TRTSS37: Savior of the Universe? – By DS Wynne
Disclaimer: Ranma 1/2, Sailor Moon, ST, Flash Gordon and other properties belong to their respective owners.
Note: This is a multi-genre, three-part story.
Part 1
1936 CE: Berlin, Germany.
Taken some much needed rest and relaxation, Ranma Saotome and Usagi Tsukino were traveling Europe. They had just spent the summer in Berlin, Germany enjoying the 1936 Summer Olympics, although neither one of them cared for the Nazi propaganda, especially Usagi, having only ended the threat of the Thule Society's "Counter Ghost Group". In fact, Usagi had been an undercover agent within the occult-oriented organization as one of its commanders in fact…
However, with her trials out of the way, Usagi was able to begin the process of moving, although a special assignment from the US Department of State has forced the couple to travel to Poland.
"Why do we have to do this again?" Usagi asked. "I want to go home, you know."
"First, we can't go back home, since the Black Dragon Society's puppets have taken over Japan," Ranma said. "And secondly, the State Department wants us to ferry an astrophysicist from Poland back to America…"
Usagi takes a look at the file, and opens it up.
"Wow, I think I heard of this guy," Usagi said. "He actually was a member of the United States' National Academy of Sciences before being kicked out for his belief that the Moon was on a collision course with Earth, thanks to alien interference."
"Well, apparently, somebody believes him, since the Americans want him back," Ranma said. "But, do you sense the Moon's impending impact?"
"I wouldn't know. I'm still trying to shake the influence of my…brainwashing experience."
"Well, I promise you that I will take us to a nice place to vacation."
"You better, Ranma. Chances are, we'll end up in a state of war, thanks to-"
"Oh, good, I've made it," said a brunet-haired woman, as she boards the plane that Ranma and Usagi were on.
"Hold it!" said a man with blond hair, as he boards the plane. "Sorry for the delay in flight…"
Ranma immediately recognized the man.
"Wait, aren't you Steven 'Flash' Gordon?" Ranma said.
"Oh?" said the blond-haired athlete.
"Yeah!" Ranma said with a smile, being a sports fanatic. "You won championship for Yale University, and just competed in the 'Pentalon' event here in Berlin."
"Oh, yeah," Flash said with a broad smile, as he stuck out his hand in friend. "I am Flash. And your name is…?"
"'Ranma Saotome', sports fan," Ranma replied likewise. "You definitely showed the Germans what for on your team."
"Well, I wanted to challenge myself before I turn professional on the American football circuit."
"Do you know which team you want to sign up for?"
"I was thinking of either the Patriots or the Giants. I'll know for sure once I go on a well-deserved vacation."
"I know how you feel, man."
"So, what do you do?" Flash asked.
"I was a Judo demonstrator at the Olympics," Ranma said.
"With Japan?"
"No, with the United States. I was the Captain of the American Judo Demonstration Team."
"Ah. I hear that the IOC wants to include Judo in the near-future.
"Perhaps. But it was nice to show the world that there are more fighting forms out there besides boxing and fencing…"
"Well, I would love to hear more about it," said the brunet.
"And you are…?"
"The name's Dale Arden. I am a reporter with the New York Post."
"Nice to meet you, Ms. Arden," Ranma replied. "You covered the events at the Olympics?"
"Yes, actually," Dale said, as she glances over towards Flash. "Still, I do admit to becoming a bit more biased in my coverage of one particular athlete."
"Ah," Ranma replied. He then motions towards Usagi.
"And this is my companion 'Usagi Tsukino'," Ranma replied.
"Hello," Usagi replied hesitantly.
"Hi," Dale said.
"Afternoon," Flash said with a nod.
"Yeah, we wanted to go on vacation, before heading back to the 'States."
"So, you two are American?" Dale asked.
"More or less, depending upon the tax rate," Ranma said jokingly. "But, seriously, Usagi and I are immigrants, originally from Japan."
"Well, your English sounds pretty good."
"Riiiight," Ranma replied. "So, where are you two heading?"
"Like you two, we're going on vacation as well," Flash said. "Then, it's back home to sign up for a team."
"Sounds like a plan-"
"Everyone, please buckle up," said the pilot, as he peeks his head towards the rear of the plane.
"Well, it's been nice knowing you all," Ranma said.
"Same here," Usagi replied.
"The same," Dale said.
"But, hey, our itinerary could coincide with yours, you know," Flash said with a wink and a nod. "So, you might be seeing more of us."
"Yeah, right," Ranma said. "Like THAT is going to happen…"
However, Flash proved prophetic after all. About half-way on the trip towards Warsaw, the plane that Ranma and company were in was caught up in a flaming hailstorm, causing tremendous damage to the plane. As a result, the pilots bailed with the only two parachutes on the plane.
"Thanks a lot!" Ranma yelled, as he sees the co-pilot parachuting from the plane after the pilot did.
"Flash, what are we going to do?" Dale asked nervously.
"Ranma, take the stick, while Dale and I prepare for a hard landing," Usagi said.
"You pilot?" Flash asked.
"Yeah, why?" Ranma replied.
"I'm pilot, too!" Flash said.
"Get out. What outfit did you fly with?"
"I worked with Charlie Lindbergh as an air mail carrier during college."
"You worked with 'Slim'?"
"Yep. What about you?"
"Test pilot mostly, but I was the chief mechanic for Amelia Earhart whenever she flew out on the West Coast."
"Fascinating," Dale said. "I always wanted to interview her for my paper."
"Well, she's suppose to be given an exposition show later on this year," Ranma said. "I'm sure that I can hook something up-"
"Guys, the plane?" Usagi said.
"Right, let's get this bird to land safely," Flash said.
"Right behind you," Ranma said, as he followed Flash to the cockpit…
Thanks to the efforts of Flash and Ranma, they were able to land their plane. Amazingly, and quite coincidentally, their plane crashed into the home of Dr. Hans Zarkov, who was preparing a homemade rocket ship for some unknown purpose…
"…Dr. Zarkov, we're here to escort you back to the United States," Ranma said, as he hands Zarkov an official cable.
"I thought you were on vacation?" Dale asked.
"Working vacation?"
"…"
"So, what are you two?" Flash asked suspiciously.
"We work for the State Department as 'special envoys'," Usagi said. She didn't want to tell her new friends of her most recent misadventure…
"Ha!" Zarkov said. "What fools they are…"
"What is it?" Ranma asked.
"The fools back at the National Academy of Science are finally convinced that extraterrestrial intelligence is what is causing the Moon to fall to Earth!" Zarkov said.
"What?" Flash yelled. "There is something wrong with the Moon?"
"My young friend, we are not alone," Zarkov said somberly. "I tried to convince my colleagues of the danger, but was called a crackpot for my theories…"
Zarkov then motions towards his rocket ship. It had tail fins to give it stability.
"These past few years, I have worked hard to prepare for this day," Zarkov said. "In fact, I was more than ready to give my life for my cause, even if it means going into obscurity as a mad man within the history books…"
Zarkov said, as he turns towards his guests.
"With you all here, perhaps, I can have a chance to see my life's work fulfilled."
"You're asking us to go up that thing?" Flash asked.
"Yes, how do you know it even work?" Dale asked.
"You have my word that it is safe, although the journey will certainly won't," Zarkov said.
"Look, I don't have time for this," Ranma said, as he folds his arms. "There is NO alien attack-"
"But what if we're wrong, Ranma?" Usagi said. "And considering our own respective backgrounds, I think we should consider the possibility that Dr. Zarkov might be right."
"I don't know…"
"At the very least, we should confirm his findings."
"Fine. Dr. Zarkov?"
"Of course," Dr. Karkov said, as he showed Ranma his telemetry equipment. "This way…"
"You're serious that we should…entertain his mad notions?" Dale said.
"Miss Arden, if Ranma is not convinced of Dr. Zarkov's sincerity, then we'll leave Dr. Zarkov to his own devices," Usagi said. "Is that fair?"
"Sounds fair, I think," Flash said, as he looks up at the rocket. "But to go up on a rocket ship…that takes guts."
"You're not seriously thinking of doing this, are you?" Dale said with a look of concern on her face.
"I've always pushed myself to do things that I haven't tried before," Flash said. "That's why I became an athlete, so that I could push myself to limits."
"And if there is an alien attack?"
"Considering what's going on right now, we'll need to nip this matter in the bud. Besides, you could see this venture as an opportunity for your story."
"Oh, yes," Dale said, as she nods her head in realization. "Sure. I can the headlines now: 'Maverick Scientist takes trip into Space'…"
Pause.
"I can see me getting a front page story out of all this…"
Ranma and Zarkov returns to the group.
"Well?" Usagi asked.
"We lift off within the hour," Ranma said grimly.
"So, there IS an alien invasion," Flash said.
"No invasion, but something is pushing the Moon into the Earth," Ranma said. He turns toward Zarkov.
"If we're going to do this, we'll have to make some changes."
"Why kind of changes?" Zarkov asked.
"For one thing, you'll need to add an ablative shield generator, a deflector shield theater and an inertial dampening system. You have a gravity generator, so we can use that to prevent us from splattering against the bulk-head upon achieving faster-than-light travel."
"My word," Zarkov said in amazement. "How do you know these things?"
"I was the test pilot for Dr. Joseph Cavor," Ranma said.
"Ah!" Zarkov said. "He is the inventor of Cavorite! But…that would mean you are a lot older than you look."
"Quite, doctor, and so is my companion."
"I don't understand," Dale asked.
"What is going on here?" Flash asked. "I want to know who and what I am dealing with, before we do anything else."
"Ranma and I are…special," Usagi said. "But this isn't the first time we had these sorts of adventures."
"Usagi and I are going with Dr. Zarkov to stop the alien attack," Ranma said. "You can stay here with Miss Arden, if you have any misgivings about us."
Flash thinks for a moment, before making his decision…
"Dale?" Flash asked.
"I am willing go if you are, Flash," Dale said.
"Alright, we'll go," Flash said, as he turns towards Zarkov. "If you will have us, that is."
"I appreciate this, my friends," Zarkov replied. "Perhaps, all we need to do is to get those responsible for this possible calamity to see reason."
"If not, we can always kick some butt," Ranma said, as he cracked his knuckles. "Okay, let's get to work…"
After making the appropriate modification to Zarkov's rocket, the quintet prepares to take off for space.
"Since you are more experienced in piloting a rocket, you can take the helm," Zarkov said.
"Cool," Ranma said, as he took to cockpit. He then turned towards Flash. "Would you like to co-pilot, Flash? It's just like flying a plane."
"Would I?" Flash said, as he gets into the co-pilot seat.
"Good," Ranma said, as he and Flash strap in. "Everyone, strap in."
"Here," Usagi said, as she hands Dale a flask.
"What's this?"
"Alcohol, so you can relax."
"I'm THAT nervous?" Dale said, as she takes the flask.
"Yeah. First time I went up into space I was nauseous."
"You went into…space?"
"To the Moon, in fact."
"You're becoming more interesting as time goes on, Miss Tsukino…"
"Alright, all systems are go," Dr. Zarkov said, as he straps himself into his seat. "Mr. Satome, you may have the honors."
"Right," Ranma said. "Ready, steady, GO!"
With a switch, Zarkov's rocket takes to the skies. Destination: the mysterious planetoid of Mongo…
The initial trip into space went off without a hitch. Using Dr. Zarkov's telemetry readings, the rocket traveled to a mobile planetoid that had its own atmosphere and ecosystem.
"Amazing," Zarkov said. "To think that science could advance itself to the point of creating a world that did not need a star to sustain it."
"Is that a floating city?" Usagi asked.
"Looks like," Ranma said. "I'm going to see if I can use the planet's magnetic field to shield us from scrutiny-"
Just then, Zarkov's rocket was attacked by interceptors.
"We're being attacked!" Dale said, as she reflectively shielded her face, even though the force-field generator was firmly in place.
"Flash, how is your firing arm?" Ranma asked, referring to the rockets experimental M-9 cannons.
"I'm a good shot," Flash said. "I wouldn't have won the pentalon's target shooting category, if I weren't."
"Cool," Ranma said. "Now, I can concentrate on some serious flying…"
However good Ranma and Flash's skills were, Zarkov's rocket was overwhelmed by a squadron of interceptors, when one of them rammed into its port side.
"We're going to die!" Dale yelled. "I know that this was a bad idea!"
"Calm down," Usagi said. "Just drink."
"Okay," Dale said, as she took another sip of Usagi's flask.
"What is in that anyway?" Flash asked.
"Romulan ale," Usagi replied. "I have a personal distiller that makes the stuff for me."
"I see," Flash said, wonder what 'Romulan ale' was…
"Hang on, everyone!" Ranma said. "This is going to be a bumpy landing-!"
Tbc.