Situation

by Red Paladin

[Well, let's begin,] Red thought.

A few seconds later, the door slid open and the group was complete. The idle chatter continued until High Councillor Malaclypse stepped up to the podium and sledgehammered it to signal for silence.

"Right. Now that I have your *attention,* we can begin the briefing." He began, speaking in a businesslike tone.

"Approximately one hour ago, High Councillor Katze Brenner was abducted by previously unknown Wyrm forces. It is our belief that she has been taken to the nation of Marraketh for interrogation and Goddess-knows-what." He paused, to give everyone just enough time to realize what had happened before continuing.

"Here's the kicker, though: Marraketh lies in another dimension. Specifically, the dimension coded 00-07-00. Fortunately, though, the prototype Gateway can reach Marraketh with...some ease, so we can mount a rescue mission. Seeing as how we're still in the process of getting reorganized, the people in this room represent our strike force. We can't send any more through the gate, anyway, so don't expect backup forces to be charging to your rescue if you screw up."

"Now, this is what we know about Marraketh: Intel is sketchy at best, but we figure a population of around several hundred thousand, most of which are farmers. The capital city is called Rhye, assume population of about ten thou, located approximately at the center of the country."

Red vision flickered over to Councillor Nexxus's seat, as she suddenly sat upright, though displaying no extra emotion.

"All right, the mission commander is Nexxus, with Commander Aris as XO. For the R&D people hitching along, Brynhild is in charge, with Selvane as her backup. Any questions?" Mal paused momentarily, scanning the room for raised hands. "Good. Then Godspeed, people. Get your gear and report to Dimensional Research in ten minutes. Dismissed!"

[We were just there,] Red mused.

The Rangers rose from their seats to leave.

"Race you to the transporter room." Red said suddenly to Bryn, grinning.

"You're on."

Immediately, Red went through one of the dark shadows in the room. [Shadowslipping(tm) does have its advantages.] After a few steps in the gray world, he stepped through another shadow, to the third floor, where the inter-dimensional gate was located. There were numerous technicians working at the controls, priming the Gate for a dangerous, but important, trial.

A minute later, the door to the room opened and Bryn walked in. She did not require the ten minutes that Mal had given them, since she had already packed before the meeting. Bryn had a grin on her face which quickly turned to a expression of surprise mixed with anger when she saw who was already in the room.

"I see you took the elevator," Red stated, smiling.

"That's not fair," Bryn said. "If I knew you were going to use magic I would have been here before you."

"Ah, your crystal. Well, like most people have said, 'You didn't ask.'" He smirked.

The door opened again, allowing the last members to enter. Mal was at the control panel adjusting displays, pushing buttons and turning dials. He stopped as he conferred with Nexxus.

The door opened once again, letting the last of the rescue team into the transporter room. Nervous chatter broke the room's silence, but was abruptly cut short when High Councillor Nexxus spoke to the group.

"All right, everybody, Mal says the gate's ready, so if you'll all just follow me, we'll get this mission started. Please step into the light."

Light emanated from the portal illuminating the center of the large room. The VRDET personnel lined up, with Nexx taking the lead. Red, unlike some of the others Rangers, was not nervous about the transportation, as he had come to Earth through a Gate; it had been made by the sponges escaping from his homeworld, but it was a Gate nonetheless. He jumped calmly through this one, into the light.

To be continued in "Impatience."

The preceding segment is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locations or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.