The Terran Ranger Saga Volume 4 by Heather Ray (ebook reader browser txt) 📖

After wandering aimlessly through the vast underground palace of the alien being Coppelius, Tanya, Agatha, and Henry Sloan finally find the spacious laboratory. Agatha and Henry gasped as they gaze upon the machines before them. There was a large, long table, covered with beakers filled with labeled chemicals of all types. Lights flashed from the consoles of many computers, and in the far corner was a large view screen, showing the present fight between the Power Rangers and the Sandman. Henry and Agatha were amazed by the technology spread out before them, but Tanya had seen such technology in the Power Chamber. She looked over the consoles carefully, searching for something that resembled the teleporter in the Power Chamber.

"There must be a teleporter here somewhere," she muttered angrily, scanning the many consoles with her eyes. She found a suspicious red button, and looked at it curiously.

"It's always the red button," she decided, as she pressed the button with her index finger. The wall opened, revealing a secret room within. The Sloan family walked into the chamber, and were all awestruck. Inside, was a table just long enough for a person to lie upon. It was connected with various tubes and wires to a control panel. That panel was connected to a large glass cylinder, about seven feet high. Tanya gasped as she noticed there was a body inside. She peered at it intensely, and her eyes widened.

"Its...me

?" she gasped.

"Its Ligeia," Agatha whispered, "Coppelius must've placed her in suspended animation!"

"Amazing," said Henry. He then frowned, and glanced at Tanya. "Tanya," he said, "Coppelius plans on using your body to bring Ligeia back to the living. Now is our chance to foil his plans!"

"What do you mean?" asked Tanya.

"We must destroy this machine! It's the only way to stop him from killing you!"

"But," said Tanya, gazing at Ligeia, "if we destroy the machine, we'll kill her !"

"She's already dead," said Agatha solemnly, "Coppelius just can't bring himself to believe it, but there is no science that can bring her back. Even if there was, is it fair to rob Ligeia of peace?"

"No," said Tanya.

"And no matter how powerful Sandman is, he is not God. He has no right to take your life and exchange it for one long dead."

"You're right," said Tanya, taking a look around the dimly lit chamber. She located a wooden table, covered with flasks of various chemicals. She ran over to the table, and kicked it over, spilling all the chemicals onto the stone floor. Her parents watched as she grabbed one of the wooden legs, and held her hand above the leg, aiming carefully.

"My friend Adam taught me this," she said, focusing on the leg. With a mighty chop, she cleanly broke through the wood, effectively creating a wooden staff. She picked up the staff, and carefully eyed the glass tube Ligeia was in.

"I don't think you'll be able to break through this glass," said Agatha. "It looks rather thick."

"Right," said Henry, "but perhaps you can destroy the main console."

"Good idea," said Tanya, hurrying to the computer console connected to the entire machine. "Step back, guys."

Henry and Agatha stepped towards the door to the main laboratory, while Tanya rose the wooden beam high. She slammed the heavy beam on the computer console over and over again, each time seriously damaging the delicate machinery. Sparks flew throughout the chamber, but Tanya paid no heed, focusing all her attention to the destruction of the device. She didn't notice the sparks that flew across the room, and struck the spilled chemicals that fell earlier. The sparks quickly started a chemical fire, with noxious fumes.

"Tanya!" gasped Agatha, covering her mouth. "Get out of there!"

Tanya turned around, and saw the flames spreading through the dark chamber like wildfire. She was soon surrounded by flames, in the far end of the room.

"Tanya, no!" coughed Henry desperately, trying to fight his way through the fire. But there was no way to reach his daughter.

"Dad!" said Tanya urgently, "Mom! Get outta here, now! See if you can get help!"

Henry and Agatha nodded, and hurried through the main laboratory as quickly as they could. Tanya backed away from the powerful flames, and winded up trapped against the yellow wall. She watched as the flames consumed everything in their path, and soon, they reached the device Ligeia was connected to. The bed quickly burned to ash, and the heat slowly melted the cylinder.

Maybe the water in Ligeia's chamber will quench the flames!

Tanya thought hopefully. She held her breath as the clear liquid burst through the weakened glass, streaming into the flaming room. But instead of dousing the flames, they only increased in intensity. Tanya shrieked in alarm.

"It wasn't water! That liquid must've been some flammable chemical!"

Tanya ripped a piece of her dress, and covered her nose and mouth with it. She then stepped back from the flames, with her back against the wall.

My only chance is to contact the rangers! I wonder if they can hear me from outside...

Tanya raised the communicator to her mouth, and waved the smoke from her face.

The Sandman stood atop the mountain of yellow sand, beneath which lied the Power Rangers. He chuckled, and put his wrinkled hands in his trench-coat pockets.

"Now my front yard will serve as a tomb for the mighty Power Rangers of Earth," he said, a cold grin on his face. "They must have suffocated by now."

Suddenly, the yellow sand appeared to give off a golden glow. Sandman leaped off the dune and watched in surprise as the sand was thrown in all directions by some faint gold energy. The Power Rangers all rose to their feet, with the Gold Ranger being helped up by the Red Ranger.

"Good job, Kimberly," he said. "Are you gonna be okay?"

"Yeah," she assured, "that telekinetic burst just took a lot outta me."

"And now, it's time to take a lot out of the Sandman!" exclaimed the Silver Ranger. "Light Lance, power up!"

A silver staff with a prism on either side appeared in Zack's hand, and he charged at the Sandman. The Sandman laughed as his hand took the shape of a sword. The other rangers could see Zack needed help.

"Wow," said Katherine, "Sandman's good!"

"Then we need to get involved," said Tommy. "Flame Sab --"

Tommy was surprised when a six tone signal from his communicator interrupted him.

"I'll answer," said Tommy, turning to his friends. "The rest of you, help Zack!"

"Right!" said Aisha, her Wind Shield taking shape in her hand. "Let's rock!"

Katherine, Kimberly, and Jason summoned their weapons -- the Ice Daggers, Thunderbow, and Earth Sword-- and joined the fight against Sandman. Tommy immediately pulled back his glove to reveal his wrist communicator.

"What's up, Billy?"

^It's...not Billy,^

came a weak voice. ^It's... Tanya...^

"Tanya?!" said Tommy in surprise and alarm. "Where are you? You don't sound so good."

^I'm in... Coppelius' lab,^

she gasped. ^The fire --^

Tanya then fell into a fit of coughs. Tommy glanced at the palace, searching for some smoke pouring from a window, to show where the laboratory was. Tommy's dread increased when he realized there wasn't any smoke.

That can only mean one thing -- the laboratory doesn't have

a window! Without ventilation, the smoke'll kill Tanya before the flames get to her!

Tommy was subsequently knocked off his feet by a wave of sand, which Sandman created to wash away the Power Rangers. Since Tommy was the furthest away from Sandman when the wave was created, he wasn't buried like his friends were. He rose to his feet, and leaped at Sandman.

There's no way I can find the lab in time,

Tommy concluded, Tanya's only chance is the Sandman himself!

"So," said Sandman with a cruel chuckle. "You're willing to face me alone, Red Ranger? You'll leave your friends to suffocate under my sand?"

"They won't suffocate," said Tommy confidently. "However, if you don't do something soon, your laboratory will be toast for good."

"What do you mean?" asked Sandman, dropping his fighting stance.

"Tanya paged me. She's trapped inside your lab, and it's on fire. You're the only one that can save her...and everything inside your laboratory."

The Sandman's confident grin fell sharply, leaving a visage of fear and horror.

"No!" he cried, vanishing from his spot, "Ligeia!!"

Tommy blinked under his helmet, and watched the creature completely disappear. He then turned around to see all five of his fellow rangers dusting themselves off from the sand.

"What happened to Sandman?" asked Jason.

"And what did Billy say?" added Aisha.

"That wasn't Billy, it was Tanya," explained Tommy, starting to run towards the sand castle, "She's trapped somewhere in this castle, in Sandman's lab. I told Sandman about it, hoping he'd be able to stop the fire and save her. There's no way we'll be able to find the lab before she chokes on all the smoke."

"Did she say anything about her parents?" asked Katherine. "They must be somewhere inside the palace too! Is she with them?"

"I don't know," admitted Tommy, leaping over the moat of lava.l "That's why we're going in!" The remaining rangers followed their leader across the moat and into the palace. They found themselves in a long hallway, with paintings along the walls.

"Hello?" called Tommy down the hallway, "Mr and Mrs Sloan!! We're here to save you!"

"This palace is huge," said Aisha frustratedly. "There's no way we'll find them!"

"Maybe we should split up," suggested Jason. "We'd be able to cover more ground that way."

"Good idea," said Tommy, "Kim, Aisha and I will go left, Jason, Zack, and Kat will go right."

The six teens separated, moving as quickly as they could through the empty hallways.

Sandman appeared inside his main laboratory, now in the form of Coppelius. As he