BILLY STEELE CHAPTER FIVE: MENACE OF THE MOLE PEOPLE

The mole people's futuristic cathedrals fell furiously and merged with the filth and dirt that had predated the dinosaurs.

White Eagle's spiritual cocoon shielded Billy and his friends as the tumbling rocks bounced from its surface. Miraculously, the energy bolts that guarded the heroes' prized weapons suddenly disappeared as the rampaging radiation took its toll on everything the mutant mole creatures found holy. Then, the ground beneath White Eagle's feet suddenly spread apart, swallowing up the Native American wizard.

The elderly sage's wrinkled fingers hung on for dear life to the ledge, while beneath his feet, a pit of molten lava sizzled in anticipation of devouring its human sacrifice. Before Billy could lunge for White Eagle, Col. Tim outstretched his hands to grab the Indian before he was about to fall. "Hang on, White Eagle," the Col. screamed as he single-handedly grabbed the Indian's wrists and pulled him to safety. The Col. pulled and pulled narrowly sacrificing himself to save the life of the one he called "A crazy old Indian savage" just a day before. Col. Tim saved the Indian's life as the others sighed with relief.

Billy's loved ones were all safe, but the underground walls continued to topple and fall all around them. A boulder struck the cage in which the weapons were stored and the energy bars keeping them from the West's saviors magically disappeared. Frantically Billy, Holt's Rangers and Cassidy grabbed their newly freed instruments of defense. Swiftly, Cassidy led Billy and his friends towards the secret chamber leading to the surface world. As the rocks and boulders continued to plummet all around them, Cassidy navigated them through miles of the danger-filled maze of the perilous tunnels leading to the world above. The Indian wizard's magical cocoon shielded them from devastating rockslides, swarms of killer bats and tempestuous rivers of molten lava blockading their way. Just as Billy saw sun light through an open crack in the ground, he could hear a massive boulder fall behind him, just steps away from where he left his boot mark.

The sweet smell of fresh air greeted Billy as he made his way on to the surface. He helped the one armed Cassidy reach the land and they helped pull White Eagle to safety. Col. Tim and Holt's Rangers soon followed, and when the super troopers stood erect on the land, they saw the war raging between the humans of the surface world and the mutant mole people from beneath the earth.

"Range warriors, ho," was the Col.'s battle cry as he and Sgt. Big Boy and Cpl. Jubilee quickly mounted and charged the mutants' war machine. Holt's Rangers didn't have time to bleed as they raced to save the town and fort. Just as Billy was about to mount his pony and join the battle, a giant worm creature sprung from the ground. This creature instinctively knew it had taken the full brunt of the radioactivity's poison and was soon going to die. And in its death throes, the mad monster would rage one more time by devouring one more victim-Billy.

Billy became locked tightly in the monster's jaws his cavalry uniform was being torn asunder by the conquering worm's fangs. Quickly, Cassidy used sword to battle the monster. The courageous "crippled" girl used her sword like a Samurai to stab and slice at the creature's eyes. Blood gushed from the giant worm's eyeballs as the creature soon released its death grip on Billy. The kid ranger managed to extract himself from the jaws of doom and ran towards the waiting arms of White Eagle.

White Eagle handed Billy his magical black arrowhead, and then Billy ran behind a tall tree to undergo his super transformation unseen.