With one exception, it had always been peaceful on Omnis. The founder of this world, the man who led the Tribe of Oryon, he they called the Starborn, had envisioned an eternal utopia, a radical change from the stories of the Old World that still passed down from elder to youth. Since the dawn of time, the legends say, the Old World was plagued with chaos. But Omnis was so very different; a brilliant golden sun called Meridian-Omega rose from the northern horizon, just like it would every day for the remainder of time, the nights were always filled with distant stars and tranquil silence. Clouds swirled in the skies, giving water and wind to a thankful people, the green grass, graying trees, and plentiful colors of flowers showed their appreciation of other life dwelling here, and the omnipotent embers always made sure light was an arm's stretch away. So, without strife at every turn, at least most of the time, happiness filled up most of Omnis's time. A peaceful place, with one exception.
Sighing, Psellea smiled to herself in the darkness, thankful for that fact. Her husband's arm draped around her, the blankets of the bed of a high-ranking noble pulled snuggly around them, and the knowledge her daughter was home safe and sound combined to make her mind as peaceful as the world outside. For almost her entire life, since they had played kissing games in his mother's garden seminovas ago, Corsterac had been her life's foundation, a friend, a partner, and a husband too precious for words. Just recently he had been honored with a prominent place at the palace, as close to the High Lordship as one who was not of the Starborn bloodline could be. Psellea, however, was a descendant of the Starborn, and had given up a possibility, however slight it might have been, at one day becoming the High Lady. It was a small price to pay for being at Corsterac's side. And, anyway, the option was still open to her daughter, a beautiful blossomed young woman named Kerith, but fate had other greatness in store for her. For almost six seminovas, the daughter of Psellea and Corsterac held the position of White Omni Ranger, next to the High Lord and Lady the most recognized position on the planet. She led the team of six men and women responsible for the ruler's and the world's safety.
OmniTech. Even Omnians who did not know what it was knew the name by heart. No one alive knew how or when it was created, but the reason was dreadfully clear. The six OmniTech Ability Bands, one of which would never be removed from around Psellea's little girl's forearm for the next nineteen seminovas, were created to defend Omnis from the Eternal Demon, the sinister presence that existed on this planet before the Starborn had come. Called eternal because it still remained thousands of seminovas after establishment of the planet.
"Corsterac," she whispered, activating the magicandle on the nightstand to provide a circle of soft light around them, "I'm going to check on Kerith." With a gentle kiss on his cheek, she slipped out from under his strong arm and into a soft cotton robe. Stepping gently along the floor to the next room where her child slept quietly on her bed, she stood in the doorway and with the magicandle studied her daughter's pretty face. Long golden hair framing good looks she got from her father, dreaming behind those closed eyelids and before those blue-violet eyes shared by mother and child, her blanket covering her to the neck. They had spent hundreds of nights apart, but now Kerith was safe and sound, at least until she was called to action once more.
From the corner of her eye, Psellea noticed movement somewhere in the shadows, and swung her light source around to try and illuminate the area. "Who is there?" she whispered her demand. "Show yourself."
"I apologize for frightening you, my Lady." The tall gentleman in fancy clothes, all black and gray with gleaming silver threads and a long cloak hanging from his shoulders, eyes flickering in tune with the pulsing light of the magicandle, bowed elegantly. His sharp features showing deep concern seemed genuine enough. "The Lady Kerith leads a dangerous life now, and I thought it best for her if someone kept watch."
Psellea sighed, allowed the instant tension that built up inside her escape, and replied, "Daermos, it is alright. I suppose you are right. I am foolish for thinking Kerith is safe simply because she is here." Daermos, Corsterac's clever cousin, and quite possibly the most ambitious person alive on Omnis today, grinned. He had always shown affection for Kerith as she was growing up, and was probably the closest thing to an older brother she could have; there was only a seminova and a half difference between them. But his smile slipped quickly when Psellea attached the question, "Why are you talking so slowly?"
"Slowly, Lady?" Daermos repeated in a drawl. "Perhaps you are just hearing slower, since this is a late hour and you are likely tired after a long day."
She began to answer, but something else glinting in the magical shine caught her attention and caught her breath as well. At Daermos's side, slid into his belt, was the steel blade of a knife. The challenging words came out of Psellea's mouth involuntarily, "I will not let you near my daughter. Ever." Despite having said it loudly, her voice remained soft, and she was unable to move. Something deep inside her mind was empty...not empty, but black...and try as she might she was unable to move any part of her body.
Daermos's smile returned, and he sat down on a nearby high-backed chair, crossing his legs and leaning his head back. "You people do not belong here, you know that," he said slowly, "and it has taken quite some effort on my part to learn this thing you call speech, words, language."
"Lineage shine on me," the noblewoman prayed, "and protect me from the Eternal Demon. Lineage watch over and embrace us all."
The Eternal Demon was cleaning his teeth with his tongue as she invoked the spiritual protection of her ancestors, including the Starborn. She hoped that gave her the strength to withstand this beast. "One thousand seminovas ago, your lineage touched down on this planet, my home. They began to spread out and infest every area of it and then they had the nerve to build weapons—weapons designed solely for the purpose of killing me—and retaliated when I began to terrorize them. I was not doing it out of some dark desire to be vicious or evil; I only fought because I had to protect my home. My creation. I created this world, this sole orbiter of the universe's core, to live here with a beautiful view of the heartbeat of existence."
Psellea pressed her hands together, her heart racing. "What did you do to Daermos? What do you want with Kerith?"
"Daermos is floating in a void between the balanced and evil universes now," the Demon answered softly. "A casualty of the war his own ancestors started. I call it justice. This is simply the shape I have taken to get inside your walls." Pausing, he pushed the knife into his palm, drawing no blood, sliding the blade all the way through. "And as for Kerith, I have plans for her, but no use for her tonight. It is you I want, Psellea, and your husband."
Any more prayers Psellea may have had were lost as she felt a unexpected lightness deep inside the center of her mind. It spread outward, numbing her senses, disorienting her, but regardless she still heard Daermos saying, "Such is only the beginning of the powers I possess. This planet I created by taking the dark matter inside a black hole, separating the matter from its...'darkness' I suppose the word would be...and absorbing that unknown power into my consciousness. Truthfully, my lady, I could not guess the limits of what I am capable of as we stand her chatting. But you do not have to worry about that now. Just worry about sleep."
And sleep poor Psellea did, as the Eternal Demon's plan unfolded.
Omnis Palace was living chaos the next day.
Kerith walked quickly, oh so quickly, through the corridors, that Nove and Mulkae had to break into a half-sprint to keep up with her. "Corsterac and Psellea have disappeared," Nove was explaining to his companion. "We know the Demon did it, but we do not know why. Or how, for that matter; it happened while Kerith was sleeping in the next room."
Turning around to face her trailers, Kerith frowned at her teammates. Nove wore the standard red shirt tucked into black pants, complete with black symbol-embedded jacket, golden cord around his head, and shining silver Ability Band around his forearm. In addition, two medals of rank, just one less than Kerith herself, were attached on the opposite side of the jacket. He was the Red OmniTech Ranger, a descendent of the Starborn's bloodline, a master of hand and foot fighting techniques, arguably the most intelligent among the team, a friend and lifelong companion of almost everyone, but he just did not know when to shut up.
Mulkae rarely wore her standard Ranger uniform, and today was no exception. A solid pink dress starting below her shoulders and ending above her knees gave no indication that the OmniTech Band around her arm was real. Her hair was pinkish, too, but her eyes sparkled a natural golden color, almost as intense as a priest's acquired shade. Although they were not joined in marriage, everyone was aware of Nove and Mulkae's relationship, but they put their feelings aside for the benefit of the Rangers and their homeworld.
"I am going to find them," Kerith growled. "And when I do, the Demon is going to fall."
Nove bit the side of his mouth. Taking a deep breath, he once again proved his mouth was the only uncontrollable part of his body. "No one has destroyed the Eternal Demon for three thousand years, not the Starborn and not generations of Omni Rangers. Kerith, I understand how you must be feeling, the anger and determination to rescue your parents, but please realize taking on the embodiment of darkness is base level suicide. It hurts, we all know, but maybe it would be best to put feelings aside this battle and concentrate on logic."
"Two types of people put their faith on logic," Kerith shot back. "Tacticians and fools. The Demon can fall, somehow, and I will be the one to do it if the rest of you are too logical to do your Lineage-given duty." A bright aura of white fire suddenly enveloped her, pure energy connecting her with Meridian-Omega itself through the automatic link the Ability Band established, and lifted her off the ground into mid-air. "Inform the others of my leave of absence. I will either come home with my parents and the Demon's motionless heart, or leave the leadership of the team to you, Nove. Farewell."
Mulkae exclaimed, "No, Kerith! Stop!" but the White Omni Ranger ignored the cry and took off through the Omnis Palace skylights. She could sense the creature, out there waiting for her, and she did not care a bit.
"OmniTech Morph! The touch of the Stars! White Omni Ranger!"
It was almost mid-day, Meridian-Omega burning still low enough in the north to classify the time as morning, and the wet grass was finally beginning to dry. Inside a crude construction, a fortress of earth and dirt laced with precious metals like crystis, raw crystiglass, with no floor or ceiling, the thing that looked like Daermos chewed on its fingers. Obviously uncomfortable as a man, it shifted nervously whenever Psellea or Corsterac stared too long.
"Kerith is on her way," it reported to them in its horrific slow drawl.
"I hope so," Corsterac bravely intoned. "The Omni Rangers will not sit idly by while you sneak around snatching us Lineage-blessed Omnians in our sleep."
Daermos laughed, spitting out his chewed off digits and waving his hand to show off how quickly they had regenerated. Five disfigured fingers landed in the grass. "The Rangers' powers are just as useless, and they know it. They chose to sit idly by for this one."
Though she struggle to resist it, Psellea gave into her fears and gasped at the news. Sure it might try to scare them, but what reason did it have to lie? This being was not deceitful; he had told her exactly what it wanted, the Omnians off his home, and that he would do anything in his power to accomplish that. "Let us talk to her before you fight," pleaded Psellea.
"That will not be necessary," Daermos answered. "I will not be fighting her, just bargaining with her. No one will die here today, unless Kerith decides it to be so."
Corsterac was frowning, he clearly did not understand the creature the way Psellea did. Probably no one else did, considering it had only recently learned to speak their language and told his story with so many clouds and holes it was obviously a first telling. But soon their daughter would arrive, and the Lineage knew what the Demon had in store for her. "Psellea," her husband was whispering. "When you were up, where was Rzodin?"
Of course! Rzodin, the Lightguided priest and Lineage-blessed former Omni Ranger, lived on their premises, and his instincts were so sharp the slightest movement in the palace usually woke him up and drew his attention. Where had he been when Psellea had her heart-to-heart chat with the Demon? She felt sick upon realizing the Daermos clone might have done something horrible to poor Rzodin, after being enemies for so many years. "He was not there, my love, and I am afraid..."
"I will tell you," Daermos sneered. "Rzodin is standing right over there, as he has been for some time now. His honor prevents him from acting, since I have done you no harm, and his intelligent prevents him as well, knowing he has no chance to win."
Psellea squinted and, sure as Meridian-Omega shined every day, the Lightguide was leaning in a shadowed corner, nothing escaping his steady golden gaze. Any priest chosen to become an Omni Ranger was required to undergo an intense training and focusing period; Rzodin had voluntarily extended that time to train more than twice as much. When an objective was defined in his sharp mind, it was carried out without hesitation or failure, or he would have been dead seminovas ago trying. He said nothing, just watched Daermos, and the evil creature stared back at him. "Rzodin!" Corsterac called out. "Please do something! Help free us!"
The scene grew unearthly quiet. Something high above was humming softly and its volume was gradually increasing. In the blink of an eye, Kerith was hovering high above the four people below, her OmniTech Band pulsing in tune with the fiery aura around her. Aiming her turned-outward palms directly at Daermos, she cried, "Omni Starbeam!" A thin beam of light discharged from the power encircling her, streaking directly toward the Demon.
Lifting his hand, Daermos deflected the beam, sending it in a new direction and burning a giant hole above Psellea's head. "It is nice to see you again, too, White Ranger."
"Return my parents," she demanded, "or I will see you burn."
"I will return them," replied the Demon, "in exchange for something."
A heartbeat later, Kerith was standing on the ground next to Rzodin, her eyes never leaving her opponent. "What?" she asked.
"Your Ability Band," Daermos replied. "Those things were created for the sole purpose of killing me. Obviously, they have not worked, and as a result I am haunted and hunted by them every day of my life. It is time for me to act, and I want to prevent any death or destruction because of our war, and extend a peaceful offering. You hand over the Omni Power, I hand over the nobles. No catch."
Rzodin put a strong hand on Kerith's shoulder as she began to decline the offer, but Psellea knew what would come about if that happened. "Wait, Kerith!" she cried to her daughter. "Please listen to me. Accept the offer. All Daerm...I mean, the Demon ever wanted was to live in peace on this world, and since he could not do it alone, he is agreeing to get along with us. The only things he wants are the Ability Bands; the arrangement is fair. Kerith..."
Standing there, poised like that, her entire body afire with white light, Psellea was seeing her daughter as an entirely different person. A hardened warrior, an intelligent defender, but still the warm child she and Corsterac had raised. Lifting the Band around her right forearm, the Omni Ranger detached the device and said quietly, "All right, I think I understand. I suppose this means you will want me to convince the other Rangers to do the same. Will my family be released before or after then?" The armor protecting her vanished as she released her hold on her powers.
Taking the OmniTech from her offering hand, the Demon tilted its head as though it were considering the question. Finally, he shrugged, slipped the Band around his own wrist, and laughed as he blasted Kerith and Rzodin with an enormous explosion of pure light and solid dark energy, a combination of his own and his nemesis's, pushing them through some type of strange gateway that had appeared their while everyone's attention was elsewhere. "Contemplate that question in my home universe," Daermos laughed, "where evil reigns supreme and stars burn with hellfire."
"NO!" Psellea screamed. Corsterac held both his wife's hand tighter than ever, cursing under his breath, "Damn you, Demon. Lineage shine on my child."
"Relax," Daermos told them with a sinister grin. "I just sent them to a parallel universe, the one I came from, where they will live out the rest of their natural lives. In total chaos and evil, of course, but they are still alive. And now that I have the power to do so, I will begin harnessing Meridian-Omega's energy and open a gigantic portal to that same universe and suck all you damn Omnians into it. Then my home will be mine again. How long I have waited for this moment!" And, with a final wave to his captives, the Demon vanished into the air, the prison dissipating as well, but in their sadness Psellea and Corsterac barely realized their freedom. Their daughter had been banished to an evil universe, and a plan was in motion to send everyone else to the same place.
He was under incredible stress, the trails of sweat rolling down his face were not needed to tell that, but however he managed to do it, it was working. "I think I can reopen it, but not for long and it has to be done soon. If I cannot follow, promise me you will not turn back."
"Keep focused, Rzodin, you need to focus," Kerith told him.
Rzodin stood still as stone, using every ounce of his strength to keep the Lifeblade positioned in the center of the energy portal, and aging more rapidly than ever. "I am going to channel more power into the blade and see if it widens enough to go back."
She nodded absently, but Kerith was drawn to glimpse at her surroundings. The atmosphere in this place they stood was permeated with vileness; the smell of decay and the aura of hopelessness laced with stuffy air. Both of them were standing on a ground made not of earth, but of dust and ash, as though this planet had burned itself entirely to cinders a long time ago. Keeping the young woman most intrigued, however, was the silhouette hovering above the ashes. Even though she had never seen one before, Kerith knew this was a Mage Messenger, one of those chosen to deliver blessings and knowledge from people who had already joined the Lineage. The only strange thing was: these beings only appeared to someone in an altered state of consciousness, not when they were lucid and alert as she was. So enrapt in preventing the hole between universes from closing, Rzodin seemed unaffected by its presence.
"I bring a message from he you call Omnis Starborn," the apparition intoned. "Those who can defeat the Omnian Demon do not yet exist. Therefore, you must imprison him until that prophesized time comes. Three seals, called the Soul Seals, are locked in the lowest room of Omnis Palace. You must obtain these items; you must combine all six OmniTech Powers to open a portal to this wicked place; you must sacrifice most, if not all, of your Powers to the Seals that they may prevent the Demon from returning to your universe. Complete this task, Kerith Starborn, and the people of Omnis will be liberated. There is little time now, so hurry and fulfill your destiny." The Mage Messenger waited, focused on her, expecting some reply or another, but she gave none. Shortly it extended its arms outward and burst into shimmering white and gold dust until it became separated and indeterminable from the rest of the decay around them.
Turning back to her companion, Kerith ordered, "Keep that portal open, Keeper Rzodin, we are returning to our own universe." Abruptly, four hideous creatures approached from afar, trampling through the ash, deadly sharp bones protruding like knives from their appendages. They spotted Rzodin and Kerith, exchanged incomprehendable words to one another, and charged, eager to rid their territory from unwelcome visitors. Noticing he had felt their presence too, she growled, "I will handle this."
The creatures were frightfully close now, but instead of panicking, Kerith executed a lightning-fast spinning kick and, before the lead assailant had fallen, she was bombarding it with one, two, three powerful punches. Another of the creatures was moving in close to slice her with the sharp stiletto. Another kick, this one straight and sure, and propelled with incredible force, split the bone edge completely, and a quick added jolt broke it off. Howling in pain, it joined its cohort on the ground. Rzodin was calling out, "It is open! Move, Kerith, move!"
She swirled and dashed for the portal. Reaching out as she ran, she grabbed Rzodin's arm and pulled him through, out of the dead world of ash and back into the living world of Omnis. Just as she was about the catch her breath, the two remaining beings screamed disturbingly high-pitched wails and surged through the doorway a split second before it snapped out of existence.
"Come and get me, cretins," Kerith challenged.
A voice behind her ordered, "Let us take it from here." She turned and saw Nove, standing elegantly in a battle-ready pose, with Mulkae and the other three Omni Rangers behind him. Lifting their Ability Bands to the sky, the second—now first—in command cried, "We call upon the power of Meridian-Omega, the technology of our people, and the blessing of the holy Lineage!"
"OmniTech Morph! The foundation of Nature! Green Omni Ranger!"
"OmniTech Morph! The rush of Energy! Pink Omni Ranger!"
"OmniTech Morph! The endurance of Water! Blue Omni Ranger!"
"OmniTech Morph! The warmth of Light! Yellow Omni Ranger!"
"OmniTech Morph! The power of Chaos! Red Omni Ranger!"
Rzodin and Kerith fled the battleground, allowing the team to fight without being distracted by them. "We have to get to Omnis Palace," she told him.
He nodded, pointing straight ahead, and replied, "I came here in Hypegon." Together they pushed through tall plants and around trees until they discovered the Omni Rangers's high-speed vehicle, Hypegon, waiting to move. "Don't worry," Rzodin promised, not letting any hint of tiredness to show, even though Kerith was panting from the run. "I can have us at the palace in minutes."
In minutes, the two unlikely inter-dimensional traveling companions, surrounded by a solid twenty curious onlookers and people eager to help, broke down the final barrier at the bottom of a stairwell unused for centuries inside Omnis Palace. Inside the chamber was so clean and bright it was hard to imagine this place being locked up so long. There was a feeling of tranquility, of being safe from any harm the Eternal Demon might bring, somewhat akin to courage. She held up a hand, motioning everyone watching, including Rzodin, back, telling them, "I have to do this alone."
Descending far into the immense chamber, Kerith held her breath at the sights contained within. There was artwork along all the walls, but a strange kind of artwork, a picture that was there but only for a brief instant, so that it could have been an illusion or mirage. One, she knew for certain, was of Omnis Starborn himself, but the glimpse she had was not enough to put physical features to him. Another showed a great sea of water surrounding a lone tower; something about that piece of art triggered her memory of hearing Old World legends as a child.
Finally Kerith came upon a solid marble podium that stood up just above her waist.
"Welcome to Terra Memoria," a voice announced, coming from all around her. "If you are hearing my words, then three thousand years have passed, and it is time to reseal the creature. My name is the Starborn, and I am the reason the creature exists."
She gasped. The founder of their home. The closest man to the Lineage who had lived. Had he known all those millennia ago she would be here? Now?
"Shortly after landing on this planet, my men of the Tribe of Oryon discovered three suspicious discs. We were trained mainly in technology and in science, so we proceeded to run tests on these objects, tests that involved breaking them and studying their parts. After we broke the third one, however, we learned they were seals, keeping an ethereal door between our universe and countless others closed. The creature emerged from one of those doors."
The Demon was here because of the Starborn? It did not seem possible. How could the hero of a world be responsible for...for...that thing?
"It was vicious, and immediately began plotting to conquer our new world, our old one, and our universe. We knew we had to prevent this and, luckily, we knew something else. Meridian-Omega, the Central Star, is the focal point for stray energy in the universe. While the rest of existence favors low energy, the center of existence favors incredibly high energy. Using our knowledge, the Tribe of Oryon created a device that could absorb, harness, and control some of the energy as it passes us on its way to the megastar. Thus OmniTech was created and, hopefully, still exists in your time, and has been collecting power for three thousand years. Our researchers theorize that, every twenty-five years, the level of power contained will double, so by your time OmniTech should be infinitely stronger. That is why you must sacrifice it all now. By concentrating that energy, it should be enough to reassemble the seals.
"We, as part of the Lineage, as those who have come and gone before you, are sure of your success. Get the creature through a ethereal door, reform the seals, and continue to pass OmniTech down to new generations. Three thousand years from three thousands from now, the creature will be weak and the Lineage will be strong. May you carry the light of our old home world Earth and our own blessings in your heart."
Kerith stood transfixed and dumbfounded. On top of the podium, fragments of three circular discs the size of her hand materialized, part golden and part prism, breaking nearby white light into a rainbow of colors. Gathering the shards, she took them all and began running back to the entrance, where Rzodin waited for her with an impatient poise.
He exhaled sharply, then informed her, "The Demon is here, in the palace, still in the form of Daermos. He is threatening to send us to that ghastly dimension if we do not surrender OmniTech to him."
"Then call the Rangers back," she ordered the former Green Ranger, unconcerned that his eyes went wide with shock. He was about to say something, but Kerith could read his mind and told him, "I am not trusting him like last time. I need the Rangers here to defeat him."
Together, Kerith and Rzodin hurried up the stairs, she cradling the seal fragments and he calling Nove and company back through their OmniTech communicators. Back on the main floor of the palace, the priest led her toward their enemy; they found it easily by following people running away from it.
It spotted her instantly and smiled. Daermos was taller than most Omnians, his facial features carved just right to cast shadows over his eyes, his body well toned and powerful. He wore all black, threaded with gray and silver, a dark cloak pulled over his shoulder and a knife sheathed in his belt. "Ah, White Ranger, how pleasant meeting you again," he said with a taunt in his slow, smooth voice. "You will be pleased to know our powers are mixing very well."
"I am here to take OmniTech back," she challenged, hoping he could not see through her lie. "Return it now and save both of us the time."
Sliding his tongue along his upper teeth, Daermos dismissed the threat with a roll of his eyes, twin flames of golden-red dancing like the fire they resembled.
A voice from the opposite side of the Demon corrected, "Save all six of us the time." Nove, his Battle Shield in place over his Red Omni Ranger costume, held his arms out to draw attention to the other four Rangers at his sides.
"Nove! Long time, no see, my friend!" Daermos exclaimed with false cheer. "Have you come for a rematch for that battle on the Muted Fields? I seem to recall I left you on the verge of death..."
"I have not forgotten," Nove growled, the memory of his humiliating defeat still lingering seminovas after the fact. It was the one and only time he had battled it alone. "But you will not see my anger overshadow my judgment today, you fiend. Today, you lose."
Seizing the chance, Kerith lunged forward and rolled. Daermos turned around quickly and lifted his arm, the band around his forearm glowing and ready to be used. A sudden bombardment of five separate Omni Blaster shots from various directions knocked the Demon's head back and forth, blurring his vision. Grabbing the White OmniTech, Kerith drew on its power as she was connected with it again and screamed, "Omni Starbeam!" A bar of white light severed Daermos's arm at the elbow, and immediately Kerith scrambled toward the other Rangers, low enough to avoid their fire, sliding the Ability Band off and hurling the arm back at her nemesis.
Suddenly a force field appeared around Daermos, protecting him from the Blasters, and his arm began to regenerate itself while the other one collapsed in on itself. "Clever," was all he grunted.
Scattering the pieces of the seals on the ground, Kerith motioned to them and called to other Rangers, "Focus your powers on these! Help me reform them!"
"What are those?" Daermos roared, moving toward them in a blur. Unexpectedly, Rzodin grabbed him from behind, holding the Demon in place.
A calm feeling settled over Kerith's heart and she drew an enormous amount of energy from her OmniTech device. She could feel darkness mixed in with it, too, like pinpricks of unnatural cold, few at first but increasing in number the longer she used it. In her mind she pictured a gateway into that terrible world she had been in, and Daermos being sucked into it. Along the edges of her concentration, she could see it happening physically just as she pictured it mentally.
"You will not succeed!" Daermos was wailing, breaking her focus, her hold on the power slipping. He laughed as the gateway wavered, but did not totally dissipate, before he was completely through. "This universe belongs to me! With fire, I will forge it into an indestructible sentient being! Hear me, Omnians! I will become the Mind of God!"
"Not this day," a familiar voice announced. From some direction, Psellea came running, faster and faster, armed extended in front of her with palms out, until she hit Daermos at high speed and carried them both through the portal.
Kerith tried to cry, "Mother! Stop!" but her voice had turned to nothing.
It was Nove who spoke the terrifying final words. "It is done."
Tears welled up in her eyes, so Kerith could not see. Could not see the door between universes close. Could not see the seals reform. Could not see the person who held her in strong arms as she cried.
"I am sorry, Kerith, daughter of Lord Corsterac and Lady Psellea," the Lord of Omnis addressed her sadly, "but you have willingly confessed to the tainting and destruction of the White Omni Power. As of today, you are stripped of any honors presented to you in the past. May the Lineage shine its mercy on you as I sentence you to join it."
Breathing deeply, Kerith could only nod during the proclamation. She turned to look at her father, Corsterac, who was holding his one-seminova-old new adopted son, Nove and Mulkae's child. The poor child was totally unaware of the events that had taken place two seminovas ago, and totally unaware of the blessed power he held inside him. After the dust settled, and it was a certainty Daermos was imprisoned again, Kerith had separated the tainted OmniTech Power into two parts: a purely good force called Starlight and a purely evil force called Black Hole. Starlight was given to the child while it still stirred in Mulkae's womb.
Rzodin had taken the Black Hole power and locked himself underneath Omnis Palace inside the place called Terra Memoria and agreed to stay there until he died, and the last of the Demon's evil with him.
And then the trial had begun. Although she had survived the ordeal, she was still paying the ultimate price for saving her home. The High Lord had wanted to pardon her, but she declined the offer, and now she was being led by the Blue and Green Omnis Rangers, her teammates once, to the spaceship she would board and blast off in to join the Lineage somewhere in outer space.
"Is there anything you want to say?" the Green Ranger asked before he shut the door.
Fingering one of the three intact seals, the Spirit Seal she had named it, because of its image of five people sharing one spirit-like aura, Kerith nodded.
"Three thousand years from now, the creature will be weak and Omnis will be strong. All of us must carry the light of our old world, Earth, and the blessings of the Lineage in our hearts." Then, bravely, she herself entered the code to permanently close the spaceship door.
The ground trembled violently as the ship blasted off to the heavens, never to return.
And yet, across the entire planet, life was perfectly still.
Original Publication Date: 28 July 2000
