Mark, Tiny and Keyop had used Princess' signal to locate her in the fog, and now they were all crouched around Jason, who was lying on his back on the grass, his legs still too paralyzed from the tranquilizer for him to be able to stand unassisted or to walk.

"Anderson's told us, Jason, that… somehow, you're half Spectran," said Mark softly from his vantage near Jason's head, his eyes sad and troubled, "Why couldn't you…"

"You don't know the whole truth," replied Jason, his face bleak but that of one determined to hide nothing anymore, "My mother is Mala, and my father is Colonel Cronus."

"What? Colonel Cronus?" gasped Mark, his pain-filled eyes hardening in denial, "You expect me to believe-" He fought back the glistening of tears that loomed within them. "How can this be? He'd never…"

A hint of a bitter smile crossed Jason's lips.

"I can't say I took the news well at first either, but it does mean…"

As Jason spoke, Mark gasped and looked away, closing his eyes as the implications now flooded him with conflicting emotions, more than he was able to deal with. Princess could only stare at Jason, silent and eyes wide with shock.

"That we're brothers," whispered Jason.

"It's true," added Jason, looking now at Princess.

Mark remained frozen, his eyes still clenched shut as he grappled with the revelations that Jason had already managed to process and accept.

Still not looking at anyone, Mark stood abruptly and turned away from them all, folding his arms around his chest as he bowed his head, trying to make sense of the universe again…

Princess leaned towards Jason now, her expression confused. "How..."

"Some brief liaison, on Riga," said Jason wryly, though more quietly, not at ease with it himself. "But listen –I lived on Spectra until I was six. I can remember it now. The people I thought were my parents –Joseph and Kathryn- who died in a car accident…"

Keyop had moved closer, and Jason was looking at him now.

"They're fake," continued Jason, "Fake memories put in my head by my implant –put in my head by Chief Anderson. He's always known where I'm really from."

Tears welled up in Keyop's eyes. "He knew?" he burbled, bringing his hand to his mouth to stifle a sob, "Knew Mala… was your real mother?"

Jason turned now to look at Tiny.

"Known for months," he began even as Tiny leaned towards him, his own eyes damp with some tears of dismay and bewilderment.

"No," whispered Tiny, not wanting to believe what he was hearing about their trusted mentor.

"Remember him realizing it was Mala who tried to defect to Earth thirteen years ago? Well, I was with her then."

"You were?" gasped Tiny, tears running down his face now, "I remember him saying she got abducted, taken back to Spectra. Did you get left behind on Earth?"

Jason didn't say anything, but he grimaced in acknowledgement.

"But there's other stuff going on here too!" cried Tiny, suddenly remembering the mantle crisis threatening the very existence of the planet they were on, and he looked away as he spoke next. "Spectra's whole mantle is unstable and it could self-destruct?"

Jason could only stare for a moment, almost smiling at the sheer insanity of the whole situation.

"And I think a rebellion against Zoltar has just started here," he said, turning his face towards the sky and closing his eyes, "Mala is leading it."

Tiny turned to stare over at Mark, who had heard all that had been said, but still stood unmoving, with his head bowed.

"Mark," said Tiny, "Cronus told us to find Jason, and we've found him. What do we do now?"

Mark was deep in thought, his eyes still closed, and he didn't reply.

"Mark!" called Princess to him, when he continued to be still and silent.

"You okay?" asked Keyop, frowning slightly at their leader's apparent indecision.

"Mark," said Tiny, standing up now and staring over at him, "If this is an entrance here, we need to go back inside. But I'll stay with Jason."

But from the depths of the fog, faint footsteps could be heard, and they were drawing closer.

Mark finally opened his eyes again to glance around quickly.

All around them, the forms of Spectran soldiers were taking shape within the fog. They were still being hunted, and now the soldiers were getting closer to their location.

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At Center Neptune, Zark scrutinized his monitors.

"I still haven't heard from G-Force," he fretted. "I know communication between Earth and the Crab Nebula isn't so easy for them, but this silence… I feel as if I've a massive static charge building up, with no where to go."

1-Rover-1 yapped and then cowered

"That's a figure of speech," Zark assured him, "I won't zap you if you come too close."

Turning back to his monitors, he continued "All I can do is gather seismic data from Spectra with my most powerful long range sensors. I'm running it through some algorithms I've devised to compute and extrapolate lithospheric and asthenospheric conditions on Spectra, and-"

"Zark," said Susan, startling the robot and causing him to spin around towards the dangling speaker, as she'd been silent for quite some time.

"Yes, Susan?"

"My sensors here on Pluto have detected a faint message –text only- that has been sent from Jason's wrist communicator," she announced with breathy excitement.

"Well, that's an improvement over just a beacon signal!" said Zark eagerly, "What does it say?"

"I've just amplified and transmitted it to you," said Susan.

Zark wasted no time finding the message on one of his own monitors.

"Spectran rebel movement…" read Zark, "Has launched coup against Zoltar. I have made an intelligence assessment of the situation personally. Strongly recommend Federation announce support for the rebels ASAP, initiate diplomatic communications. Trust me on this."

Zark paused. "Oh my," he added, "It's signed 'Colonel Cronus, Rigan Red Rangers!'"

He began hastily pushing buttons on his console.

"I must alert Chief Anderson and President Kane at once!"

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Mark had kept his back turned to the others, but at last he spun around to face them, his troubled expression now set in decision.

"We found Jason," said Mark, "But the mantle's still unstable and who knows what's going on inside the base. We're leaving him here."

"Alone?" gasped Tiny, as Keyop and Princess stood up from Jason's side to stare at Mark in dismay.

Mark didn't reply with words; he pulled his sonic boomerang out of its holster, confidently tossing it up and catching it again with one hand.

No one knew quite what to say, but Mark approached the still-prone Jason and knelt beside him.

"Jason," he said quietly.

Since Mark turned his back on him, Jason had been inwardly steeling himself for rejection, his eyes closed. But hearing Mark's voice now, he glanced up at him, his face softening with emotion he couldn't have concealed, though he didn't try to say anything.

"After my Mom died," said Mark earnestly, "I thought for years that I had no family. Now I've got a father again and… regardless of how it happened-"

Mark lifted Jason's arm and pressed his boomerang into Jason's hand, clasping his hand around it with both of his own.

"This will keep you safe," he told Jason, "Until we can come back to you. I don't want to lose… my brother."

Mark had never entrusted his prized weapon to Jason, or to anyone else, ever before. But now he lowered Jason's hand so that the boomerang rested on his chest, and then he let go and stood up again.

Jason still didn't trust his voice not to waver or crack, but he had to speak.

"Thank you, Mark."

Mark had turned away from him, but the hand he raised now to his face could only mean that he was wiping away a tear.

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Another pod detonated deep with the Spectran mantle.

Simultaneously, the whole valley floor was shaken again by a new earthquake, causing the soldiers who had been searching for G-Force in the fog to cry out in fear as they all lost their footing and fell over.

But this earthquake was more severe. Across the valley floor, cracks now traced their way across the vast visage of the "evil chicken" that Mark and the others had seen from the air when they'd arrived in the Phoenix.

The cracks quickly widened into gaping chasms that swallowed the statues that now toppled into their depths.

But one chasm in the ground now expanded to reveal a strange, massive object that had to have been there in the ground for eons, even as the ancient temple with its myriad of strange statues and image of the Great Spirit was built around it. But despite its age and location, it resembled nothing so much as a space capsule and it was made entirely of a shiny, pristine metal that glowed with a strange, golden sheen.

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Zoltar was still lurking in the large and dimly lit chamber, standing near the large globe of the Earth and anxiously awaiting –and dreading- reports from the seemingly dwindling number of soldiers still loyal to him as to the rebels' actions, and from those soldiers who were monitoring the mantle procedure. If they even were still monitoring the procedure.

He couldn't face the Great Spirit. Not quite yet…

A clatter of feet on the stairs that led down into the chamber caused him to whip his head around to see who had arrived.

This time, however, it was G-Force.

"Zoltar!" shouted Mark, catching sight of him.

Zoltar, adopting a stance both menacing and defensive, snapped "G-Force! Am I never to be rid of you?"

"You're coming with us," declared Mark grimly, flanked by Princess, Keyop and Tiny.

He stepped forward, pushing his cape back from his shoulders, adding "To explain what you've done to Spectra's mantle."

"Nothing that you can fix," snarled Zoltar, his voice high with anger and frustration, "You and the rebels are all doomed!"

Even as he spoke, Mark was rushing towards him, and he seized hold of Zoltar's cape and then shoved him down towards the floor.

Before Zoltar knew quite what had happened, he was sprawled on the floor and looking up into the glaring face of the G-Force Commander, and held down by a booted foot pressed against his face.

"There are millions of people on this planet," said Mark, his own voice raised with indignation, "They can't all be as bad as you. I want a better answer!"

Mark twisted his boot's heel, for emphasis.

"Where are the mantle reactor's controls?" he demanded.

Zoltar was squirming in discomfort, but refusing to reply. However, Mark's attention was quickly diverted from the prostrate Zoltar by a cold, shrill and very sinister voice that now echoed throughout the chamber.

"You are wasting your time."

"Who's there?" called Mark, looking in vain for the new speaker, "Show yourself!"

"Great Spirit, save me!" cried Zoltar, still pinned down by Mark's foot.

A massive panel that made up an entire wall of the dimly lit chamber now began to rise up.

This revealed a new chamber behind it –a long, narrow chamber with walls lit by bands of moving colors. At its far end, manifested in a display panel on the wall, was the Great Spirit himself.

It was the Great Spirit who was speaking as the massive panel rose to reveal him. Mark had turned to face the Spectran deity, releasing Zoltar to face this new foe.

"It is Zoltar's incompetence that has brought this planet to ruin. He cannot help you."

"So, can you?" asked Mark, as he and his teammates stared in amazement at the bizarre sight that was the supreme leader and deity of Spectra.

"I have powers beyond your comprehension," intoned the Great Spirit, "But this is a matter for you lesser creatures to solve… if you can."

Behind them now, on the opposite side of the dimly lit chamber, a second massive panel that made up the entire wall there also began to rise up to reveal the large room that housed the pod controls and mechanisms for the mantle procedure. It was empty; the soldiers who had been assisting Zoltar were gone –either to join the rebellion or to flee in despair.

"Zoltar has been alternately sending pods of cadmixium and plutantrium to detonate and disperse within the mantle."

Mark could only stare at the unfamiliar and clearly complex controls, panel after panel of them.

"But the positioning and timing of the detonations is most delicate and critical," added the Great Spirit.

"Oh Luminous One," cried Zoltar, gazing imploringly at his deity as Mark and the others continued to stare into the mantle procedure room, "I did the best I could!"

As he was speaking, Mark sent Princess, Keyop and Tiny to investigate but he stayed to listen to Zoltar and the Great Spirit.

"Perhaps my final pod sequence will yet succeed," he added, raising his hands beseechingly.

"My confidence in you is at an end," said the Great Spirit, "I will not be here to see if you, by some miracle, succeed."

"Oh Light of Wisdom," gasped Zoltar, now truly panicked, "Do not abandon me!"

"The rebels have taken the base –they will be coming to find you…"

As the Great Spirit spoke, Tiny and Keyop were helping Princess pull open a small panel, exposing part of the complicated and multi-geared mechanism that controlled the launching of the pods down the shaft that led to the planet's mantle.

"Make any sense?" Keyop asked Princess. "I need a comm panel," she replied.

0000000000

Far away on Earth, at Center Neptune, Zark looked up at the image of Princess on one of his monitor screens.

"I've analyzed the mantle procedure data you just downloaded and sent me," said the robot.

"And cross-referenced it with the latest seismic readings?"

"Yes, of course," answered Zark, still gazing up at Princess.

"And?" replied Princess, her impatient tone belying her calm expression.

"This pod sequence in progress just might restore mantle stability," said Zark anxiously, "But I think you have to stop it now –don't let any more pods get launched; you must abort the remainder of the sequence!"

"Thank you, Zark," she said kindly, but then abruptly she was gone and the screen went dark.

"I certainly hope I'm correct…" said Zark quietly.

000000000

"So where can you go to escape disaster?" said Mark, speaking up now and frowning at the Great Spirit, "The whole planet's in danger."

"Are you leaving Spectra?" gasped Zoltar.

"Yes," replied the Great Spirit, "You have failed me; this planet is doomed."

"Please, take me with you! Please!" wailed Zoltar as he dashed towards the Great Spirit's on-screen image at the far end of the chamber.

Suddenly, there was an explosion of energy and the entire screen and wall shattered. Hastily Zoltar cowered, shielding himself from the blast and the debris with his cape.

Mark too had turned away and hunkered down, but now he turned to see what had happened.

A strange entity, shaped like a gigantic pencil of shimmering gold, was now rising up from the space behind the destroyed screen and wall.

"Please save me, most Luminous One!" Zoltar continued to plead, his arms raised beseechingly.

"Oh, very well…" came the Great Spirit's voice.

In the valley above the base, a long and massive shaft of glowing gold suddenly burst forth from the ground, abandoning the planet, the base, the temple and the shimmering gold space capsule in which the alien entity had arrived on Spectra thousands of years before.

The Luminous One was travelling light.

But he did have a passenger contained within, as he took to the air above the high mountains, heading for space.

"I will need at least one minion, where I am going," said the Great Spirit.

"I am ever your loyal servant," replied Zoltar.

0000000000

Back inside the mantle procedure room, Princess and Keyop were kneeling before the opening where they'd exposed the gears and mechanisms of the pod-launching system.

Princess looked back over her shoulder to where Mark was still standing and staring, not quite able to believe that Zoltar had really fled Spectra.

"Mark," she called, her voice tense, "There're no override controls –I'm trying explosives!"

Mark wheeled around to look at her, realizing their problems were still far from over.

"There's no other way to stop the pods?"

Before she could reply, the explosives she had placed amidst the gears and mechanisms detonated and flames and smoke burst forth from the opening.

Some gears were damaged or blown loose and sent flying, but new circuits immediately swung into place and took over. The entire system had been designed by Captain Baldrik to keep functioning even if the base were wracked with earthquakes, even if all power systems failed.

Now Mark, Princess, Keyop and Tiny stood unmoving, looking very small inside the spacious, high-ceilinged procedure room. Each of them trying desperately to think of a way to stop another pod from launching, before it was too late for all of Spectra.

Before it was too late for all of them.

"We're running out of time!" said Princess.

"I know," said Mark, his face grim.

0000000000

Deep inside the planet, glowing liquid magma swirled and churned…

But unbeknownst to all, amidst the spinning gears and rotating shafts of the unstoppable pod launching mechanism, a white feather was falling…

It was the feather stunner that Jason had hurled at Zoltar, that had missed him and had been sucked through a narrow gap in panel of mantle procedure controls. And now the feather stunner drifted down to land exactly at the point where the teeth of two gears came together.

And there it lodged, bent and crunched by the brutal force of the gears but its metal spine resisted.

The two gears were now jammed and ceased rotating.

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