[[ DISCLAIMER: Due to real-life obligations, this series was put on hold. This chapter is in its 2nd phase, and thus lacking prose-wise in some areas. Nevertheless, my writing partner Anish and I agreed to upload it, in hopes of eventually returning to the final draft. ]]
CHAPTER 7 — An Eggcellent Day
|| Aquila Hyperion, Planet Xybria
A father and son played together in Gahdeni Park.
They passed a spherical loop toy around, the father using his telekinesis to give it enough rotational speed and send it flying toward his young boy. The kid would then jump as high as it could and reach for his toy.
"Wow, daddy!" the boy exclaimed. It closed the distance between them and eagerly held out the toy. "Can you show me that again? Please?!" he begged with childish enthusiasm.
"Sure thing, kiddo." The father accepted the toy and patted the boy's back. "Go long," he said and waited for his kid to go the distance before casually hurling the toy in his general direction.
The young boy turned his head as he ran, watching for the toy's trajectory. Bending his knees ever slightly, he leapt and reached out, but was unsuccessful in catching it. The toy spun for several meters more before landing behind a bush.
"I got it! I got it!" the boy cheered while making his way to the other side. All the while his father watched with an amused smile on his face.
As the boy made to retrieve his toy, a clawed foot suddenly stomped on it, bathing the child in shadow.
"You will do! Ka-ka-ka!" a shrill voice cawed overhead.
The young boy didn't even have time to look up before it was engulfed in a wash of amber light. The ensuing cry alerted the dad, who came running, but it was too late.
The child was gone, replaced by an oversized egg that sat idly on the ground.
Next to it stood a towering bird creature. Humanoid and devoid of plumage but for the pair of wings on its back, its bare form was coated in a crude exoskeleton., each arm ending on a condor's skull.
"Let's see you save your son now! Ka-ka-ka!" the monster cawed and took flight.
"No!" the father cried. "Get back here!"
He attempted to shoot the creature out of the sky with a blast of force, but it had already soared far outside his area of influence.
Left alone, confused and stricken with grief, the father slumped to his knees. Regretful thoughts flooded his mind, hypotheticals such as 'If only it had been me who'd gone to search.', or 'If I'd tagged along.' enough to overwhelm him.
It neither changed the fact his son was missing, nor that he was responsible.
"No," he stammered. "Not my son! Xizi!" he screamed, the agony caused by his irresponsibility taking over.
Beside him, the egg twitched. He never noticed.
|| Aquila Hyperion, Planet Vaxia
The royal palace was built atop Gomo, the tallest mountain in the Principality of Vaxia. With an altitude of over three thousand meters, more than half of its contents had been dug out to provide housing for the planet's vast lineage of rulers.
Now long abandoned, the structure's spiral staircases, snaking down to the deepest reaches of stonework, led to a secret tunnel network. It was a secret that had existed even during the Traitor King's prosperity; over two hundred and fifty-eight years.
It was in these dark depths in which Dracondian Cain found refuge. Granted presence of mind by the silence, he honed his swordcraft; an eerie calm before the devastating storm that was his unquenchable thirst for battle.
On the lower floors, Arnolf the Magnificent and his Silencer entourage were setting up the foundation for his newest distillery. A potent tonic he had labeled Kunwa, the galactic merchant had estimated its exotic richness would quickly take over the liquor market, bringing his financial opponents to their knees.
And the catacombs went deeper still.
Less of a dungeon and more of an extensive laboratory, this section of the labyrinthine lair was purposely dim-lit so as to avoid attracting unwanted attention. A single glass lantern provided an orange-red flame, illuminating books, notes with hand-written chemical equations, research equipment and rows upon rows of test tubes, each filled with a differently colored chemical.
In the centre of the lab room stood a female in ornate, golden armor. Her helmet, fashioned after a descending spider, in tandem with the darkness masked her features in shadow. Between her clawed fingers was a remote screen which displayed the savage bird creature in action. It swooped from one child to the next, fired its special beam and then promptly flew away, leaving only eggs in its wake.
"Yes, Kolverox," its mistress cooed. "Target every single Xybrian child you can get your beak on. Keep it up, so that Xybria can be mine in fifteen hours. Yes, fifteen. My calculations are never wrong." Her voice was sweet like honey, her tone soothing, yet at the same time cold, detached and heartless.
She put the screen down and lifted a test tube with two, long nails . Purple ooze bubbled inside.
"Mixing in DNA from the mighty Tenga warrior race was a perfect choice. Though the addition corrupted the original formula, it didn't hinder the result. A bird of prey doesn't need feathers to hunt, after all."
Above Gahdeni Park's treetops, a hunter stalked for prey.
"Ka-ka-ka! Who should I beam next?" it mused.
"No one!" a voice cried from behind Kolverox.
He craned his beak around and his eyes met with the Supersonic Red and Pink Rangers. In a synchronized blur of movement, the rangers came at the monster spinning, each landing a kick that hurled Kolverox to the ground.
"The Power Rangers!" Kolverox cawed as he got back up. "I've been informed about you, you multicolored bugs! You're no match for me!"
"Well, tell whoever 'informed' you that they're wrong!" Pyre retorted.
"We're not letting you get away," Star said. "It all ends now."
"But not before you tell us what you did to these kids," Ace added.
"Confess at once, fiend," Gent said with an accusative finger. "Their rescue shan't be stalled any longer."
"Wait a moment," Kolverox said, seemingly oblivious to the rangers' statements. "I was informed there were five of you. Ka-ka-ka, you're only four!"
It was the Supersonic Pink that answered. "Blue won't bother coming down for a pest like you."
"Besides, us four are more than enough for you," Pyre said. She phased her Sonar Blaster and promptly pointed it at Kolverox. "Now you're gonna spill the beans, or else!"
"Yellow, wait!" Ace warned, but Pyre had already squeezed the trigger, firing a laser volley at their opponent.
Kolverox crossed his arms before his chest and his wings followed suit, effectively creating a barrier to deflect the barrage. Explosions erupted at his sides as the shots bounced off of his hardened plumage.
"Too slow, rangers!" Kolverox taunted them. "My turn! Silencers, attack! Ka-ka-ka!"
With the press of a button on his red wristband, Kolverox generated a monotonous signal that summoned a Silencer sortie, previously blended in with the surrounding flora.
A green-patterned type, the arms of these new goons blossomed into wide barrels that radiated with compressed plasma, ready to burst.
"Be careful, rangers," Ace advised as he drew his V-Sonic Sword. At the same time, Star and Gent phased their Supersonic Baton and Sonic Saber respectively. Pyre clutched her Sonar Blaster tighter.
Ace went on. "Remember your training. Observe their movements and strike on each opening."
"Right," the Power Rangers replied as one and rushed into the fray.
The Silencers were quick to open fire on the advancing Power Rangers. Ace was the first to leap, the salvoes he dodged in doing so erupting behind him. Flipping forward, he broke into the middle of the alien formation and commenced his attack. He slammed into a Silencer with a wide, upward sword swing, sending the alien flying. He then jumped and kicked him into three of his allies.
Ace rolled as he landed, immediately blocking a coordinated overhead attack by two Silencers. He straightened, still on the defensive, putting enough force behind his rise to stagger his opponents, and responded with two consecutive chops, one for each Silencer. Sparks cascaded from their carapace armor as the defeated Silencers collapsed, but Ace pressed forward in a steady advance.
Pyre, on the other hand, had her eyes on the prize.
"You're not getting away!" she yelled at Kolverox, advancing toward the monstrosity with great haste. She made a second attempt to shoot him, this time opting for a charge shot. Weaving past the Silencers, but keeping her Sonar Blaster aimed at Kolverox, she exploited a blind spot - a spot between two Silencers just wide enough for the shot to burst through - and fired.
Kolverox's reflexes had been honed to an unnatural degree, for his oversized head turned sharply as soon as he sensed incoming danger.
"Not so easy, Yellow Ranger! Ka-ka-ka!"
Kolverox's skull-beak hands reached out and stopped the concentrated blast dead on its tracks; an immovable object meeting an unstoppable force.
But the equation fell apart with Pyre's addition.
The Yellow Supersonic Ranger turned sideways as she ran, her sprint shifting into a series of cartwheels and backflips which helped build momentum. With a cry, Pyre launched herself in the air, did a frontflip and extended her leg, then she kicked the condensed shot with her boot heel, triggering a massive explosion that blasted both parties away.
"Rookie!" Star called out to Pyre. "Oh dear, she's acting reckless again."
"We need to get to her. Pink, Black, use your new formation" Ace urged them.
"But," Star protested, "we've only really practised it twice."
Gent crossed weapons with a Silencer. Its gun-arm made to fire before Gent redirected the shot with a flick of his wrist, effectively controlling the Silencer's aim with his sword's swerve. Having him fire at an alien comrade, Gent followed up by grasping the Supersonic Saber with both hands and delivering a heavy slash to his opponent, producing a streak of sparks and in turn a downed Silencer.
Soon as he was finished, Gent turned to Star. "Worry not, lady Pink," he assured his fellow ranger. "Trust in our success."
Star nodded. "Alright. It's time to do it!"
Without a moment's waste Star vaulted over Gent. The swordsman held out his blade, which Star used as a ramp to propel herself even higher. Now having a clear view of the entire battlefield, she tossed her Supersonic Baton in a down-swing arc, producing a spin so rapid and powerful that every Silencer struck was overwhelmed by the streak of pink, cosmic energy, and was forced to implode.
Star landed, the Silencers that once stood between the three Power Rangers and Kolverox no more.
"Brilliant." Gent allowed his sword to lean on his shoulder; a moment of repose.
Ace caught up and stood by the Black Supersonic Ranger's side "Agreed."
The bird monster fired its beam. Blinding light washed over the child.
The beam retracted, flowing back inside the creature's oversized beak before it shot out once more.
Brute tapped three keys and the footage slowed down to a crawl. He watched intently for clues as the brilliant ray overwhelmed that kid, the flash accentuating his warm skin. Being so close to the screen for so long stung his eyes.
He moved back, reclined on his large couch and let out a frustrated exhale.
"I don't get it," he muttered. "I've run area scans with the universe knows what: x-rays, infrared, ultraviolet, microwaves. Could it be that they—" Brute shook his head, preventing any sinister thought from festering. "I mustn't think like that. I can't give up. Science has the solution for everything."
He leaned forward again, thumbing his chin as he did. "Let's try energy signatures," he said and keyed the command. The scanner pulsed during fixed intervals while Brute replayed the footage, testing out different frames to zoom in on.
Suddenly, a thud on the door, followed by the tapping of hurried footsteps.
The animals filling Brute's room screeched, cawed and snarled in alarm as movement detection sensors caused the lights overhead to open automatically.
The nervous tread came to a halt. Brute rotated the chair to meet the stranger. It was a Xybrian citizen, gulping down breaths. Sweat trickled in heavy droplets from his forehead.
"Sir?" Brute asked, concerned for the man's state.
"You're Brute, the Blue Ranger, right?" he gasped. "Please. Please help me find and bring back Xizi."
"Brute!" Tensou 5.0's voice sounded from the hall. Several seconds later, the blocky robot appeared from behind the hydraulic door. "Forgive me! Hey-yo, I tried stopping him but-"
"It's okay, bud," Brute raised a hand to cut him off. "It's all good." He turned to meet the father's pleading eyes. "Your kid, Xizi, was one of the victims, right?" The father nodded. Brute went on. "Well, don't worry, sir. The Power Rangers got this. Do you want to take a seat next to me and see what we can..."
Brute's sentence trailed off. He had been distracted by an unfamiliar sight and wasn't quite sure how to phrase his curiosity.
"Sir?" he managed. "Is this egg yours?" Brute pointed at the spot of flooring just behind the man. Both Tensou and their visitor followed the Blue Supersonic Ranger's index. An egg, much too big to be considered normal, was rolling towards the man without anything pushing it.
"Hey-yo, I'm experiencing deja-vu, Brute!" Tensou exclaimed.
"I hear you," Brute agreed and carefully picked it up. With the egg in his embrace, Brute glanced at his monitor. The footage had been frozen at the point in which the child was swallowed by the light.
Brute pressed his ear on the shell and listened.
"What are you doing?" the man asked.
Brute ignored him. The entirety of his attention was on the egg.
From the edge of his hearing, he could barely make out a whisper. Faintly, it resonated: H… He… Help… M… Me… E...
"Hey-yo, what's wrong, Brute?!"
Brute's head slowly craned back. His cinnamon features had turned pale. "My goodness," he breathed.
In that instance, everything clicked.
Pyre and Kolverox clashed.
Locked in a brutal engagement, the Yellow Supersonic Ranger's fists were a blur of movement, flying at the avian monstrosity from every direction. Kolverox, however, had taken to the defensive. He weaved past Pyre's blows with seeming ease, exploiting her wide swings by answering back with his own, skull-faced swipes.
The deuce between them broke when one such hit knocked the wind out of Pyre and tossed her back.
"You're weak, ranger! Ka-ka-ka!" the beast taunted her, reveling in Pyre's dire straits.
"Maybe." Pyre kept a palm pressed on her chest as she struggled to retort. From the corner of her vision, she could make out the distinct red, black and pink shapes of her fellow Power Rangers. "Don't!" she warned with an outstretched arm. "I got this handled."
Star made to ignore her demands, but Ace stopped her by placing a hand on her shoulder.
"Do it," the Red Supersonic Ranger told Pyre.
Assured, the Yellow Ranger turned back to Kolverox. "This is for the kids. Supersonic Flute!" she called out and the weapon, fashioned after her unique color, spawned in her grip.
"Let's finish this."
"I can't wait!" Kolverox jeered.
They started moving, circling each other with slow steps. Up until that point, Pyre had borrowed a page from Brute's book and had tried to analyze her opponent. Though her stubborn practicality had hindered the process, she had effectively deduced the core of Kolverox's patterns.
Armed with Sonar Blaster and Supersonic Flute, Pyre used the former to strike with a flurry of laser blasts. Kolverox immediately turtled, blocking the projectiles with his wings.
Pyre entered a sprint, keeping her finger pressed on the trigger.
"Oh no, you're not!" Kolverox cried and spun in place, deflecting the last of Pyre's shots before soaring into the air.
Everything had been within Pyre's calculations.
Changing her blaster's setting to charge, she let it build up energy before flipping forward and unleashing the blast directly below her. The explosion launched her sky-high, the increased altitude granting her the necessary window of opportunity to throw her Supersonic Flute's extension towards Kolverox. The ribbon wrapped around the monster's wings, stopping his ascension dead on its tracks.
Kolverox thrashed as he tried to claw at Pyre, but the Yellow Supersonic Ranger answered with a swift double kick to the head. The avian was hurled away from her until the ribbon turned taut, the momentum allowing Pyre to swing the monster round and round until the right instant came to let go.
Pyre landed with a feline's grace. Kolverox followed a split second later, slamming to the ground several meters away. With a hop, Pyre turned her back on Kolverox and struck a victorious pose, while the monster was swallowed by an explosive burst.
The Power Rangers regrouped.
"You might have trouble following orders," Ace begun, "but I can also say that you never cease to amaze us, rookie."
"You got it, boss!" Pyre managed between heavy breaths.
"Spiffing good work, young lady!" Gent added.
"Guys?" Brute's voice sounded from their communications network. Each ranger brought their Sonic Morpher close to their faces. "Hope you haven't finished off the creep just yet."
"No," Star said. "He's out cold."
"Courtesy of yours truly," Pyre smirked behind her helmet.
"Whew," Brute sighed. He sounded relieved. "I've made a breakthrough, I think, but I need the bird to confirm it for us."
"Shall we take it hostage?" Gent inquired to Ace.
"Sounds good, Black." He turned to Star. "Pink, use the Plasma Restraints."
The Power Rangers advanced to their collapsed opponent, all except for Ace, who'd found himself staring down a nearby alleyway.
A cloaked figure stood in the darkness, muttering in a gruff, male voice. It was as if he was trying to communicate with Ace; to reach out.
"Ace? Hey, Ace!"
The Red Supersonic Ranger was snapped back to reality. He turned his head to meet Pyre's fingers, snapping right in front of his helmet.
"Wake up, boss, don't day dream," she huffed. "The criminal's cuffed, so we need to call the Zords and get going."
For a split second, Ace couldn't muster any words. Belatedly, he said, "Yes, forgive me. Let's go."
The Yellow Supersonic Ranger landed.
Kolverox followed precisely two-point-forty-two seconds later. A subtle finger swipe to the left reversed the footage by five-point-thirty-six seconds, replaying the Power Ranger's descent. A tap at the air froze the playback on Yellow's victory pose. By distancing the index from the thumb, the image zoomed in on her lithe figure.
A wide smile split the golden armored scientist's shadowed lips.
"Young. Elegant. Resourceful." She tilted her head in thought. "So many possibilities." Here, she paused, feeling her lips with the tip of her clawed finger. The smile didn't leave her face.
"I want her."