Race to Destiny
Chapter 4
Complications
(Three months later)
Dillon came onto the bridge of the ship after his morning work out. The last several months had taken a toll on everyone aboard and now the day that they were waiting for was finally here. The Lyxian system was only a few hours from their current location and Justin had stopped the ship so they could prepare to activate the cloaking system, which would consume a very large amount of power from the ships trizarian core.
"Are we there yet?" Dillon asked sarcastically as he sat in his chair on the bridge, "No offense, but I need some real air instead of this recycled substitute."
"Is there something wrong with the air that I provide you?" DECA asked through the ships speakers.
"Um no", Dillon responded quickly, "I just want to set my feet on a planet and feel the warmth of a sun on my face."
"Cute", Justin said as he activated the com system, "We're ready up here", he said.
"Same here", came Tenaya's voice over the speaker, "The engine is configured for silent running and all nonessential systems should be going offline now."
Dillon looked around as several consoles shut down and the lights dimmed greatly. His sister had really taken to the engineering aspects of space travel, and Cam was practically jumping for joy to have someone who enjoyed the manual labor aspect of it more than he did.
"I think we're ready", Trent said from his console, "Activating cloak."
The lights grew even dimmer and the cloaking field enveloped the ship, hiding it from the sensor net that was between them and their next clue to the location of the Frozen Star.
"Scott", Justin said, "Put the weapons on stand by, we're going in."
In a dark room a man sat watching a screen. He has long white hair and his skin was a loose and wrinkled gray. If anyone were to look at him they would never know the monstrous level of power this individual once commanded. He reached out with his long bony finger and pressed a control.
"Get in here immediately", he said in a harsh voice.
A few moments later a muscular looking woman entered his chambers and bowed at his feet, "How may I be of service my lord?" she asked loyally.
"The humans have reached the Lyxian system", he responded gruffly, "Their continued existance cannot be tolerated. You have several vessels in the area, I want them torn apart. I cannot allow them to interfere with my plans."
"It will be done my lord Abbadon", she said as she rose, "I will order the strike."
"Empusa", he said grimly, "Remember your place. Do not fail me."
She stopped and took a deep breath, "Yes my lord", she said coldly before leaving his chambers.
Summer rubbed her eyes for what seemed like the hundredth time as the ship slowly crawled through space towards the fourth planet in the system. "You know", she said, "I always imagined space travel to be more glamorous and spectacular."
"That's because you watched too many sci-fi movies back at the garage", Scott said jokingly, "I mean come on, how many times can Captain Kirk save the universe before it gets old?"
"At least it's more interesting than racing", she countered.
"Focus guys", Justin said as he watched the scans on his screen, "I found it."
Everyone looked at Justin's screen as a moon with a chunk taken out of it was displayed.
"Next question", Dillon said, "Moons are not stationary. How do we know which direction it went?"
"It's simple", Cam said through the communication system, "DECA extrapolate the moons trajectory until it lines up with the following coordinates."
"Calculating", DECA responded as the image on the screen realigned itself, "Extrapolation complete."
"Good job Cam", Scott said as they looked at the image.
"I'm forwarding this information to earth", Justin said, "I want to know more about where we're heading."
(Ranger Operations, Earth)
"Dad", Crystal Oliver said as her console started beeping, "The Megaship is calling."
"Forward it to the main screen", Dr. Oliver said.
A moment later Justin's face appeared with Trent, Scott, Summer, and Dillon behind him.
"Hey Tommy", Justin said, "We have some information for you."
The extrapolated image appeared on the screen and Tommy looked hard at it, "The answer's pretty cut and dry", he said, "Follow the debris path."
"We gathered that Dr. O", Trent said, "We were hoping Andros could give us some information about the area of space that we would be traversing."
"Andros", Tommy said into his communicator, "Can you come up to Ops please?"
A few moments later the doors opened and Andros stepped out into the control room.
"What can I do for you?" he asked cheerfully, happy to hear from the expedition.
"We need information about where we're heading", Justin said as Andros looked at the computer image."
"I'm sure DECA could help you out", Andros replied, "You were just looking for a reason to call home, weren't you?"
"Busted", Justin said shyly, "It's nice to see some old friends."
"Anyway", Andros continued, "The first few lightyears are controlled by the Troobian Empire so that will be dangerous enough, but once you get through that it's a straight shot to the Vica Galaxy."
"Is that bad?" Dillon asked.
"No, the Vica are peaceful. In fact they'll probably help you", Andros replied.
"Well it's good to know that we can go somewhere that people won't try to kill us", Dillon answered.
"How's Dr. K, Flynn, Gem, Gemma, and Ziggy?" Summer asked.
"See for yourself", Tommy said as he patched Corinth into the feed and a very surprised pajama clad Dr. K appeared on the screen.
"Hey Doc", Dillon said suppressing a smile, "How's the city?"
"Quite well it would seem", she replied, "Actually it's been rather quiet since that last attack when the Megaship landed."
"That's good to know", Scott said.
"What about you?" Summer asked, "Have you had any interesting developments?"
"Only one Ranger Yellow", Dr. K said as she held up her hand. On her hand was a gold engagement ring with a large emerald in it.
"Look at the", Summer said in awe.
"That son of a gun", Dillon added, "I'm gunna kill him."
"Why?" Scott asked.
"Because Ziggy was supposed to wait until we got back before he asked", Dillon responded.
"You knew?" Summer asked with a clear sound of surprise in her voice.
"Who do you think set the stone?" Dillon replied smugly.
She sat in the silence watching the communication with the rangers. Since she couldn't detect the ship for some reason she had decided to use their transmission to triangulate their location, which she had done near the beginning but there was nothing wrong with knowing your enemy.
"They at least know how to treat women", she said to herself as she programmed the attack patterns.
Her console beep and Abbadon's dilapidated face appeared on her screen, "Report", he said sternly.
"I've located their ship and am just about to initiate the attack run", she replied.
"I want that ship blown out of existence Empusa", he ordered, "Failure would be unwise."
"I understand", she replied.
"Good", he answered, "Remember the only reason you are here is because you control the Gorgons, but if you fail me not even that will keep you safe."
"Yes my Lord", she said as she bowed her head to him, "We will begin immediately."
"That's so sweet", Tenaya said happily. She had come up from the engine room to hear the good news, "Don't have the ceremony without us."
"I wouldn't think of it", Ziggy replied, "Dillon's already going to come after me for not waiting for ya'll to get back before I asked. Having the wedding without you guys would be suicidal."
"You had better believe it", Summer said with a smile before the ship shook violently. "What the hell was that?" she asked Justin as his hands went flying over the controls.
"A weapon strike", he answered, "We're under attack!"
"How did they find us?" Summer asked as she ran to her console, "I thought we were cloaked."
"At the moment it doesn't matter", Dillon said, "We need power if we're going to fight them off."
"I'll be in the engine room", Tenaya shouted as she ran off the bridge.
"Disable the cloak", Justin ordered, "Route all power to weapons and shielding."
He was knocked to the floor as the ship shuttered from another weapon hit, but quickly jumped back up to the flight controls ignoring the blood that had started to trickle from his head.
Empusa watched as seven of her best ships opened fire. The rangers ship appeared briefly before being reabsorbed in whatever field that was keeping them hidden, but it was enough for her ships to lock onto it. Abbadon would finally give her his approval and she could set her plans into motion, but she would have to plan everything perfectly for them to work. She watched as the cloaking field dissipated and the ship turned bringing it's weapon ports to bare on her fleet.
"Weapons at full power!" Scott said as he started the targeting system, "We have seven ships attacking."
"Shields coming online", Summer added when the ship lurched and consoles started exploding.
"What happened?" Justin asked as he began evasive maneuvers.
"The shield grid shorted out", Summer answered, "They're nonfunctional."
"Warning", DECA's voice came from the speakers, "It is inadvisable to activate full battle readiness from cloaked state. Risk of system overload high."
"Well that would have been nice to know before we did it", Summer said sarcastically, "We need to do something quickly. The hull reinforcement field is fluctuating."
"Damn", Justin muttered, "OK, the only way we'll have a chance is if we take the offensive. Prepare for a strafing run."
The ship dipped, and rolled around the attacking vessels. On the first run the Megaships cannon shots connected with the engine core of one ship causing it to explode and heavily damage another ship.
"That's two down", Scott said as he readjusted his scanners.
"But there are still five more", Dillon responded as he shunted power to the weapon systems.
"Hull strength at forty percent", Summer reported, "We can't take this much longer."
"We don't have a choice", Justin said, "Activate the Megacannon!"
The hull plate on the bottom of the ship lowered revealing a massive cannon. An ominous red glow showed from the massive barrel as it powered up to full capacity. Inside the ship the rangers were preparing to fire when the ship jolted and explosions starting sounding from all around them.
"What in the hell was that!" Justin exclaimed as he tried to stabilize the ship.
"The Megacannon", Summer said, "It took a direct hit as it approached full power... Oh my GOD there's a feedback in the engines."
"Cam, Tenaya", Justin shouted into the comm system, "What's going on down there?"
"We're in trouble", Cam responded, "The trizarian core is destabilizing. I recommend we abandon ship."
"You can't fix it?" Justin practically screamed.
"Not with the time we have available", Cam replied, "We need to get out... NOW!"
"Understood", Justin said, "All hands abandon ship! I repeat, all hands abandon ship!"
Cam was clearing a path through the damaged engine room to the door when he spotted Tenaya working feverishly at a console.
"Come on!" he yelled at her.
"Just another minute", she replied, "I can stabilize the core!"
"We don't have another minute! The ship is gunna blow..."
The attacking ships continued their onslaught until the Megaship erupted into a fireball. The vacuum of space quickly killed the flames leaving nothing but a field of scorched debris.
Back on earth many people at Ranger Ops and corinth sat staring at computer screens in disbelief. Their one hope of saving the earth just went up in flames.
"What... what happened", Ziggy asked nervously.
"Their signal is gone", Dr. K answered in a quivering voice.
"Well do something woman", Flynn said through his communicator, "You've never let us down before."
"I can't", she responded, "They're gone.
A fist left a sizable dent in a console as Tommy let out a howl of pure rage. Not only had their mission failed, but two of his former teammates were on the ship that had just disappeared permanently from his tracking screens.
Empusa sat at her computer with a look of satisfaction as the remnants of the destroyed Megaship scattered in all directions. Her mission was finished. She had been instructed to destroy the ship and now it was done. She felt pride swell up in her as the beeping blip on her tracking computer faded out.
On the deserted planet that the scarred moon orbited eight beams of light hit the surface. When the light faded the seven rangers were standing in a circle around a three foot tall computer console. They looked at each other with confusion for a moment before Tenaya broke the silence.
"What... what happened?" she asked, "I thought we would be goners."
"Emergency teleport protocols ZERO-ZERO-SEVEN-NINE completed", came DECA's voice from the console, "Total ship casualties... ZERO."
"So what do we do now?" Summer asked the group, "We have no ship, no communication, and no way off this planet."
"I don't know", Justin said as he considered the hopeless situation in front of him, "I just don't know."
"So that's it then", Tenaya said as she sat down on the cold ground and let a tear escape from her eye, "We're done for."
A/N: Sorry for the long updates. Many many things on my plate. Also to those reading The Next year, I know you're waiting for the wedding, but do to issues in my personal life I am not in the mood to write anything happy at the moment. As always please read and review.