Disclaimer: The usual. Don't own anything you recognize.
KINGS AND VAGABONDS
By Etcetera Kit
Chapter Twelve: Truth and Consequences I
Sirius – his home and now it was being invaded by the Troovian forces. SPD was working round the clock, with no sleep for months. But the armies were relentless. Krybots, who felt no fatigue or pain, pounding on their defenses day and night.
The robots surrounded him. He swung at them with his sword, trying to remain alert enough to help. There had to be a way to stop them and SPD needed to stay afloat long enough for that to happen.
One blast and darkness surrounded him.
He thought he had been out for a few minutes, but something was wrong. He opened his eyes and saw the destruction. All was quiet and still. His fingers grasped his sword, feeling the cool metal and knowing he was alive. His howl of anger ripped through the night.
Anubis Cruger stared at the consol in front of him, seeing the glowing lights and not seeing them. Had it really been twenty years since his home planet and people had been destroyed? Had it really been twenty years since he came to Earth and began another SPD? If it had been twenty years since he came to Earth, then it had been nineteen years since the experiments that altered the DNA of the people involved.
The experiments had been to create super-powers. The goal had been to make a formula that human infants could ingest. His theory had been that – if the humans had more defenses that just technology – it would be harder for someone like the Troovians to come to their planet and decimate them. The formula never happened, but something else did. Exposure to the chemicals used in the experiments caused changes within the humans. Nothing on the outside happened to them, but it would affect their children. Those children would have the super-powers that he had wanted invented.
What had happened could not be duplicated. With the initial failure of the formula, he had hoped that exposing humans to the chemicals would create more of the children. No record of precisely what happened and unwilling volunteers caused the project to the scrapped.
And still – he feared for the Earth.
The SPD employees involved in the experiments went home, their particular brands of expertise no longer needed. Most of them went back to families, husbands and wives. One couple went back to Mirinoi. One started the family they had wanted when they married. A single girl had a stint as a Power Ranger, before settling down. The single man was a mystery, but went back to the elite police force he commanded. Corbett, Grayson, Enrile and Collins… he filed their names away, knowing that something might happen.
It presented itself in the form of twin babies in late 2001.
The twins could phase through solid objects – their parents found that out early on when they would escape from their playpen. He knew that those twins would be an asset to SPD and would be able to survive an invasion. There had to be a way to ensure they ended up at SPD, but how? On his now-obsolete home planet, it was rare for children to grow up with their biological parents. Children were groomed for a certain task early on. Perhaps there was a way for him to enact that with these children, on a planet were children tended to remain with their biological parents from birth onward.
The Troovians were still deep in another galaxy, but were moving ever closer to Earth. By the time those twins reached adulthood, the Troovians would be upon them. SPD would be the last defense and needed the twins and their powers.
Other children followed. The twins' had a little sister, who could turn her hands into whatever she was touching. A girl like that, able to turn her fists into iron, would be almost unbeatable in a fight. Feeling no pain in her hands, she could continue to pummel at whatever she was fighting. She could take out dozens of Krybots with no injury to herself. The twins could run through solid objects, obscuring an entire army from finding them. They could also launch surprise attacks. Three powerful siblings…
The Mirinite humans and the college girl had children at the same time. The Mirinite boy was psychometric and able to read psychic residue. He could sense projected emotions. The boy had a degree of telepathy, meaning, if honed, he could read minds. He would be a valuable stealth asset, finding the enemies' plans. The daughter of the college girl could replicate herself, making as many replicates as she wanted. That girl could be a one-person army – sending replicates of her out to fight, with no harm to the real self.
Then the Collins' boy surfaced. His mother was a Time Force officer and, through time-jumps, had been born in 2000. Cruger was soon able to divine that he had been conceived after the experiments, because he had the ability to create force fields with his mind. If that skill were honed, the boy would be able to create a force field large enough to surround Earth and keep invading armies from ever entering their atmosphere.
Those six children had to end up at SPD – but how?
He talked to their parents, creating a story about the children becoming a danger to themselves and it being better for them to be placed elsewhere. Collins and his wife did not believe him – that was obvious. Almost no one could see the powers of the children for what they were. He had then sent Kat, who explained that, since the children had powers, it was essential for them to come to SPD. Collins told them, in so many words, that his son would have power over his own future and he would not force him to go to SPD. That left one extreme choice.
He gave the order for Sky to be forcefully taken from his parents.
Collins outsmarted him for a while, placing Sky with his partner and sending the pair off into the night. Eric Myers proved to be a worthy opponent, keeping him and Sky hidden for close to two years. In the interim, Cruger didn't dare have any of the other children taken for fear that he would be hunting across the country for six children instead of just one. The others had to be lulled into a false sense of security.
He found Myers. It took two years, but he found him. It was time to cut a bargain. Myers would kill himself and Sky before ever letting the boy be taken from him. Cruger knew it was time to admit defeat here. SPD would just have to sacrifice having the boy with the ability to create force fields. Myers also had to be silenced. If he took Sky back to his parents, then the whole story would be exposed and none of the other children would end up at SPD. He created the adoption, stating the terms of changing Sky's last name and not telling him anything about his parents or where he came from. If the terms were violated, he would remove Sky. Myers wasn't stupid. He agreed to the terms.
Cruger waited another year before going after the other children, since their parents' reactions had been the same as Collins. The initial attempts to get the three Grayson siblings and the Evans' girl failed. It was time to go to Mirinoi and get the Corbett boy. He and Kat succeeded in getting him and brought him to Earth to place him in a group home. The terms of adoption for the boy were simple. At fifteen, he had to be enrolled at the SPD Academy. There were some problems though. The boy refused to eat. He gave that task to Kat and focused on the four children that had been eluding him.
Grayson had the right idea, almost the same idea that Collins had. He sent his children to his brother-in-law's house, in hopes that Cruger would go to his house first and give the kids – now five and four – a head start. The brother-in-law was supposed to take the children to the Lightspeed Aqua Base. With maximum security, it would have worked. But Grayson didn't have as much of a head start as he thought. Cruger intercepted the children as they dashed down the street towards the brother-in-law's house. He had an adopted family arranged for them and the twins and their sister went to live with their new family immediately. The terms of the adoption were the same as the ones with the Corbett boy – at fifteen, all three of the siblings must be enrolled at SPD.
The daughter of Enrile, now going by her married name of Evans, seemed to have vanished off the face of the Earth. Wherever she was, it wasn't with her parents. Going to desperate extremes, he fabricated a charge against Cole Evans, the father of the girl, and had him thrown in SPD prison until he revealed the whereabouts of his daughter. Kat found her by following the mother. Evans had put her daughter with Myers. A clever move, but she shouldn't have been visiting the girl. With thoughts of her husband and daughter being harmed, Evans handed over the girl. Cruger had her placed in a group home with the same terms of adoption as the other children.
The Corbett boy was starving himself to death.
By this time, Cruger had washed his hands of the whole affair. Five of the six children would join SPD and Earth would be protected from the Troovians.
Kat hadn't wanted to do this in the beginning and had voiced her concern. Now, she made it her business to see that the Corbett boy started eating again. She took him to the one person she knew could help him – Myers. He took the boy in, got him to eat again and, within a few months, the boy was placed with an adopted family.
Three years later, the Evans' girl ran away from the group home she had been in. It wasn't hard to keep track of her whereabouts, since she stayed in the same areas. Kat watched over her, making sure that some of the working people in the areas knew about her and took her in. An opportunity would come to bring her to SPD. Cruger just had to be patient and bide his time with her.
He was shocked in 2015, to see the name Schuyler Tate on the list of new cadets. Soon enough, he learned that it was a decision Sky had made. He wanted to join SPD. Cruger could see Myers fuming at that, but allowing it. So, he hadn't had to sacrifice the force fields. Through sheer dumb luck, Tate came to them.
The others began to enroll in their respective years. In 2016, Austin and Paris Drew joined the academy. Paris chose the ranger track, while Austin opted for the officer track. Soon enough, he learned that Paris took orders from no one and had to be removed from the ranger track. He tried everything to get Austin on the ranger track, but nothing worked. The following year, their little sister, Sydney Drew, joined the academy and chose the ranger track. After her, Bridge Carson entered and opted for the ranger track. Five of them were at the academy. The only one left to get was Elizabeth Delgado.
The twins had problems. Paris could not take orders from anyone. On her sixteenth birthday in her first year, she was almost expelled for throwing a party complete with sex, drugs and alcohol. Cruger managed to stop the expulsion, but had to take her off the ranger track. He sent Austin to the Nebula branch of the academy, more as punishment. Paris settled down the next year, with her sister's appearance. She was distrustful of him and Kat, protecting her sister and trying everything to get Austin back at SPD. At least she was at SPD. He would bring Austin to Earth if it looked like he needed more of the phasing power.
Soon enough, his opportunity to bring in Elizabeth Delgado came. She got involved in the activities of Jack Landors, a well-known Robin Hood type of thief. The three B-Squad rangers – Sky, Syd and Bridge – brought her in. He offered to let her join SPD. She accepted and all six of the children were now at SPD.
Earth would be well-protected from the Troovians.
Conner McKnight had been an interesting find in 2020. He had been part of a ranger team called Dino Thunder. Their ranger powers came from ancient, powerful stones called Dino-Gems. Aside from ranger powers, they gave the owners super-powers. These powers had not faded with the ranger powers. He had managed to find two of those rangers. Kira Ford, teaching at the school at SPD, had something called Ptera-Scream. If she concentrated, her screams carried enough energy to knock people out and destroy whole buildings. McKnight had super-speed. He was also at the end of his rope, having no apartment or job and trying to care for his two small daughters. Cruger offered him the Red Ranger position, effectively bringing he and Ford into SPD. The other Dino Thunder Rangers were more discreet about their lifestyles and he was hard-pressed to find the other three. Unfortunately, McKnight's daughters didn't share his power – as it was imposed on him by superficial means, not changing his DNA.
Between the six children, Ford and McKnight, Cruger felt safe about the ultimate fate of Earth. These eight could do what no native of Sirius could. Earth would not suffer the same fate as his beloved Sirius.
Now that he had what he wanted, it made him wonder.
Had he done the right thing?
Wasn't the protection and survival of Earth more important than families?
The greater good had spoken.
Kat had continued to keep up with the children and their families. Maya Corbett, Bridge's mother, suffered from depression and had been anemic and frail since the day that her son had been taken. She was the most extreme. The majority of the parents had faded away, the light in their eyes burning out. Someone had taken their most precious possession. None of them had any more children, since they would meet the same fate.
Had he done the right thing?
The question haunted his every waking moment and worked itself into his dreams. He had dreams of Sirius being destroyed intertwined with the screams of children as they were ripped away from their parents. He should tell them about their parents. All of them were at SPD now. It wouldn't hurt to tell them.
But he couldn't.
If Paris found out who her parents were, she would leave SPD and take Syd with her. If any of them found out about why they were here… it would be more than just Paris and Syd walking out. Bridge would get on the first shuttle to Mirinoi and Z would be on the first bus to Turtle Cove. Sky would quit when he learned of the unscrupulous methods used. Paris would spend the money to contact Austin at the Nebula Academy and Austin would join his sisters in leaving SPD.
He couldn't tell them.
Earth would be destroyed if they left.
Cruger wouldn't let Earth become another Sirius.
The moment that the Troovian forces were neutralized and the threat to Earth was over, he would tell them about their parents, but not before that. Earth couldn't afford to lose six of the most valuable fighters ever seen.
He thought to Paris and her weekend project of searching for her parents. In order to keep her from finding something pertinent, he put all the files from 2001 under lock and key. No publicity had followed their abductions, so she wouldn't find something in the media archives. She might send to Mirinoi for their archives, but it was doubtful she would get the correct year. If he could just keep her in the dark a little longer, then she could know.
Sacrificing his reputation for the Earth – it seemed a small price to pay.
People kept the parents of the abducted children silent. Collins was never told that Myers had been found and adopted his son. He still thought that Sky and Eric were hidden somewhere. The others were forced to remain silent.
Yes – when the Troovians left, his reputation would be shot.
But he would have saved Earth.
It was a small price to pay.
He could see them now, growing up with their parents. Bridge would not have that lost, slightly afraid look that constantly haunted his expression and eyes. Z would not expect things to fail before they even began. Sky would not be such a stickler for the rules. He would know how to smile and have fun. Paris and Syd would be much more level-headed. Paris would know why and when to follow the rules and Syd would not be a beauty queen narcissist. Austin would not be so quiet and vulnerable, bowing at every blow.
No – the greater good demanded what he had done.
The scales had tipped and Earth was more important.
Slowly, the consol came back into focus. He was aware of the blinking lights, scanning for unusual energy readings. The soft buzz of the fluorescent lights and the soft beeping of the various scanners seemed louder than normal. But it was his anchor – he knew where he was and that it was real. Two levels up, the cadets were asleep in their quarters. One level up, the officers were asleep in their apartments. He tapped a few buttons on the consol, bringing up the location of each morpher. Since they were required to have their morphers at all times, it gave him their exact location.
Sky and Bridge were in their room.
Syd and Z were in theirs.
Conner was in his apartment.
Cruger tapped a few more buttons. There were ways to track the other officers and cadets without ranger powers – even the ones at the Nebula Academy. Paris and Austin had matching rings with Tangarian stones. Since these were the only such stones at either academy, he could track them.
Paris was in her apartment.
Austin was in his room.
He tapped the controls again, this time searching for heat signatures. Kira was in her room from the heat readings.
A hand touched his shoulder.
He jumped at the sudden touch. Turning to the side, he saw Kat standing beside him in the command center. She looked concerned.
"You had the dream again." It wasn't a question.
Cruger let out a long breath. That dream about Sirius always lead to the long train of thought involving what had happened with the children and whether or not he had done the right thing. He always came to the conclusion that he had – Earth was far more important than the families that had been torn.
"I was just thinking about the rangers," he replied.
"And the twins."
He fought the urge to growl. Kat knew him entirely too well. The twins were always involved in any thoughts about the rangers. She had made morphers for all six of the children. The white and black morphers would belong to Austin and Paris, but he could not find a good enough excuse to give them to them. Neither was on the ranger track and it would look suspect to just give them morphers. Perhaps, he would ignore the regulations he had established, bring Austin back and give the twins their morphers.
It was impossible.
He had five rangers with powers – seven would not make a significant difference.
"Bring Austin back," Kat said in an urgent tone of voice. "Give him and Paris the morphers. You need them on the team."
"No," he said firmly. "Neither is on the ranger track. I can't bend regulations."
"You did for Delgado."
"I know. That is why I can't do it again."
"You're a stubborn old dog!" Kat hissed. "You went through all that trouble to make sure all of them ended up here and now you won't let them serve the purpose you wanted them to! Austin and Paris want to be rangers! Let them do it!"
"And have Paris run amuck on us? No."
"She won't, if you would just put a little faith in her." Kat paused and shook her head. "You know why she doesn't follow orders. It's because she feels that you don't trust her. Give her your trust and she'll make a great ranger."
Cruger was silent for a moment. "I don't know what to do, Kat. I think back to what happened all those years ago – what I did – and I wonder if I did the right thing."
"It didn't have to be that way. Those children would have realized soon enough that they had the power to save Earth and would have come here of their own accord." She paused and her expression became loathing. "But you were so concerned that they wouldn't come here, that you kidnapped them—"
"That is enough!" he growled. "You're bordering on insubordination."
"You know I'm right," she shot back.
"Leave!" he roared.
Kat hissed, but left the command center.
Cruger stared at the consol, the lights becoming distant and almost surreal once more. He had tried so hard – only to be snubbed for his efforts. He knew that Kat was right – Paris and Austin needed their morphers. They would do it, if for no other reason than to protect their little sister.
Was this worth all the heartache he had caused?
Yes. The greater good had spoken.
To Be Continued...
Author's Note: I'm posting without my beta reader because I'm a horrible person. (Actually, I wanted to update but she was being super slow about it - whatever happened to Saturdays, Jepoliant?) So, she will read this and I will go back at a later date and post a beta read and edited version of this chapter. (Come to think of it, she has read it before, just not beta read it.) Thanks to everyone who is sticking with me throughout the summer - you guys are the best! I'll try to update next weekend!