The Jet landed softly on the plush green grass, where Dani and Greg had been lying only moments before their capture. Scott, Gem and Gemma stepped out of the jet and looked around.
"I don't see anything weird," Gem frowned.
"Keep looking," Scott said. "Hayden wouldn't have sent us out here if there wasn't something to look for."
"That was nice," Gemma commented as she lifted a rock. Scott and Gem turned to her for a moment with curious looks on their faces. Gemma chuckled and continued, "Hayden's our new dispatcher. It's kinda cool that she's working with us again."
Gem nodded, "It's nice to hear a familiar voice."
"I agree," Scott said. "But focus you two. We need to figure out what caused the alarms to go off."
"Oh, maybe there are more people here!" Gemma cried hopefully. "More nice people."
"I doubt that," Scott muttered but kept his voice low enough so the twins wouldn't hear him. By now he knew it was best to let them keep their hopes up. Bummed out Boom-Twins were not fun to work with; especially on dangerous missions.
While Gem and Gemma searched the grounds for any signs of life, Scott pulled out his communicator.
"Hayden, we're not seeing anything."
"I'm positive there was something there," Hayden grumbled. "Dani and Greg should be there. Do you see them?"
Scott shook his head, "Widen the search. Scan the underground and the skies. Whatever was here couldn't have gone far without being noticed."
What about Dani and Greg?" Hayden asked. "They aren't coming up on the scan, but this was their honeymoon destination..."
"Hayden, we don't see them," Scott sighed. "Have you opened the search?"
"Yeah. I'm picking up a very faint signal right below your feet. Whatever it is, it's underground."
"Is there any way to get there?"
"You could dig," Hayden offered. "Hold on, I'm just activating the satellite images to search the... I see you!"
"Hayden..." Scott groaned, shaking his head and rolling his eyes.
"Found it!" Hayden called. "There's a tree about ten paces south. It's completely hollow. If you can find a way inside, it will take you underground to a... bunker..."
Scott smiled, "Thanks, Hayden. Over and out."
Scott stuffed the communicator back in his pocket and turned to the twins. He whistled to catch their attention and pointed to the hollow tree. "I need this opened up."
"On it!" Gem saluted, reaching into his pack and pulling out a small ball. He ran over to the tree while Gemma joined Scott. Gem placed the ball on one of the lower branches and stepped back.
"Fire in the hole!" he giggled, pressing a button on his backpack as the ball exploded, breaking a small hole in the tree. Scott and Gemma covered their heads with their arms as they waited for the dust to settle. When it did, they looked at Gem's work. Scott tapped his friend on the shoulder.
"Good job, Gem."
Gem nodded before poking his head inside the hole he made.
"Whoa!" he said, his voice echoing, "That's one massive tree! It goes so far down!"
"Do you see anything?" Gemma asked her brother. He pulled his head out and nodded.
"I see ground," he said. "But it looks like a lab floor."
"Hayden said there was an underground bunker just below us," Scott informed his team. "We'll have to be careful when we go down there. There's something giving off life signatures, and they may not be friendly."
The former Red Ranger pulled out a rope from Gemma's backpack and tied it around another tree, not too far away from the hollow one. He dropped the rope down the hollow tree and pulled out a handgun.
"I'll go down first," he said. "Gemma, follow behind me. Gem, keep watch up here. Contact us if you see anything out of the ordinary."
"Got it, boss!" Gem nodded, saluting with such passion, he knocked himself in the forehead. He rubbed his head to sooth the pain as Scott started his way down the rope. Gem looked at his sister for a moment and smiled encouragingly before she followed their leader down the hollow tree.
Scott held the gun between his teeth as he climbed down the rope. When he was close enough to the ground, he jumped off, landing on his two feet. He took the gun in his hand, holding it up as he searched what appeared to be a hallway.
Gemma landed not long after her did and came up behind him. She gently placed her hand on his shoulder as not to scare him.
"What do we have?"
"Hayden was right," Scott whispered. "It is a bunker. Someone must have been living here."
"Do you think they have Dani and Greg?"
"It could be," Scott nodded. He motioned for Gemma to follow, "Let's check it out."
They walked down the long hallway slowly, trying to keep their footsteps from echoing loudly. The first door they came across was locked. There was no getting inside. Thinking it best to get to know their surroundings before storming into an unknown room, they continued down the hallway until they reached a fork.
"Left or right?" Scott asked his soldier. Gemma looked right then left, before both she and Scott heard a loud scream coming from the left. They nodded to each other before taking off in that direction.
"It sounded like Greg!" Gemma said, panicked as she followed her leader, always one step behind him. "I hope he's okay."
"He didn't sound okay," Scott muttered.
The further they ran down the hall, the louder the screaming became. Slowly, though, Gemma could start making out what was being said.
"Dani! You killed her! You monsters! She didn't do anything!"
Gemma nodded her head, grabbing Scott's arm, "It is Greg!"
Scott stopped in his tracks to listen to the voice. Gemma grew more anxious to find her friend as Greg continued to scream. Scott tugged her forward until they reached a glass window. It was slightly tinted, so Scott and Gemma needed to squint to see inside. It was dark, but they could make out five figures. Four were standing free, in a semi-circle around the wall. Between two of the figured, the two of the three Eagle Squad soldiers could see a figure pressed against the wall, with his arms chained.
Gemma grabbed Scott's arm, squeezing it painfully, "What are they doing to him?"
Scott placed his hand on Gemma's hoping to relieve some of the pressure, "It looks like he's blindfolded."
"He's screaming for Dani," Gemma whispered. Scott looked up at her for a moment and saw her eyes were beginning to tear. He smiled softly at her, squeezing her hand comfortingly. Greg was one of her best friends. It was natural for her to be worried about him. It must have been hard for her to see him in this state.
"It doesn't look like Dani's in the room," he told her. "They must have separated them."
"He said they killed her," Gemma said. "I can't believe they would do that!"
Scott shook his head, "Hayden counted five extra life forces," he said. Gemma looked over at him, frowning deeply.
"So?"
"So, how many extra people do you see in this room?"
"What does that...?"
"The fifth must be somewhere else," Scott whispered. He grabbed Gemma's arm, "We need to figure out where he is before we make our move."
"No," Gemma frowned, pulling away from Scott. "We need to help Greg. He's in trouble."
"I don't know about you, Gemma, but I believe we stand a better chance fighting one of these things that five. Greg can hold up until we come back for him."
"He's helpless."
Scott sighed as he turned to Gemma, giving her a soft look, "Gemma, one thing you need to know about this job... you need to put personal attachments on the backburner. Sometimes you need to take a few risks."
Gemma turned back to the tinted window, "Maybe there was a fight... maybe Dani and Greg killed the fifth."
"Maybe," Scott nodded, "But they're outnumbered. I highly doubt they would be able to kill one of these things on their own. It's best if we're sure of the enemy's numbers before engaging them in any form of fight."
Gemma nodded, "Okay... but we're coming back for Greg, right?"
Scott smiled, "Of course."
Gemma grinned and ran off down the hallway, searching for another room where the fifth being and Dani could be, if they were both still alive. She came across a few doors that were locked, but just like with the first door, she decided it was best for them to know their surroundings before bursting into an unknown room.
When she came to the end of the hall, she found a door that had been left open slightly. She waved Scott over before peeking inside.
Scott scurried over to Gemma just as she pulled away from the door. Her eyes were wide.
"Dani's inside," she whispered. "There's not a scratch on her."
Scott frowned, "What do you mean?"
He peeked inside the room and saw Dani was tied to a chair. She was blindfolded and gagged, obviously so she would scream for help or see who her captor was.
Scott looked around the room and saw the fifth creature sitting in a chair. He resembled a human except for the fact that one of his arms had the flesh torn off, leaving exposed muscle.
"There's only one of them in the room," Scott whispered. "We can take him."
Gemma nodded and reached into her belt, pulling out a gun similar to the one Scott had been carrying around. She held onto it tight as Scott slowly pushed the door open. When both he and Gemma were inside the room and had their guns pointed at the creature, Scott yelled out, "Freeze!"
He stepped closer to the creature, "Don't move."
The creature chuckled, getting out of his seat and turning around slowly.
Scott and Gemma cringed when they saw the face of the enemy. His face, much like his arm, had no flesh. The skin had been ripped off, leaving the muscles exposed. The creature smirked confidently as he glared hatefully at the Eagle Squad.
"How did you get in here?"
"What are you?" Scott asked, looking over at Dani for a moment. He could tell she was panicked, and for the moment, he was happy she was gagged. If she let the creatures know she knew Scott and Gemma, he might believe it was a rescue mission. Though that was now the reason Scott, Gemma and Gem were in the Oasis, originally they had been sent out to figure out what the new energy readings were and to hopefully make peace with them.
The creature chuckled, "I'm just like," he said, "But... better."
"You don't look better," Gemma frowned, keeping her hands steady and her aim locked on the creature.
The creature pointed to his face, "You mean this? It's but a flesh wound. It tends to happen when you live years in the wastelands and survive through World War III with no shelter and no protection."
"Are you human?" Scott asked.
"Of course I'm human!" the figure spat. "At least, I was. But I'm a better human now!"
"What do you want with her?" Gemma asked, pointing to Dani.
"She's not human," the creature said. "She can hear our thoughts."
"How do you know?" Scott frowned.
"We can hear hers," the creature said. "How else would we have found her and her lover?"
"What do you want with her?" Gemma asked, this time a little more forcefully. The creature chuckled.
"You city dwellers, so naive and trusting..."
"What happened to you?" Scott asked. "You say you were human... but it looks like you're the living dead."
"We're not dead," the creature said, "However, we were left for dead. When the war began, people were running for their lives. Some made it to safety, the rest perished. My brothers and I are the only five to survive out in the wastes. We lived in the poisonous environment for years, where we developed super-human powers. Finally, we found a home when we discovered this place..."
"It's your home?"" Scott asked.
"It was," the creature nodded, "Until we learned there were intruders, intruders who were just like us... but different. They could read our minds, but they didn't have the scars we did. They came from someplace else! They came from the domed cities!"
"Corinth City."
"The domed city that locked us out!" the creature yelled. "We never made it inside. We were forever banished to live in these wastelands!"
The creature rushed over to Dani, grabbing her chair and tilting it back. Dani felt her world shift out of her control and tried to find her balance again. The creature smirked, placing Dani and the chair in front of him.
"She's not one of us," he said. "We can't trust her. We want to know why she and the male are here! What they want with us, and how they found us."
"We can answer those questions..."
"It's too late," the creature said. "The male is already telling us everything we want to know. We knew it was only a matter of time before he cracked."
"You don't have to do it this way," Gemma whispered. She pointed to Dani, "She comes from the city of Corinth. She was one of the Protectors who fought Venjix and helped destroy him and his lackey, T15. She just got married to the guy in the other room, and they were sent to this Oasis on their honeymoon. They didn't know you were here."
"Lies!" the creature screamed.
"It's not a lie," Gemma assured him. "The reason she has powers is because, like you, she came in contact with radiation. Her and her husband can communicate with their minds... I guess you can as well."
The creature looked to Gemma, then over to Scott.
"You work for the city; of course you would give it a good name."
"We're telling you the truth," Gemma said, but Scott shot off his gun, hitting the creature in his bad arm. The creature dropped backwards, hitting the ground in pain as Scott rushed over to him, kicking him in the head, rendering him unconscious.
Gemma frowned, putting her gun away, "You know, when you want someone to trust you, you don't shoot them and kick them in the face."
"He's dangerous, Gemma," Scott told her. "He wasn't going to believe us. We would have been here forever trying to get him to believe in a reality that doesn't exist for him."
Gemma pouted as Scott knelt before Dani. He pulled off the blindfold and the gag gently. Dani opened her eyes and smiled when she saw Scott.
"I knew it was you!" she cried, waiting for her hands to be untied before she jumped into his arms. "I heard your voice and I knew it was you."
Scott helped Dani up to her feet, unsure if she would be able to stand on her own or not. When he was sure she was steady, he took a step back.
"Are you okay?" he asked her. Dani nodded.
"They never laid a hand on me," she said. "I thought they were going to... but they never touched me."
"Do you know anything? Who are they, what do they want?"
"I don't know," Dani sighed. "I kind of didn't get the chance to ask them. But they are mutants. They called themselves mutants."
"They look pretty creepy to me," Gemma said, and Dani agreed. Scott nodded.
"It doesn't seem like we can trust them," he said. "If we want to take them down, we'll need the full team."
Scott pulled out his communicator, "Hayden, are you still there?"
"Yeah!"
"Good. I need you and the other Rangers at the Oasis ASAP. We've encountered a little problem."
"Okay... I'm... uh, I'm sending the message to Flynn, Dillon, Summer, Ziggy, Mike and... uh... Samantha."
Scott furrowed his brown, exchanging a look with Gemma and Dani, "Don't bring Samantha into this. She's not technically a Ranger."
"And I'm currently on leave of absence," Hayden said. "I'm not allowed on a battlefield. I trust my sister to be my replacement."
"What do you mean you're not allowed on the battlefield?" Gemma asked. "We'll need our healer to fight these guys!"
"You'll have to do it without me this time, guys..."
"Why?"
-----Afterlife-----
Hayden took a deep breath as she opened up the communication so Flynn's, Dillon's, Summer's, Ziggy's, Mike's and Samantha's communicators could take part in the conversation. Once she was sure everyone was listening, she gave out her instructions.
"Guys, I need you to join Scott, Gem and Gemma in the Oasis. It seems they have company and they need some back up."
"Why can't you come, Hayden?" Gemma asked while the others confirmed themselves for the missions.
"Wait, you're not coming?" Samantha asked.
Hayden shook her head and touched her stomach, "I can't guys."
"Why?" Gemma asked again, this time she sounded slightly irritated.
"Go ahead, lass," Flynn told her gently. Hayden beamed with joy. She wasn't exactly waiting for Flynn's permission, but it was nice to know he was ready to tell everyone else the news.
Hayden smiled brightly, "I'm pregnant."
