*Power: 92%*

"..."

It took a good minute before all of his senses and thoughts were returned to him. His vision, red and blurry. His hearing, sharper beyond anything but painfully ringing. His scent detectors, metallic and...smokey? And… Why did it taste like he had been gnawing on the arm of a giant robot? It was none of his concern for the time being… even if it tasted better than he would have expected.

His vision was the first to give him the real tour of what was going on… although even that didn't give Ty too many answers. He found himself still a Wirewolf, tilted slightly upward on whatever crystalloid green platform he was on. His heart sank by that fact alone, but he knew there was nothing much he could do at the moment except find out what was going on around him. He awkwardly tried to figure out the controls to the thing he was trapped in and repositioned his paws to help him try standing up, but immediately hit his head on something above him. With an angered growl, he moved his glowing red eyes to help see what it was.

To his dismay, he seemed locked in from all angles inside of a giant crystal-like structure. Green shards reflected the red glow of Ty's eyes that formed a blur of the colors inside the small space. The Wirewolf didn't even have enough room to turn around in this new prison of his. He tried clawing at the ground below, but to no avail. A few claw marks were scratched into the crystal, however, a slight pinch of hope that this wasn't indestructible material for him. He continued in a digging motion as he still tried to grasp his reality.

How long was I out? Where am I? Buzz probably didn't ge- BUZZ!

His paws stalled their movement as his mind flurried with thoughts. He was quickly reminded of how much of a threat he was to the ranger, and how he without his consent had almost killed Buzz himself. The fact that he couldn't remember anything after his encounter with NOS-4-A2 did not support his theory that he was no longer capable of harming anyone. He whimpered softly, darting his head around for any sign of Buzz or his team with panic in his eyes. He desperately riffled through his mind, looking for ANY evidence of what happened before he woke up. No luck.

Instead, he was met with the interior of some sort of large building, decorated with shades of dark blue and purple, and a large throne upon a small staircase from Ty's side view. It was quiet other than a faint hum of electrical activity coming from either the machine like boxes surrounding the ground or himself. Large tower-like beacons surging with what he recognized to be pure energy beamed through the glass it was contained in, reflecting off of a giant "Z" placed below the throne. The ranger's heart stopped.

Is… is this…?

No. There was NO way he had been brought to Planet Z without remembering a single thing. NO way he was supposedly trapped and being held hostage by Zurg himself. He felt so claustrophobic all of a sudden… trapped not only in this stiff metal body of his but captured in the darkest and most dangerous part of the galaxy. It felt worse than he assumed being inside a black hole would be like. Disoriented, closed in, trapped. He really didn't see any brighter side than the fact there was no one around for the time being. At least now he had time to attempt to calm down and figure out what was going on before being thrown into something else.

"I thought you said you fixed all of them?" a somewhat annoyed and mechanical voice from behind sighed. Ty felt his heart (or whatever he had now) drop.

And there goes the bright side.

The Wirewolf tried to shift his body around to be able to see, but was only able to move about halfway before getting too wedged into the wall. It wasn't exactly easy to see out of, his sight only guiding him on the forms that contained energy such as the machines and towers which created a faint orange glow around the object in question. He had a snake's vision, but only for energy. It sickened him. Anything reminding him that he was nothing more than a vicious killing machine did.

Another blurry figure with the same outline started moving, growing closer towards the crystal. It moved swiftly and seemed to be floating instead of walking, unlike an ordinary specimen found on this planet. The red monocle and long cape told him all he needed to know. He shivered in fear.

"R-Right, we must've missed this one! I'll fix it right away, your evilness!" A small scratchy voice said, confirming where Ty was since this was the only place he'd be expected to run into one of those little "grub" minions as Zurg liked to call them. But what puzzled him was the fact that no one, not even the closest henchmen to Zurg, ever called anyone other than him "your evilness." Well, that was according to Buzz. Ty had heard plenty of those heroic stories containing probably every being on this planet from him.

He found it better to detect the small creature with his ears better than even his eyes, picking up the small pitter patter of tiny boots run under him and over to the throne. Struggling, the grub pushed on the "Z" logo, and eventually fell to the ground as it began to spin around like a waterwheel before slowing down and stopping on its side. It now looked more like an "N".

How clever.

He was starting to piece together that NOS-4-A2 was likely not doing this under Zurg's commands. That bucket head would never allow any of his creations or servants prance around his palace like they owned the place. He wondered if… no. He would surely remember seeing Zurg before he had woken up. They must have gotten there before him, and he probably fled like the coward he is. Even if they had crossed paths Zurg probably got out. He hated that he seemed to be hoping he didn't kill even his sworn enemy.

"I'm assuming I will have better results from your judgement with the cannon than this, correct?" NOS-4-A2 glared at the grub who in return shuffled a few feet back.

"Y-Yes of course! The design is flawless!"

...Cannon?

"Let's hope that oversized bucket of bolts doesn't make as much of a mess with his job as these things do." NOS-4-A2 muttered to himself, just loud enough for Ty to hear. He, however, was more concerned with whatever he was inside of. Was this the "cannon"? It sure didn't look like one. But then again, it didn't look like anything he'd seen before. The crystal in which he was trapped took up much of the view of anything not directly straightforward, but he was able to detect the faint hum of some kind of machine underneath and behind him that seemed to surge with much more power than anything else in the room.

Ty was so lost in his observations that he almost jumped when the glowing energy vampire flew up in front of him. He backed away as far as he could, which was only a few inches at best. NOS grinned as he placed his hand on the crystal separating the two and calmly tapped his fingers, well, more like claws given their length and sharpness.

"Aren't you just the best little hostage I've ever had! Little One spends too much time talking and all the rest just scream in terror. I like your more hopeless approach to things. It makes my job much easier when the prey doesn't fight… and more enjoyable," Ty felt his rage surge throughout his metallic self, sending waves of electricity into his paws. Sparks crackled and danced around him. He narrowed his eyes and let out a soft growl. The power grew with his rage, white lightning snapping at the interior of the crystal that still refused his freedom. NOS's expression did not turn surprised, or even worried, but rather sly.

"Don't get too confident. Your abilities are nothing of a threat to me if I just take away your consciousness. I'm actually quite surprised you 'woke up' when you did. But nonetheless, this just makes it all the more enjoyable to watch if you're awake. That was actually why I came here, to make sure the universe's destroyer got to see his destruction for himself." NOS grinned, peeling back his claw and tucking it into his velvet cape. The electricity died down as Ty's expression shifted from aggravated to slightly fearful, and his eyes grew softer in color.

What does "universe's destroyer" mean?!

Questions flooded in but he filtered out the ones he begged not to be true. It was easier said than done, but he did it well enough to not drive himself mad on the spot. He racked his mind trying to find something… a memory, a vision… well, anything at this point! He was so lost, so afraid, unable to even move or even talk as far as he knew that even a brief description of his predicament would give him comfort, even if it would more likely be comparable to ripping a bandage off than to sugarcoating. It was a strange desire, but it was all he could ask for at this point.

A loud crash coming just a few feet away from the newly updated "N" emblem interrupted NOS-4-A2's enjoyment of watching the ranger try to stay sane. Ty, now more focused on this more than anything else, shot his ears up and flicked them over in the direction of the sound, which led him to a small, yet very destructive blast in the wall. Whatever caused it must've been able to take out three layers of the wall on it's own… possibly much more.

Slowly, a figure's claw made its way to the edge of the hole, grasping the edge and sliding down the wall. The darkness from the other side of the wall still concealed the thing's identity to Ty, but NOS on the other hand was more irritated than him, growling and swooping down at the base of the crystal to the ground to address the figure.

"How many times have I told you that just because Zurg is gone it doesn't mean we demolish the place?" The claw pulled itself back into the darkness and had no immediate response. Ty felt a sense of adrenaline mixed with excitement. Was this thing here to sa-...assist him? Or was it here to worsen everything?

Suddenly, a massive robot casually stomped out of the hole with booming footsteps that shook the crystal. For something so destructive it was rather...colorful.

Oh. No.

"Oh come ON, NOS-4-A2! He's not here and he's not coming back! Why not have a little fun?!"

Ugh, he's even more annoying than his brother. XR actually seems normal compared to this… oversized rainbow bot.

XL folded his arms and frowned like a child towards NOS who groaned and facepalmed.

"But this is m-OUR palace now! We can't rule the universe with you wrecking the place at every opportunity! I mean really, the door was no more than a dozen feet away from where you were, now why would you make a giant hole in the wall?!" XL put his hands on his hips.

"Well unlike you, I actually practice my dramatic entrances at every chance I get to perfect them. You just kill everything before actually seeing the look on their face! You're so cold-hearted! I mean, I was even able to practice fighting against Ty on the ship for crying out loud and you didn't say ANYTHING when he stole my arm!"

WHAT?!

XL flexed his arm filled with acid and twitched his fingers that seemed a bit rusty with their movements, "I mean, look at it! It's all stiff and jerky so whenever I have to use it next time it's gonna hurt all because of you and that mutt!" NOS growled at the larger robot as Ty just stared in shock. He had absolutely no memory of XL before now, and it was a complete surprise that he was able to single-handedly take down one of the most wanted criminals in the galaxy that even Buzz sometimes struggled with. It was as if… no. It wasn't worth it. All he wanted was to be a normal ranger again, no matter how much more powerful he was now.

"Might I remind you that I actually do take pride in scare factors, as well as savor my kills. I just don't need to practice since I'm not a walking kindergarten playground!" The energy vampire turned his back and flew a bit further away from the machine and landed in front of a large control panel box and started to tap a few buttons, "And furthermore, I'd watch your tongue around your partner in crime, or you'll end up with a worse fate than everyone else, you reject ranger!" XL scowled, but with a hint of worry in his expression. Ty, on the other hand, was already tired of their useless debating but was still listening carefully in case anything important slipped out. Wait, what was that…?

He smelled the air. The crystal didn't seem to stop him in any way from detecting the scent: rocket fuel. But where was it-

"Hang tight, team, this is the big show!"

Oh Venus.

He couldn't decide between happy, or disappointed, or fearful, or, well… possibly any emotion. Buzz's voice to Ty when he was being saved was painful to hear, but now it seemed different. Now, it wasn't a situation where he could have easily saved himself with Buzz jumping in to claim the glory, no this was something he NEEDED help with. He hated that he did, but there was no escaping it.

Ty shot his head over to the new sound where he saw the light of four jet packs die out as the owners landed. There had been a small opening between the roof and the wall where they had slipped in, surely to act quickly and get out since any security would have spotted them. Buzz was the first to step in closer to the room but his team stayed close behind. He did a quick survey of the room and locked his eyes in shock when he saw the Wirewolf inside of the giant crystal before him.

"T-Ty!" He looked so concerned for his friend as he walked closer and took note of NOS-4-A2 and XL, who had moved closer to NOS by the control panel. XL seemed shocked, but NOS stayed calm. Ty finally realized something. The crystal's tip was identical to that of a plasma gun. This was the cannon.

His anxiety started to rise as Buzz and his team moved closer, directly into the range of whatever this cannon did. It was so hard to move all of a sudden, not that he had much room anyway.

"Allow us to demonstrate," NOS-4-A2 said calmly as he pulled down a large lever on the panel, "on YOU!" Buzz raised an eyebrow as the floor started to slightly rumble. His team had gathered close towards him, XR being the furthest away from the cannon by a few feet. Ty watched in confusion and fear as the crystal started to shake.

*BOOM*

Ty started to panic from the ominous noise as it was clearly coming from inside the cannon. Green sparks started to appear around him, one by one flying around out from behind him and gathering up into big clumps of energy as Ty looked around in fear. All of a sudden, they struck the Wirewolf from all angles, digging into the metal plates and wires that were visible.

A metallic roar shot throughout the room as the Wirewolf desperately tried to reach out to Buzz from the other side. Buzz looked in complete sorrow and shock as the paw slid down helplessly and the crystal covered the interior with a bright glowing green. Ty was frantically searching and pleading for it to stop, but the cannon refused.

*RAPID ENERGY DECLINE*

The message filled Ty's vision, flashing everywhere he looked like the warning of a ship. They raised his panic as the pain escalated into complete agony. He tried to contain himself, but with no success. Sadly, he let out a long, sorrowful wolf howl before collapsing.

Buzz and his team were frozen with fear, apart from one. As soon as the cannon started to beam up the sparks onto the front nozzle of the crystal, XR had hurried out of the way before any of his "organic" reflexes kicked in. The rest were hypnotized by the light and XR gasped at the realization that the cannon was about to fire and surely blast them all to smithereens.

Quickly, he sprung out his extendable arms and wrapped them around Mira, the closest to him. She yelped as the arms pulled her aside right as a few green flames shot out of the cannon's tip.

XR hugged her tight close to him as they both watched in horror to see Buzz and Booster totally engulfed by their own green flame. Both tried to run for a split second, but the flame was moving much faster than any of their movements, and making their own unusual ones too. It circled them both at light speed before a green wolf-like figure flickered through the light. It growled the same way Ty's Wirewolf did and covered them both. The flames crashed onto the ground and created a small fog from the dust that had been thrown up during the crash. XR and Mira both prayed for their friends to be alright but knew that whatever this cannon was supposed to do was not a safe thing to be hit by.

Suddenly, two large figures emerged from the fog. But as soon as the fog cleared, the remaining members of Team Lightyear stopped. Two Wirewolves, with some features remaining from Buzz and Booster, slowly walked forward. They both had some features that remained from the two rangers (Booster's was larger and had a smaller tail while Buzz's was quite similar to Ty but with an extra ring on his tail and a bit taller.)

Mira had to stop herself from screaming with her hand as she and XR slowly backed away from the Wirewolves but stayed close together. The small robot had a face of denial as he shook his head and had to really take a few good looks before he drew any obvious conclusions. NOS-4-A2's laugh filled the room as he tapped his claws on the panel, still totally relaxed but quite impressed with his new creations.

"Obey your Dark Master, my Wirewolves," he chuckled before pointing a threatening claw towards the rangers, "Destroy them." The two Wirewolves gave a small nod as they opened their jaws, ready to strike as they moved in closer. Buzz had moved to an all-fours approach while Booster remained on his hind legs.

*Power: 76%*

Ty gasped for air and recalibrated his senses. He groaned as his weakened paws tried to claw their way up into a slightly standing position. After a brief moment of trying to figure out what just happened to him, he gazed out of the now powered down crystal and dropped his jaw in horror. The two Wirewolves before him that were closing in on Mira and XR were too similar. Too close in their looks. There was no mistaking anything. This cannon had the ability to turn anything into a Wirewolf.

It was easy to see who was who, since if he were the prototype for all Wirewolves then the few characteristics were clearly shown in the other two. He felt almost… shameful. To him, this was all his fault. His friends were suffering and possibly doomed because of him.

I don't deserve to be called a Space Ranger.

He sorrowfully looked down at the situation unfolding before him, helplessly placing a paw on the crystal and begging for this to all end.


In loving memory of Princess, the sweetest mop-dog I've ever seen.


Hello everyone! I'm so sorry for being so busy lately and not having nearly enough time to update my stories as I want to! I truly do appreciate each and every one of you for the time you dedicate to reading my stuff! Hopefully the next chapter will have a smaller gap than this one XD! But anyways, thank you all so much and I'll see you all in the next chapter!

-Kittywizard