survive the destruction of her homeworld. She had
worked for the smuggler Durak ever since. She had met the Rangers during one of
their early missions after leaving the Terran system.
A group
of three humanoid men in EV suits walked towards her. Their leader was gray
skinned with brown eyes. Every ridge and curve on his face was accentuated with
segmented pieces of protruded bone.
The
leader took a step forward, a smug grin on his face. “I didn’t think you would
actually come, Orphan.”
It was a
demeaning nickname for her homeless people. But she ignored it, despite her
anger. She had little time. “I’m not surprised, Damahr. It seems you’re always
wrong. That’s why you’re licking the boots of Astronema instead of leading your
people yourself.”
Damahr
was from Vornholt, a rust-colored world near Edenoi. His people had joined
forces with Sauron at the start of the war, before the fall of Eltar. But it
seemed like Astronema didn’t know about the race’s genetic tendency for
treachery. Or their selfish greed.
Vea’ra
tossed a data pad forward, sending it floating towards the three Holts. Damahr
caught the pad and reviewed it. He double checked its readings with a data pad
of his own to ensure the pad’s accuracy. A sizeable amount of gold-pressed latinum
had been deposited in one of his many accounts.
“Hmph.
So much latinum, for such a trivial piece of information. You’re either
desperate or foolish,” Damahr said.
“Give me
what I want,” Vea’ra said.
Damahr
tossed her a small pack of data cards. The data pack went floated forward. It’s
contents held the key to finding Zordon. Divatox was keeping him deep in the
galactic core, an area dense with stars that were nearly impossible to
navigate. The data pack had Zordon’s coordinates, along with a detailed star
route to his location.
“There,”
Damahr said. “Now to finish the deal. He suddenly pulled a disrupter from
behind his back and vaporized his own men with pulses of white energy. He aimed
the weapon towards Vea’ra and fired.
She
acted on instinct, leaping upward to avoid the blast and letting lack of
gravity jet her backward while she pulled two blasters from her leg holsters.
She faced her opponent while floating backward, and fired rapid shots of
bright-red plasma that exploded across the deck and against the bulkheads.
Damahr
dove to the side and ricocheted off the corridor wall before bouncing back
towards Vea’ra. He opened fire with blasts of white energy that streaked past
Vea’ra.
Vea’ra
used the weightless environment to flip upward and slam through a shaft above
the corridor. She entered an above level of the ship.
Damahr
crouched low on the deck plating and sprang forward towards the opening above.
He flew upward with his weapon blasting - but Vea’ra was gone. He narrowed his
brow with anger and activated a small, wrist-mounted scanner. Vea’ra was
slipping away into her ship.
He
activated his ship’s beacon and called the vessel towards the nearest docking
port.
***
Vea’ra
piloted her fin-shaped vessel through a twisting dive to avoid a hulking mass
that used to be a ship. Darts of red energy exploded against her rear deflector
shield as Damahr’s freighter dropped into view behind her.
The
freighter, a diamond-shaped vessel with octagonal solar panels on its flanks,
was opening fire with its forward blaster quad.
Vea’ra
turned hard to port and climbed upward. She armed her aft torpedo launchers and
fired a volley of three missiles. The missiles streaked towards the sides of
Damahr’s vessel. Damahr fired his ventral thrusters and rose above the missiles
while launching a group of decoys. The missiles exploded against the decoys,
saving Damahr from death.
Damahr
lowered his ship back down in time to see Vea’ra’s vessel streak towards him.
She opened fire with lances of blue energy that exploded against his dorsal
shield emitters. Vea’ra passed over Damahr’s ship and launched aft torpedoes.
The torpedoes exploded against Damahr’s ship and ripped the vessel to shreds.
Vea’ra
angled ship towards the nearest clearing in the debris and fired her
afterburners. She had no time to waste celebrating her minor victory.
***
A small
dwarf star was feeding off of a red giant. Tendrils of solar energy connected
the two stars. Streams of solar flares were sucked from the giant and absorbed
into the dwarf.
The two
stars’ struggle was a never ending mystery. The smaller star would grow as it
absorbed the giant. Then the process would reverse. It was unexplainable. And
the resulting energy made the entire region unstable.
It was
the perfect meeting place for the mixed battle group near Drilax.
The
Megaship speared into real space at the edge of the system and angled towards
the fleet. Five Titan attack cruisers formed the core of the fleet. Each
cruiser was slender and sand colored, with jagged plates of armor extending
from its hull. The attack cruisers were
the latest ships to be produced by the simian warriors.
Various
freighters and pirate vessels flew in escort positions around the attack
cruisers. At least ten of the smaller ships were Avinza Raiders, fighter-shaped
vessels with high speed and maneuverability.
The
small fleet stretched across the Megaship’s viewer.
“Hail
the lead ship,” Tommy said.
“Channel
open,” Kat said.
A simian
warrior appeared on the main viewer. His fur was dull gray and his armor
bronze. Tommy clenched onto the forward console, his knuckles turning white.
Seeing the Titan race still reminded him of Shannon’s murderer.
“We are
glad you could join us, Terran Rangers,” the commander said. “I am Tragdar,
commander of the fleet.”
Tommy
nodded. “I look forward to speaking with you. We’ll bring our ship in for
docking. Megaship out.”
The
viewer deactivated.
A signal
on Chris’s console lit up. His fingers danced across the control console. “An
unidentified ship is entering the system on an erratic vector.”
“On
screen,” Tommy said.
The
forward viewer showed an image of the approaching fin-shaped ship. The vessel
was leaking plasma.
“Hail
them,” Tommy said.
“Their
comm system is down,” Kat said.
Justin
activated his tactical scanners. “They’ve taken heavy battle damage…but it
could be a trap.”
“Life
signs?” Tommy asked.
“One,”
Chris answered. “Very faint. The Titan ships are arming weapons and moving in
on an attack vector.”
“Kat,
tell them to stay put,” Tommy said. “Cy, get us closer to that ship and get a
tractor beam ready. Polarize the hull plating.”
The
Megaship moved closer towards the vessel. Ashley reported from her station.
“Their engines are going to overload…”
“Justin,
Chris,” Tommy said, “morph and head into the ship. Save whoever’s on board. I
want to know who they are and why they’re here.”
***
Astro
Black and Astro Blue landed on the deck of the damaged craft. Conduits exploded
around them as the deck plating shook. Fires dotted the corridor, providing the
only illumination.
“Nice
place,” Astro Blue said. “And I thought we had it bad.”
Astro
Black activated his helmet scanner. “She’s this way,” he said, nodding towards
the bridge. Come on…”
They ran
through the damaged corridor and approached the bridge door. They didn’t bother
trying to open it with conventional means. Astro Black downloaded his lance and
swung downward, tearing the door from the bulkhead.
Astro
Blue hopped in first. Consoles in the small bridge were erupting with flame. He
noticed Vea’ra hunched over the forward flight control station. “There she is.”
They
moved further onto the bridge. A support beam exploded from above and fell towards
them, but they merely knocked it aside as if it were paper.
Astro
Blue gently scooped her into his arms. Astro Black fit a small brace onto her
arm. The brace emitted an energy shield that would protect her from the vacuum
and pressure of space for a short period of time while providing oxygen.
The ship
suddenly lurched as explosions sparked all around them. Kat’s voice came
through their helmet’s comm system. “Justin, the ship’s falling apart, you have
to get out of there!”
A
conduit beneath their feet exploded and hurled the three of them into the
corridor. They scrambled to their feet and ran towards the docking ring as
explosions ripped around them. They leapt through the ring and out of the ship
as it expanded in a ball of flame. The shockwave knocked them hard against
their backs and sent them flailing through space, crashing against their Cyber
Sliders.
They
pulled themselves onto the Sliders and returned to the ship.
***
Vea’ra
lied back on the Megaship’s medical bed. She was still unconscious, but her
vital signs were stable. The rangers recognized her from one of their early
missions, shortly before getting the Delta Mega from Phantom Ranger.
“Well,”
Tommy said as he, Cy, and the other five rangers gathered around, “anyone have
any ideas as to why she’s here.”
Zhane
arced an eyebrow. “Who is she again?”
“Vea’ra,”
Chris answered. “She works for Durak.”
Zhane
recognized the name. Durak was one of the galaxy’s top smugglers and
information brokers.
“Guys…” Ashley
said, her eyes fixed on a data pad. She had downloaded the data pack they found
on Vea’ra onto the pad. “You’re not going to believe this…that data pack she
had. It has a way to find Zordon.”
The
rangers’ eyes opened wide.
Justin
shook his head at the thought. “How do we know if we can trust her? Her and her
big boss almost got us killed.”
“Even if
it’s true,” Zhane said, “what about the battle group? We can’t just abandon
them. We’re committed.”
Tommy
sighed. A part of him couldn’t believe what he was about to suggest. “We’ll
split up. One team will stay here in the Megaship. The second team will go and
see if Zordon is really where this data pack says.”
***
Tommy
and Ashley decided to go to the core alone with the data pack. They would scout
the area, and if Zordon was there, they would send the proper signal back to
the Megaship.
In the
meantime, the rest of the rangers would take the Megaship and join in the
battle group’s efforts against Sauron’s forces.
Tommy
and Ashley were taking a sleek delta-shaped Eltarian shuttle into the core for
their mission. The shuttle was one of the few remaining vessels from the once
legendary Eltarian defense and exploration fleet.
The
shuttle was still docked at the Megaship’s ventral port as Tommy and Ashley sat
at the forward station, getting the shuttle ready for launch. Their fingers
moved across the control consoles, running various diagnostics and system
checks.
“I don’t
suppose this thing turns into a Megazord,” Tommy joked as he ran a check of the
weapon systems.
Ashley
smiled. “Not yet. But give me a few minutes.”
She
downloaded the data pack’s contents into the ship’s navigation system.
Cy’s
voice came over the shuttle’s comm system. “We’re ready to get underway.”
Tommy
nodded. “Good luck guys. Separate the docking clamps.”
“Separating
docking clamps,” Cy said. “Good look to you too.”
The
shuttle dropped from the Megaship. The engines flashed with blue light as the
small ship streaked forward into hyperspace.
***
The
Megaship was in formation alongside the battle group as it traversed through
hyperspace, slingshot ting around the rim towards the other side of the galaxy.
CY, Zhane, and the other rangers gathered in the situation room for a mission
briefing.
Cy activated
the table’s central holographic emitter. An image of a massive space station
appeared. The station was like a web of various hull components strung together
without much thought to design.
“This is
the Vreen shipyards,” Cy said. “It’s located near the Jolna Compact and
Vongnar. The entire area of space is clouded with Nebula storms except for one
main route.
“A small
task force of Frayloth and Gernaydin ships is launching a frontal attack
through the main route. They’re just a diversion. Our battle group is going to
maneuver through the Nebula storms and destroy the station.”
“How bad
are these storms?” Chris asked.
“Bad,”
Zhane said.
Cy
nodded in agreement. “I piloted a freighter once through the Nebula Inferno of
Qo’nos. We should make it. It’s the Titan ships I’m worried about. They’re
larger.”
“But
still maneuverable,” Zhane said.
“What
kind of defenses are we up against once we make it to the shipyards?” Justin
asked.
“The
station itself is armed with Nadion pulse cannons,” Cy said. “The station’s
defense group consists of Vihes, Kyrana, Vreen and Vongnar ships. The Vongnar
will likely hold back while the other ships engage the decoy fleet.”
“Then
what?” Zhane asked.
“The
station has seven structural integrity weak points. Once we destroy those weak
points, the station will collapse.”
“Sounds
easy enough,” Justin said sarcastically.
***
The
shuttle speared into real-space. The stars around them were dense, a clear sign
that they were near the galactic core.
“Just a
few more jumps and we should be there,” Ashley said. “Unless this data pack is
a sham...”
Tommy
nodded. “I’m starting to think we should have explored that possibility a bit
more before coming out here,” he said, only half joking.
“What
fun would that have been,” Ashley said.
Tommy
shrugged. His sensor panel started blinking before he could answer. “We’ve got
company. A wing of light freighters, probably patrols for Divatox. I hope the
weapons in this crate are working.”
“Not
well enough to take on six ships,” Ashley said.
Tommy
nodded in agreement. “Plot us an escape vector. We’ll have to fight our way
around them.”
Tommy
polarized the shuttle’s hull plating and brought the phase cannons online.
“Got
it,” Ashley said. “Head 217 mark 8.”
“Hold
on,” Tommy said as he swung the shuttle into a hard dive and turn. The attack
freighters followed while igniting their thrusters for a burst of speed.
“The
freighters are entering firing range,” Ashley reported.
The
ships opened fire with rapid-fire blasts of green energy that streaked towards
the shuttle. Tommy brought the ship up in a steep climb and banked to avoid the
blasts. He brought the shuttle around in a loop and aimed its nose back at the
freighters.
The
shuttle’s phase cannons fired streams of energy at the two ships. The phase
blasts exploded against the enemies’ hull plating as the shuttle passed above
them, continuing to fire all cannons.
Tommy
activated the ship’s hyperspace drive. The shuttle shot into warp, with the freighters
not far behind.
“Those
ships are pursuing,” Ashley said. “And they’re gaining on us?”
“Can
this ship go faster?” Tommy asked.
The
freighters launched missiles charged with jade colored energy. The missiles
slammed against the shuttle’s dorsal hull. Tommy and Ashley shook within the
cockpit on impact.
“I
didn’t think it was possible to fight in hyperspace,” Tommy said.
Ashley
shook her head. “Neither did I.”
***
Three
Frayloth battle cruisers dropped out of hyperspace on the outskirts of the
Vreen shipyards. Five of the smaller Gernaydin assault ships fell into position
alongside the main cruisers. The Gernaydin ships were smooth edged with
downward swooping wings and a forward cockpit.
The
shipyards’ defense fleet reacted. Jagged Vreen ships flew forward with a wing
of Kyrana assault raiders shaped likes birds of prey. Vihes assault ships moved
flanked the Kyrana ships. The Vihes ships resembled pods with jagged plates of
armor extended backward and twin cannons aimed forward. A single red deflector
array made the pod look like a Cyclops.
The
white-furred Admiral Trefli’ah stood on the bridge of the lead Frayloth cruiser
as the enemy approached. “Admiral to Gernadyn attack force…peel back the
enemy’s Vihes ships, attack pattern Rigel beta. Port gunners, target the Kyrana
escort wing. Starboard gunners, lay down covering fire.”
The
battle started.
The
Vreen ships opened fire with spheres of crackling energy that slammed against
the Frayloth cruisers. The Kyrana ships broke formation and opened fire with
rapid bursts of jade-colored energy.
The
winged Gernadyn ships broke formation and fired lances of plasma energy that
exploded across the pod ships’ hulls.
The pods
scattered formation and ignited their thrusters to counter attack. The pods
fired darts of orange energy that splashed across the Gernadyn ships’ shields,
exploding across the hull.
The lead
Frayloth cruiser opened fire with a full port cannon barrage that sent bursts
of blue and red energy darting through space, exploding against the Kyrana
ships. One of the light assault raiders turned hard to starboard to avoid a
blast, but one of its wings was ripped to shreds by the cannon assault. The
ship went spinning out of control.
The
Vreen ships looped around and aimed their cannons towards the ventral side of
the Frayloth ships while trying to sneak upward.
“Full
axis rotation starboard,” the admiral commanded. “Fire all ventral cannons.”
The lead
Frayloth rotated so its belly cannons were facing the incoming Vreen ships. The
cannons opened fire, spraying blue and red energy darts that exploded against
the lead Vreen ship. The first barrage of blasts ate away the ship’s shields.
The next volley of plasma and disrupter blasts exploded through the ship’s
hull, ripping apart armor plating.
***
The
Megaship climbed upward as a nebula lightning burst scorched the side of the
ship’s hull.
“DECA,”
Cy said. “Transfer auxiliary power to maneuvering thrusters, and emergency
power to hull plating.”
The
battle group moved through the nebula storm while maneuvering past flashes of
lightning and energy. The rangers were jolted within their cockpit as another
blast struck their ship - only the blast was not from the Nebula storm.
“One of
the Titan ships,” Justin reported. “They’re opening fire on us!”
“What?!”
Cy said. “Hail them.”
“No
response,” Kat said.
Chris
shook his head as he reviewed his sensor readings. “I’m not picking up any life
signs on the ship that’s attacking us. It’s like their whole crew just died.”
Kat’s
monitor flashed. “I’m picking up a message from the lead Titan ship. They swear
they’re not responsible. They think someone has taken over the rogue ship.”
“Just
what we need,” Justin said sarcastically.
The
Titan ship fired again, striking the Megaship’s hull. The energy discharge
attracted a bolt of nebula lightning that nearly ripped through their hull.
Justin
looked to Cy. “If we return fire, we’ll just attract more of that nebula
lightning. Our weapons are like magnets to it.”
Chris
turned towards them. “We can board the ship and regain control. We’d have to
take Zhane with us.”
Cy
nodded. “You three go to the engine room and get Zhane. Do whatever you can to
stop that Titan ship.”
***
The
Titan ship’s corridor was bronze plated with dim red lights signaling battle
readiness. The four Rangers entered the corridor through the docking port, and
immediately found two bodies of Titan warriors slumped against the walls.
Astro
Pink shook her head. “What happened to them?”
“We
don’t have time to figure it out, Kat,” Astro Blue said, placing a hand on her
shoulder.
Astro
Black activated his helmet icon and scanned the interior of the ship. “I can
get us to the bridge,” he said as he started forward. “This way…”
An
artificial wind suddenly blew through the corridor. The dead Titan warrior
reanimated and slowly climbed to their feet. Their eyes burned with deep red
fire. Their wings turned into black flame.
One of
the Titan’s lunged forward and swung his blade towards the Rangers.
“Silver
Blazer!” Astro Silver shouted as he used his arm-mounted sword to knock the
villain’s saber away. Silver Ranger brought his blade back down in a diagonal
arc that tore through the Titan’s armor and flesh like a blade through a cloud
of sand.
The
Titan’s body crumbled and turned to ash. Astro Silver dashed forward to the
second Titan and swung his Blazer upward in a diagonal arc that tore through
the simian like paper. The second warrior crumbled and turned to ash.
The
remains of the two warriors started to pulse with energy as two small clouds of
crimson smoke arose. The two clouds rose above the deck and phased through the
bulkhead.
The
Rangers stood in silence.
“What
the hell was that?!” Astro Blue said.
“Pa
Reens,” Astro Silver said.
“What’s
a Pa Reen?” Astro Black asked.
“They’re
creatures from the Astral Plane,” Astro Silver said. “Someone had to have
brought them here. Used them to take control of the ship and its crew.”
The deck
plating before them erupted, causing a shockwave that knocked the four Rangers
backward. Four lifeless Titan warriors climbed from the hole in the deck
plating. Their eyes were glowing with the crimson fire of the Pa Reen, and
their wings were black flame.
***
Tommy
and Ashley were jolted in the cockpit as another blast struck the shuttle’s
hull. The lines of hyperspace in their view port came to a halt as the ship
fell back into real-space near a brown and green planet.
“Where
are we?” Tommy asked.
Ashley
shook her head. “I have no idea. Navigation systems and sensors are offline.”
The
freighters speared into real-space, jetting past the shuttle and circling
around to attack like a group of sharks.
Tommy’s
fingers danced across the control panel. With weapons and hull plating offline
too, he did not have a lot of options. “I’m taking us towards the planet. Maybe
we can loose them in the atmosphere. They don’t look designed for planetary
flight.”
The
shuttle ignited its thrusters and looped back towards the planet. The freighters
started closing in on the shuttle and opened fire with rapid blasts of green
energy. Most blasts darted across the shuttle and streaked past the view port.
Other blasts exploded against the dorsal hull plating and exploded near the
shuttle’s main engine.
The
shuttle went spinning out of control towards the planet’s atmosphere.
***
Astro
Silver and Astro Blue spun forward while thrashing through two more Titan
zombies. The zombies turned to dust as the crimson clouds of the Pa Reen
floated through the deck plating.
The
Silver and Blue Rangers were covering Astro Black and Astro Pink, who were
trying to open the entrance to the Titan ship’s bridge. The large metal doors
clanked open, revealing the dimly-lit battle bridge.
A group
of dead Titans leapt forward, taking the Rangers by surprise. Astro Black
downloaded his staff and swung the weapon through the Titan warrior, causing
the zombie to dissolve. Astro Pink held her weapon forward and fired rings of
pink energy that ripped through the rest of the creatures.
“We’re
in,” Astro Black said to his teammates.
The four
Rangers entered the bridge and sealed the door to delay any other un-dead
Titans from trying to stop them.
They
heard laughter echo across the bridge walls. The crimson clouds of the Pa Reen
suddenly gathered in the center of the bridge and started to circle around.
They circled a man wearing a dark robe who stood at the center of the bridge.
Lines of blood formed a demonic pattern at his feet. He stood at the center of
the pattern.
A ruby
held a black cloak around the stranger. He held a broad, double-edged sword
with a white gem at its hilt. His hair was white, and his skin black. His eyes
were deep purple.
“Who are
you?” Astro Blue asked.
The
villain extended his hand. Invisible forced of energy slammed the Rangers
backward and pressed them against the bridge walls. “I am Ortu. A mere traveler
who was…hitching a ride.”
Astro
Silver struggled against the force to aim his arm-mounted blaster. “Great…sense
of humor…” he triggered a volley of golden energy darts, but the Pa Reen acted
as a shield that protected the villain.
“Don’t
try that again,” Ortu said as he used invisible energy to pull the blaster out
of the Silver Ranger’s hand. “Not that you’ll have much time to try.”
The
villain tightened his invisible grip on the Rangers, nearly crushing their
ribs. The bridge shook violently from a powerful lightning burst, breaking the
villain’s concentration. The Rangers dropped to the ground.
“Now!”
Astro Blue shouted as he fired his Astro Sniper.
Pa Reen
deflected the blue energy darts as Astro Yellow moved in from the side,
slinging blasts of yellow energy that the Pa Reen deflected as well.
Astro
Silver retrieved his Silver Blazer and aimed the weapon at the deck plating. He
triggered a volley of golden energy blasts that exploded against the demonic
symbol on the deck. The symbol was broken, and the Pa Reen disappeared.
Astro
Black pounced forward before the evil magick user could react and slammed a
hook punch across his face. The villain went stumbling into unconsciousness.
***
The
shuttle had crashed against the planet’s surface near a ring of woodland
surrounding a jagged spire of rock that pierced into the sky. The shuttle
itself was a useless wreck, and it was a wonder the two rangers survived.
Dark
clouds covered the night sky above, and a chilling breeze was blowing down the
mountain side. They brought various pieces of wood and dried leaves into the
shuttle so they could use it as a shelter and keep warm while trying to get a
message to the rest of their team.
Tommy
tried to rub two sticks together and start the fire, but he could not ignite
the flame. “This was a lot easier in theory than in practice…”
“I take
it you were never in boy scouts,” Ashley said. She was trying to rig her
portable scanner to get a signal off of the planet.
Tommy
shook his head. He continued to try and work on the flame. “I never saw the
attraction. Besides…I was always busy with martial arts.”
“What
got you started with that anyway?” Ashley asked.
Tommy
shrugged. “I got picked on a lot as a kid. It was mostly my own fault…I’d see
other people get hassled by bullies, I’d step in to try and help. That never
went very well. What about you? Why kick boxing?”
Ashley
smiled at the memory, her eyes still on the portable scanner. “They were
passing out fliers for free lessons one day in junior high. I never actually
considered going…but my Dad found the flier in my book bag. He flipped out.
Said a kick boxing class was no place for girls.”
“I’m
sure you took that well,” Tommy said.
“Oh
yeah,” Ashley said sarcastically. “I went to that class three days a week and
practiced at home on the other days. It drove my dad nuts.”
The
shuttle suddenly lurched and tipped to the side. Tommy and Ashley went slamming
against the storage lockers as the rear of the shuttle was ripped off. They
reached for their morphers, but it was too late. An unseen monster fired beams
of energy that caused the two rangers to vanish.
***
The
Megaship was back on course, leading the task force towards the outskirts of
the nebula storm. The rangers learned that Ortu had stowed aboard the Titan
ship near the spaceports of Lodosazbar before the battle group’s rendezvous. He
was a dark mage in Sauron’s employee.
A
skeleton crew manned the Titan ship so it could join the rest of the battle
group.
“We’re
approaching the edge of the nebula,” Chris said.
“Zhane,
get ready for a hyper-rush-one jump,” Cy said.
Zhane
made the calculations. The ship fleet was going to skip through space from the
edge of the nebula to the station itself. Only the Megaship had the precision
necessary to make the jump, so the other ships in the battle grouped slaved
their computers over to the Megaship.
The
battle group jumped into hyperspace. The jump lasted less than a fraction of a
second, then the station grew larger in the Megaship’s forward view port. A
dozen or more Vongnar ships flew in defense formation around the station.
“Signal
all ships to attack,” Cy commanded. “Pattern starburst-nova.”
Allied
freighters opened fire with a volley of concussion torpedoes, proton missiles,
quantum missiles and torpedoes. The Vongnar ships started to break formation to
try and avoid the missile barrage streaking towards them with red and blue
pulses of light. The enemy ships did not react fast enough to the sneak attack.
A volley
of missiles exploded against the dorsal side of a Vongnar ship. The ship was
crushed and exploded violently, the shockwave damaging another two ships. Two
ships were destroyed total, and another five badly damaged.
The
Megaship thrust forward towards the top of the station as the Vongnar ships
regrouped and opened fire with pulses of purple energy. The allied freighters
opened fire with rail cannons and plasma cannons, laying down cover fire as the
larger ships moved in.
Justin
aimed the Megalasers at a Vongnar ship approaching their port side. The dorsal
lasers fire darts of blue energy that sprinkled against the Vongnar ship with a
series of sparks and explosions. The Vongnar’s shields collapsed as Justin
triggered the plasma cannons, sending darts of red energy spearing through the
enemy ship’s hull.
A Titan
ship moved in and fired twin lances of blue energy. The energy streams exploded
against the ship, causing the Vongnar vessel to rip in half.
“The
station is aiming its Nadion Pulse Cannons,” Justin reported.
The
station spat out a volley of 20 orange-tinted energy spheres. The spheres
blasted against the allied fleet, skinning the starboard side hull of a Titan
ship and exploding against the other attack cruisers.
The
smaller Avinza Raiders managed to evade the blasts and move in on attack runs
towards the Vongnar ships. The Raiders opened fire with pulse cannons that
exploded against the Vongnar shields.
***
Tommy
moaned as he sat up, rubbing the back of his wounded head. Ashley was on the
concrete ground besides him. She was regaining consciousness too.
“You
okay?” he asked her.
Ashley
nodded. “Where are we?”
Tommy
shook his heads. A line of human-like men and women spanned underneath a
concrete archway. The ground was paved with the same material, which resembled
concrete. “It looks like some kind of city…”
The
lines of people were moving into a central tower structure. Various buildings
dotted the perimeter of the small city. Quantrons marched about at various
intervals. Three of the soldiers, along with a bounty hunter, moved towards
Tommy and Ashley. The green-skinned bounty hunter had a mouth that resembled a
fly trap and dark red eyes. His hair was long and black. The villain wore
rugged plates of gray armor and had slender blades extending from his arms.
Tommy
and Ashley rose to their feet and readied their wrist morphers. “Install! Astro
Ranger!”
They
input the code 3-3-5-enter. Nothing happened.
“What
the-” Tommy started to say.
The
bounty hunter extended his hand and shot two spheres of energy that wrapped
around the rangers’ arms and formed wrist bindings. The wrist bindings made the
already-injured rangers weak, and they almost collapsed to the ground.
Quantrons
grabbed them and pushed them into line with the rest of the humanoids. One of
the girls, dressed in rags, looked back at the Terrans. “Where did you come
from?”
“Near
the core,” Tommy said. “What is this place?”
The
young woman’s gaze grew distant before she even heard the question. “The
core…their range is larger than I thought.”
Ashley
tilted her head. “What do you mean?”
“Mass
teleportations,” she said. “Most of my planet was uprooted and brought here.
The same is true of many worlds.”
“What
planet are you from?” Tommy asked, although he suspected that he knew the
answer.
“De’journel,”
she said.
Ashley
and Tommy exchanged knowing glances. They had been to the world. It was
completely deserted. The natives who were not teleported away were twisted and
transformed into living weapons by Darkonda.
“What is
this place?” Tommy asked again.
“No one
knows,” she said. “A few of my people once escaped to the edge of the city.
It’s protected by a dome.”
The
bounty hunter growled at the woman and rangers. He spoke an unintelligible
language. He aimed an arm blade at the rangers and muttered again. Tommy took a
bold step forward. “I could say the same to you…”
The
bounty hunter swung his blade down towards Tommy’s head. Tommy stepped backward
and held up his wrists. The blade snapped through his bindings. His strength
returned and he spun forward with a reverse sidekick that crashed against the
bounty hunter’s chest.
“Burn
knuckle!” Tommy shouted as his fist radiated with fiery energy and slammed
against the bounty hunter’s chest, cracking his ribs.
Tommy
turned, keeping his hand ignited as he ripped Tommy and the young woman’s
bindings off. “Come on…” he said as they sprinted away from the oncoming group
of Quantrons.
***
Rashanar
stood in the main lab of the city’s central building. A view port looked down
to a metal pit below. A slender emitter extended from the ceiling towards the
center of the pit. The villain was a member of the Lkitrnzizzit race. His deep
eye sockets and slimy blue skin made him look more like a monster than made. He
had no lips or hair.
A group
of civilians entered the lab below and stood beneath the emitter. Rashanar
smiled at the fear that crossed their faces. The pain they were about to
experience was one of a kind. And for such a worthy cause.
He
activated the emitter. It sent a burst of energy that seemed to consume the
civilians molecule by molecule and suck them up. Their DNA codes and molecules
were digitized and stored into slender, rectangular chips that slid out from
the evil scientist’s console.
Astronema
stepped up from behind him and removed one of the disks. “Excellent,” she said
as she looked the disk over. “With these DNA codes, we can double our army and
our labor force.”
Rashanar
nodded. “Sauron will be pleased.”
Astronema
glared at him. She slammed the end of her staff against his gut. She leaned
down and spoke into his ear. “Your allegiance is with me. And me alone.”
***
Their
presence remained. In the void. Darkness. They were empty. Or free. Bottomless.
Existence torn. Astronema created them. Now they were gone. But still. Energy
can not be destroyed. They remained. Their energy lingered. Rebirth. They
needed Rebirth. Astronema created. Astronema. Rebirth.
The
spirits of the Psycho Rangers reached out towards Astronema’s presence.
***
A Nadion
pulse blast slammed against the Megaship. Explosions sparks across the bridge
as power conduits erupted. A duo of Vongnar ships descended on the Megaship and
opened fire with blasts that exploded against the ship’s hull.
Emergency
claxons sounded along with crimson emergency lights, the sole source of light
on the war-torn bridge.
Chris’s
fingers moved across his control panel. “The Titan ships have taken out two of
the weak points. That’s five total counting the ones we took out.”
Justin
manipulated his control. He adjusted the targeting scanners to lock onto a
Vongnar ship closing in on their starboard side. He triggered a volley of
plasma darts that exploded against the enemy ship and destroyed it.
“Where
are those Raiders?” Cy asked. “They’re supposed to be watching our flank.”
Another
blast impact rocked the bridge.
Cy
activated the Battleizer, on loan from Tommy. “Delta Mega, Install!”
The
delta-shape ship appeared moments later and fell into formation besides the
Megaship. The Delta Mega ignited rapid-fire yellow energy darts at an
approaching group of Vongnar ships. Delta Mega cleared a path as the Megaship
moved closer to their next target on the enemy station.
“We’re
closing in on the next weak point,” Chris said. “We’re all clear.”
“Fire
Megalasers,” Cy commanded.
Justin
locked weapons on target and triggered a burst of blue energy darts that
exploded against the station, cracking through armor and obliterating the weak
point. “Only one left.”
“New
problem,” Chris said. “The last weak point has been reinforced with
multi-layered regenerative deflector shields. The Titan cruisers haven’t been
able to break through.”
“We’ll
have to use our beam cannon,” Cy said. “Get ready to form the Megazord.”
“No can
do,” Zhane said over the comm system. He was in the engine room. “The fusion
program is offline.”
Kat’s
console displayed a transmission. “The main battle group says they have to
break off soon.”
“Fine,”
Cy said. “Tell all our ships to concentrate fire on the last structural weak
point. Lay down heavy laser fire, then blast it with torpedoes.”
“Cy,”
Justin said. “We don’t have enough firepower to get through those shields. We
were expecting a weak point, not a miniature fortress.”
One of
the Titan ships ignited its thrusters and charged forward towards the last
structural point. Kat’s monitor blinked. “The Titan’s lead ship…they’re going
to ram the last weak point.”
The
Titan ship opened fire with streams of cyan-tinted energy that pounded against
the deflector shield. Nadion pulse cannons ate away at the cruiser’s hull, but
the ship continued its advance.
The
Titan ship collided with the station. Massive explosions started ripping across
the shipyards with a fury of flame and
twisted steel. The Titan ship was consumed by the blast. The entire vessel
erupted into a sphere of flame.
“Let’s
get out of here,” Cy said, his eyes glued to the view port as the shipyards
fell.
***
The
Megaship arrived at the rendezvous site, but the shuttle was nowhere to be
found. Cy, Chris, Kat, and Justin managed to track the shuttle’s hyperspace
trail to a planet deep in the core. Zhane had traveled with the Mega Winger to
make repairs to the Delta Mega and his own Mega Winger.
The
Megaship entered into low orbit around the world and scanned its surface. Cy
leaned over Chris’s shoulder as the sensor station displayed results. “It
looked like they were teleported away…the pattern looks familiar, but I can’t
place it.”
Cy’s
eyes opened wide. He recognized the pattern. He turned to Kat. “Contact Kruger.
We’re going to need his help.”
***
The
Megaship regrouped in the Rigel Expanse with Kruger’s flagship and small
flotilla of Rigelian ships. Kruger’s image was on the Megaship’s forward
viewer. The rangers and Kruger had shared data on the teleportation readings.
“Your
timing could not be better,” the blue-furred K-9 said. “We’ve tracked the
signal from the De’journel abductions. It’s safe to say your teammates were
transported to the same place. Slave your navigation systems to my ship. We‘ll
escort you to this hidden planet.”
***
The
Astro Megaship dropped out of hyperspace alongside Rigelian battle and assault
cruisers. The planet ahead was protected by a group of Vongnar and Jolna ships.
The ships were in formation around Astronema’s Dark Fortress.
Chris
reported from his station. “There’s some kind of city on the surface. Its
protected by a giant dome. Our sensors can’t recognize the material.”
Kat
looked back to Cy. “That’s probably where Tommy and Ashley are.”
Cy
nodded. “Polarize the hull plating. Kat, signal the Rigel ships to fall into
screening formation around us. We have to make it to the surface.”
“What
about the dome?” Chris asked.
“Does it
extend under the surface?” Justin asked.
Chris
cracked a grin when he studied the readouts. “Not far.”
“Then we
can use the Megatank to drill our way under,” Justin said.
The
Megaship and Rigel ships flew in formation towards the planet’s defense fleet.
The more maneuverable Vongnar ships broke formation and moved to intercept the
allied flotilla.
The
Vongnar opened fire with neon-purple energy blasts that streaked towards the
allied ships. Cy piloted the Megaship through evasive maneuvers as Justin
brought the plasma cannons and Megalasers online.
“Hold
on,” Cy said as he triggered the ship’s afterburners.
Justin
locked on weapons and started firing. Blue and red darts of energy shot from
the Megaship and exploded against the enemy ships.
***
Tommy,
Ashley, and the woman named Neiah ducked for cover near a store building.
Quantron patrols were criss-crossing the streets, searching for the three
escaped prisoners. The android soldiers were getting harder to avoid by the
minute.
Tommy
served as look out as Ashley inspected her morpher. Neiah looked panicked. She
grasped onto Tommy’s shirt. “How were you able to do that? You’ll be tortured
to death when they catch us.”
“Well,”
Tommy said, “we’ll just avoid getting caught. Ash, how’s it look?”
The
morphers are working fine,” she said. “There’s definitely a jamming field
keeping us from morphing or communicating. My guess is it’s coming from the
central building.”
“Makes
sense,” Tommy said. He looked to Neiah. “Do you know anything that might help
us.”
“The
central building is their headquarters,” she said. “We can’t go there.”
“Be an
optimist,” Tommy said. He looked to Ashley. “Here’s the plan. We head deeper
into the dome. They won’t suspect us to go back the way we came. We’ll ambush a
patrol, take their weapons, then…get into the main building somehow.”
“Okay,”
Ashley said. “What are we waiting for?”
The two
rangers and Neiah started to move out. Explosions rang out around them before
they moved far. Tommy and Ashley rolled for cover while pulling Neiah down with
them.
They
looked up to see a Psycho-Gene Beast stalk forward towards them. The creature
wore bulky orange and black armor. Tommy and Ashley recognized the monster as
their kidnapper. The bounty hunter Tommy had broke free from earlier stood
beside the gene beast.
The
green-skinned bounty hunter had a mouth that resembled a fly trap and dark red
eyes. His hair was long and black. The villain wore rugged plates of gray armor
and had slender blades extending from his arms.
Tommy
looked back to Ashley. “You two go.”
Ashley
nodded. “Don’t be too long.” She knew it was pointless to argue. And she knew
they had to bring down whatever jamming covered the dome area. They ran
off.
The
bounty hunter, jSugfnd, charged forward and swung his blades like scissors
towards Tommy’s neck. Tommy sidestepped and slammed a round kick against the
villain’s chest before smashing a round kick against his face.
***
The
Megaship broke through the atmosphere and moved close to the surface. The ship
arced towards the dome within sight distance. Chris finished scanning the dome
and its equipment.
“Done,”
Chris said. “I know where we need to hit. Drop us off bearing 7 mark 709.”
Cy arced
looped the ship towards the south side of the dome while the three rangers
moved into the docking bay. Cy opened the bay doors and the Mega Tank dropped
towards the surface. The tank armed its drill and dove beneath the earth.
***
“Astronema,”
Eclipter said. He and the princess were on board the Dark Fortress bridge. “The
Rangers’ ship has entered the planet’s atmosphere.”
“Have
they,” Astronema said. She turned and glared at Eclipter with ices of ice an
expression just as cold. “Let me make this clear: I am tired of the Rangers
interrupting my every move. You are my right-hand general. Cut off their
ability to launch attacks.”
“But
princess-”
“Think,”
Astronema said. “The Mega Voyager, Delta Mega and Mega Winger are not in use.
Find them and destroy them. Psycho Yellow must have left residual energy behind
that even you can track.”
***
The Mega
Tank burst from the ground on the outskirts of the city. A cluster of stone and
bushes concealed the tank as the rangers hopped out of the cockpit.
Chris
opened his scanner. “We’re close enough to pinpoint troop deployments.”
“Let’s
morph,” Justin said.
They
readied their morphers. “Install! Astro Ranger!” They input the code
3-3-5-enter into their morphers. Nothing happened.
Chris
wrinkled his brow and looked to his scanner. “There’s some kind of dampening
field. We can’t morph.”
“Great,”
Justin said sarcastically. “Next time we go on a mission like this, remind me
to morph before we break into the enemy stronghold filled with people
who want to kill us.”
“We’ll
be okay,” Chris said, his eyes on his scanner. “The energy field surrounding
the dome is the same field blocking our powers. Once the field is down we can
morph and signal the ships in orbit. Then they can start landing inside the
dome and getting people off this rock.”
Justin
checked to make sure his blaster was charged. “Let’s try to avoid as many
patrols as we can. We’ll have enough target place once we reach the main
building.”
***
Ashley
snuck into the main compound of the secret city along with Neiah. They watched
in horror through a small view port as a group of civilians were converted into
data and stored onto cards.
“God,”
Ashley whispered. “That’s what they’re doing here.”
***
Justin,
Chris, and Kat moved to the base of the central complex. Chris looked over his
portable scanner. “The transmission cluster is at the top of this building.
Guards are stationed just outside the entrance to the roof.”
A burst
of light flashed nearby as a group of Craterites dropped to the ground.
“Damn,”
Justin cursed as he opened fire. He plasma blaster shot bursts of orange energy
that exploded against the soldiers. “Cover me, guys. I’ll go plan the charges.”
“Be
careful,” Chris said as he and Kat aimed their weapons at the approaching
soldiers and opened fire. Justin entered the building.
***
Justin
ran up the winding stairs. A group of Quantrons charged down the steps towards
him. He jump kicked the first soldier away and blasted the next two at
near-point-blank range. Explosions sparked across their chest as they flipped
backward.
Justin
heard fighting from a level above. He moved farther up the stairs and saw
Ashley, spinning forward and bringing an axe kick down on a creature’s collar
bone.
“Ashley!”
Justin shouted.
“I was
wondering if you guys would show up,” she said as she kicked the last Quantron
away.
“Come
on,” Justin said. “We have to blow up the transmission array that’s blocking or
morphers. “
Ashley
turned to Neiah. “Find somewhere to stay out of sight. You’ll be safer.”
***
A group
of Quantrons stood on the roof near the transmission array. The door to the
roof shattered in as three Craterites fell through and crashed to the pavement.
Ashley and Justin moved in, triggering blasts that exploded against the first
three Quantrons.
The
soldiers charged towards the rangers. Ashley ducked under a boomerang blade and
slammed a round kick against a soldier’s chest.
Justin spun
forward, slamming the handle of his blaster against a Quantron’s chest as he
moved towards the transmission cluster. He pulled out five charges and started
placing them along the cluster as a group of Craterites rushed towards him,
their jagged blades ready to strike.
Justin
started to swing his blaster up, but a Craterite swiped the weapon from his
hand and kicked him on the chest. Justin went flipping backwards, stumbling
over the railing. He grabbed hold of the railing, his feet dangling 20 stories
above ground.
“Justin!”
Ashley shouted. While she was distracted, a Quantron pushed her over the
railing too. She grabbed hold of the railing to keep from falling.
The
soldiers stalked towards the railing, ready to cut the Rangers down. Justin
pulled the detonator from his pocket and triggered it. The transmission array
exploded, creating a shockwave that blasted the soldiers off the roof.
The
shockwave shook Justin and Ashley loose, and they started falling towards the
ground below. They snapped open their morphers, but were flailing to wildly to
trigger their transformation streak.
A red
streak suddenly passed beneath them and caught them. It was Astro Red. “Hang
on…”
He arced
his slider downward and skid to the ground near Kat and Chris. Astro Red hopped
off his slider as the gene beast stalked towards them.
“Let’s
take care of business, guys,” Astro Red said.
The
other four rangers flipped open their morphers. “Install! Astro Ranger!” They
input the code 3-3-5-enter.
Energy
shimmered around the five Rangers as they morphed into their armor. They
snapped into fighting stances as a group of Craterites appeared around the
monster at the foot of the stairs.
The
Craterites and monster charged forward to attack.
“Drill
Saber!” Astro Red shouted as he downloaded his sword and leapt forward.
He
speared his blade through the chest of a soldier while landing at the base of
the steps. He pulled his blade out of the soldier’s chest while slamming a
knifehand chop against its neck.
Astro
Red turned to his left and dashed forward while thrashing horizontally through
a Craterite, his blade sparking against the soldier on impact. The Ranger
turned to his right and circled his sword to parry a blow before arcing the
blade upward in a diagonal strike that slashed through a Craterite, sending the
soldier flipping backward as sparks rips across its chest.
Astro
Pink leapt over a Craterite while slamming her heel against the back of its
neck. She landed while holding her arms out in an ’x’ pattern and striking a
second soldier in the neck.
Astro
Blue leapt up and pushed his feet off the building. He dove past a soldier
while striking it in the neck, rolled across the ground, and rose to his feet
while flipping a soldier over his shoulder.
Astro
Black and Astro Yellow moved in at opposite sides of the gene beast. Astro
Black smashed a hook punch across the creature’s head. The monster used its arm
like a club to bash the Black Ranger in the chest.
Astro
Yellow moved in with a jump round kick to the head. The creature used its club
arm to block the blow, and kicked the Yellow Ranger aside.
Astro
Black launched a flying punch towards the monster. The gene beast slammed its
arm against the Ranger and flipped him over. Astro Black went crashing against
the ground.
The gene
beast turned to Astro Yellow and fired jagged beams of energy that lashed
against her armor with a series of sparks and explosions. Astro Black ran to
her side and helped her to her feet, just as the monster struck again. It fired
an energy whip that slashed across their armor with a violent shower of sparks,
sending them tumbling backward.
The
monster stalked towards the two Rangers.
Astro
Red knocked a Craterite away nearby. He saw his friends in trouble and activated
his Battleizer. Astro Red pressed the “one” key on his brace and leapt forward
to attack.
“Riser
chop!” he shouted, bringing an energized knifehand strike chopping down against
the gene beast and exploding against its armor.
“Riser
punch!” Astro Red shouted. He slammed a fiery punch that exploded against the
monster, knocking the gene beast backward.
***
Their
presence drifted in the secret city. They moved towards headquarters. An unseen
force. No consciousness. No mind. Just energy with a single desire. Death to
their counterparts. The energy drifted into the lab room.
The
power drifted into the machinery. The machines turned matter into digital code.
Energy into digital code. The process could not be reversed on a specific
person. One was dead when digitized. But the presence could take shape. They
entered the machine. Downloaded code.
The
emitter in the lab pulses with power. A beam of bright energy shot forth as
code assembled and took shape. The code became twisted flesh. Armor covered the
flesh. The presence entered the drones. The Psycho Rangers were reborn.
***
“Drill
Sniper! Booster Mode!” Psycho Red shouted as he aimed his rifle at the monster.
He pressed the one key on his Battleizer. The Battleizer transferred a massive
serge of energy into the Sniper. “Fire!”
The
energy blast punctured through the gene beast and exploded. The monster’s
energy overloaded with a massive burst of flame that consumed the creature.
Astro
Red lowered his weapon as the other Rangers gathered around them. They heard
clapping coming from behind them. They turned and froze with shock. The Psycho
Rangers were standing in front of the central complex.
“No…”
Astro Red said. “We destroyed you!”
“Yes,”
Psycho Red hissed. “You did…and we are going to make you pay dearly for that.”
“Thanks
to that digital contraption,” Psycho Black said, “we’re back from the dead.”
Astro
Red rolled his hands into fists. “We beat you before, psychos, and we’ll do it
again. For good this time.”
The
Rangers snapped into fighting stances.
“Astro
Red!”
“Astro
Black!”
“Astro
Blue!”
“Astro
Yellow!”
“Astro
Pink!”
Together,
they shouted: “Digital Task Force, Astro Rangers!”
The
Psycho Rangers and Astro Rangers charged. The two groups bashed into each other
with a flurry of kicks and punches that sparked against each other’s armor.
Astro
Red parried a blow by Psycho Red and dashed forward, his blade held
horizontally. Psycho Red brought his blade down as well. The enemies passed
other while thrashing across each others’ armor, their blades sparking on
impact.
Psycho
Blue launched a spinning-heel kick that Astro Blue ducked under. Astro Black
slammed a hook punch across Psycho Black’s head. Astro Yellow and Psycho Yellow
slammed roundkicks against each others’ armor. Psycho Pink and Astro Pink
exchanged knifehand strikes.
The
Rangers were knocked backward and regrouped.
“Drill
Sniper, booster mode.” Astro Red said as he aimed the blaster rifle forward.
“Quadro
Blaster.” Astro Blue said as they aimed their combined weapons towards the
Psychos.
“Fire!”
Their
combined energy blast exploded violently against the Psycho Rangers, explosions
ripping apart their armor. Their armor shattered with a bright flash of light.
The Psychos stood in their monster forms.
Psycho
Red fired crimson optic blasts that exploded against the Rangers’ armor.,
knocking them backward.
The
Rangers started to rise to their feet, but Psycho Blue shot ice blades that
exploded against their armor as the other Psychos charged forward.
“I have
a plan,” Astro Red said. “Come on.”
Astro
Red ran back into the complex as the others followed. “Kat,” he said. “Use your
helmet icon to tap into this building’s system and take control of the digital
device Ashley told us about.”
“You
think that will work?” Astro Blue asked.
“It
brought them here,” Astro Red said. “It can send them back.”
***
The Mega
Voyager, Delta Mega, and Mega Winger were undergoing repairs at a science
outpost near Aquitar. The outpost was on the surface of a rocky moon. Patches
of liquid dotted the moon like lakes of boiling mud.
The
outpost’s control room was only large enough to hold five control console
stations. Space was an issue, since Zhane and two Aquitions were the only
people working in the lab.
One of
the Aquitions was Cestro, a ranger of Aquitar.
Zhane
called up a data display on his console. “Those torpedo launchers fit the Mega
Winger perfectly.”
Cestro
nodded while reviewing design specs for the Mega Voyager. “They should prove
most useful.”
Power
suddenly flickered within the control room as control panels whined with
protest.
“What is
happening?” Cestro asked.
“I was
about to ask you,” Zhane said.
One of
the control consoles flashed as a beam of red and green light twisted from the
screen and materialized into a humanoid figure. It was Eclipter. The android
had managed to track Mega Voyager to the outpost. Materializing through the
outpost’s security system caused his metallic body to appear dark red.
“Eclipter!”
Zhane shouted as he snapped into a fighting stance. He looked back to Cestro
and the other Aquition. “Get out of here. Take cover.”
“I can
help,” Cestro said.
Eclipter
lunged forward and chopped down his sword. Zhane grabbed the android’s arm and
slammed a round kick against his side.
Cestro
slapped his brace’s activation panel. “Aquition rebirth! Pegasaur Ranger!” He
morphed into the blue armor of a water-dwelling creature from his home world’s
past.
Eclipter
turned his head and fired a crimson optic blast that exploded against the Blue
Ranger with a burst of spark. The Ranger fell backward against his companion.
Zhane
kept the android’s sword at bay. Eclipter pushed Zhane against a control
console, his back bending. Zhane freed a hand and flipped open his morpher.
“Keitizer! Install!”
Golden
energy flashed around him as he morphed into his Ranger form.
Astro
Silver drew his Silver Blazer and extended the arm-mounted blade. He swung
upward diagonally, the blade sparking against Eclipter’s chest. Astro Silver
swung his saber downward, but Eclipter parried the blow and arced his sword
towards Astro Silver’s head. Silver Ranger sidestepped and used his weapon to
block the blow.
The
opponents’ blades pressed against each other as Eclipter leaned forward.
“You’re not leaving this rock alive.”
“I beg
to differ,” Astro Silver said as he pushed Eclipter back.
The
android swung his blade horizontally, but Silver Ranger ducked beneath the blow
while passing behind the android. Silver Ranger turned and brought his blade
down diagonally. Eclipter spun around in time to parry the blow and thrash his
saber across the Ranger’s armor.
Astro
Silver swung the back of his hand towards Eclipter, angling the blade towards
the villain’s head. Eclipter blocked the blow.
Silver
Ranger looked back to Pegasaur Ranger and the Aquition. “Go to the zord bay.
Now.”
The Blue
Ranger did not argue. The zords had to be secured. He left the lab room.
Astro
Silver was sick of maneuvering in close quarters. He twirled his blade,
clashing against Eclipter’s sword while moving behind the android. Astro Silver
moved towards airlock and slapped the door’s control panel. The door slid open
as atmosphere bled out.
“Let’s
take this outside, rust bucket,” Astro Silver said as he dashed outside.
***
The
Rangers lured the Psychos into the lab room. They scattered about the room,
exchanging fierce blows that filled the small lab with clouds of spark.
Astro Pink
fed data on the digital transformation device to Astro Yellow’s computer so she
could operate it. “We have to keep them in the center of the room.”
Psycho
Blue grabbed Astro Blue by the throat and slammed him against a wall while
swiping ice daggers repeatedly across his chest. “Tell them that,” Astro Blue said through a clenched jaw as he
kicked the Psycho away.
“Keep it
together guys,” Astro Red said as he slammed a round kick against Psycho Red’s
head. “We’re almost there. Just hit them with everything you’ve got.”
The
Rangers slammed against the Psychos, pushing them all in a cluster towards the
center of the room. The Psychos knocked them away.
“Again,”
Astro Red said as he tackled against Psycho Red.
The
Rangers slammed against the Psychos, ignoring the near-crippling pain of the
enemy’s counter attacks. They pushed the Psychos to the center of the room.
“Got
it!” Astro Yellow said as she triggered the device.
The
Rangers leapt back as the emitter projected beams of energy that swept around
the Psycho’s. But Psycho Red was not about to be destroyed without taking his
most hated adversary with him. The Psycho extended a red and black tendril that
wrapped around Astro Red and started dragging him towards the field.
Astro
Red almost fell into the field, but he held his ground. The other Rangers
grabbed onto him and tried to pull him away. Astro Red downloaded his Drill
Saber and sliced the tendril off. The Rangers fell backward as the Psychos
vanished.
***
The Dark
Fortress withdrew from the planet. The enemy ships left the system shortly
afterward. Kruger and the other allied vessels moved into orbit and started
retrieving survivors from the surface.
The
Megaship flew alongside Kruger’s flagship. The rangers regrouped on the bridge,
their uniforms war-torn and disheveled. The bridge was in just as bad shape.
Several of the control panel’s flickered on and off. Only half the lights
provided dim illumination. Some of the control panels were ripped open because
of overloaded conduits.
Chris
looked over his control cionsole. “The last of the shuttles are leaving the
surface.”
“How
many survivors?” Tommy asked.
“200,”
Chris said softly.
Tommy
cursed beneath his breath. The planet De’journel alone had once supported
billions.
“I’m
getting a message from Kruger,” Kat said. “It’s about Zhane. Something’s wrong
at the zord outpost.”
***
Eclipter
and Astro Silver circled around each other on the moon. The moon’s green-brown
world was visible over the horizon.
Astro
Silver hopped forward and brought his blade down diagonally across Eclipter’s
chest, sparking on impact. Silver Ranger thrashed the android again with a
horizontal blow before swinging his blade down in an ‘x’ pattern.
Eclipter
barely moved or seemed to feel the blow. Silver Ranger struck again with a
horizontal slash. He brought his blade back around for a vertical strike.
Eclipter
grabbed the blade. The android twisted the blade aside and chopped his sword
across the Ranger’s armor. Eclipter’s blade sparked against the Ranger’s armor
on impact. Astro Silver was knocked backward by the force of the powerful blow.
Astro
Silver rolled back into a crouched position and aimed his Blazer forward in
blaster mode. He fired darts of yellow energy that exploded against Eclipter.
The
blasts sparked across Eclipter’s armor, but he ignored the attack. He triggered
a program within his system that caused him to grow giant.
Eclipter
stalked forward to the dome-shaped outpost.
“Mega
Winger!” Astro Silver commanded. The zord launched and rose up to its warrior
mode as Silver Ranger entered the cockpit.
Mega
Winger extended his wing blaster and fired rapid pulses of yellow energy that
exploded against Eclipter. Explosions sparked against the android’s armor on
impact. The android charged forward with his sword held high.
Eclipter
thrashed downward across the zord’s armor and slashed horizontally. His blade
sparked against the zord as it cut across the Mega Winger’s armor. Eclipter
swung his sword in an ‘x’ pattern. The blow crashed against the Ranger’s armor,
knocking the zord backward as small explosions ripped across its armor.
Eclipter
stalked forward towards the dome and chopped downward. His blade crashed
through the structure. The impact sent explosions tearing through the inner
docking bays and lab rooms. Crimson energy crackled around the outside of the
dome as Eclipter swung again.
Debris
fell upon the Mega Winger zords, crushing them. Eclipter swung again. His blade
sending an energy shockwave that tore the Mega Winger’s zords apart.
Astro
Silver activated the Delta Mega. The delta-shaped zord flew from the dome
before falling victim to the attack.
Eclipter
turned his attention back towards the Mega Winger. The android chopped his
blade down on the fallen zord, tearing through part of its armor.
Delta
Mega assumed its robo mode and fired gattling cannons. Cannon blasts exploded
Eclipter, knocking him back from the zord. The extra energy from his crimson
power boost was wearing off.
Eclipter
activated a button on his sword. The blade vibrated with fiery energy as
crimson power crackling along its edges. Eclipter swung the blade horizontally.
The sword emitted a re, fiery energy wave that crackled with crimson lightning.
The wave tore through the Delta Mega, tearing the zord in half. The zord’s
systems overloaded and exploded.
Steam
suddenly erupted from the android’s body. He shrunk back to his normal size and
green-grid color. He teleported away in a rippling teleportation wave.
***
The eye
of Sauron flashed with power. His energy was almost at a peak. He sent out a
telepathic command to every troop and ship loyal to him. The command was a
simple word: Attack.
To be continued…Countdown to Destruction