Authour's Note: This will be the summer finale as I have to return to school for my final semester. Expect the final part to begin this winter, and conclude the Saga thereafter.
The landing on the frozen, and snow covered runway went a lot smoother than any of the passengers inside thought it would, but considering the conditions, and the people who were flying, they assumed that this must have been a regular thing for the flight crew. As soon as the plane came to a complete stop, the door to the outside opened, and brought with it the snow covered landscape of Greenland. The sky was overcast to say the least, the clouds making the cold that already assaulted their bodies through the thick parkas seem even colder. Matt couldn't tell if it was snowing or if the wind was throwing the fallen snow around, as the snow vehicle pulled up to take them inside the base. In the past they had to move fast to avoid blasts, and other things being hurled in their direction by their enemies, but their move from the plane to the vehicle was most likely the fastest any of them ever moved to get out of the paralyzing winds.
The vehicle was quick enough to move along the icy landscape, and back into the confines of the hangar that served as the unloading area. It connected to the rest of the base via a series of underground tunnels that the Rangers were quickly rushed through by the personnel manning the base. Eventually the tunnels lead back into the main facility, and again they ascended to the main base area which appeared more like a regular office building than one would normally expect from the military.
They were then escorted into what appeared to be a conference room of sorts, and left alone as their attendants stepped outside for a moment. Each of them exchanged nervous glances as they stood there in their parkas, a few trace amounts of snow lurking on the higher points of their coats. Slowly they pulled down the zippers securing their outerwear and discarded them on a nearby chair. Their isolation was only temporary as a member of the staff, followed by what looked like the base commander joined them. Closing the door behind them, there was a moment of awkward silence as no one moved, nor took a seat.
His hands folded into his pockets, the base commander looked over the three younger people cautiously, and realizing he was about to say something cliché offered, "I expected you guys to be….older." Matt, and Gaji exchanged brief looks before turning to look at the commander, and shrugging simultaneously. The commander brushed it aside, and continued, "No Matter. I'm Colonel Greggs. I was instructed to receive you, and brief you on enemy movements here in the frozen parts of the world."
"Matt," offered Matt to the commander, "and this is Gaji, and Brianna."
"Pleased to meet you," he said nodding at each in turn, "this is Sergeant Miller, he's in charge of intelligence for the base." The sergeant was silent, but nodded to each of the Rangers in turn as the entire group took their seats at the conference table.
"What can you tell us?" asked Matt as he and the others sat down on one side of the table.
"They appear to be searching something," replied Greggs, "that much we know for sure. They've been moving further north with each stop they make, but for some reason they've left the population centers alone which is unusual because that tends to be the first things they take out."
"It just means that they're being expedient about what they're doing," announced Miller, coming into the conversation with a harsh, and raspy voice than the other would have expected from a man of his stature, and middle age. "And whatever it is they are looking for, it isn't of human design that's for sure. They've had plenty of time to take any of our technology that could have interested them. This feels different. This feels like they're searching for something…something they lost."
"Sergeant Miller has some theories he'd like to run past you," said Greggs, "even though I feel they might be a bit outlandish. But considering the circumstances…."
"…and considering your sitting across the table from three Power Rangers," Gaji said, finishing the Colonel's statement for him. "The circumstances may allow for even the crazy to be possible at this point."
"Exactly," said Greggs. "Sergeant."
"At first we were all pretty stumped as to what they may be looking for that was any value to someone as advanced as they are," stated Miller. "And when they avoided the towns and villages like they did, we had to start thinking outside the box. Considering this was all kinda sci-fi for us to begin with, what with a patrol of alien robots looking around the frozen north, we figured we should start to look in that direction. We got nowhere, and everywhere pretty fast as we realized it could be a thousand different things, until I realized that if it was some sort of advanced technology it would have been located by now. Considering now a lot of people have lived here over the millennia, there was really only one backstory we could go on to lend us any kind of help. So we had to look back to the time of the Vikings to see if they knew anything."
"Norse mythology?" asked Gaji.
"Exactly," confirmed Miller. "This whole area was originally settled by Vikings, and other Norsemen of that era, and with it they brought their legends, and myths. When you run down what beings like these might be looking for in a time of war, most likely we figured it would either be a weapon, a power source, or some form of advanced, lost technology. It doesn't seem as if they were looking for a weapon since they already have us outgunned, so we figure its either a relic of the past or lost technology that lay buried somewhere. The tales claim that all of the higher elders in the Norse Pantheon have burial sites around this part of the north, but as you can imagine few have ever tried to investigate such claims."
"So you think somewhere under the ice, is a buried relic, that the Mobiums are rushing to find?" asked Matt, attempting to understand if he had heard the briefing correctly.
"It's the best I can come up with, especially considering they diverted their forces to attempt to locate whatever it is they're searching for," he replied.
"What we do know though," added Greggs, "is that at present they've stopped not to far from here, and they've been holding still for over a day, which is longer than any of their other stops. The weather hasn't been poor either, so we suspect they may have found something."
"How far is close?" asked Briana, her eyes straying over to the window, and gray and white landscape far beyond.
"The snow crawler can have us there in about three hours," reported Miller.
"If the weather turns poor though we may increase that amount, or force you to turn back," added Greggs. "But the forecast for the day doesn't indicate such."
"But how often are weathermen right?" quipped Gaji. "I say we check it out though. We did come all this way."
"Yeah," agreed Matt reluctantly. "We might as well." He turned to look at Briana who in return gave him a nervous look. "You with us on this?"
She shrugged, and put on her best brace face. "Why not. Freezing to death was on my list of things to do today. I can check that off now."
"We'll have the crawler ready to go in thirty," said Greggs, "we can also supply several of our best men for the job."
"I don't think that's a good idea," said Gaji. "You'll just be putting them in danger. We can handle things."
"Gaji's right," added Matt, though he said it before he realized he was still without powers. "Just give us the people necessary to operate your crawler thing, and we'll check it out. Besides you might need them here in case they decide to start attacking targets."
Greggs eyed Matt and Gaji for several moments critcally, however he seemed to pay no mind or regard to Briana as he did. He searched for something in their eyes, something he couldn't place but felt the moment they had come into the room. He had known about them when everyone else had found about them, and like many there was a very cool reaction. It was unique to have such a thing become reality as Power Rangers, but at the same time, they were just soldiers that wore different uniforms. He suspected they were making a foolish decision, but he had his orders, and they said follow theirs. "Very Well as you wish."
"I still plan to accompany you," reported Miller.
"Sure," said Matt nodding, "just keep your head down. And hopefully this will all go well."
Prep time took shorter than expected as the crews rushed to prepare the crawler for its journey across the ice fields. The vehicle was very basic but served its purpose well. The cabin of the vehicle was like a troop transport, and not that different from the inside of the plain they had flown here in, with bench seats lining either side. The craft itself was powered by two long treads like on a tank which propped it through the snow. It took several people to operate, more than just the two Matt had suspected it was going to take, and with Miller, there was a grand total of five personnel onboard the craft, not counting the Rangers.
Three hours in cold temperatures can feel like an eternity. The heat of the engine manage to warm the cabin, and battery powered heat lamps added an additional help, but still the internal temperature never made it above 50. Warm enough not to freeze to death. The scenery as they rode was not much better and at teams even though there was no snow, was practically white out conditions. The only thing that kept them on course was the GPS navigation system that they followed to the location on the map.
Boredom set in, and fortunately no one tried to start a game of 99 bottles of beer on the wall, or 20 questions. For the most part they rode in an uneasy silence. Briana's was clear as she looked on. She knew what was coming, and though she had never faced any of the battle droids in combat, she knew the others had, and they were still here. She trusted in her powers, because she remembered their origin, and what Mike, and Keith had done to bestow them on her. She continued to stare steadily head, confident that this was only just the beginning of what was going to come her way.
Gaji found peace where he thought he would find apprehension. It had only been weeks since he had last morphed, but it felt like years. And now, he was wearing a different color, and for him he felt like that should bring with it some difficulty. But in the end, the visor, the HUD he looked through would be no different. He found calm in the fact that he would soon be in battle, not because he felt some sort of bloodlust, but because he would at least be able to contribute to anything. There had been so much lack of purpose in what he had been doing the last few weeks, that now he had the chance at it again, and that in a sense was refreshing.
Matt was scared. He had no Lens, no powers, and he was in charge. The only upside was the Enea in his pack. He had a gun, and droids to shoot. He wasn't out of this yet. Two Rangers with powers, and a guy with a gun could still do a lot of damage. And if they were going after a relic, perhaps he would be able to sneak in and take it before they could. And then he could get shot. It wasn't the best plan, but he had no idea what they were getting into, so it was going to have be the rough plan for now. Minus the getting shot part of course. He hoped.
Miller interrupted their thought train as he emerged from the cockpit to alert them that they were approaching their destination. "We're five miles out!"
"Get us close, about a half mile," replied Matt. "We'll go on foot from there." Gaji and Briana both looked at him critically, as if to ask by non-verbal means if he was crazy. He had no choice to respond to their stares, "They're gonna get shot up if we don't. I don't know what your complaining about, you guys can morph on the way in, and be fine."
"Watch them detect our power signatures if we do that," replied Gaji. "No, I know your right, this kinda just sucks is all."
"Tell me about it," said Briana, pulling her jacket tighter around her frame, "at least you don't weigh next to nothing. If I ever have to do this again, I'm gaining like fifty pounds."
The boys laughed at her as the crawler finally closed in on what was going to be their staging point. The feeling of it no longer moving was a bit disconcerting before they finally got their bearings, the guys moving over to the hatch, pulling their hoods up, and lowering their goggles over their face. With the engine at idle, they could hear each other better in the cabin so no one asked the question that Miller asked. "We'll keep an ear out on the radios for your call."
Matt stopped Gaji before he could open the hatch, and turned to face Miller. "First sign of trouble, get out."
"Alright," replied Miller hesitantly.
Matt nodded slowly, and Gaji slowly lifted open the hatch exposing them to the bitter cold beyond. It was slow moving outside of the craft, and they all knew that half a mile may take longer than it should, but fortunately there weren't strong winds to force them back, it was just the cold, the very very cold. All of them found the idea of what they were doing to be somewhat comical, as they looked at each other all clothed in the warmest clothes on Earth, traveling across the arctic landscape. But they comedy quickly dried up as they reached a ledge, and peered over it into the landscape.
Rock, and jagged ice had been exposed below as the Mobiums had somehow managed to do a cross between drilling, and melting to expose what looked like the mouth of a cave. A landing craft, much like the Star Wing was on the ground by the mouth of the cave, and at the entrance stood two droids guarding it. Matt was first to voice what they were all thinking inside, "I was kinda expecting it to be more than this."
"They tend to do more with less I've noticed," added Gaji. "One craft on the ground, probably means a Mobium commanding the droids."
"Maybe a dozen droids than," thought Matt aloud.
"Sounds about right," confirmed Gaji, as pulled his goggles up, regretting it immediately. "Want to rush the front?"
"That sounds like a really bad idea," said Briana.
"You have a better idea?" asked Matt turning to look at her. "They're there, we're here. What kind of distraction could we create?"
"How bout that?" she asked him, as the droids suddenly left their position and headed inside.
"I guess today is going to be one of those days," said Gaji aloud.
"What do you mean?" asked Briana.
"Too good to be true," he replied quickly, as he stood up, moving towards the edge of the hill that would take them down towards the cave mouth. The three of them moved discreetly as they could until they were at the edge of the aperture leading into the ground. In front of them they could make out what looked like a frozen stone structure that was buried just in the edge of the ice. Descending into the cave was a set of stone stairs, the way lit by Mobium lighting devices. "They did all the hard work for us," added Gaji as he pulled his back around, and removed the Enea from it. Matt removed his as well, and together the loud high pitched whine filled the air as they charged them up. Turning to look at Matt, the new Red Ranger asked, "Shall we?"
"Lets," agreed Matt. The three of them descended into the ice cave, Matt, and Gaji with their blasters raised high in anticipation of something coming around the corner. As they descended they realized it was getting warmer, and realized that the Mobiums most likely brought a device down to melt the ice in order to get at whatever they were trying to take. Discarding their jackets on the staircase, they freed up their mobility as they reached the bottom. Stunned at the sight, they realized right away, that what they were looking at was not just a cavern but a tomb, with stone blocks supporting everything, not uncommon to the pictures they had seen of the tombs in Egypt. However, they were not alone. The two droids at the bottom of the staircase, turned quickly, and immediately recognized the human signatures they were seeing.
Without seeing, Gaji and Matt leveled their blasters and immediately began firing off shots, striking the droids in their optics, and blinding them. The droids unable to target were quickly taken out with the rest of the blaster bolts as they impacted on their armor. No doubt their commander would be alerted though, and that meant company rather soon. Matt turned to the others, and told them, "You guys better Ranger Up, this is going to get nasty quick."
Gaji tossed the Enea he held to Matt who in his Ranger form wielded two anyway, and pulled up his sleeve to reveal his glowing red lens. Turning to Briana, he nodded, and she returned the nod, indicating to him that she was ready. "Let's see what you got girl, Ranger Form! Energize!"
Raising his right hand and pointing upwards, he brought it across, and touched the jewel on the lens activating the powers inside. Quickly he felt the familiar surge of energy rush into him as the morph began, the armor quickly covering his body, and the familiar HUD of the Ranger interface appearing in front of his eyes. Brianna's energy erupted from within, as the crystal nestled just above her bust glowed deeply, and then a flashed forcing its energy out and causing it to surround her body. It had been sometime since she had morphed last, and the feeling was different than the last time. As she opened her eyes though, she could the helmeted visor in front of her, and knew the sequence was complete. Turning to see Gaji she could see him in the Red Ranger armor that was all too familiar to her. Gaji and Matt both took a moment to admire the difference in the Purple Ranger's armor, as it was a stark contrast than what they were used to. For Matt, seeing them both with armor he felt a pang of jealously, but hid behind the Eneas he now carried. However they had but only more moments to experience this as a flood of droids began to pour into from the cavern beyond the main hallway.
Summoning her staff, Briana cried out, "Crescent Staff!" her tone more confident and alert than what the others had come to expect from her. Materializing in front of her, she brandished it threateningly towards the droids. Producing his familiar batons, Gaji pulled them close to his form, as they charged into blaster mode. Pointing them forward, he began to fire off several rounds as Briana let loose a blast from the Crescent Staff. Close Quarters, and explosions never mixed though as the droids in front of them disintegrated, and so too did Matt's hearing he suspected, as he tried desperately to cover his ears. Pushing forward, Gaji and Briana charged towards the entrance to the cavern beyond, with Matt closed behind them. As they reached the threshold though they peered into the large room. It was the shape of circle, a ring in a sense, quite large, bigger than a football field in diameter, with a large pedestal in the center, with a glowing ring surrounding it. Matt could only wonder where the power source came from. He didn't have long to wonder as he took notice of the Mobium Commander standing next to the pedestal, staring at the Rangers intently. Around him was more than a dozen droids, that much was for sure. It looked as if he had maybe three times as many, but who knew how big an operation this was to get this far.
The two parties eyed each other cautiously from their respective places across the room, but it was the Mobium who spoke first, "Surrender now, and I can guarantee you will be taken alive as prisoners. Resist, and I cannot."
"That's funny," said Gaji turning to face Matt. "I was about to tell him the same thing."
"Somehow he doesn't strike me as the surrendering type," announced Briana.
Matt slowly raised the blasters he held in his hands, ready for the oncoming disaster this was surely going to be in his mind. Instantly he flashed back to the crawler, and the plan he had in his head. Now with the object surely on the pedestal, behind the energy field, that the Mobium Commander was standing next too, he really had to be the one to try and take it. He was so screwed. "Keep them busy, I'm going to see if I can take it from them."
"I'm afraid the field won't let anyone in," said the Commander. "I was about to bring the cavern down around it to prevent anyone else from obtaining it."
"He can read minds can't he?" remembered Gaji.
"Then at least he knows we're going to win," quipped Matt.
With a wave a finger the Mobium Commander orders his droids forward. Wasting no time the Rangers answered back with their weapons. Spinning his around, the batons went into stun mode which worked to disrupt the droids electronics, as Gaji began his melee assault. Briana's Lunar Ranger powers became more effective though as she stood her ground, and fired blast after blast towards the charging droids, with Matt by her side. Releasing all her power in one blast, she created a hole that Matt forced his way through, and beyond enemy lines so that the only one he would now face, was the commander himself.
Bringing its arm up, a droid attempted to clothesline the new Red Ranger, but Gaji was quicker and ducked under it, slamming his baton into its chest, and then rising up again to kick the next one back. Spinning around quickly he slammed his batons into two more causing them to shudder and fall backwards. Spinning the batons back into blaster mode, he fired two rounds quickly, the impact forcing the droids offline permanently.
Briana brought her staff up with two hands and blocked a blow from one of the droids who was in too close to use its blasters. Forcing it back, she then slammed the length of the shaft into the droid's chest armor. Sliding her hands down, she was able to slash forward with the blades at the end, sparks erupting from the droids chest, as it slid to its knees, its systems overloaded.
Matt kept the blasters leveled at the Mobium cautiously, but the commander made no move to attempt to stop him, or fight him. Instead he watched him with a hint of curiosity as he neared him and the pedestal. "Fascinating. You continue to fight even when out numbered. And you have not the equipment of your allies. How do you expect to combat me?"
"I'm making it up as I go," replied Matt, as he was now opposite the mobium up on the platform for the pedestal.
Gaji spun around, his batons connecting with two more droids forcing them to the ground. His moves were quicker now that he was back in the armor, and his strikes where harder too. Turning to Briana, he could she that she had beaten them back into what almost looked like a line. Raising her staff, and then lowering it she pointed it in front of her, and fired another blast, decimating all but one of the droids. Stunned that it was, Gaji rushed forward and leapt towards it, his two booted feet connecting with the armor and forcing it to the bounce across the ground. Recovering he was quick enough to strike the next droid with his batons, and send it sprawling towards the ground.
Turning back to face the Mobium, Matt asked the commander a question time, "How do you plan to beat us when your droids are all spent?" In response, the commander's faced maintained the same look of curiosity he had before, but this time his Psy Saber next to him erupted. Matt cursed himself for pissing off the guy with the mind sword, and quickly tried to come up with some sort of a plan. Taking a look at the field, he tried to dash into it, but felt only a wall where it was, and painfully regretted his choice. He had only seconds to consider the pain as the Psy Saber the commander had went straight for his head. Ducking under it he rolled off the platform and onto the cavern floor. Firing a blaster bolt, the commander flicked it away with a thought of his mind, having long sensed its approach. Matt remained undaunted and fired again, yet again the bolt deflected. Rushing forward the commander tried to end the human quickly as he slashed downwards, and this time Matt rolled forward back to the pedestal, but over did it, and landed on his butt, his arms bracing his body upright. Groaning, he was once again alert, but and just in time as the commander rushed forward with his saber again, yet he paused when he got to Matt. His eyes were not fixed on Matt though, and the former Blue Ranger was quick to follow his gaze to his own hand. His left hand, was resting just inside the portal, Shen's lens clearly visible in the glow of the field as it rested on Matt's wrist. The two males put two and two together quickly, and as the commander swung for Matt's arm to sever him from his wrist, Matt pushed off the ground with his legs, and threw himself into the field, his whole body making it in before the blade could come down. Standing inside the field, he could only smile as he looked out at the mobium still on the other side, and unable to get in. Turning his attention to the pedestal, he could not fathom what he was really staring at.
Resting in the center of the stone pillar was what appeared to be a futuristic blacksmith's hammer. The head looked to be made out of the same metal as the Mobium starcrafts, for it was sleek and still shiny after the ages it had resided here. The grip was ergonomical, and seemed crafted for someone with a humanoid hand. Realizing that this was the relic that the mobiums had tried so hard for, Matt knew he had no choice but to take it.
Unsure of what would happen if he did, he decided he wasn't going to delay the inevitable, and quickly grabbed the hammer from its resting place. There was a burning sensation in his hand as he brought it closer to him, and suddenly this raw charge of power. The field around the pedestal began to glow brightly, and then it exploded outwards in a flash of lighting, causing all living beings to look away, yet at the same time Matt could only feel the rush of power through his body, coupled with an all too familiar feeling.
The commander was forced back some as the field exploded, and as the sight of sense slowly returned, he could tell something was different. As the flash subsided, he realized that things were not as they were before, and as Gaji and Briana turned around to take in what had changed, only smiles were present underneath their visors.
Armor covered his body once again, and though he was sure somewhere underneath it was the same as before, it was still so different. Many of the black panels had been replaced with blue, and on his back he could feel a pack of some sort. His left arm sported a familiar buckler, with a shield on top, and underneath a heavy blaster that he had seen used only once. The hammer he had taken rested comfortably on his right hip in its magnetic holster, ready to be retrieved when necessary. He had felt the lens he wore on his wrist suddenly become charged as he took a hold of the hammer. And from out of nowhere, the power that had been Shen's had been recoded for him once he took the Legendary Weapon from its place, its power overwhelming the newer technology, and forcing the creation of the Blue Guardian Ranger, battlized and all. Matt, however would only let himself enjoy the pleasure for a moment, as he turned to face the Mobium Commander to his side. Wasting no time, he leveled his heavy blaster, and fired, the beam erupting from the cannon and heading straight towards the mobium. Leaping out of the way, the Mobium was able to clear the beam as it went on to strike the wall. Rolling to the side, he recovered quickly, but Matt was on him quickly, as his pack allowed him flight with the wings it sported. Hammer in hand, Matt brought down, only to have it blocked by the Psy Saber the Mobium brandished. Striking again, and again there was a crackle of power as the two mobium weapons came into continuous contact with each other. Finally the Blue Ranger forced the Mobium away, and back, and allow him to observe another function of the hammer. Leveling it at him, the head began to glow until it fired its own style bolt at the Mobium striking him dead in the chest, and forcing him to fall forward, and collapse.
The droids without their commander fell quickly to the combined powers of the Rangers, and as Matt landed softly next to Gaji, there was only yells of joy, and victory. "Looks like someone got some bitchin new threads."
"And a jet pack," added Matt. "Just like Bond. All courtesy of my new toy." Lifting it from his holster, he spun it in his hand real fast before replacing it once again. "I'd say we got what we came for." Matt had turned, and still morphed, had begun his trek towards the staircase that had brought them down.
"Absolutely," said Gaji, following after him. "Let's get the hell out of here."
"Yeah," said Briana, standing still, and maintaining her position. "but guys……now what?" The two male Rangers stopped, and turned to look at her carefully. Each of them exchanged a worried glance, their emotions masked by their helmets, but they could sense it in each of themselves. They had won a small victory, but in the end, they were still right where they had started off. Outnumbered, at World's End.