Time Bomb

Chapter 02

by Richard Ryley

The trip to Prairie was uneventful, and the Rangers and their Kiwi ally were soon walking along the paved walks and manicured lawns of the campus of the College of Prairie. Several students could be seen on the grounds, walking between classes, or sitting out in the grass studying.

The native sentients of the planet, wolf-like creatures called Lycans, could also be seen around the campus. Many of them walked alongside the students as they went from class to class, or sat outside of a classroom, waiting. While Lycans were intelligent creatures, far more intelligent than a domesticated dog, their innate loyalty and devotion to the humans that befriended them made them excellent guardians.

The doors swung open on a nearby building, and a crowd of students stepped out into the sunlight, heading off in all directions. One of them, a young girl in a green outfit, with her hair up in spikes, stopped to pet the Lycan waiting for her on the steps. It gave her a bark of welcome, and then she and some of her friends turned to head off across the campus. Then, suddenly, she spotted the Galaxy Rangers.

"GOOSE!" The girl yelled, a girlish tone to her voice. She ran across the lawn towards Gooseman, while her friend, who had the same spiky hair, but in blue, pulled aside another girl. The third girl also seemed to recognize the Ranger, as her friend pointed him out, and they joined the first girl in running across the lawn.

"It's so good to see you again!" The girl said, her eyes sparkling as she looked up at the blonde Ranger. Gooseman glanced at Doc, clearly confused, and more than a little embarrassed. The second girl quickly took his other arm, and Shane looked down at her, completely flustered.

"Who... What..." he stuttered.

"What are you doing back so soon?" "Where's Eve?" "You look hungry... you wanna get something to eat?" "Who's your cute friend?"

The third girl had latched onto Doc's arm. "Don't look at me, my Gooseman..." Doc commented. "You're the one with the reputation..."

He glanced down at the girl. "Aren't you a little young for a guy like me?" He asked with a grin.

The girl tittered. "You're so funny..." She cooed, and held the Ranger's arm tighter. Doc sighed.

The Lycan, approaching the group, seemed no less excited to see Goose. But as he neared, he suddenly stopped dead. His ears went back as he lowered his head, growling. In a single, rapid bound, he shoved himself between Gooseman and the girl in green, shoving her away from him.

"Max! Stop that!" The girl in green admonished the wolf. She started to reach out to Gooseman, but the Lycan shoved her back again, eyeing the blonde Ranger suspiciously. "Max! This is Goose! Remember Goose? What is WRONG with you!"

Shane began to back away, holding both hands up in front of him. "It's all right, Max. I won't hurt your friend."

"That's right," Buzzwang added. He took a step forward. "Perhaps I will be less threatening, Ranger Gooseman," he said, then extended a hand to the Lycan.

The wolf stared at the android. Its eyes narrowed, and it began to back away from him, its ears back on its head. Buzzwang wisely withdrew his hand, but Zozo stepped forward. "Lycans always like me," he said, and knelt in front of the animal, extending both arms. "See! We're friends!"

Max barked at him, loudly, causing the little Kiwi to jump back. The wolf then ran around behind the girl. It grabbed her by the arm, trying to drag her away, and she cried out. "MAX! STOP! You're hurting me!"

The Lycan let go immediately. He ran back around in front of the girl, putting himself between her and the Galaxy Rangers. He looked at Goose, Zozo, and Buzzwang, finally staring at the android's badge for a long moment.

Max began barking at Buzzwang, warningly. He kept looking back at his friend, as if frustrated that she could not understand what he was saying. The way he was barking at Buzz, it was almost as if he was telling him, as firmly as possible, to do something.

Doc smiled. It suddenly occurred to him that the dog sounded just like Walsh did when he was barking orders. He decided not to voice that unflattering comparison, though. "These Lycan's are a lot smarter than most people realize," he said. "He clearly knows something, but he just can't tell us what it is."

"Max..." The girl was really starting to get flustered. "You're embarrassing me."

The wolf gave her an apologetic look. It glanced back at Gooseman, and then up at the young girl. It then barked, slowly and carefully, still trying to make itself understood.

"Try gestures, Max..." Buzzwang said. "We know that you sense that something is wrong. We just don't understand what it is..."

The Lycan stared at him for a moment. He looked at the android's chest, obviously at his badge. He then looked at Goose, and then at his badge. Quite pointedly, it sniffed the air. It shook its head, then looked at the android again.

Buzzwang looked at Gooseman, then back at the wolf. "I believe I have it, Ranger Gooseman. When we arrived, these girls greeted us. But you do not know them, do you?"

Goose looked decidedly uncomfortable. "Well... no..."

"WHAT!" The girl said, clearly angry. "HOW CAN YOU..."

Buzzwang put up his hand. "Young lady, how long ago did you last see Ranger Gooseman?"

"Not three days ago," she snapped, "So you can forget whatever kinda..."

"Please, miss..." Buzzwang interrupted. "For the past week, Ranger Gooseman, Ranger Hartford and myself have been on Earth, several light years from here. There is no way you could have met with him within that time."

The girl's mouth fell open. "But..." she looked up at Goose, and the look of confusion on his face finally registered with her. She put a hand to her mouth. "You really don't know me, do you?"

The Lycan, meanwhile, was looking the Goose over, as well. Buzzwang glanced down at the wolf, then back at his fellow Ranger. "Max was able to sense that you were not the Ranger Gooseman he met before," Buzzwang continued. "He must have concluded that you were an impostor. But since you have been with us all this time, I consider it more likely that the Ranger Gooseman that the girls met is the impostor. Since his appearance coincided with the disappearance of Eve Wheiner, we must conclude that he took on your form to kidnap her."

"EVE!" The girl's eyes got huge, as she stared at the android, holding both hands up to her mouth. "Oh, my God..."

"Well, that explains that," Doc said. "Don't worry, miss. We're here to get Eve back. I assume you know her..."

She nodded. "I'm Eve's roommate... My name's Deborah. And this is Annie and Julie." She indicated the two girls. "And Max you already know..."

The dog sat down in front of Gooseman. He looked up at him, uttering a short "wuf", clearly satisfied. Goose scowled at the dog, then turned to Buzzwang.

"Check with the spaceport, see if there have been any mysterious takeoffs or landings within the last three days. And see if Eve Wheiner is listed as a passenger on any ship leaving this sector."

"Right away!" Buzzwang's communicator unfolded from his wrist, and he began to chatter with a spaceport official on the other side of the line.

Shane looked back at Debbie. "How long ago did Eve leave with this impostor?"

"Right after he arrived," she answered. "He said something about her father wanting her to come home. Which I thought was fishy... I mean, he SENT her out here, didn't he?"

"It was obviously a trap for her," Doc said. "Eve was supposed to have stolen an important disk from her father's safe. The disk was stolen yesterday."

"There must be some mistake!" Debbie protested. "Eve would NEVER steal anything!" Her friends both nodded, agreeing.

"I have the information you wanted, Ranger Gooseman," Buzzwang cut in. "There is a flight plan registered for an Eve Wheiner from Prairie to Earth, three days ago. No passengers were reported, only Eve herself. According to the records, she returned to Prairie two hours ago, landing at Runway Alpha."

"If this guy could impersonate you," the girl named Julie said, "maybe he could impersonate Eve, too..."

"Is the ship still there?"

"Yes." Buzzwang paused. "But it's not registered to Eve OR her father. The ship is registered to YOU... Shane Gooseman."

Debbie whistled. "This guy has a lot of gall."

Shane nodded. "This impostor... he looked just like me?"

"Yeah..." The young girl wrapped her arms around herself. "Eve recognized him... well, you... right away. And he even... well, he even had Series 5 implant powers." She looked up at Goose. "Your powers."

"There's only one person in the Galaxy who has the same powers as you, my Gooseman," Doc said.

Shane's eyes narrowed to mere slits as he growled the name. "Ryker Kilbane..."

Time Bomb - Chapter 02

From Betamountain.org

Time Bomb

Chapter 02

by Richard Ryley