"Soul's Bonds", Chapter 2 (along with some character background)
Thanks again for all of the positive feedback on Chapter 1. :) Here's Chapter 2 for you, but first, a little backstory on the new Green Ranger, Tessie Herdman, since she's being introduced in this chapter. It's not vital enough to include in the main story, and she doesn't play all that big a part in the plot, so I'm including it simply for your interest.
Tessie "Tess" Herdman: Growing up in rural Kentucky, Tessie was the youngest of 5 siblings and always wanted to make her mark on the world, feeling like her destiny was elsewhere. She moved to Newtech City to attend Newtech University when she graduated high school, having craved a drastic change in scenery. About halfway through her freshman year (and 6 months before the SPD series begins), she met Bridge when he unintentionally saved her from being encased in ice during a monster attack- he'd gotten lost on the way to help Sky and Syd back up A-Squad and literally ran right into Tessie, knocking her out of the way of the monster's ice beam. She still got grazed by it, so Bridge gave her his jacket to warm her up and ran off. This event inspired Tessie to join the Ranger academy when she went to return the jacket, knowing she had found her life's calling as a Space Police officer. At the start of the series, she was near the top of D-Squad and rose steadily in SPD throughout the timeline of the series. By "Endings" she was the top-ranked cadet in C-Squad and so was promoted to B-Squad about a month after the series ended. She became Green Ranger after Z and Syd both refused the position, happy where they were, though Syd functions as third in command when the situation warrants it. Tessie also endured S.W.A.T. training after she was promoted.
Initially, she was isolated from her teammates due to shyness (she hero-worships her senior teammates and never expected to find herself one of them) but quickly got over it and developed a close friendship with fellow female teammates Z and Syd. She looks up to Sky and Bridge as older brothers and feels a special attachment to Bridge for saving her life (he also helped her get over her lack of confidence as a D-Squad cadet). Though not as physically adept as her teammates (she has great physical strength, but poor endurance) Tessie is great with computers and very intelligent.
Just one author's note here: Yes, Sky keeps a journal. :) He just seems like the type.
Chapter 2 (Sky)
Extract from the journal of Sky Tate
External communications are still down, but thankfully, most of the other systems are back up. Things have calmed down a lot here, and now we're all starting to feel bad for being so hard on Bridge, especially Commander Cruger. We were all in bad moods for one reason or the other, and Cruger had to admit that wanting Bridge to upgrade everything at once might have been an unreasonable expectation, and that he unjustly punished him when it went wrong. Bridge hasn't been seen at the base since Cruger kicked him out, but I'm not all that worried; as a trained SPD officer, he can take care of himself on the street. Most likely he's visiting his mom in the suburbs or has gone to hang out with Jack and lost track of the time, and will come wandering in around midnight. He'll come back, help us finish fixing the computer systems, and life will go on. It always does.
Well, it's time for me to go to bed; somehow, fixing computers can be more exhausting than physical training, so I'm very glad I don't have to be on night watch tonight. That honor goes to Tessie, the Green Ranger, who was promoted from C-Squad after Jack left. Nice girl, though she can be a bit overeager at times.
I woke up to sunlight pouring in through my window and insistent pounding on the door of the room I shared with Bridge. I sat up and immediately looked over at his bed; it was empty and neatly made, as it had been when I'd gone to bed the previous night. Strange. Normally, he'd still be fast asleep at this time of the morning...
"Sky," called a voice outside my door, interrupting my train of thought. "You up?"
"Yes, no thanks to pounding on my door," I said pointedly, and the knocking hand was silenced. Yawning, I stretched before I got up and answered the door, admitting Boom. "Morning, Boom. What's up?"
"Good morning, Sky. Uhm, Commander Cruger wanted me to come ask you if you've heard from or seen Bridge lately," he replied, fidgeting.
"He's not here in the base?" I asked, scratching my head, then looked over at Bridge's bed again. "Explains why his bed is neat... no, I haven't seen him since yesterday. Have you asked around to find out where he is?"
"Yeah, we've looked all over for him. Z was the last person in the base to see him, and that was shortly after he got... well, kicked out yesterday," Boom explained. "Piggy saw him on the street about half an hour later, but after that, no trace of him anywhere. He never came back to base, according to the security cameras. We even tried calling his mom to see if he went to visit her. No luck. He left his morpher here, so we can't track him through that."
"Man. That's not like him, to just pick up and vanish like that," I said, biting my lip and getting a sinking feeling of guilt in my stomach. "I know he must be upset because of how we treated him yesterday, but he wouldn't just run away."
"Exactly," said Boom, shifting from one foot to the other. "I think the Commander's going to call you guys together soon to decide what to do."
"OK. You calm down," I said, smiling bravely at him. "I'm sure it's something simple. Get back to work, alright, Boom? Thanks for the update." Boom nodded and shuffled off, still looking worried. I frowned at his back as I closed my door and began getting dressed, soon deep in thought. So, what COULD have happened to Bridge? I kept trying not to think of the worse case scenario- that he had been killed while unarmed, or taken captive- telling myself that there was a simple explanation, but horrible images kept running through my mind. I shoved them aside, shaking my head violently as I went to breakfast. "Assuming the worst won't do you or him any good right now," I reminded myself. "Wait for orders. Start fretting when something actually happens." As I came into the rec room, I saw the rest of my fellow Rangers, Tessie, Z, and Syd, seated around a table in one corner, engaged in conversation. I got a bowl of cereal from the synthesizer and walked over to them. "Ladies," I said politely. "May I join you?"
"Sure," said Syd, scooting into the empty seat next to her and allowing me to sit down. There were a few moments of awkward silence before she asked me, "I assume you haven't heard from Bridge, either?"
"Nope," I said, adding sugar to my cereal. "But I'm not very worried yet."
"Nobody has seen him for over twelve hours, and he's without a weapon or his morpher," Z reminded me darkly. "I'd say those are good reasons to worry, Sky."
"What are we going to do about it?" Tessie asked, trying and failing to hide her eagerness. She had been promoted to fill the empty spot of the Green Ranger a few weeks after Jack's departure (Syd and Z had both declined the position, happy where they were). She had been top in her class in C-Squad and deeply admired all of us, always willing to learn from our experiences. She was tall and stocky, with shoulder-length brown hair and glasses, behind which her blue eyes glinted with excitement.
"Nothing, until the Commander gives us orders," I replied, rubbing the back of my head. "I admit, we've never been in this kind of situation as long as I've been here, so I'm not quite sure what we're going to do. Bridge DID disappear once before, but that time he at least had his morpher so he could communicate with us. Protocol..."
"Protocol states that, unless there's been a ransom demand from the kidnapper, in which case SPD will appear to meet the kidnapper's demands but in reality attempt to rescue the hostage, the remaining Rangers conduct a search of the nearby city for any signs of the missing officer," Tessie interruped breathlessly. "If he or she is not located within a reasonable amount of time-"
"Enough," I laughed. "You've been studying, haven't you?" She nodded, flushed with embarassment. "It's okay. I was the same way in your position. Still do know the rule book back-to-front, actually." Before anybody else could speak, an announcement came from a speaker above our heads.
"All Power Rangers report to the command center at once. Repeat, all Rangers to the command center."
"Uh-oh. Come on, ladies," I said, getting up and abandoning my breakfast; we all hurried toward Delta Command, where Cruger and Kat were awaiting our arrival, looking very serious. We saluted the Commander and he nodded to Kat, who closed all of the doors, leaving us alone. We waited, but both were silent for several minutes, Commander Cruger pacing back and forth. I had very rarely seen him look worried, and this was one of those times. "Sir, what's going on?" I pressed.
"We've received a communication from someone who claims to have kidnapped Cadet Carson," said Cruger gravely.
"Kidnapped him?" repeated Z.
"Is there any proof that they're telling the truth?" Syd asked.
"Yes. These were delivered to Commander Cruger this morning," said Kat, laying several objects on the console before us- a blue plaid overshirt I knew to belong to Bridge (which had a few holes in it and was stained with blood) a letter, and a photograph. "Before you ask, we've tried getting some sort of fingerprint or DNA from them. Nothing... whoever sent these was very careful to not leave any identifying evidence. The blood on the shirt belongs to Bridge, so that's no help, either." I gingerly picked up the photograph to look at it and swore aloud. It was of a terrified Bridge, bound and gagged, with a sword pressed against his throat. As I passed it on to Z, I asked the Commander,
"What will we do next, sir? Were there any ransom demands?"
"Yes, there were," he said, continuing to pace. "Of course, our policy is to not negotiate with kidnappers if possible, but in this situation, we are facing an unknown. We have no way to track Bridge since he doesn't have his morpher on him. We also have no idea who- or what- is holding him. His life could be in serious danger, so we must proceed with the utmost caution." He stopped and looked around at us, then addressed Tessie, who was looking rather ill. "Cadet Herdman, I know you were unexpectedly promoted to B-Squad only recently. I realize as well that you have next to no practical training for this type of situation, and reading something in a book is different from actually doing it. Therefore, if you wish to sit this mission out, I completely understand." Z, Syd and I all looked over at her expectantly. She looked back at us before bowing her head.
"I'm fine, sir," she gulped. "Lack of experience isn't much of an excuse to not do my duty, and doin' it firsthand is the best way to learn, right? I signed up for this job, so I'll do what I've been asked. I'll do my best. I won't let you down."
"Good answer," said Cruger. "We will need all the help we can get. Now, Cadet Herdman, I've been told you have great attention to detail, a good deal of patience, and a photographic memory, correct?" Tessie nodded, blushing at the compliments. "Time to put these skills to the test. Rangers, all of your other duties are suspended. Search the city and try to find some sort of clue as to where Bridge is. Do not utilize any contacts outside the base except for Jack Landors, Ally Samuels, and Piggy just yet- the last thing we want is the criminal underworld knowing there's a Ranger missing. Since out-of-base communications are, unfortunately, still down, you will need to report back here in person. If you notice any sort of unusual activity, or if you have a stroke of luck and find Bridge, come back here immediately. As his captor is an unknown entity, any rescue attempts will be carefully planned. Understood?" All of us saluted, and the Commander nodded approvingly. "Then I leave the search in your capable hands, my B-Squad. Remember, report back to Dr. Manx or myself frequently, and if you find Bridge, do not attempt rescue until we know more. Hopefully this incident will be over with quickly." The four of us left to begin our search.
Tessie "Tess" Herdman: Growing up in rural Kentucky, Tessie was the youngest of 5 siblings and always wanted to make her mark on the world, feeling like her destiny was elsewhere. She moved to Newtech City to attend Newtech University when she graduated high school, having craved a drastic change in scenery. About halfway through her freshman year (and 6 months before the SPD series begins), she met Bridge when he unintentionally saved her from being encased in ice during a monster attack- he'd gotten lost on the way to help Sky and Syd back up A-Squad and literally ran right into Tessie, knocking her out of the way of the monster's ice beam. She still got grazed by it, so Bridge gave her his jacket to warm her up and ran off. This event inspired Tessie to join the Ranger academy when she went to return the jacket, knowing she had found her life's calling as a Space Police officer. At the start of the series, she was near the top of D-Squad and rose steadily in SPD throughout the timeline of the series. By "Endings" she was the top-ranked cadet in C-Squad and so was promoted to B-Squad about a month after the series ended. She became Green Ranger after Z and Syd both refused the position, happy where they were, though Syd functions as third in command when the situation warrants it. Tessie also endured S.W.A.T. training after she was promoted.
Initially, she was isolated from her teammates due to shyness (she hero-worships her senior teammates and never expected to find herself one of them) but quickly got over it and developed a close friendship with fellow female teammates Z and Syd. She looks up to Sky and Bridge as older brothers and feels a special attachment to Bridge for saving her life (he also helped her get over her lack of confidence as a D-Squad cadet). Though not as physically adept as her teammates (she has great physical strength, but poor endurance) Tessie is great with computers and very intelligent.
Just one author's note here: Yes, Sky keeps a journal. :) He just seems like the type.
Chapter 2 (Sky)
Extract from the journal of Sky Tate
External communications are still down, but thankfully, most of the other systems are back up. Things have calmed down a lot here, and now we're all starting to feel bad for being so hard on Bridge, especially Commander Cruger. We were all in bad moods for one reason or the other, and Cruger had to admit that wanting Bridge to upgrade everything at once might have been an unreasonable expectation, and that he unjustly punished him when it went wrong. Bridge hasn't been seen at the base since Cruger kicked him out, but I'm not all that worried; as a trained SPD officer, he can take care of himself on the street. Most likely he's visiting his mom in the suburbs or has gone to hang out with Jack and lost track of the time, and will come wandering in around midnight. He'll come back, help us finish fixing the computer systems, and life will go on. It always does.
Well, it's time for me to go to bed; somehow, fixing computers can be more exhausting than physical training, so I'm very glad I don't have to be on night watch tonight. That honor goes to Tessie, the Green Ranger, who was promoted from C-Squad after Jack left. Nice girl, though she can be a bit overeager at times.
I woke up to sunlight pouring in through my window and insistent pounding on the door of the room I shared with Bridge. I sat up and immediately looked over at his bed; it was empty and neatly made, as it had been when I'd gone to bed the previous night. Strange. Normally, he'd still be fast asleep at this time of the morning...
"Sky," called a voice outside my door, interrupting my train of thought. "You up?"
"Yes, no thanks to pounding on my door," I said pointedly, and the knocking hand was silenced. Yawning, I stretched before I got up and answered the door, admitting Boom. "Morning, Boom. What's up?"
"Good morning, Sky. Uhm, Commander Cruger wanted me to come ask you if you've heard from or seen Bridge lately," he replied, fidgeting.
"He's not here in the base?" I asked, scratching my head, then looked over at Bridge's bed again. "Explains why his bed is neat... no, I haven't seen him since yesterday. Have you asked around to find out where he is?"
"Yeah, we've looked all over for him. Z was the last person in the base to see him, and that was shortly after he got... well, kicked out yesterday," Boom explained. "Piggy saw him on the street about half an hour later, but after that, no trace of him anywhere. He never came back to base, according to the security cameras. We even tried calling his mom to see if he went to visit her. No luck. He left his morpher here, so we can't track him through that."
"Man. That's not like him, to just pick up and vanish like that," I said, biting my lip and getting a sinking feeling of guilt in my stomach. "I know he must be upset because of how we treated him yesterday, but he wouldn't just run away."
"Exactly," said Boom, shifting from one foot to the other. "I think the Commander's going to call you guys together soon to decide what to do."
"OK. You calm down," I said, smiling bravely at him. "I'm sure it's something simple. Get back to work, alright, Boom? Thanks for the update." Boom nodded and shuffled off, still looking worried. I frowned at his back as I closed my door and began getting dressed, soon deep in thought. So, what COULD have happened to Bridge? I kept trying not to think of the worse case scenario- that he had been killed while unarmed, or taken captive- telling myself that there was a simple explanation, but horrible images kept running through my mind. I shoved them aside, shaking my head violently as I went to breakfast. "Assuming the worst won't do you or him any good right now," I reminded myself. "Wait for orders. Start fretting when something actually happens." As I came into the rec room, I saw the rest of my fellow Rangers, Tessie, Z, and Syd, seated around a table in one corner, engaged in conversation. I got a bowl of cereal from the synthesizer and walked over to them. "Ladies," I said politely. "May I join you?"
"Sure," said Syd, scooting into the empty seat next to her and allowing me to sit down. There were a few moments of awkward silence before she asked me, "I assume you haven't heard from Bridge, either?"
"Nope," I said, adding sugar to my cereal. "But I'm not very worried yet."
"Nobody has seen him for over twelve hours, and he's without a weapon or his morpher," Z reminded me darkly. "I'd say those are good reasons to worry, Sky."
"What are we going to do about it?" Tessie asked, trying and failing to hide her eagerness. She had been promoted to fill the empty spot of the Green Ranger a few weeks after Jack's departure (Syd and Z had both declined the position, happy where they were). She had been top in her class in C-Squad and deeply admired all of us, always willing to learn from our experiences. She was tall and stocky, with shoulder-length brown hair and glasses, behind which her blue eyes glinted with excitement.
"Nothing, until the Commander gives us orders," I replied, rubbing the back of my head. "I admit, we've never been in this kind of situation as long as I've been here, so I'm not quite sure what we're going to do. Bridge DID disappear once before, but that time he at least had his morpher so he could communicate with us. Protocol..."
"Protocol states that, unless there's been a ransom demand from the kidnapper, in which case SPD will appear to meet the kidnapper's demands but in reality attempt to rescue the hostage, the remaining Rangers conduct a search of the nearby city for any signs of the missing officer," Tessie interruped breathlessly. "If he or she is not located within a reasonable amount of time-"
"Enough," I laughed. "You've been studying, haven't you?" She nodded, flushed with embarassment. "It's okay. I was the same way in your position. Still do know the rule book back-to-front, actually." Before anybody else could speak, an announcement came from a speaker above our heads.
"All Power Rangers report to the command center at once. Repeat, all Rangers to the command center."
"Uh-oh. Come on, ladies," I said, getting up and abandoning my breakfast; we all hurried toward Delta Command, where Cruger and Kat were awaiting our arrival, looking very serious. We saluted the Commander and he nodded to Kat, who closed all of the doors, leaving us alone. We waited, but both were silent for several minutes, Commander Cruger pacing back and forth. I had very rarely seen him look worried, and this was one of those times. "Sir, what's going on?" I pressed.
"We've received a communication from someone who claims to have kidnapped Cadet Carson," said Cruger gravely.
"Kidnapped him?" repeated Z.
"Is there any proof that they're telling the truth?" Syd asked.
"Yes. These were delivered to Commander Cruger this morning," said Kat, laying several objects on the console before us- a blue plaid overshirt I knew to belong to Bridge (which had a few holes in it and was stained with blood) a letter, and a photograph. "Before you ask, we've tried getting some sort of fingerprint or DNA from them. Nothing... whoever sent these was very careful to not leave any identifying evidence. The blood on the shirt belongs to Bridge, so that's no help, either." I gingerly picked up the photograph to look at it and swore aloud. It was of a terrified Bridge, bound and gagged, with a sword pressed against his throat. As I passed it on to Z, I asked the Commander,
"What will we do next, sir? Were there any ransom demands?"
"Yes, there were," he said, continuing to pace. "Of course, our policy is to not negotiate with kidnappers if possible, but in this situation, we are facing an unknown. We have no way to track Bridge since he doesn't have his morpher on him. We also have no idea who- or what- is holding him. His life could be in serious danger, so we must proceed with the utmost caution." He stopped and looked around at us, then addressed Tessie, who was looking rather ill. "Cadet Herdman, I know you were unexpectedly promoted to B-Squad only recently. I realize as well that you have next to no practical training for this type of situation, and reading something in a book is different from actually doing it. Therefore, if you wish to sit this mission out, I completely understand." Z, Syd and I all looked over at her expectantly. She looked back at us before bowing her head.
"I'm fine, sir," she gulped. "Lack of experience isn't much of an excuse to not do my duty, and doin' it firsthand is the best way to learn, right? I signed up for this job, so I'll do what I've been asked. I'll do my best. I won't let you down."
"Good answer," said Cruger. "We will need all the help we can get. Now, Cadet Herdman, I've been told you have great attention to detail, a good deal of patience, and a photographic memory, correct?" Tessie nodded, blushing at the compliments. "Time to put these skills to the test. Rangers, all of your other duties are suspended. Search the city and try to find some sort of clue as to where Bridge is. Do not utilize any contacts outside the base except for Jack Landors, Ally Samuels, and Piggy just yet- the last thing we want is the criminal underworld knowing there's a Ranger missing. Since out-of-base communications are, unfortunately, still down, you will need to report back here in person. If you notice any sort of unusual activity, or if you have a stroke of luck and find Bridge, come back here immediately. As his captor is an unknown entity, any rescue attempts will be carefully planned. Understood?" All of us saluted, and the Commander nodded approvingly. "Then I leave the search in your capable hands, my B-Squad. Remember, report back to Dr. Manx or myself frequently, and if you find Bridge, do not attempt rescue until we know more. Hopefully this incident will be over with quickly." The four of us left to begin our search.