Gan-Ust, a veteran of a universally-despised collection of eleven—now ten—other warriors, soldiers, and magicians known by many names but most recently called Rapture Hold, controller of severe and deadly weather conditions depending on what the environment would allow, felt his anger boiling on the inside and, because of that, his surroundings grew colder and more fierce. A mixture of water and ice poured down from dark tendrils of clouds in the sky covering an even larger power and more destructive force behind them. Winds exploded at his whim, adding a greater velocity and hence greater force as his opponents fought to maintain their composure. Four Earthlings and a New Omnian, adorned in the armor of the black, pink, green, yellow, and blue Omni Rangers, could hardly see through the frost forming on their visors, giving Gan-Ust a major advantage over them. On the ground, snow was beginning to pile up, but only a thin layer, in addition to ice, which would give him another benefit: footing.
"Now you see what I was talking about," he laughed, "Rapture Hold is quite unlike any other force in the universe. And the penalty you will pay for Varron's death is much, much worse than this." Thunder roared through the freezing air added to his words.
The Black Ranger charged forward, the aura around her blazing like a prism-like fire, apparently not handicapped like her companions. It didn't matter, though, one Ranger versus Gan-Ust was just as pathetic as five. She lifted her arm and cried, "Babel CarrierZord power!" while, behind her, the other four teleported away in beams of colored light.
A large construction suddenly appeared on the western horizon, dim from the lack of true light but not as difficult to see because of its size. It was massive, reaching far toward the clouds he had summoned, and made of black stone. Glancing back to note his enemy's location, Gan-Ust realized she had disappeared, probably behind the safety of her incredible vehicle. "Fancy moving towers cannot protect you from the wrath of Rapture Hold!" he screamed.
But deep down, in the bowels of a soldier who had served immeasurable amounts of time grasping the universe in diabolic reign, he knew this might be his final battle. You did not engage in battle with opponents who had utterly destroyed someone as noble and respected as Sir Vesper and expect to win easily. The only thing keeping him fighting was the fact, win or lose, Varron's comet would be the final play.
Oriquin sighed. Rade had established himself here on Earth, an establishment formed during the same twenty years his fellow Omnians were either frozen or fighting an eternal war between good and evil, and had returned to his wife, his children, his life. Soleron had gathered his team of Omni Rangers—Seraide, Talyserys, Laurasia, and Pyrial—and they had gone with Feilia, ruler of the newborn planet New Omnis, to cleanse that world of a regrowing Rapture Legion threat. Professor Donaldson had given up his existence, as he swore he would do decades ago if it ever became necessary, to stop an infestation of universal evil on Earth. Craig Hopwood was accused, by the people of his only known home, of a vicious murder, taking the lives of the people who were the only parents he knew, and was on the run to avoid capture. And so, just as quickly as he had been united and reunited with those closest to him, Oriquin was alone again.
"OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE HAS DROPPED ANOTHER DEGREE CELSIUS," Alpha System reported. "STORM ACTIVITY CONTINUES TO ACCUMULATE IN AN APPROXIMATELY THIRTY MILE RADIUS CENTERED AT HOSTILE LIFEFORM."
Depressing a button on the console in front of him, Oriquin replied, "Thank you, Alpha, continuing monitoring and reporting. Can you please try again connecting with Cecil Mercuric's communicator or Ability Band?"
The System began processing the request even before its voice affirmed, "OPENING CONNECTION SYSTEM BETWEEN COMPLEX-BASED USER ORIQUIN AND OUTSIDE USER CECIL MERCURIC." Five seconds later, however, the same message he had gotten continuously all night long reported, "CONNECTION FAILED. SECOND PARTY'S POWER SUPPLY IS LOW OR DEPLETED."
There was a time when Oriquin would have grabbed his hair in frustration and swore to himself in some crazy rage, but he had conquered those demons long ago. Besides, with his graying hair ready to fall out as he grew ever older, pulling at it probably would not help preserve it. Sighing again, he turned back to the monitor and wished he could do something to help the Rangers in their battle with that weather-controlling monster. It was the source of the storm. And on top of that, a comet was burning its way along a direct collision course with Earth, summoned by the other warrior that had self-destructed herself earlier.
"I guess it is time for me to get back in the battle," he told himself, reaching for a leather jacket on the back of his seat and putting it on. "I do not know what the limits of the Starlight power are, but combined with OmniTech, it just might be enough."
"Lord Tracer."
Michael clenched his teeth tightly, fighting the urge to show his ever-building rage at the constant annoyance of his new Legion commander. Corout was a constant presence, always showing up and making some foolish announcement, or claiming he was checking the well-being of his lord, or some other asinine excuse, but Michael knew he was searching for any weakness or any fault that might give Corout a reason to stab the second Trinity being in the back. And if Corout was sent away on an assignment or ordered out of Michael's sight, another Rapture Hold soldier would replace him almost instantly. Salodis was a common choice, or Fhare, because she looked so similar to an attractive human woman and possessed a deadly power to possess anyone injected with pseudoine. As soon as he learned this, he had panicked and nearly destroyed her. He was free of the accursed poison, but someone who could control the minds of Legionnaires was too similar to Arcanza and posed a direct threat to his rule. But he had plans for Fhare. And orders for Corout.
"Want do you want now?" demanded Michael. "Have you found what I sent you for?"
Corout bowed, white braids covering his eyes so Michael could not tell the command was still watching him, and as he straightened reported, "I have found it."
The answer was unexpected, and even though Michael's heart leaped he kept his composure cold and hard. "How much? Is it nearby? Give your report, you damn imbecile, and stop standing there with that disgusting smile on your hideous face."
His smirk slipping away, Corout's black eyes narrow tightly. "A large amount, but decreasing steadily with time. A third party has discovered its properties and intends to exploit it for their own gain. It is as close as your old hometown, Lord Tracer."
Twilight City? Impossible. Michael was about to say as much when he realized what Corout really meant. "Ivory Glade." The words put a smile on his face as the commander confirmed them with a nod.
"What did you assume I meant, my lord?" Another challenge, was it?
Michael stood and pointed at Corout with the handle of his Lifeblade. It came alive, the energy beam humming with eagerness to be used again, the end of it barely more than an inch away from his subordinate's throat. "You answer questions, not ask them," the Betrayer informed him in a low voice. "Arcanza would kill men for less." After a pause to let that sink in, he added, "Why should I not do the same?"
Corout wanted to swallow, it was obvious, but instead answered in a trembling voice, "You should, Lord Tracer. But I ask your forgiveness and one last chance to serve you better."
De-activating the Lifeblade, Michael instructed, "Then move quickly. I want the entire supply you found, I want it brought here to me immediately, and I want the Rangers to know who has it. Can you do that?"
With another bow of forced respect, Corout hissed, "Yes, my lord," and left as quickly as dignity would allow.
As Michael removed and unfolded a piece of paper from his pocket, he grinned to himself and closed his eyes, imagining how his own plans were beginning to fall together in layers. With Corout's discovery, and altering instructions Arcanza had left in his successor's care, and keeping his enemies occupied with worthless alien soldiers, it was going to be a very good time for evil. Too bad the Rangers, Corout and his goons, and anyone that crossed his path—like those Omnians—would not live to see his glory.
Cecil Mercuric, 1981-1999, a very insightful man who will be forever remembered.
Cecil Mercuric, 1981-1999, beloved son to parents that were never there and brother to a girl missing for years.
Cecil Mercuric, 1981-1999, he died because of aliens.
The possibilities for his epitaph ran through his mind once more as he asked himself once again what the hell he was doing here. Two weeks since Soleron left and the ass of an extraterrestrial was still making people dance to his tune. At the departure, Cecil had given the Omnian the Point Navigator he had acquired at the rest stop so very long ago, and in return Soleron had given him the location of a secret compartment inside the Zord Holding Bay.
Laying his hand over a TGP panel, Cecil spoke to the computer, "Requesting access to Bay Subchamber. Access code seven-nine-eight-one-one-zero, verbal code 'tempest.'"
A computer, not Alpha System but some back-up system Rade had wired together years ago as he secretly maintained the entire Complex, acknowledged, "Access code confirmed. Verbal code confirmed. TGP matches data in Alpha Directory." A number suddenly appeared on the black panel. "Five minute access to Subchamber allowed. System alarms activated."
"What?" Cecil exclaimed, looking around frantically. Something was happening. Was this computer sounding off the Alpha Complex alarms, or was it something else? Lifting his communicator to check, he realized its power supply had completely depleted and likely had been for some time now. Turning back to the panel, he saw his time was dropping quickly. Soleron had made it clear that not defeating the robotic guardian and obtaining the items within the five minute limit would make them inaccessible for another two week period at the least. "I cannot chance it," he groaned. "Close the Subchamber!" The computer obeyed, the entrance slammed shut before him.
He used the OmniTech power to teleport to Control Point and found the alarms just now dying, but on one screen was an image of the Black Ranger, the Babel CarrierZord with four Rangers inside, and a monster. On another was a giant comet, leaving a trail of fire through the sky as it moved slowly toward the ground. There was something else, too, he noticed.
And he swore to himself.
Oriquin was standing right where that comet was about to strike in only a few minutes. A shimmering white beam of light was radiating up from his hands.
"Cecil Mercuric, 1981-1999, not just birth and death dates but also his blood pressure at the time of death," he grumbled, his fists balling tightly as the OmniTech powers surged through his body. "It is morphing time! Omni Titan!"
Amber Donaldson sat in the piloting chamber of Babel, Alex and Rebecca to her left and Brittany and Bane to her right, the glass window showing them the monster far below as snow and sleet bombarded it. She could taste fear buried deep down. Why wasn't it doing something? Running. Or growing to fight. Craig would know instinctively. Cecil would figure it out. Amber was no good at being the leader.
"He is not doing anything because he does not have to," Bane analyzed. "If he wins, we die, the comet strikes and kills him. If he loses, he dies, the comet strikes and kills us."
"Well, how do we stop the comet?" Becky groaned. "Could the Ultrazord destroy it?"
Brittany began pressing buttons; what she was doing, Amber had no clue. As she worked, she talked to herself, but the words just went over everyone else's head. Except Bane, who likely did not understand either but listened intently all the same. "There!" she finally exclaimed. "The Ultrazord has a sliver less power than we need to vaporize that thing. But we can't form it anyway without Cecil's Morpher."
Pointing out the window, Alex excitedly told them, "Speak of the devil and he appears."
Far below, in the midst of the raging storm, Gan-Ust turned around and came face to face with the Red Omni Ranger, Cecil Mercuric himself. Lunging forward, the monster went for a direct hit, but the Ranger quickly through up a Force Barrier that prevented him from being hurt. The red-colored energy that composed the barrier exploded, and the following Pulse Wave sent the weather-altering creature to the ground. What happened next happened so fast Amber barely saw it. One second Gan-Ust was lying on the ground, the next millions of little pieces of Gan-Ust were blowing like the snowflakes.
Cecil wasted no time, teleporting inside Babel and asking, "Hey, what is up?"
"The sky," Becky answered, "but it won't be for long. Brittany thinks Ultrazord could stop it if it had a little more power."
The Red Ranger's hand settled on Amber's shoulder as he gave the order, "Call the OmniZords now. Oriquin is already supplying that extra power. Between us and him..."
"We can save Earth," the Black Ranger finished. "Cerberus OmniZord!"
Blue Ranger summoned, "Hydra OmniZord!" and teleported to his vehicle.
"Dragon OmniZord!" Green Ranger exclaimed and disappeared.
Yellow Ranger was quick to continue, "Sphinx OmniZord!"
Not far behind, the Pink Ranger called, "Pegasus OmniZord!"
Cecil and Amber remained inside the Babel piloting chamber as five Zords appeared from various directions moving at speed remarkable for their sizes. "Titan OmniZord!" Cecil finished summoning the mythological creatures brought to mechanical life. "Initiate Omni Ultrazord assembly now!"
Regardless that she had seen it twice before now, Amber was still amazed as the CarrierZord Babel opened and reconfigured to accept and integrate the six other OmniZords near perfectly. The Titan folded and reformed itself into something resembling a head and torso. Pegasus divided itself into two pieces, each one molding itself into a shoulder, arm, and hand, attaching to the sides of the Titan. Sphinx likewise divided, but into legs and feet, as it connected with the Hydra which created the lower body and front armor. Settling on the back, the Dragon fortified the creation with back armor, wings, and a silver helmet. Now formed, the Megazord was drawn into Babel's vertical aperture, and inside the horizontal gaps Cerberus, which had disconnected itself from one beast into three cannons, placed itself. The other four Rangers returned to the Ultrazord piloting chamber.
"Lock onto the target," Cecil ordered. Bane readily complied. "I am going to see what Oriquin is up to. When I give the order, use everything we have got." With that, he teleported out, reappearing seconds later on one of Babel's many computer screens alongside the Omnian lord.
Brittany exclaimed, "I miscalculated! Even with everyone's power, it doesn't look good. Varron knew what she was doing. The comet is increasing in velocity the closer it gets. And we less than a minute before impact!"
"CrusaderZords!" Alex cried.
"Yes!" Brittany gasped happily. "Even one CrusaderZord should provide enough boost to repel it."
Standing up, the Green Ranger made a fist and confirmed, "Right. I will summon Emerald Crusader and put it on auto-pilot and self-destruct at the same time the Ultrazord fires and Oriquin uses whatever power source he has. Will that work, Brittany?"
"I can't know for sure until..." Stopping herself, she scolded, "What are you waiting for? We have a planet to save!"
Alex teleported out, and in heartbeats that seemed to last forever a large heavily green-colored robotic warrior appeared in the midst of the snowy battlefield.
"Okay, fire!" Cecil's command came with ten seconds to spare.
Emerald Crusader blasted off on a direct course with the comet. "Ultimate Attack in five!" Amber began the countdown to charge the Ultrazord. "Four!" Brittany picked up the count, followed by Bane's "Three," and Becky's "Two." Alex materialized inside again just in time to finish, "One. Fire!"
Five seconds. Electric, solar, hydro, geo, plasma, and ionic energy exploded from multiple locations around the Ultrazord.
Four seconds. A bright column of white light appeared in the distance, the sizzling hum of the Starlight power audible even at this distance.
Three seconds. The Ultrazord's beam passed by Emerald Crusader and struck the comet.
Two seconds. White-hot Starlight hit the surface of the astral body head-on.
One second. Alex's CrusaderZord exploded high in the atmosphere.
The resulting flash of raw energy was blinding, and Amber instinctively turned away and shielded her eyes to prevent damaging her eyes. Her ears filled with the sound of explosion. She felt someone grab her hand, and she gave little resistance.
It seemed to last forever, waiting for her senses to clear and her equilibrium to recover. One of the other girls was coughing, someone was breathing heavily, and it took a while still for Amber to realize neither was her. Bane was in front of Brittany, still groggy, probably because he had tried to shield her from anything unexpected. Alexander had Amber's hand grasped tightly, as though sharing his strength with her. Soon their eyes focused on the sky.
"Nothing," Rebecca coughed. "It worked."
"It worked," Amber repeated the words. They tasted a lot better than fear.
Alexander paced back and forth, keeping close tabs on his friends, waiting for whatever was keeping Cecil and Oriquin. He wanted to tell everyone at once, but he also wanted to tell them soon, and each second lost was a second they could not get back. Jackson Fisher's pseudoine production had been going on throughout their entire battle with Rapture Hold. If the Rangers did not stop him and that substance was spread around the world, who knew what disastrous consequences it would bring about?
All of them had removed their helmets and set them atop the console, remaining in their Omni Ranger uniforms at Alex's instance, and fidgeted as they too waited. At least Amber was smiling, relieved at their mission's success. He was reminded of the first time they had met, inside Sharpened Senses, when he was struck by how much she looked like Craig, yet at the same time looked so beautiful as a woman.
"Everyone," Cecil surprised them fluently, entering through Control Point's double doors, "you gave an excellent and efficient performance."
Oriquin, at his side, nodded his agreement. The middle-aged Omnian lord looked more tired and worn out than ever, his black leather jacket shredded and the off-white shirt underneath soaked with perspiration. His graying brown hair was combed back out of his intelligent dark eyes, and around his forehead was a golden circlet Alex was sure had something to do with either Craig or Omnis.
Seizing the quiet pause, Alex stepped forward and spoke. "We haven't taken care of everything yet. Genetopia has discovered the curative benefits of pseudoine, but they don't know about its evil side, so they are manufacturing pills laced with it and planning to sell them around the world." He hurried to pick up his Green Ranger helmet and fitted it over his head. "Listen. We have to stop Jackson Fisher from doing this, one way or another."
"I agree," Amber was seconding his proposal, but Cecil seemed reluctant to believe it. "Are you for certain?" he asked.
Oriquin saved Alexander from going into more detail. "You should check it out anyway. Pseudoine can not be unleashed on humanity again." The tired man waved himself away as he left the chamber. "Please leave a report with Alpha when you are done. I want to hear how this turns out, but I need some rest even more."
"Sure thing, Oriquin," Cecil answered. Turning around, he exclaimed, "Back to action!"
Instantly Alexander teleported, feeling himself divide into thousands then millions of pieces, and reassembling inside the Genetopia building, exactly where he had been standing earlier on in this hectic, horrific late autumn day. Orienting himself as the other five Omni Rangers materialized beside him, he pointed and guided them, "This way." The closer they came to that darkly familiar door, the more his scratched arm burned.
Stopping before the entrance, Alex was pulled back by Cecil, who motioned for Bane to open it. The Blue Ranger's Storm Lance appeared in his hand in a flash, and he pushed the door in, ready for anything to happen.
"Where is it?" asked Brittany as she and Cecil entered together.
Rebecca, Amber, and Alex moved inside in a straight line, staring from side to side and up and down, seeing nothing but empty shelves and broken glass laboratory equipment. "No!" Alex cried. "This place was full of pseudoine! It's still nearby, I can feel it."
There was a short silence before an unfamiliar voice announced, "It is probably I that you feel, Green Ranger." He turned toward the direction of the sound to see a neither short nor tall figure, pointed nose enhancing two deep black eyes, skin cracked and faint, dressed in gray clothing suitable for either soldier or prince. "Or I might have spilled some as I spirited all of it away. I was never good at handling genetic materials. You are referring to the pseudoine, correct?" His manner and bearing reminded Alex of the time he had come face to face with Arcanza during the siege of Ivory Glade.
"What do you want pseudoine for?" demanded Amber.
He frowned. "I was told there was a new Omni Ranger. It is a shame I am not as impressed as I should be." Wiping his hands on the silk-like shirt, he added, "Oh, I am being impolite. Allow me to introduce myself." Pulling himself back into a perfectly regal stance, he flourished an Omnian weapon, similar to one Laurasia had owned, a knife of a higher-tech variety, and said grandly, "I am Corout, last survivor of the original Omnian Great Rapture Legion of Darkness, supreme officer of the elite Rapture Hold evil task force, first rank solar research specialist."
"One of Arcanza's old friends," Bane growled.
Cecil held up his hands outward and asked, "Are you here for revenge? If so, you should know that we only fought Arcanza because he threatened our planet, and everyone that has entered this game looking for vengeance has come out dead or broken."
Shaking his head, Corout answered coldly, "No, I am here to follow orders. And lead the other ten members of Rapture Hold. I just wanted to meet all of you, on friendly terms, before our battle turns ugly. Oh, and before I forget, the people that were here before me all agreed they wanted to be cremated, so I granted their wish." With that said, he stood up, pressed a button embedded in the fingerless glove on his right hand, and teleported away in a cloud of smoke.
"Here is why your arm is burning," Rebecca said to Alex, showing him a small vial containing a drop of liquefied dark matter DNA base lying on the floor.
Alex groaned. "He wanted to be sure we sniffed him out, and knew it was him stealing the pseudoine. Poor Jackson."
Lifting his Ability Band and de-morphing, Cecil's eyes sparkled as he assessed what little information Corout had given him. "He said he was taking orders, which implies there is someone still outranking him here on Earth."
"They could have been Arcanza's orders," Amber suggested.
"No," Cecil corrected her quickly. "Arcanza expected to win the whole time. He would not have wasted time devising a plan after he was killed because he never thought he would need one. Someone has taken his place, and Corout does not want to tell us who."
Shortly afterward, the Rangers returned to Alpha Complex and cooled down from the long battle with Gan-Ust, the Varron comet struggle, and the meeting with Corout. Alex and Cecil both contributed to a recounting of events and saved it as a voice file in Alpha System's computer. With night hours long since arrived, Alexander teleported himself near his home and walked the short distance, where Grandfather was waiting for him inside.
"Running late as usual?" the old man asked. "Perhaps this time you can blame the strange storm. How was your day, grandson?"
Alex managed to smile half-heartedly. "Nothing out of the ordinary, Grandfather."
Original Publication Date: 28 July 2000
