New Return of Jetman Episode 4

NEW RETURN OF JETMAN

"Parallel"
(Episode 4)
by Christopher Elam
(based on the work of Lewis Smith)
© 2007 Christopher Elam
Dedicated to Kabuki Katze

 

Jeff Kensaki trudged backstage with his guitar slung over his shoulder, accepting congratulations of "good show" from the handful of people who still pretended to care. How had things gotten so bad that playing regular shows at a ramshackle club like this was the best that he could do?

Years ago, the future had been bright. He had set out to achieve rock 'n' roll fame and maybe - just maybe - get closer to his idol. His heroes in Pink Floyd, AC/DC, and Iron Maiden had made it all look easy, to his eyes. He, on the other hand, had come up short time and again. It had been bad enough when his band had broken up. But that had only been the beginning of the downturn of his fortunes. Now, he had been reduced to taking any gig he was offered, and working odd jobs to make ends meet.

To make his failures sting all the more, he'd never even seen his idol in person, much less met her. He sometimes hoped for a shooting star to wish on, but even that seemed to elude him.

Jeff ran a hand through his thinning golden hair as he rested his head on the door of the tiny dressing room. Maybe it was finally time to rethink the path of his life. Certainly, he was on the bullet train to nowhere the way it was going. He could still conceivably do something with his life - if he could only figure out exactly what that should be.

Fate, as it turned out, had different plans for Jeff Kensaki that night. As he wearily opened the dressing room door, he was greeted by a caped figure decked out in a shiny helmet and costume. That in itself wasn't particularly disturbing, given the rock scene. The gun he wielded, on the other hand, was cause for alarm.

"Wh-who are you?" Jeff stammered as he backed away.

"I am your destiny," the figure proclaimed as his gun shot out a beam of green energy that struck Jeff full force. The musician collapsed into the dressing room and the door shut behind him.

***

Etsuko Oishi blinked her eyes open, then grimaced. Oh God. She hadn't had a hangover since she'd been in college. It hadn't seemed like that many beers. Apparently, she was quite out of practice.

What exactly had happened the night before? She thought back and remembered sitting around the conference table, drinking beers and talking with...Ken.

Oh...no. What happened after that?

Try as she might, Etsuko couldn't recall. She sat up suddenly and became aware that she had been sleeping on the conference table. What she thought had been bed covers had actually been a blanket laid over her. She was still dressed - that was good - though very disheveled. As she looked around, she noticed Ken Tendo sleeping in his chair at the table.

"Ken," she whispered somewhat loudly. "Ken, wake up."

Ken jerked awake from Etsuko's voice. "Oh...hey. What time is it?"

"I don't know," Etsuko replied. "Why are we still in here?"

Ken looked at his watch and noted it was 5 something or other - in the morning, he supposed. "Well, we were still talking after everyone else turned in for the night. We'd both been doing a little drinking, and I guess we kept it up until we fell asleep. I kinda remember getting that blanket to put over you."

Etsuko looked around nervously. "We didn't...have sex, did we?"

"No!" Ken exclaimed, as he woke up the rest of the way. "I mean, no. I mean...right?"

Etsuko put a hand over her mouth. "I can't do this again!" she sobbed. "I just can't! Why do I have to be so stupid?"

Ken rushed up and put his arms around his friend to comfort her. "Calm down, it's OK. That was all a long time ago. Things are different now."

"You don't understand!" Etsuko pleaded.

"Look, listen to me," Ken said as he held Etsuko by the shoulders. "You stayed up with me because I was feeling depressed about what happened to that girl. Do you remember that?"

"Mika," Etsuko muttered. "Yes, I remember now."

"You were being my friend," Ken reassured. "Maybe a friend who drank too much while she was supporting me, but just a friend. That's all that happened until you nodded off."

"So we didn't...?"

Ken shook his head. "No. I'm about as positive as I can be."

Etsuko relaxed a little. "I guess that's good enough for me. I'm sorry I'm so jumpy, it's just...things have been weird for me the last year or so."

"So I noticed," Ken said. "I know it's none of my business, but if you ever need to talk about it..."

Etsuko gave Ken a wan smile. "Thanks. Maybe one day."

The two embraced for a while longer, and as they did, they looked into each other's eyes for the first time in years. Their resistance worn down, their lips edged closer and closer, each of them wondering if the other would back away. Finally, they kissed - a kiss of two people who had done their best to resist each other and had at last surrendered.

They broke the kiss together, neither of them wanting to draw it out. "It's still really early," Ken reasoned. "We can get this place cleared out and ready for the meeting at 10. Maybe even get some more sleep."

Etsuko nodded, still not sure if any of this was a good idea. "I could use some sleep. But yeah, let's get these beer cans out of here."

As Ken and Etsuko moved away from the conference table, neither of them saw the lone figure hidden in the shadows. One of their friends, long known for insomnia, had happened by during their discussion. Ken and Etsuko couldn't have dreamed that there had been a witness to an exchange that felt forbidden to both of them.

Wordlessly, Kei Mizuno slipped away, her thoughts hers alone.

***

The meeting began at 10 a.m. sharp as the five members of Jetman gathered around their conference table and took their seats. Ken stood to address his peers and introduce the sixth person at the meeting - as if he really needed an introduction to any of them.

"Since I'm pretty deeply involved in this whole mess myself," Ken announced somewhat nervously, "Skyforce and I decided to turn over mission coordination to someone familiar with Skywatch operations."

Shinsei Hinotori stood up on cue as Ken returned to his seat. "Thank you. Ken and I have been working together the last few days to make sure we're fully prepared. Already, the system has been restored to full capacity and we've brought the Jet Weapons back online."

"I'm not happy about staying here," Kei Mizuno sullenly grumbled.

"It's the safest option," Hinotori offered. "If we returned to our homes, any one of us could be targeted - and the Paradox Army has already shown its willingness to do just that. At least here, we have strength in numbers."

"I agree, it's far from ideal," Etsuko said with some trepidation, "but hopefully, it won't be for long."

"I sure hope not!" her brother Gohan piped up. "I have a studio to run, and Nemesis is cramping my style!"

His wife Reiko Hayasaka rolled her eyes, then hoped no one had caught her exasperation. "So...uh, what's our first order of business as Jetman?"

"Well, since we have no concrete leads," Hinotori replied, "we thought it best to investigate the site of Nemesis' appearance to see what we could discover."

"Yeah, search for clues so we can figure out our next move," Ken added.

All of a sudden, a cellphone rang. Everyone looked at each other, then Reiko sheepishly pulled her phone from her pocket. A cursory glance at the number on the display revealed that it was her mother. Reiko sighed and flipped the phone open.

"Hi mom," she greeted lackadaisically. "Can this wai--"

"REIKO!" Ako Hayasaka screeched on the other end. "There's some lunatic! Get help!"

"Mom, what's going on?" Reiko asked, the concern in her voice evident to her friends. Ako's reply was unintelligible amid the cacophony in the background. Then, abruptly, the line went dead.

"She's...gone," Reiko said as her voice trailed off.

Shinsei Hinotori punched up the monitor bank, searching the TV screens for some immediate answer to the fate of Ako Hayasaka. He found it soon enough, as news reader Saburo Iketani breathlessly reported the incident.

"...Witnesses report that the superman, possibly a gaijin, appeared to be middle-aged and was dressed almost entirely in leather except for a ragged T-shirt. He crashed into the D. Jigen Beauty Salon and kidnapped a woman believed to be singer/actress Ako Hayasaka. He took off and was last seen flying in the direction of the Tokyo Dome. To repeat..."

Reiko's bottom lip quivered. "M-m-m-mom...we've got to do something!"

Ken shifted into leadership mode in a heartbeat. "Change of plans. We'll split up - I'll take Reiko and Kei to stop this freak, Etsuko and Gohan can start the investigation. Shinsei will keep watch here."

"Why can't we all go after him?" Gohan objected, unhappy about his assignment for more than one reason.

"If we need you, we'll call," Ken said. "No sense in all of us getting caught up in this if it isn't necessary."

"I just want to save my mom!" Reiko cried.

"We will," Ken promised. "Everyone! Cross Changer!"

Ken Tendo - "Black Condor!"
Gohan Oishi - "Yellow Owl!"
Etsuko Oishi - "White Swan!"
Reiko Hayasaka - "Blue Swallow!"
Kei Mizuno - "Green Wyvern!"
"Chojin Sentai Jetman!" they announced as one.

With their transformations complete, Jetman split up in the hopes of accomplishing both of their missions. They couldn't have known that they were already intertwined.

***

Ako Hayasaka sat on the stage of Korakuen Amusement Park's deserted open-air Sky Theater and regarded her abductor with curiosity. He hadn't made any threats to her at all, not even after he'd landed in the park. On the contrary, he'd wandered a few meters away from her and was pacing back and forth. He seemed to be reciting something to himself, if the movement of his lips was any indication.

Finally, he made his way over to her. Rather inexplicably, he bowed before her. "I'm Jeffrey Kensaki. I'm a half, call me Jeff. You don't know how long I've dreamed of this moment, Ako. I'm your number one fan, you've always been my inspiration. I can't believe I'm finally getting the chance to meet you!"

Ako gave him a look of consternation. "Meet me? You just kidnapped me!"

"No, I mean, I just had to get your attention!" he exclaimed. "See, I just got these powers last night and my first thought was that I had to make up for lost time! I admit you look different than you did in your glory days..."

"It's called getting older."

"...But it doesn't matter! We can still have things the way they're supposed to be!"

Ako stood up slowly, not understanding a word of what Jeff was saying. "What is this? What do you want?"

"Well," Jeff said, "what I'd like to do right now is...THIS!"

Ako instinctively shielded herself with her arm, but soon saw that Jeff had not made any dangerous move. On the contrary, he had materialized his guitar in his right hand. He pulled it down and gave it a few practice strums. Then he sang.

Kishikata ni naru mirai da

Semaru aku no tsume

Oretachi wa ozora no senshi

Gonin yuusha wakaimono

OUR TIME IS NOW!

Jeff looked to his idol for approval. Instead, Ako Hayasaka had had enough. She walked up to him and pressed a finger into his chest.

"That was terrible!" she hollered. "I cannot believe this! You ruin my hair appointment, kidnap me, and then subject me to THAT? What is wrong with you?"

"Well, songwriting isn't my strength," Jeff weakly explained. "If I could have help..."

"You mean, that's it?" an indignant Ako shouted. "This whole thing was about meeting me and wanting my help for your music? Look mister, you're already in enough trouble, so you'd better start acting sensibly."

Jeff's hurt and disappointment morphed into anger with each word. Finally, he could no longer bear the fury that was welling up inside him. He grabbed Ako by the waist and flew both of them to the top of the 80 meter tall Tower Hacker ride.

"You have no idea what it's like, do you?" Jeff seethed as he gripped Ako by the wrist. "To find out that you missed your destiny? It was never supposed to be this way! I was supposed to be the hero! You were supposed to love me! Why did it all go wrong?"

"You're crazy!" a defiant Ako countered.

"Maybe I am," Jeff answered, "but I know you don't have your Birdonic powers anymore. There's no way you can stop me now that I have the Jetman powers that should have been mine long ago!"

In the distance, Black Condor, Blue Swallow, and Green Wyvern became visible as they flew toward the park. Jeff spotted them from his vantage point, and knew they had to see him as well. He smiled a madman's smile.

"Ah, good," he calmly said. "Here come some of those rainbow heads that stole my rightful glory as the new Jetman!"

***

"I hate this," Yellow Owl complained. "I really, really hate this."

"I know what you mean," White Swan replied as the two of them surveyed the site of Nemesis' appearance on Earth. "Still, Ken had his reasons for doing what he did."

"But I should be there!" Owl continued unabated. "If anything happens to Hayasaka Mama-sama, I'll never forgive myself!"

Swan shook her head. "Gohan, please. Reiko and the others will take care of her. Getting bent out of shape about it accomplishes nothing, especially when we're doing important work, too."

"I don't see how," a somewhat resigned Yellow Owl grumbled. "What can our digging around here do that the Skyforce survey team hasn't already done?"

"Maybe plenty," White Swan answered as she took her brother's arm and pointed to the area they were meant to be investigating. "Tell me, do you see any evidence of a meteorite impact?"

"Err, no."

"Exactly," White Swan confirmed. "Nothing indicates there was ever a meteorite, yet it was a meteorite report that brought Funkyman to this site in the first place."

"So, maybe it was Nemesis then?" Owl reasoned.

"No," Swan rejected. "He didn't appear until after they were already in battle with their enemies."

"Maybe it was those enemies then?"

White Swan cocked her head. "No, we already found the remnants of their base beneath this spot, so they were here right from the start. Gohan, how much do you pay attention during these briefings?"

Yellow Owl looked a bit sheepish. "Well, I try, it's just sometimes my mind is on other things."

"Forget it," Swan said. "But do you understand now that this is important? We need to look for some key to crack the mystery of what this is about."

Yellow Owl nodded and he and his sister began the process of searching the vicinity for some clue - any clue - as to what the mystery of Nemesis involved. Owl stumbled on his first anomaly soon enough when he came across a metallic wand of some kind protruding from the ground. He waved his sister over to help him take a closer look.

"What's this?" Owl asked. "Something from Skyforce?"

"No," Swan said. "I don't know, I've never seen anything quite like it before."

"So I see you've found one of the triggers for my 'Cosmic Beartrap'," a smooth voice announced out of nowhere. "A pity I hadn't gotten further along in installing it!"

White Swan and Yellow Owl whirled around to see a man dressed in a uniform very much like their own, only with an unfamiliar silver color scheme. He unholstered a pair of pistols, twirled them on his fingers, and trained both of them on the heroic siblings.

"Who are you?" Swan asked as she pointed at the stranger.

"Silver Raven," the man declared. "The One Man Jetman!"

"Pretty bold, don't you think?" Yellow Owl scoffed.

"Is it?" Silver Raven asked. "I originally come from a parallel universe very similar to this one. In my world, your team was massacred in an early battle with the Chaos Coalition. In desperation, samples of your DNA were spliced together to create a single agent to battle the Chaos. That agent is me - Silver Raven."

"After winning a few skirmishes," Raven continued, "I hit upon the simplest method of ridding myself of those aliens. All I had to do was blow up the Earth, and they retreated!"

Swan and Owl's jaws dropped. "You did what?" Swan asked incredulously.

Silver Raven paid her no mind. "After that, things became a bit dull. So I used the Möbius Drive on my mecha Seven Force - which has seven modes, by the way - to go on something of a tour of the multiverse. That was moderately interesting until I ran across Nemesis and he slew me in battle."

"Ummm, he did what?" Yellow Owl queried, as he spotted his sister slowly moving away from him. Owl deduced that she was going to attempt an attack on this intruder, so he resolved to distract him as best he could.

"Come now," Raven admonished. "Surely you knew that all of the members of the Paradox Army had fallen before Nemesis, and that he used the Omniversal Prism to resurrect us to serve him? Oh, and your ploy isn't working."

Silver Raven wheeled around and fired his laser pistols at White Swan. She instinctively deflected them with her Wing Gauntlet and summoned her Jet Weapon. "Swan Mace!" she cried and the titular weapon materialized in her hand. She leapt high into the air as she brandished it, but Silver Raven dodged her powerful strike. He slammed a right hand into the back of her head, then turned and kicked her to the ground.

"Owl Axe!" Yellow Owl cried as he called forth his own Jet Weapon. He charged at Silver Raven, but stopped short as the obviously ruthless Jetman quickly holstered one of his pistols and wrenched White Swan up by her cape.

"I don't think you want to see your pretty sister's brains splattered all over my sparkling clean uniform," Raven threatened coolly as he held his remaining gun up to the head of the unconscious White Swan. "That wouldn't make either of us happy."

"You-you let her go," Yellow Owl stammered. "Are you some kind of chicken, hiding behind her?"

"Oh-ho," Silver Raven chuckled as he tossed White Swan's limp form aside. "You're scared, there's no sense in trying to hide it."

"N-no."

"Ha, you forget something," Raven taunted as he faced off with a Yellow Owl who was trying his best to not tremble. "My mind is the sum total of the five minds of your original team. One of them is you. I know what makes you tick. I now how this kind of confrontation must make you want to wet your pants with fright."

"Shut up!" Yellow Owl shouted. "I'm not that person anymore!"

"Really?" Silver Raven asked mockingly as he placed his other pistol in its holster. "I guess we're going to find out what you're really made of then."

***

"Come and get me!" Jeff screamed from atop the Tower Hacker as he held Ako Hayasaka by the wrist. "Face the wrath of Jetman Killer!"

Black Condor was leading the charge, so he took the first blow when the newly-christened Jetman Killer materialized his guitar and smashed it into him with all his might. Condor was sent careening back toward the Ferris wheel, but his foe had put a bit too much into the effort. Ako Hayasaka slipped from his fingers and tumbled from the dizzying height.

"Mom!" Blue Swallow exclaimed as she changed course to intercept her mother.

"Mom?" Jetman Killer wondered aloud, and that was all the distraction Green Wyvern needed. She barreled into her enemy fists first, sending him plummeting to the ground as well.

"Ooof!" Ako exclaimed as she landed in the arms of her daughter. She looked at the helmet that so resembled the one she had worn years ago as they glided to the ground. "Thanks for the save, honey. Sorry if I interrupted anything."

Tears of relief clouded Reiko's eyes as she alighted on the ground. "It's OK, mom. Just please get to safety."

Scarcely had the words escaped Blue Swallow's lips when Jetman Killer shattered the pavement with his fall. Green Wyvern was on him immediately as the park's visitors scattered.

Jetman Killer could hardly believe he was weathering the blows Green Wyvern was delivering. He flexed his muscles as he rose from the broken street.

"You!" he shouted as he backhanded Green Wyvern. "You're the one who stole my destiny the most! I was supposed to be the green member! Me!"

"What're you babbling about?" Wyvern asked as she threw another punch.

"I am through with you!" Jetman Killer proclaimed as he suddenly lifted Green Wyvern over his head and flung her away. The heroine was jolted into the nearby merry-go-round and lay disturbingly still.

"Now then," Jetman Killer said as he turned his attention to Blue Swallow, "I understand you're the child of the woman I love?"

Meanwhile, Black Condor was oblivious to what was going on only meters away. He was slowly coming around in one of the cars of the Ferris wheel. What was unexpected about that was that someone was sitting next to him.

"Are you well?" the nattily-dressed man asked his companion.

"Yeah, I think..." Condor began before stopping short. "Wait...you're that 'Mr. Hoshi' guy from Hawaii? What are you doing here?"

"That's not important right now," Mr. Hoshi said. "You must understand that Jetman Killer is no ordinary foe."

"What's with him?" Condor asked. "Ranting and raving like a maniac, and yet he seems as strong as us."

"Jetman Killer is a pawn," Mr. Hoshi explained. "In a parallel universe, Jeff Kensaki gained Birdonic powers and served as a Jetman codenamed 'Green Eagle'. He also won the love of his idol Ako Hayasaka. Nemesis' thrall Silver Raven sought out your universe's counterpart of Green Eagle and imbued him with Birdonic Waves, then revealed to him the course his life had taken in that other reality."

"Silver Raven knew the shock would be too much for Kensaki's fragile mental state," Mr. Hoshi continued. "He counted on Jetman Killer to create a diversion, allowing him time to lay a trap for your team."

Black Condor shook his head. "All this parallel universe stuff makes my head hurt. So, is this joker a misguided hero or something?"

"No. His counterpart might be a hero, but your Jeff Kensaki is a dangerously deluded man who wields powers equal to your own."

Just then, Blue Swallow's unconscious body sailed past in the distance, before crashing into the rollercoaster. As Black Condor watched helplessly, he knew what had to be done.

"Enough talking!" he declared. "We've got to stop him, and help the others!"

Condor's bold words were stirring, but had no audience. To his dismay, Ken realized that he was suddenly by himself in the Ferris wheel car. He stood up and jetted down at Jetman Killer, not pausing to consider what had happened.

"Coming back for more?" Jetman Killer taunted as Black Condor sped at him. This was great! He could feel his confidence growing with each passing second. No longer was he Jeff Kensaki, failed musician. He was Jetman Killer, and he had every intention of living up to that name.

Black Condor had other plans. He landed across from Jetman Killer and locked eyes with the crazed man. Strange, he mused. In another reality, this guy might've been his friend. But there was no chance of that now in their world. Jetman Killer was fully consumed by madness and bloodlust.

Black Condor charged at his foe, throwing a right cross into Jetman Killer's jaw. Condor punched his adversary repeatedly, as if he were a championship boxer. After all the punishment the madman had absorbed, even his Birdonic powers shouldn't have been enough to keep him going. But Jeff Kensaki was running on a pure adrenaline rush, and it made him even more powerful. He swatted Black Condor away and stood over the hero mockingly as Condor struggled to regain his bearings.

"This is only the beginning!" Jetman Killer raved. "After I've destroyed Jetman, I'll use my powers to achieve the fame I deserve! No one will ever bring me down again! NO ONE!"

Beneath his helmet, Ken Tendo smiled ever so slightly. His attention was split between Jetman Killer and what was sneaking up on the ranting villain. Oh, it was about to be on.

CRASH! A recovered Green Wyvern smashed one of the merry-go-round horses over Jetman Killer's head. It would've been enough to kill a normal man, and was sufficient to finally bring the madman down. Green Wyvern threw the horse into Jetman Killer's prone body, shattering the artificial equine.

As Jetman Killer tried to find his feet, Blue Swallow came hurtling at him feet first. The world became even more of a dizzying jumble for the villain as Swallow knocked him senseless. Grabbing his opportunity, Black Condor tackled Jetman Killer and laid him out with a one-two combination.

"You were saying?" Black Condor asked as he joined his teammates in towering over their dazed foe.

Jetman Killer shook his head. "No," he muttered. "It's not supposed to be this way. Silver Raven said..."

Silver Raven! Of course! If anyone could help him, it would be Silver Raven! Jetman Killer took to the air, leaving behind three momentarily confused heroes.

"After him!" Black Condor cried as he tried to recover quickly, and the three Jetmen flew in pursuit of the man who had tried to finish all of them. To say nothing of...

A sick feeling formed in the pit of Blue Swallow's stomach as Jetman Killer's flight path dipped remarkably low to the ground. Oh no, not again. He wouldn't dare!

Swallow poured on the speed as she made her own desperate divebomb maneuver. Black Condor and Green Wyvern did their best to keep up with her, but they didn't have quite the same personal stake.

The Jetmen made it to the ground just in time to see Jetman Killer take off again. Only this time, he wasn't alone. He had found Ako Hayasaka and had kidnapped her. Again.

"I think I'm going to throw up," Swallow groaned dejectedly as they watched the two figures fly further and further from view.

"Don't worry, Reiko," Wyvern reassured. "We'll get her back, and we'll make him pay."

With those ominous words, the three heroes renewed their pursuit of Jetman Killer, not knowing where it might lead them.

***

"...And then, I caught a glimpse of a world where Jetman was based in Taiwan and called Fighter Man," Silver Raven said as he threw another body blow at Yellow Owl. "I must confess, I wouldn't have expected to see a Chinese Jetman. A pity I didn't have the opportunity to stop and kill them."

Yellow Owl was in no position to appreciate the anecdote. He wheezed as he continued to absorb punishment. All the while, Silver Raven was calm and cool as he administered the beating of a lifetime.

"Ah, Yellow Owl," Raven sighed as he grabbed Owl's uniform at the chest, "it's just like they say - this hurts you more than it does me. Wait, they don't say that at all, do they?"

"Sh-sh-shut up," Owl defiantly mumbled as he pushed Raven's hands away.

"You have more fighting spirit than I'd expected," Silver Raven said. "Clearly, the years have changed you. But it doesn't change the simple fact that you are outmatched and out of time."

Suddenly, Silver Raven felt a metallic clang on the back of his helmet. He dropped a now-unconscious Yellow Owl to the ground and turned to face the recovered White Swan, gripping her Swan Mace with both hands.

"You leave my brother alone," she hissed as she raised the mace again.

"Well, if that's how you feel about it," Raven mocked, "it doesn't matter to me which of you I kill first!"

Swan swung her mace at Silver Raven again, but the gleaming rogue was expecting her and dodged the weapon with ease. As her arm came around, Raven latched onto the spiked ball of the mace and used it to throw White Swan several meters away.

"That's really the problem with most of the Jetman teams I've seen," Silver Raven observed as he casually strolled toward White Swan. "No killer instinct."

"Go to Hell!" Swan growled at her dismissive foe as she unsheathed her Wing Sword. It telescoped out to full length and the gallant heroine charged the ersatz clone.

Silver Raven deftly unholstered his pistols, and with a lightning-like pressing of buttons, converted them to daggers. He used the daggers to block Swan's Wing Sword and held her off with his quintuple strength.

Raven abruptly pulled his daggers away and drove the butt ends of both of them into the sides of White Swan's head. As she faltered, he converted the daggers back to pistols and fired two energy bursts that sent her flying.

"I have my Silver Specials set on concussive beams, not lasers," Raven noted, holstering one of them as he approached the sprawled-out White Swan. "But perhaps you noticed that I didn't burn a pair of holes through you."

A shiny gloved hand reached down and jerked White Swan up by the collar. The other hand flicked a switch on a Silver Special pistol. "Well, I've changed that now," Silver Raven informed her. "Goodbye, White Swan."

"Silver Raven!" Jetman Killer screamed when his so-called mentor came into his field of vision. Silver Raven glanced up at the source of the voice and saw the remaining three Jetmen on the tail of the hapless Jeff Kensaki and his hostage.

Damn, this plan hadn't quite worked out. Still, if he hurried, Silver Raven reasoned that he could still kill White Swan before the rest of her team arrived. And that would count for something, right? Besides, he missed killing people. The villain levelled his Silver Special at White Swan's head as he prepared to blow her brains out.

Unfortunately for Silver Raven, his hesitation proved to be his undoing. As the Jetmen came into view, they looked on in horror at what was about to happen. With a surge of acceleration, they zoomed in on Silver Raven. Green Wyvern made it to him first, and did her best to make it count.

"No!" she cried as as she flew into Silver Raven, making him lose his grip on both his pistol and White Swan. As Wyvern and Raven clambered back to their feet, the heroine began punching the would-be assassin of her friend.

"You keep your filthy hands off her!" Wyvern shouted as she backhanded Silver Raven to the ground.

"Filthy?" an indignant Raven replied. "Are you mad, woman?"

Green Wyvern was in no mood for the villain's games. "Shut up!" she yelled as she punched him again. "You are never going to hurt her! Do you hear me? NEVER!"

Meanwhile, Black Condor and Blue Swallow had a confused and distracted Jetman Killer boxed in. They didn't dare make a move on him, though, as he still held Ako Hayasaka hostage. But the elder Hayasaka quickly remedied that problem herself. Seeing an opening, she rared back and kicked Jetman Killer square in the crotch. She slipped from the madman's grip as he fell to his knees.

"Never count out a Jetman!" she pointed out as she dusted her hands together.

"Over here, Mom!" Swallow called as Ako raced to her daughter. The two hugged in relief, but knew that nothing was settled.

That point was driven home as Green Wyvern came careening past them and crashed into the ground. Silver Raven had made a comeback against even her righteous anger and was now battling a double team of the revived Yellow Owl and White Swan.

Blue Swallow turned to Black Condor. "We've got to help them!"

"You go," Condor said. "I'll fly your Mom to safety."

Black Condor took off with Ako Hayasaka just as Jetman Killer regained his bearings. Jeff Kensaki leapt to his feet and made a stab at taking off after them. He was pulled from the air by the ankle by Blue Swallow.

"No more," Swallow stated simply. "No more."

Jetman Killer emitted a guttural noise that only barely resembled human speech as he lashed out at Blue Swallow. He had been so close! Damn Jetman! Damn them all! He would break every one of them in half!

Just then, Kensaki felt a hand firmly grasp his shoulder from behind. He didn't need to look to realize it was Green Wyvern. He just knew.

"Reiko, go help the others with that garbage," Wyvern said calmly and Blue Swallow took off without a word. Kensaki could feel the heroine's grip tightening as she pulled him up.

"I don't know what your deal is," Green Wyvern remarked as she turned Jetman Killer around to face her, "but I've had enough. WYVERN POWER DRAIN!"

Jetman Killer's body was racked with pain as Green Wyvern used her Jet Power on him. Green energy crackled around both of them as Jeff Kensaki's newfound Birdonic powers were transferred to Kei Mizuno. Kensaki rocked back and forth until, finally, it was over. "Jetman Killer" was no more.

Kensaki looked down at his hands, then at Green Wyvern glowing with the energy that had robbed him of his dream. He grabbed his head in rage, then ran away. But Jeff Kensaki was not looking to hide and fade back into obscurity. He ran directly toward Silver Raven, the man who had made it all possible.

"Silver Raven, help me!" he begged as the "One Man Jetman" threw aside all three of the Jetmen with whom he'd been warring. "They stole my powers! I need to be re-energized!"

Silver Raven considered Jeff Kensaki carefully as the bedraggled musician panted in front of him. "Yes, you deserve a reward for your service," Raven agreed as he pulled out one of his Silver Specials and aimed it at his lackey.

What a grateful Jeff Kensaki did not know was that the pistol was set for "laser" rather than "energize". A beam sizzled through the former Jetman Killer and he slumped to the ground, dead before he even knew what had hit him.

"You failed me, Jeff Kensaki," Silver Raven muttered coldly, "and your usefulness is at an end."

"...the hell?" Yellow Owl questioned in disbelief.

"You're going to pay for that, Silver Raven!" Black Condor declared as he flew back from delivering Ako Hayasaka to safety. "Just like Nemesis is going to pay for his crimes!"

"Really now?" Raven queried. "You can say that without having tasted the power of my mecha? FORCE CALLING!"

With those words, an almost impossible-looking piece of large machinery materialized in the air. Silver Raven teleported into the cockpit and grinned smugly.

"Seven Force Mode Ichidai - Armor Mode!" he announced and the huge tank-like machine landed on the ground and began firing lasers from its multiple turrets at the members of Jetman.

"Oh, this is just great!" Green Wyvern complained as she dived for cover.

"Ahhhh, incoming!" Yellow Owl shouted as he pushed Blue Swallow down to shield her from an explosion of rocks blasted free by the lasers.

Why couldn't the bad guys just once not have a giant weapon, Black Condor wondered. Oh well. "Jet Fighters scramble!" he ordered and the five sleek airships of Jetman arrived almost immediately. The heroes beamed aboard their vehicles and buzzed Silver Raven's tank, striking it with pinpoint lasers.

Silver Raven just shook his head. "It's as if you five aren't even trying! Seven Force Mode Godai - Jet Mode!"

On that command, Seven Force's Armor Mode shifted and the tank converted into a massive Jet Fighter that dwarfed Jetman's vehicles. The Seven Force Jet took to the air and returned fire as it outdistanced its smaller counterparts with ease.

In his cockpit, Black Condor grew increasingly worried, Were they really as outclassed as Silver Raven claimed? Did they have the power, and, more importantly, the heart to turn the tide?

Condor had no answers. All he could do was what had worked in the past. "Icarus Gattai!" he cried.

"Icarus Gattai!" the other four Jetmen repeated. As they did, the Jet Fighters fused together to form a robotic whole. The imposing metal figure landed with a boom.

"Jet Icarus!" Jetman announced as one.

Silver Raven was unimpressed. "Seven Force Mode Nanadai - Robo Mode!"

Seven Force reshaped itself yet again. This time, it turned into a robot that looked more than capable of holding its own against Jet Icarus. Seven Force surged at its opponent and waylaid Jetman's machine.

"Jet Beams!" Black Condor commanded as Jet Icarus' eyes emitted lasers that temporarily drove back Seven Force. But Jetman's leader knew they needed stronger measures. He looked over to Green Wyvern.

"Kei, can we get a little backup?" he inquired.

Green Wyvern merely nodded. "Dragon Wyvern!" she called and her enormous mecha arrived from its secret hiding place. With one further remote command, the mecha converted itself into its own robot form.

"God Wyvern Transformed!" Wyvern proudly announced.

"Now, let's show this guy what we can do!" Condor said. "Chojin Gattai!"

In the past, that code had signalled the combination of Jet Icarus and God Wyvern into the final stage Super God Icarus. That form had been instrumental in their final victory over Lord Xenotos. Only this time, emergency alarms began to blare almost as soon as it was initiated.

"Abort, abort!" White Swan warned. "Something's gone wrong!"

"What? What happened?" Black Condor asked urgently.

"I don't know, things aren't keyed in properly," Swan explained. "If we try Super God Icarus now, we'll blow up both mecha!"

"We are so screwed," Blue Swallow mumbled.

"Can we fix it?" Yellow Owl wondered.

"No time," Green Wyvern responded. "Guess we'll have to do this the old way!"

Green Wyvern vanished from her seat in Jet Icarus' cockpit and reappeared at the controls of God Wyvern. "On my mark, we give him all we've got!"

"Ready!" the rest of Jetman replied.

"3!"

"2!"

"1!"

"FIRE!"

From Jet Icarus' chestplate came the awesome force of the Bird Maser. From God Wyvern's chestplate came the equally awesome force of the Devastation Pulse. The twin energy weapons enveloped Seven Force in tandem, creating a blinding pyrotechnic display followed by a massive explosion.

When the blast subsided, Jetman was amazed to see Seven Force still intact. True, it was charred and sprawled on the blackened ground. But the fact remained that Silver Raven and his mecha had survived the full power of their combined energy weapons.

"Now that was almost impressive," Silver Raven half-congratulated as Seven Force crawled to its feet. "I need time to regroup so it doesn't happen again! Seven Force Mode Rokudai - Rocket Mode!"

Seven Force converted itself from a giant robot into a giant rocket. It fired its boosters and took to the sky, leaving Jetman to watch helplessly.

"Shouldn't we go after him?" Yellow Owl queried.

"We'd never catch him at the rate he's traveling," White Swan answered.

"Well anyway, we won, right?" Blue Swallow said, trying to find a positive.

"I guess," Black Condor replied. "It just doesn't feel like a victory to me."

No, not a victory at all, Green Wyvern thought to herself as she sat in silence aboard her own craft. It reminded her of another battle long ago, and that type of ending had only led to more trouble later. She knew - she had caused it.

The five members of Jetman watched Seven Force become a speck as it rocketed to its unknown destination. Nothing had been resolved this day, and they realized the worst was still to come.

***

After the battle was finished, Jetman beamed back to the ground to retrieve Ako Hayasaka from her hiding place and recover Jeff Kensaki's body. As Yellow Owl bent down to lift the deceased musician, the elder Hayasaka stopped him.

"Please," she said quietly. "I'd like to take him myself."

"But why?" Swallow asked her mother.

Ako looked a bit sad and wistful. "No matter what he had done, he didn't deserve to die. Especially just because he wanted to meet me."

"And besides," Ako added, "maybe there was something to what he said about love and destiny. I guess we'll never know."

"Are you going to be OK carrying him?" Condor asked in concern.

"I'll be fine," Ako reassured as she lifted Jeff Kensaki's corpse. "Even without powers, I'm still in good enough shape."

So Ako Hayasaka cradled the lifeless form of Jeff Kensaki in her arms as she made her way back to the mecha. In death, at least, Kensaki had finally achieved one of his dreams.

The Jetmen lingered behind, not wanting to disturb the solemness of Ako's gesture. Besides, they had other things on their minds.

"Why did Super God Icarus fail?" Black Condor questioned with concern.

White Swan pondered for a moment. "Best guess? When these new Jet Fighters were constructed, they didn't quite replicate the customizations that Kei and I made. One little flaw could throw the whole thing off."

"I guess we'll need to fix that then?" Green Wyvern inquired, as her gaze locked onto White Swan.

"I'll get with Shinsei and compare schematics," Condor said. "Anyway, I just wish I knew what our next move should be."

"Yeah, they haven't exactly left us clues to follow," Yellow Owl opined as he crossed his arms in frustration.

"Well, wait a minute," Blue Swallow interjected. "Ken, Nemesis contacted you, right?"

"Yeah, just before he took off."

"So what did he say?"

Condor thought on the question. "Well, at first, he told me who he was and how he'd been searching the multiverse and that we stood in his way," he remembered. "Then, he told how I hadn't won and the guys who were going to fight us. And I can't forget his last threat - 'I am giving you time to marshal your forces and give me a true test. So don't be a lone wolf - gather your team and meet me in Hell. When Jetman falls, the secret of the universe will be mine!' Pretty weird stuff."

"'Lone wolf'? 'Meet him in Hell'?" Yellow Owl considered.

"Does that make sense to you, Gohan?" Swan asked.

"Maybe," Owl explained. "See, in the legend of the 'lone wolf' samurai Itto Ogami, one of the climactic battles is in...the Valley of Hell."

"Jigoku-dani..." Condor realized.

"So now, wait," Wyvern protested. "Are you saying he made an oblique reference to a Japanese legend to tell us he was in a certain region of Japan? I'm sorry, that sounds far-fetched to me."

Owl shrugged. "I don't know if it's right. It was just the phrasing that made me think of that."

"We'll look into it," Black Condor said, "and if there's something going on at Jigoku-dani, we'll check it out."

"I just want these creeps to stop hassling my mother," Swallow sighed as the team beamed back to their mecha.

***

It was 9:27 p.m., and the halls of Skywatch were silent. Gohan and Reiko had taken Ako Hayasaka back to her home. Ken and Shinsei were at Skyforce's Poseidon Base, trying to work on the problems with the mecha. And Etsuko? Well, she was quietly stalking the halls, searching for the only other occupant of the building.

Etsuko discovered Kei standing in front of the video monitor. On the screen was the face of a handsome and vaguely familiar man. In the background was a bank of technical equipment that rivaled even that of Skywatch.

"Kazuo, are you sure all of you are going to be all right up there?" Kei queried.

"For the thousandth time, yes," the man affectionately admonished. "Mars Base is fully-equipped to be self-sufficient for as long as we need to stay here. If that barrier will come down, things will be fine."

"Oh, it will," Kei assured with the dangerous-sounding confidence that was her trademark. "We'll make sure of that."

The man leaned forward. "Kei, I know I can never stop you from putting on that costume. Just please be careful."

"I will."

The man sat back and smiled. "My time's up for now. It was good to talk to you, dear. I love you."

"I love you, too," Kei said as her voice softened in a way that few people had ever heard.

The monitor flickered off and Kei bowed her head for a moment. She turned away and was startled to find Etsuko behind her.

"I didn't mean to intrude," Etsuko explained, "but I wanted to talk to you, and you seemed a bit busy."

Kei looked like a child with her hand caught in a cookie jar. "Busy is a good word for it, yeah."

"I wanted to thank you," Etsuko said. "Thank you for saving my life."

"That's what we do," Kei remarked.

"I know, it's just been...well, it's been awkward, and I needed an excuse to talk to you."

Kei exhaled and ran a hand through her hair. "Why did you run away? I thought the worst was over and that things would be fine. The next thing I know, you disappeared. No explanation. Just a note saying you had to leave."

Etsuko looked down in shame. "It was cowardly of me. I just felt like...like it was all my fault. That I was the one who initiated the whole thing and then wanted out. I mean, how could I do that to you? To us?"

Kei reached over and tilted Etsuko's chin up. "I'm a big girl," she reminded. "I might not look it, but I am pushing forty."

"I felt so guilty," Etsuko choked out, "and I had to get away. Get away from all the reminders of what had happened and how I'd hurt you. I needed time to think, and didn't want to hurt you anymore."

"Well, that part didn't work."

"I see that now," Etsuko quietly said. "I'm sorry, I was so confused. Can you forgive me?"

Kei took Etsuko's hand. "I don't think that's the question. Can we still be friends? That's the real question."

Etsuko looked into Kei's eyes for the first time in many months. "I'd like that," was all she said.

Kei and Etsuko let their hands drop and there was a long silence. Finally, Etsuko spoke up. "So, who's the guy?" she asked as she nodded to the monitor.

Kei smiled warmly. "His name's Kazuo Fujita. He's an astronaut. We met about 6 months ago when I was doing some consulting work for the JADC."

"And how's that going?" Etsuko pressed playfully.

"It's...nice," Kei said. "He's been doing a stint on Mars Base, and now he's stranded there because of Nemesis' barrier. So I have a little extra motivation this time."

"So do you think...?"

"Yes," Kei answered before Etsuko could complete the question. "This could be it."

"Wow."

"But enough about me," Kei said. "Who was that man I saw you kissing this morning?"

Etsuko blushed furiously. "You saw that? I don't know what got into us. That was just crazy."

"Crazy?" Kei wondered. "Or maybe you two are still in love after all this time?"

"I don't know," Etsuko offered. "Maybe? A lot has happened since we were dating."

"It could work," Kei mused aloud. "You two do make a very cute couple."

Etsuko placed a hand on her friend's forehead. "Are you sick or something?"

Kei laughed. "It's not that I hate your Ken-bo. I just find him annoying from time to time."

"Oooooooh, don't ever tell him about that nickname," Etsuko replied. "He'd never live it down."

Kei and Etsuko shared a laugh and fell into each other's arms. "Thank you for this, Kei-chan," Etsuko whispered as she brushed the hair from her friend's face.

"No matter what, I'll always love you," Kei whispered back.

"I love you too, Kei-chan. Even if we're not together anymore."

The lips of Etsuko Oishi and Kei Mizuno met as they shared a slow sensuous kiss. Tomorrow, things would be back to normal, and none of their friends would be the wiser. But for one last shining moment, they could rekindle the passion that they'd shared. It might have been over, but at least they could remember it with fondness and pleasure, and not with pain and regret.

 

TO BE CONTINUED

 

NEXT TIME ON NEW RETURN OF JETMAN

Chojin Sentai Jetman enters the Valley of Hell! There, they will come face to face with Nemesis and the Paradox Army - united for the first time ever! Can our heroes defeat an evil that wields the most powerful weapon in the universe? Or are they destined to meet the same fate as all of Nemesis' previous opponents? Be here next time for NEW RETURN OF JETMAN Episode 5 - "Five Against Infinity"!

 

 

Story © Christopher Elam, based on the TV series CHOJIN SENTAI JETMAN and the original "Return of Jetman" stories by Lewis Smith. JETMAN and all characters from the CHOJIN SENTAI JETMAN series © TV Asahi/Toei/Toei Agency. Original characters © Christopher Elam & Lewis Smith.