"Things Falling Apart"
(Episode 9)
by Christopher Elam
(based on the work of Lewis Smith)
© 2003 Christopher Elam
Lord Xenotos stood before the tube filled with a life-giving nutrient solution and frowned. He examined the figure encased in the tube carefully.
The master of the Chaos Coalition turned to his vizier Hedes. "Are you telling me that this...thing...is Toranza?"
"What's left of him," Hedes responded. "We recovered him shortly after Miira informed us of the incident."
Lord Xenotos grimaced. "I cannot believe Toranza twisted such a simple mission so wrecklessly. The way he forced Miira to do his bidding was unforgivable!"
"It was incredible," Hedes agreed, hiding the reservations he had with Miira's explanation, "especially after she spoke up for him."
"Well, she claims to have concocted a plan that will compensate for this failure," Lord Xenotos said. "And at least one benefit came from this fiasco."
"The death of Red Hawk?"
"Yes," Xenotos breathed almost gleefully. "Without their leader, the rest of Jetman will surely fall before us!"
Hedes gestured to the tube. "And what of Toranza? His body still clings to vestiges of life."
Lord Xenotos considered his renegade agent. "We will salvage him. Toranza will serve as my boot-licking lackey because it will amuse me."
***
Jet Phoenix glanced up at the overcast sky and couldn't help but feel as if it was a reflection of his mood. This was the day he had feared from the moment Dr. Komyoji had told him of the reactivation of J Project. This was the day he had to bury one of his charges.
He should have been there. He didn't feel any less guilty because no one else blamed him for the loss. It should have been him that made the ultimate sacrifice, not Gai Tendo. Gai had had his whole life ahead of him. All he had was a limited amount of time on an existence that wasn't even real.
He pulled his cape closer to his body as the winds picked up. He felt self-conscious standing among the mourners clad in his uniform, but he really had no choice. His identity was a closely-guarded secret for security reasons. And other reasons.
He offered his condolences to Gai's parents, mouthing words that slipped from his memory as soon as they were uttered. Jetman might have lost its leader, but they had lost a son. Ryu Tendo stoically nodded an acknowledgment as his wife Kaori quietly sobbed.
Kaori. Jet Phoenix longed to reach out and take her in his arms. The old feelings had never really gone away, had they? But he held back. That wasn't his place. She was another man's wife. And besides, she had no idea who he was - or what he had become.
From the corner of his eye, Jet Phoenix noticed a solitary figure standing on a hill in the distance. It was Kei Mizuno. He hadn't seen her through the entire service. She had kept a safe distance from the crowd. He could only guess that her assumption was that she was unwelcome. He didn't know if there would be a way to convince her otherwise.
Jet Phoenix felt four pairs of eyes trained on him. He turned to face the four remaining members of his team. They stood together, each of them wearing a somber expression.
"We're coming back to Skywatch with you," Ken Tendo said, speaking for the entire group. "We need to decide where we go from here."
Jet Phoenix shook his head. "That's not necessary. I'm giving all of you a two week furlough, so you'll have time to yourselves. We'll pick up the pieces when you get back."
Ken grabbed his commander by the arm. "The furlough can wait a day. Let's take care of our business now. Gai would've wanted it that way."
Jet Phoenix looked over to Etsuko, Gohan, and Reiko. Each of them silently nodded their agreement. Jet Phoenix realized there was no arguing with them. They wanted...no, needed to know the direction of the mission.
"We should let your families know that you'll be on base one more day," he finally stated. "This meeting will probably take all night."
***
Kei Mizuno knelt in front of Gai Tendo's freshly dug grave, her head bowed in silent prayer. She had waited so very long for everyone to leave. Only then did she feel comfortable enough to pay her respects to the only person who had ever told her that he loved her.
Nightfall was approaching. Drops of rain began to slowly sprinkle down. Kei didn't notice. Her mind was totally given over to the grief and rage that threatened to consume her. Toranza's apparent death in the explosion only made matters worse. She couldn't very well seek revenge against a dead man. So she prayed for an answer, because she couldn't find one on her own.
Kei's meditation was broken as a single laser beam sizzled past her head, singeing her hair in the process. She leapt to her feet, grabbing her hair to insure that it wasn't on fire. She searched all around for her attacker. An all-too-familiar adversary emerged from behind a nearby tree.
"Peek-a-boo!" Toranza called out mischievously.
***
Reiko Hayasaka wandered the halls of Skywatch, looking for Gohan. His door had been open, but he hadn't been in the room. His bags were packed and ready, but Gohan Oishi himself was nowhere to be found.
It wasn't like him to just disappear. Gohan was so boisterous, so lively that it was hard to miss him. Yet he had succeeded in disappearing. Reiko began to worry as she scoured the building for him. Maybe he'd gone and done something stupid. Or maybe...maybe something had happened to him.
After far too many minutes of searching, Reiko discovered Gohan at last. On a whim, she peeked into the Skywatch gym. There, improbably, was Gohan, silently punching a speed bag. Weird. She had never seen him do that kind of thing on his own time.
Reiko quietly tiptoed into the gym. Gohan continued to mindlessly punch away, unaware of her presence. Reiko managed to creep up right behind him without catching his attention. She reluctantly tapped him on the shoulder.
"Gohan, is something wrong?" she queried in a hushed tone.
"Not sure I can take this," he grunted without taking his eyes off the speed bag for a single instant.
"Take what?"
"What happened to Gai. I mean, that could have been any of us. Before, it all felt like a game to me - a game I knew we would win."
As Gohan spoke, his adrenalin pumped and his heart raced. He became more and more anxious and hit the bag with greater intensity.
"With Gai in charge, I never had any doubt," he said. "And now he's dead!"
Gohan punctuated his last statement by striking the speed bag so hard that it exploded. Gohan and Reiko were both taken aback by the force.
Gohan stared at the damage he had caused. Reiko cautiously placed a hand on his shoulder.
"I'm scared," Gohan admitted. He wanted to say more, but was so ashamed at his perceived weakness that he couldn't. He simply hung his head.
Reiko wrapped her arms around her friend and comforted him the way he had comforted her once. She was scared too, but Jetman would find a way to recover.
Somehow.
***
"Toranza!" Kei exclaimed. "Cross Changer!"
The costume of Green Wyvern formed around Kei Mizuno and she drew her Wing Sword. She charged the man responsible for so much of her pain.
"I had a gut feeling I might find you here!" Toranza said as he blasted her again with a beam from his power glove. "It gives me a sense of satisfaction to know that I have such insight!"
Green Wyvern rolled with the impact of Toranza's beam. She quickly regained her footing and flew directly towards her foe. She was in no mood to play cat and mouse games with him. She was out for blood.
Green Wyvern jetted towards Toranza, her sword pointing straight ahead. The assassin disappeared when she reached his position and she flew headlong into a tree. She laid on the ground in a heap, clutching her head.
"Are you going under, my dear?" Toranza questioned as he loomed over her. "Are you ready to give up?"
Green Wyvern pulled herself off the ground and swung wildly at Toranza. He disappeared and reappeared behind her. She swung at him again and he disappeared again. He popped back into view in front of the tree.
"Stop running from me!" Green Wyvern screamed as she slashed at Toranza with her sword. She only succeeded in leaving a nasty gash in the tree.
"Oh, I'm not running," Toranza called down from the tree limb where he was perched. "In fact, it's time for the super thing!"
On his command. Toranza materialized a gigantic robot. Green Wyvern stared up in disbelief at the unmistakably female-shaped robot. Toranza looked on in admiration of his creation.
"Meet Veronika!" he proclaimed. "And now I do what I must do - destroy Tokyo!"
***
Ken felt his knees almost buckle under him. After all that had happened the last few days, the stress was finally getting to him. Keeping up a brave face through the loss of his brother had been a test of his will. Now, he was filled with apprehension at the thought of knocking on the door to Etsuko's quarters.
It hadn't always been that way. Once, he could've told her anything. But that was before their split and everything that went with that. Etsuko had told him in no uncertain terms that their relationship was over. And oddly enough, Ken had no problem accepting that fact.
The two of them had been at odds from the moment they had first met. The chemistry that they shared did nothing to lessen the personality clash between them. Maybe it was for the best if they just moved on from their relationship.
Did it mean they couldn't be friends though? Being together might be a bad idea, but couldn't they at least speak to each other? Because Ken really needed a friend to listen to the things that were swirling around in his head.
Ken reached up and tentatively knocked on the door. He waited for a few seconds, then knocked again when there was no answer. Still nothing. Ken almost went to leave, then chose instead to knock even more vigorously.
At last, Ken could hear movement. Moments later, Etsuko poked her head out the door.
"Oh. It's you," she said quietly.
"Yeah. Look, is it OK if we talk? I wanted to get some things off my chest."
Etsuko bit her lip. "Ken, I don't think that's a good idea."
Ken realized immediately what it had sounded like he had said. "No, wait! I didn't mean about us. I meant, just, y'know, talk."
"I know this is a hard time for you most of all," Etsuko apologized, "but I'm just not ready to talk about what's happened...or talk to you. It all hurts too much. I'm sorry."
Before Ken could say anything else, Etsuko gently closed the door. He stood staring at the door for several long seconds, then sighed and rested his head on it. Life had sure taken a turn for the worse. Could it possibly suck any more?
Suddenly, Ken was startled by a hand on his shoulder. He realized immediately who it was. The sturdy grip was unmistakable. Probably the last person on Earth Ken wanted to see was standing right behind him.
"I need to speak to you," Jet Phoenix said and Ken Tendo groaned inside.
***
Toranza snapped his fingers and was teleported into the cockpit of his robot Veronika. The huge machine then posed almost daintily, as if showing off its sleek beauty.
"Follow me if you dare!" Toranza challenged as he used the controls to steer his robot towards the heart of the city. "Take off on a race of doom!"
Green Wyvern quickly signalled for her Dragon Wyvern and it appeared high overhead. She transported herself on board and followed in pursuit of the female robot.
Something wasn't right. Kei couldn't put her finger on it, but she knew it should be obvious. Why did what she was doing feel wrong somehow?
Green Wyvern put her doubts out of her mind when she caught up with Toranza and his new toy. He was using Veronika's seemingly delicate hands to rip apart Ginza. The defense forces' tanks and planes were swatted aside effortlessly. Toranza delighted in the wanton destruction of Jetman's city.
Dragon Wyvern blasted Veronika with its eye lasers. The female robot responded by shooting its breasts as missiles at the ship. The warheads exploded against Dragon Wyvern's hull and knocked Green Wyvern from her seat.
"Hahahahahaha!" Toranza cackled as new breast missiles locked into place. "They might look like soft things, but they are actually quite deadly! Don't you agree?"
Green Wyvern pulled herself back into her seat and silently activated the panel's special controls. Dragon Wyvern reshaped itself around her until it had assumed its humanoid form.
"God Wyvern Transformed!" she shouted as she blasted Veronika with her robot's Laser Optic eye beams.
Veronika fell backwards, crushing a skyscraper. "A good blow," Toranza congratulated. "Too bad it's the last for that piece of space junk! THUNDER EYE!"
Veronika's eyes shot out electrical force beams. Kei furrowed her brow and began to sweat. She had almost died like this. Her instincts told her to run away. She ignored them and continued to advance in spite of the barrage. She kept telling herself that Toranza was not going to win. A series of powerful punches sent Veronika to the ground. God Wyvern stood over its seemingly conquered opponent.
Toranza pulled a lever and Veronika wrapped its legs around God Wyvern's head from behind. Moments later, Green Wyvern's machine was flying through the air after being flipped backwards. It landed with the force of an earthquake, flattening several city blocks.
As Green Wyvern raised her robot, she could almost see Toranza's jeering face in front of her. She resolved to end the fight and his arrogance once and for all. She would hit him with everything she had at her command.
"Laser Optic!" and God Wyvern's eyes generated their laser beams.
"Finger Gatling!" and God Wyvern's fingertips launched their missiles.
"Shimmering Buzzsaw!" and God Wyvern's hand issued forth its energy discs.
"Devastation Pulse!" and God Wyvern's chest plate delivered its force blast.
Tokyo was torn apart as God Wyvern attacked Veronika with everything it had for as long as it could. Finally, when the power cells were almost totally drained, Green Wyvern ceased her onslaught. Surely Toranza had been wiped from the face of the Earth.
As the smoke cleared, Veronika still stood in the same spot it had occupied when the assault had begun. Toranza was leaned back in his control seat, looking almost rested.
"I pity you if that's the best you have," he observed.
***
"Have a seat," Jet Phoenix offered to Ken as he returned to his desk. Ken looked at him and slowly sat down. Jet Phoenix picked up a folder and began to examine its contents while Ken sat sweating.
"Why am I here?" Ken finally asked impatiently. "If I've done something wrong again, spit it out. If you want me gone now that Gai's not here, fine. I can be out of here for good tomorrow."
Jet Phoenix looked up from his folder. "You misunderstand me, Ken. You're not here because you're in trouble."
"I'm not?"
"You're here because you're the new leader of Jetman."
"I'm WHAT?!!?"
"You're the new leader," Jet Phoenix reiterated as he leaned forward. "Gai told me himself he wanted you to be his successor if anything happened. I agree with his choice."
"What about Etsuko?" Ken questioned. "She's way smarter than me and studied hard for the job. She would want it!"
Jet Phoenix folded his hands together. "Etsuko is brilliant and capable. However, she doesn't have the fire to motivate others to follow her into battle. Maybe someday, but not now."
"Is this because she's a woman?"
Jet Phoenix tilted his head. "My commanding officer is a woman. Do you really think for one moment her gender is going to sway my decision?"
"B-b-but me?" Ken stammered. "I've always been the one to do his own thing. I don't know the first thing about being a leader!"
"That's where you're wrong," Jet Phoenix said as he stood up. "Gai wasn't leader because he followed my orders. He was leader because he had the confidence to make his own decisions and the conviction to stand by them. He made all of you believe in him. You can do that too."
"That's crazy! No, I can't!"
"Oh no? You already have the force of will. Your willingness to confront me proves that much. Gai and I both knew that you had shown leadership ability many times. What you lack is the discipline and respect that goes with the job. If you can develop that, you can lead us to victory."
"And if I can't?"
Jet Phoenix looked down. "I can't guarantee anything."
Ken felt as if the weight of the world had just pressed down on his shoulders. In a very real way, it had. He was the new leader of the team. The fate of Jetman and, ultimately, the entire planet rested with him. He stuck his hands in his pockets and found the metallic disc his brother had passed to him in his dying moments on that lonely island. He ran his fingers lightly over the smooth surface.
He was the leader. Already, he had his first decision to make.
***
Green Wyvern slammed her fist on the control panel. How? How had Toranza withstood that attack? She had thrown everything she had at him and all he did was laugh.
"Feeling a bit out of sync?" Toranza inquired. "Why don't you take a look at yourself and then turn around?"
Against her will, Green Wyvern turned the God Wyvern around and saw Tokyo. It had been completely decimated in her apocalyptic showdown with Toranza's Veronika. Not a single building was left standing. The dead filled the streets and the cries of the dying echoed through the air.
Green Wyvern stared in horror. She had done this. She had been so involved in destroying Toranza that she had ignored the consequences. Now the people of Tokyo had paid the price.
Green Wyvern teleported herself to the ground below. Carnage surrounded her no matter where she looked. As she wandered aimlessly, she heard a little girl crying. The girl was no more than 5 and covered in blood. She was begging her parents to get up and tugging on them with all the strength she had. It was useless, of course. Both of them were dead. The girl looked up and locked eyes with Green Wyvern for a moment that seemed to last forever.
"Did you even think about the innocent people? What if you kill someone's parents? Another child orphaned and it'll be your fault!"
Jet Phoenix's words haunted Green Wyvern as she ran away. No, she hadn't. She never did even after all this time. The battle was all-consuming. It was so easy to lose herself in it. She fell to her knees and hid her face in her hands. Her uniform dissolved away, leaving only Kei Mizuno to face the terrible cost of her recklessness. She heard the footsteps behind her, but didn't bother to look. She knew who it was.
"Looks like you've created a big mess," Toranza observed. "Not surprising, I suppose. You've done nothing but abuse those powers since the day you received them."
Toranza walked in front of Kei as she bowed her head. "Once, this was a beautiful world. It was your folly that spoiled it! You're responsible for this!"
The assassin bent down and lifted Kei Mizuno's chin. "We'd all be better off if you took a deep sleep. I mean, you couldn't even save the man you love!"
Toranza rose abruptly and, using a grand sweeping motion, pointed in the distance. Gai Tendo's broken, battered form lay beneath a pile of rubble. Kei could feel his gaze burning into her.
"Why...Kei? Why didn't you save me?" he gasped before he expired.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!" Kei screamed and she awakened kneeling in front of Gai's grave. The rain had matted her wet hair to her face. She brushed it aside. Nothing was amiss. There was no evidence that anything had happened.
A dream. Toranza was dead. Her mecha still lay demolished on the island. None of it had happened. But that didn't change what she had realized.
She had hurt people. That had always been one of her secret desires, but now she had the power to do it. Dealing with it as a real concept was something she couldn't bear. She had always been able to fight in blissful ignorance of the damage she caused. No more. Innocent people - even children? - might've been hurt during her rampages. Maybe even killed. She would never know for sure.
Kei activated her Cross Changer and transformed to Green Wyvern. She drew her Wing Sword and considered it carefully. She couldn't be trusted with her power. The only honorable thing to do was to insure that she never hurt anyone again.
Kei positioned the sword's tip in front of her stomach. She said a silent prayer as she prepared to be reunited with Gai. As her fingers tightened around the handle, a signal was emitted by her Cross Changer.
Kei laid the sword aside as she looked at her Cross Changer. She hadn't expected to ever receive that signal again. Something was going on and she had to find out what it was. She couldn't find her peace until she did.
***
Green Wyvern flew through the storm-filled skies of Tokyo. Following the signal was simple - she had done it many times. But never under these circumstances. She had no idea who she was going to meet. Of course, she had her suspicions.
Chaos had found the wavelength. They were waiting to ambush her. That suited her fine. Better to die in battle anyway. She only hoped she took enough of them with her.
The signal grew stronger. She was right over the position. She dived down through the pouring rain. As she approached the ground, she was startled to realize the source of the signal she had been tracing.
Skywatch. She hadn't been there since the day she'd turned down a spot on the Jetman team. Maybe things would've gone differently if she had accepted the offer. Maybe Gai would even be alive.
Green Wyvern stood in front of the Skywatch complex and the main door silently slid open. Was this a trap? Had Chaos infiltrated their base? Or perhaps Jetman themselves wanted her out of the way. She materialized her Wyvern Boomerang in her free hand as she cautiously stepped inside the building.
There was no certainly no place to hide. Every room was brilliantly illuminated. Yet no one could be seen. Green Wyvern continued to follow the signal until it brought her to the conference room.
Jet Phoenix and the Jetman team sat around the conference table clad in full Jetman regalia. In the center of the table was the signal device. All eyes turned to Green Wyvern as she stood in the doorway.
"The vote was unanimous this time," Jet Phoenix said. "Would you like to join the meeting?"
Jet Phoenix gestured to the empty chair. Red Hawk's chair. Green Wyvern swallowed hard. This wasn't exactly an ambush, but it was a lot more frightening.
Should she? Minutes earlier, she had been ready to end it all. Now she had been offered another chance. A chance to use her powers with a sense of focus. A chance to avenge the man she loved. A chance to take his place in the battle he could never finish.
The afterlife would have to wait. Green Wyvern pulled the chair out and took a seat at the meeting.
***
Ken laid in bed and stared restlessly at the ceiling. Strange day.
He didn't especially like having Green Wyvern on the team - especially after Miira's revelations on the island. True or not, they did cast doubts on Green Wyvern's motives, and Miira had no reason to lie beyond messing with his head. Still, it was better to have Kei where they could watch her rather than running around doing who knows what. She would be moving into Skywatch when everyone returned from their furlough. As he had said months ago, what better place to keep a threat than in plain sight?
The meeting had gone a lot more smoothly than he'd expected even after Kei's arrival. Etsuko had certainly taken everything in stride. She had only nodded in agreement on Kei's induction and barely batted an eye when Jet Phoenix named the new leader.
Black Condor Ken Tendo - leader. He still couldn't believe it. It sounded like a joke, but everyone was taking it completely seriously. Could he do it? Could he lead the team? Or was he just going to fall flat on his face and cost everyone their lives in the process?
Someone was knocking at the door. Damn, again? This never went well. Ken felt his suspicions confirmed when he saw Etsuko standing in front of him.
"Oh...it's you," Ken greeted awkwardly. "Look, I don't know why Phoenix didn't make you the leader. I told him he should."
"I'm not here about that."
"You're not?"
Etsuko shook her head. "I've been doing a lot of thinking the last couple of days - after everything that's happened and all. I didn't want to talk to you so I could get my head together."
"So I guess you've made up your mind about whatever it is," Ken ventured as he sleepily rubbed his eyes.
"I have," Etsuko acknowledged as she wrapped her arms around an unprepared Ken. She locked her lips to his and kissed him with such force that they both fell backward onto the bed.
"Do you understand?" Etsuko asked breathlessly as she finally broke the kiss.
"I think so," Ken gasped as he found her lips again.
TO BE CONTINUED
A call comes from Skyforce, but Jet Phoenix is the only one on duty! The commander of Jetman must join a lone Skyforce agent on a mission that will not only test his abilities but also recall a bygone era. Relive the glory days of a "Golden Age" in RETURN OF JETMAN Episode 10 - "Remember The Times"!
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.
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