Chapter Four: Quest for the Gold Crystal Quasar Saber: Part Two; Golden Quasar Power!
"I'm so close. Must keep climbing." Zelda was straining to complete her journey. "Just a few more yards," She did, however, manage to keep going by telling herself things like that.
"Is this for real?" Leo asked himself, wondering it this was all just a dream.
"Almost there." Zelda struggled the last yard of her vertical trek.
"Hey you!" Someone said from out of nowhere. This caused Leo to turn around abruptly. An ugly creature leapt from the woods and blocked Leo's path to the golden mountains. Leo wasted no time asking questions. Instead, he morphed.
"Go, Galactic!" He called out. A few seconds later, the morphing sequence was complete.
"Ha! I've been waiting for you red ranger." Leo remained silent. He had nothing to say to this bag of worms. The monster charged towards him not showing the slightest bit of mercy. As he was running, the ground shook with Earthquake force from his massive form.
"Made it." Zelda was in awe at what she saw before her. She walked up to the quasar saber and began reaching out for it.
"Wait a minute," She said snatching her hand back. "This is to easy." There had to be a catch, but she couldn't figure out what it could be. That was before she almost fell off the crag from the ground shaking with earthquake force.
"Quasar saber!" Leo called out just before the monster came down on him full force. Fortunately, Leo called his saber just in time to save his life.
Zelda kept turning around and around until she was satisfied that no one was near. Although it didn't relieve her of the feeling that this was too easy.
She reached for the saber again, this time taking the saber out of the gold stone in which it was held captive.
She waited for a couple of minutes. Nothing happened.
The monster howled in pain but not from anything the red ranger did.
"Time to call upon the power held within this saber."
The monster fell to his knees.
"Golden."
The monster was howling loudly now cause he was in immense pain.
"Quasar."
Then he was…
"Power!"
…Destroyed- for the time being anyway. Leo sighed with relief as he watched the monster disappear from view. That was when he knew it was safe to unmorph.
"This is amazing!" Zelda exclaimed. She looked at her new battle armor. It was now twenty-four karat gold, each thread as strong as titanium. The diamond stripe consisted of sterling silver, and her helmet was of the purest gold in the universe. On the back of her armor were golden wings that enabled her to fly at speeds greater than that of warp when out in space.
When she was finished gawking (for lack of a better word) at her new powers, she felt a strong surge of panic sweep over her.
"What the- damn." She knew now that Kai and the others had follower her even the other Gold Ranger. She decided to test out her new wings. After spreading, and flexing them out a little bit, she jumped fearlessly off the edge of the crag with her golden quasar saber in hand.
"Leo, are you all right?" Maya asked him when she and the others ran out from the Sprite's woods.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just ran into a little trouble that's all." He shook off the residual fear that he had experienced a few minutes prior
"Something's not right. I can't feel her anymore." Trey spoke, right before the bright flash of gold tressed light. Everyone shielded their eyes; afraid they might be blinded by the splendid force of nature.
"Who are you?" Demanded the newcomer, a few moments after the appearance of the gold tressed light.
"We are here looking for someone. That is all." Kai responded.
The newcomer unsheathed her golden saber and then began to pace around Kai and his friends.
"I feel a strong force coming from." The newcomer paused a moment and then pointed her saber at Leo.
"You must remember who you are in time. For now, live your new life in this universe to the fullest moon." A voice in the newcomer's head spoke. The newcomer collapsed to the ground as her armor disappeared and the golden quasar saber lay before her.
Everyone around her gasped in amazement, except for Trey of course because he knew who was before them.
Zelda stayed kneeling on the ground for a few more minutes before she ever looked up at her friends. When she did finally look up, she simply picked up the golden quasar saber and said, "Take us home to Terra Venture." Then, as if on cue, a gold light emanated from the sun and then struck the saber.
The next thing they knew was that they were back on board Terra Venture and the Astro Megaship was back in the main hangar bay. Once they came back, Zelda was automatically transported to the Command Tower.
"Status Ensign." Zelda asked Operations officer Ensign McIntire.
"All of Terra Venture's systems are functioning within normal parameters." As an after thought he added, "It's been dead as a doornail around here. I wish some creature or something would show up so we could get some action." He began tapping at a nearby diagnostic console. It was this point in which Kai entered the Command Tower. Zelda quickly looked way and nodded to him. She had answered the question that she knew was coming. It was also a signal to meet her later.
"I feel the same way." Zelda replied to McIntire's answer resting a hand on his left shoulder. Then she thought, "It's going to happen sooner than you think." She then moved towards the center of the command dock.
"Is Commander Stanton on board yet?" Kai checked communications in order to give her an answer.
"He's just boarded in hangar bay two." Zelda nodded at Kai in response.
"Now that everyone's on board, let's go explore the galaxy." Zelda spoke with mock amusement. "Where should we start off?"
"How about your home world?" Kai asked.
"Very well." Zelda spoke. "Coordinates, Sector 1289 point 221. Speed at three quarters maximum thrust." While her command deck crew carried out her orders, Zelda found an empty science console next to Kai and sat next to him.
"So, now you know." Kai was a bit bewildered at what had just been spoken to him by his superior officer but he didn't let that get to him.
"Should I have known sooner?" Kai asked Zelda quietly so that the other officers around them could not hear their conversation.
"Not necessarily." Zelda replied. "Ever since the release of my father's soul to save the Milky Way from Dark Lord Spectre, everyone knew. But now it's been about six years since that has happened and just about everyone has forgotten. After that had happened, I had gone back to my internship at NASA and then created NASADA/GSA." Zelda's eyes began to sparkle just as Kai was about to ask the now obvious question.
"You mean to tell me that you created Terra Venture?"
"Come with me. There's something that I need to show you." Zelda then gently took Kai by the arm, totally ignoring his question. She then led him to their destination in the main colony dome.
She practically dragged Kai out of the Command tower and down to the main colony. They did not stop until they were in front of an abstract statue of Terra Venture's founder.
"I can't read the dialect." Kai said.
"I know. My father created the statue for me when I first made the blueprints for Terra Venture. He made it as a guardian for the colony. The transcript is actually written in my native tongue. It reads: "To all those who want more than what they have, give to others more than they receive I give you this colony. To travel to new worlds, to help find you a new home, I give you this guardian so that on your journey, you may be safe through out the galaxy. For them, the journey will be great.
For the rangers to come may the Quasar Sabers guide their path.
To my daughter Zelda with dearest love, forgive us for leaving so soon. Find your other brothers and sisters, including your soul brother to be able to come home once more to your mother Serenity, and I, your father, Dregonus. With love to you and your brother, we both wish you luck." It was then that the transcription ended leaving Zelda with mist eyes and Kai's filled with wonder.
"How are you able to read the transcription? I know it is in your native language, but which one is it?"
"It's in Aquitorian. That is the planet I was born to before I was reborn on Earth to save the universe." There was a long moment of silence between the two comrades before Zelda spoke again. "Besides the fact that this was an alien dialect, no one would have been able to read it anyway."
Because it's depictment of the future?" Kai asked.
"Somewhat." Zelda replied. Tired of standing on the ground, Zelda hovered a foot above it before continuing. "It's actually…" She paused mid sentence so that she could stand on the ground again. "My future and the future of everyone around me." Looking towards Kai, Zelda finished her thought. "Especially the rangers."
After Zelda's final words of the moment, both she and Kai walked silently to the sleeping barracks where they were going to meet the other rangers. When they reached the outside of their destination, Zelda added to their previous conversation.
"Actually," Zelda spoke, breaking the silence. "It's not a depictment of "the" future, it's more or less a depictment of the Universe's future. The Galactic Gold Ranger is the only one who can restore peace to the galaxy, but she can't do it alone." They both entered Zelda's barrack and the others arrived shortly there after.
By the time the others arrived, Zelda had an incredible headache. She had no idea where it came from, but all she knew she wanted to do at the moment was getting rid of it. When the rangers had entered, Zelda had her head between her, knees, trying to get of her headache.
As the door to her room closed behind Damon, Leo and the others, who had just entered, stood slightly slack jawed as Zelda had in her hand her gold quasar saber. As the saber rested in Zelda's hands, it began to pulsate a golden light.
Maya was the only one who had been able not to act surprised, at least not on the outside. "The legend is true." Maya then dropped down to her knees and lowered her eyes. She couldn't believe that she was in the presence of the greatest god of Mirinoi. "We are forever in your service." No one understood Maya's course of action, not even Zelda. Only Maya herself knew the reason behind her actions.
"No Maya," Zelda motioned for her to stand. "I am forever in you service. If it was not for you and the others releasing the other quasar sabers, my powers would not be in existence."
"You don't understand. On Mirinoi, it was always fabled that a power greater than the quasar sabers existed. And you've found it."
"It was more than a matter of finding it," Zelda looked down at her saber. "It's my destiny. Just as it was yours." The only difference between us Maya," Zelda looked Maya directly in her eyes. "Is that you, Leo, Kendrix, Kai, Damon… you're all destined to save Terra Venture and to locate a new world; and me? I have the whole universe's future resting upon my shoulders and the powers that are held within this saber," Zelda indicated the gold quasar saber. "Are a part of the burden I must carry as guardian of the universe."
"Kai," Kendrix asked. "How long have you known?"
Kai was at a loss for words because he really didn't know himself the answer to that question. Since they came back from Mirinoi, time has been at a loss, not only to him, but the others as well. Zelda then answered Kendrix's question for him.
"He actually only known for about the last hour or so, not much long then you have." Zelda spoke quietly. "After I transported us back here, all of you have forgotten had happened earlier and it was just another morning to you." Zelda walked over to the nearby window in her quarters and looked out at the star scape and the aquamarine surface of her home world. Just afterwards, someone else entered the room. Zelda turned away from the window just in time to see that it was her confidant and lover.
"I'm glad you made it here safely. I was so afraid that you had been captured by the Tunia warriors." Zelda whispered softly to Trey as she gently hugged him.
"We managed to create a ceasefire-"
"With them? " Zelda interrupted. "That must have been a feat in itself." Zelda paused for a moment. "How were you able to get away?"
"The ceasefire shall hold effect until you are able to come back to Tryforia for the peace negotiations." Zelda reached for her quasar saber and at that exact moment, the whole colony shook with earthquake force.