A/N: Sorry about the delay, recent computer troubles meant I lost my work on this chapter and the next installment of "Normal Life", but I hope to get that out soon. Sorry for the delay.
Gates was waiting outside the Garage as the troops completely surrounded the base. Nightshade was sitting, sharpening her claw weapon while Mandrake was checking over the repairs he had affected on himself following the escape of the Blue Ranger. A tactics officer came over to Gates and saluted.
"What's the situation?" He asked the officer, casting a gaze over the building. He knew that it would be fortified, and he was more than aware of Dr. K's intelligence. He knew that simply blasting their way in would not be an option. He also knew that many of the men were not keen to go up against the Rangers. He couldn't blame them really, with the Ranger technology on their side; they had defeated everything Venjix had thrown at them. There was little the military could do to them that wouldn't place them all at considerable risk. At the moment, Gates was relying on the fact that the Rangers would not want to harm the soldiers, knowing that they were innocent.
"The building is fortified, way beyond anything we have at our disposal here." The tactics officer told him, showing him a handheld console, showing a scan of the building. "The surface itself is nearly a foot thick of titanium alloy. We have no idea what's underneath that. Not to mention the kind of security systems Dr. K's likely set up inside the building."
"She always was a smart one." Gates sighed, remembering his time back at Alphabet Soup. "Do we have anything at base which could punch through this?"
"The only ordinance we have that would blast through it any quicker would be too dangerous to use here." The tactical officer told him. "There are apartment blocks all around us. Anything that would do significant damage to the base would put all these civilians at risk."
"What would you recommend then?" Gates asked him. "Would you like us to let the Rangers, who have proven themselves traitors and are harbouring known criminals to escape? Should we just go home and leave them alone?"
"Sir, I would recommend that we use standard ordinance in a sustained, focused attack." He replied, a little wary of Gates' reaction to the news. He wouldn't have expected any commanding officer to be so intent as to risk such heavy handed tactics in such a densely populated area.
"So we drill slowly instead of punching straight through." Gates replied, considering his options. "How long can they hold up in there?"
"Our scans show that the building is not connected to the city's power grid, sustaining its own power banks." The tactical officer informed him. "We have no records to suggest they have food stockpiled…"
"They'll have food, Dr. K isn't that stupid." He responded, lighting up a cigar and taking a long drag. They could probably sit in there for years before being forced to come out, and this method is bound to take us years."
He considered his options for a while, watching the embers on the end of the cigar glowing for inspiration.
"Check their backgrounds." He told them. "Let's see if there's anyone we can exploit to get them out."
"Sir?" The tactical officer asked a little unsure. Thos didn't sound right. Was he seriously considering using a hostage to bait them out? "What are you planning?"
"I simply wonder if we can't get someone to talk to them and make them see the error of their ways." Gates assured him. "After all, I would have thought getting them to walk out would be preferable to trying to blast them out."
The tactical officer was a little uneasy about the request. Something didn't seem right about it. It felt like Gates was being less than honest about his motives for finding this information. He checked his computer, finding very little.
"The Yellow Ranger's parents live in an apartment building a short way from here." He informed his commanding officer. "The Blue Ranger only came to Corinth with his father. He runs an auto shop a few streets away."
"I want you to send half a dozen troops to each location and bring them here." He informed the tactical officer. As he went to comply with the request, Gates made a call back to central command.
"The fortifications here are a lot stronger than I would have thought." He told them. "Bring the heaviest ordinance you can lay your hands on. If they don't respond to the negotiations, I'm going to order an evacuation of the area. I don't plan on spending years digging them out."
Meanwhile, inside the Garage, the Rangers, along with Chas, Hicks and Colonel Truman were making their last minute preparations for the push to the base.
"OK Ziggy, you know what to do." Scott reminded him. Ziggy nodded in understanding, before morphing. Activating his teleportation system, he appeared in an alley, opposite the Garage and out of view of the soldiers who were too busy covering the base. He looked around, finding one of the APCs sitting idle nearby. He concentrated hard on the position of it, having a well-earned fear of the possible consequences of a botched teleportation as a result of Dr. K's briefings. Activating it, he appeared inside, finding only two troops inside.
The first realised what had happened and was about to sound the alarm, though Ziggy was too quick for him, connecting with a hard kick to his jaw and sending him to the floor. The other tried to draw a weapon, but found himself being thrown aside, his head bouncing off the armoured hull. Ziggy said a quick, wordless thank you for the enhanced strength provided by the suit.
"I've got the vehicle." He announced over his communicator.
"Well done Ziggy." Scott complimented him. "Dump the crew and bring it to the door. We'll provide suppressing fire to cover while we get on board."
Ziggy quickly checked the guards, before finding the keys hanging in the ignition. They hadn't banked on anyone trying to steal it, but then it was locked, and he doubted the military considered would-be thieves having the ability to literally appear inside the vehicle. He threw open the side door, throwing out the unconscious guards before shutting it again. He turned on the engine, causing a few soldiers to look round. Seeing their unconscious comrades, they could tell what was happening. They opened fire, their blasts splashing off the hull of the vehicle. Ziggy steered it trough the troops until he reached the door and brought it to a halt. The blast doors opened, and the Rangers and their allies sallied forth, laying down a curtain of fire.
"Push forward!" Gates roared, picking up a pistol. "Remember, lethal force is authorised!"
Colonel Truman rushed to the vehicle under covering fire, quickly making his way to the cockpit.
"Move over Ziggy, I'll drive." He instructed him. "You'll be more useful in a combat capacity."
"No problem sir." He replied, getting out the driver's seat and allowing the Colonel to strap himself in.
"This takes me back." He commented. "It almost reminds me of driving the Go-onger."
"The what?" Ziggy asked as Dr. K and Hicks entered the vehicle.
"Never mind." He replied. "How are the Rangers doing?"
"Things are going fine dad." Scott said as he got in.
"Good thing we have this." Flynn interjected as he got in. "It looks like their firing lethal rounds."
"Gates probably doesn't want to leave witnesses." Summer replied, firing her energy blast, sending a couple of APCs spinning off the road and clearing a path for them before getting in. Dillon followed immediately afterwards, closing the door behind him.
"They have very few weapons capable of piercing the armour on this vehicle. Any they do have would cause explosions which would kill or injure nearby troops." Dr. K told them. "They won't fire any of them while we're in the crowd, but once we're on the road that's a different matter."
"Tell me you have something in mind." Flynn begged her.
"I've set up a scrambling signal that will prevent them from locking on a targeting system." She informed him. "They'll still be able to fire manually; they just won't b able to use guidance systems."
"So what do we do about the manually fired missiles?" Scott asked her. Dr. K looked at him and responded a little too honestly given the situation.
"Hope they don't hit."
With that, Colonel Truman gunned the engine, blasting onto the road to Central Command.
Gates realised where they were heading and began barking orders. He pointed to a young sergeant.
"You, take over command here and continue to besiege the building." He ordered the young man. "You three units, come with me! They're heading for base!"
As Gates' jeep, carrying himself and his two cybernetic henchmen began pursuit, followed closely by three other vehicles, the rest of the soldiers continued their fire against the Garage, while the casualties injured in the Rangers' escape were retrieved. One of the soldiers was cradling his head in his hands as was approached by a medic.
"How are you son?" The medic asked him as he shone a torch into his eyes. "I saw you get hit from over there, that's one hell of a hit to the head you took."
"I know, I got turned inside out pretty good." He commented. "I must have had something shaken loose, because I could swear the guy that hit me was Colonel Truman."
On the road, Colonel Truman swerved this way and that to avoid explosions as he made his way to the Central Command building. Ziggy jumped as another explosion shook the vehicle.
"You have nothing to fear Ranger Seri…Ziggy. None of these blasts will cause significant enough damage to render the vehicle unable to operate." Dr. K reminded him. "Only a direct hit will stop us."
"That's kind of what I'm worried about." Ziggy told her.
"Don't be, I was running combat driving missions before any of you were born!" Colonel Truman assured him. "This takes me back."
"It appears as though the Mandrake unit has one missile." Dr. K stated, drawing their attention to a scanner. "With the accuracy of…"
"Hang on, I've got an idea." Dillon interrupted her. He made his way to the back of the transport, before gesturing everyone back.
"Everyone get as far back as you can!" He told them. With that, he opened the rear door to the vehicle.
"What are you doing?" Scott asked him. "We're taking fire."
"I've got an idea." He assured him. "I'm giving Mandrake an irresistible target."
Almost on cue, Mandrake fired his missile.
"You idiot, you've wasted your shot!" Gates screamed. "He…"
His words were cut off as Dillon powered up the invincibility shield. The missile detonated, shunting the vehicle forward violently, though with no significant damage. Gates and his cronies were not so lucky though. His jeep was thrown into the air by the explosion. The three villains leapt from the flaming wreckage as it spun out of control. The other transport vehicles skidded to a halt and broke off the pursuit as Gates and his cronies continued on foot, running at impossible speed.
"It looks like we've limited the field at least." Dillon stated as he closed the door behind him.
"That was a little close for comfort." Scott responded.
"Look, we knew that Mandrake would score a direct hit if he took that shot." Dillon told them. "Dr. K told me that the shield was impenetrable as long as we had faith in it."
Dr. K rolled her eyes as was expected of her, but got a little smile to herself as she heard this. Of all the Rangers, Dillon had taken the most convincing to accept her. It had taken a long time for him to show faith in her abilities, and now he had voiced his faith in her. She had already sworn to do everything she could to find a permanent solution to the virus growing through his body. Now she was even more determined to repay his faith in her, faith born from a lie, the fact he didn't know his condition was ultimately her fault to begin with.
"OK, so our main objective is to get Dr. K and dad to the emergency broadcast room." Scott reminded them. "Once they're there, Dr. K will upload the programme, and Dad will broadcast the message. Seeing his resurrection on every TV in Corinth should convince everyone."
"Guys, check this out!" Summer called out, drawing their attention to the scanners. They watched as Gates and his two accomplices ran past their vehicle. However, instead of trying to stop it, or to attack it, they continued onwards, leaving them behind.
"Why are they not attacking?" Scott asked.
"Their ordinance will not be able to stop us." Dr. K reminded him. "They're most likely going to co-ordinate the defence at Central Command."
"Can't this thing go any faster?" Dillon asked Colonel Truman. "We have to get there before they do. We were lucky with the rockets before, I doubt we'll be that lucky if we're driving TOWARDS them, we'll be sitting ducks!"
"This thing weighs 13 tons; I've got the hammer down as far as it'll go." Colonel Truman assured him. "We need to come up with another plan."
"What about my Time Manipulation Burst?" Flynn asked. "I've never tried it on anything as large as a whole vehicle before, but maybe that could give us the time we need to get through the barricade."
"It'll take a lot of energy, but it should work." Dr. K surmised.
"There's one problem Flynn, even if it works the guards won't be able to move." Scott reminded him. "We'd run right over them."
"I guess we need to clear a path then." Summer stated, calling forth the Zip Charger. "Dillon, open the door!"
Summer leant out the door, holding onto the frame. Dillon grabbed her harness, supporting her weight as she leant down towards the tarmac.
"Guys, the welcoming committee's up ahead." Scott told them. "And there are a lot of rockets there."
Summer struck the wheels of the Zip Charger against the hull of the transport, before dropping it onto the tarmac, sending it racing towards the roadblock. It rebounded around the troops with a non-lethal force, sending them flying in all directions.
"That should be enough of a path." She called out as Dillon pulled her back inside. "Flynn, do it NOW!"
He activated his suit's primary power, channelling more of his energies into it than he was used to. The APC hit the staircase, racing into the lobby of the Central Command building and skidding to a halt before time started back on track again.
"Lay down covering fire!" Hicks called out as he and Chas disembarked first, covering Dr. K as she ran for the security door. Colonel Truman left shortly behind her, firing a couple of shots.
"Make sure she gets to the console!" Chas called out to Summer as she and the team got out. "I'll take up the rear."
"Chas, come on!" She beckoned him. "You can't hold out against all of them!"
"Summer, you have a better chance of getting her there safely than I do!" He reminded her as they fell back under a hail of fire. Chas was hit in the right leg, causing him to fall to the floor. Dillon grabbed him and dragged him with them as they retreated through the security doors. Dr. K shut the door behind them, sealing it from the inside as Hicks and Flynn arrived at the rear.
"Chas, you need to wait here." Summer told him. He just shook his head and got back to his feet, limping after them.
"Summer, I owe this to all of you, especially to you." He told her.
"Are you sure you're up to this?" Hicks asked him as they heard a patrol coming towards them. "There are still troops inside, and I doubt it'll take Gates and his friends long to get inside."
"I'm not dead yet." He responded, readying his blaster.
"Dr. K, this way!" Scott commanded as he and the Rangers took her and Dr. K up the stairwell. Hicks and Chas remained to guard the stairs as the patrol arrived.
"You know, I never thought I'd be fighting alongside you." Hicks told him.
"I've lived on my family name for so long." Chas replied as the first troops rounded the corner. "I guess it's time to work for a living."
On the stairs, a couple of troops were making their way down, before being dashed aside by Flynn.
"Dr. K, we're going to have to deal with this. Are you close enough now for Ziggy to get you there?"
"Ziggy's teleportation system should be within range of the emergency broadcasting terminal." She replied. Colonel Truman and Dr. K each grabbed one of his arms as he disappeared from view.
"OK guys, Ziggy will take care of them. It's up to us to give them the time they need." Scott continued, bringing out his Nitro Sword. "Let's buy them time!"
In the emergency broadcast room, Ziggy appeared with Dr. K and Colonel Truman, quickly making his way to the door and sealing it.
"Dr. K, how long until we upload the programme?" Colonel Truman asked her.
"We should be on the air in less than a minute." She replied as she began the upload. She noticed a monitor attached to the security relay, seeing an aircraft landing on the roof. She watched in horror as Gates, Mandrake and Nightshade disembarked. "Let's just hope we last that long."
Colonel Truman got on his radio to contact his son.
"Scott, you've got company on the roof!" He instructed him. "Gates has decided to crash the party."
"Guys, it looks like we get to find out how strong those rigs really are." Scott called out. "We have to stop them getting to the broadcast room."
"Just leave the broadcast to us." Dr. K told him, readying her sonic cannon. "Colonel Truman, you get ready for the broadcast. Ziggy, join the others in battle. They're going to need all the help they can get."