Disclaimer: Power Rangers and all its related logos are property of Saban and/or Disney Entertainment. I am using them without permission, but I do not intend to make a profit. If I do, I promise to donate the money to one of those foundations that prevent animal cruelty. By the way, no animals were harmed in the production of this series… well, except that gerbil, but hes fine now. I swear.

A/N: This takes place a few months after Power Rangers Virtual Force. While it's designed for you to be able to read it without reading the first one, it wouldn't hurt to brush up on your history before checking this one out. Remember, an extended version of this chapter will be avaliable at Rangerfiction . net on 11/3/06.


Reefside, California August, 2023 AD
Helix Ranger leaned up against the wall of the building, or at least what was left of it, trying to avoid the laser fire. The building was, at most, a partially standing wall, but it gave him a moment to catch his breath. The patrol drones had been following him for a little over two hundred kilometers, each of them with a tracking device and lasers on their highest setting.

It was dark, and that combined with the smoke in the air, it made for good cover as he reached in his belt, removing another clip and loading it into his weapon. The distinct humming sound of the patrol drones moved closer, but he remained perfectly still, hoping they would simply pass over him.

No luck.

One of the drones fired, hitting what was left of the wall and destroying it. The blast was enough to knock him forward, but he quickly rolled over onto his back, aiming his weapon and firing at the drone. The drone exploded, but no sooner than what was left of it hit the ground, four more drones surrounded him. Each of them was close to six feet tall with metallic armor of some kind. Instead of eyes, there was simply a long, red line, which he speculated was a scanning device of some kind. It that was the case, it would have explained how they were able to see him even through the smoke.

"Surrender ranger, we have you surrounded," one of the drones said in a low, monotone metallic voice.

"Drop you weapon and you will not be killed," another added.

Helix Ranger dropped his weapons and raised his arms, complying with their demands. One of the drones approached him, ready to take him into custody, but Helix Ranger spun around him, snapping it's neck and snatching off the head in the process. Another drone fired, but the ranger used the body of the fallen drone like a shield, reflecting it. He quickly leaned down, picking up his weapon and firing at the third drone, catching it in the shoulder. It's arm fell to the ground, and before it could make a move, Helix Ranger rushed in with a heel kick, taking it down. The final drone reached for a sword, standing in front of the ranger.

"You will regret that," it warned him.

Helix Ranger reached behind his back, pulling out a sword of his own. "You think so?" he paused. "Red Chrono saber!" he called out.

The drone charged at him, but he managed to block it, spin around and shoved his saber into the drone's stomach, then snatched it upwards, ripping the drone in half. As each part of the drone fell to the either side, they exploded, leaving Helix Ranger standing surrounded by the remains of the drones.

"Well, so much for that," he said.

"Don't do a victory dance yet, I'm reading another platoon of drones converging on your area. You need to get out of there," a voice said.

Helix Ranger reached for his morpher. "Let them come. I'll deal!"

"Stop trying to play the hero and get back here. Do you have the device?"

"Yeah, I've got it, but…"

"No buts, just get it back here," the voice said. "And while you're there, grab a memory chip from one of the drones. It'll give us the heads up on what

He sighed. "Fine, spoil my fun. I'll be there in a minute," he said.

He pushed a button on his morpher, and within seconds, he disappeared in a stream of light.


He materialized in Hayley's Cyber Space. It was once a safe place for teens to come and study, to use computers and to socialize with one another, but over the years that changed. After countless battles with drones, attacks from various enemies, there wasn't much left of the café at all. One of the walls had been completely destroyed, and most of the roof was gone. There were laser burns and stained blood along the walls that were still standing, and most of the major equipment in the café had been too badly damaged to use anymore.

He removed his helmet, tucking it under his arm as he made his way through the remains of the café, walking into Hayley's lab.

"Freeze!" a voice said.

Before he could move, there was a disrupter in his face. He quickly put his hands up, dropping his helmet. "Damn it Hayley, its me, Zaylen," he announced.

Hayley lowered her weapon, letting out a sigh of relief. "Sorry, it's just that…"

He walked over to her, putting his hand on her shoulder. "I know, you can never be too safe," he paused. "But, I did get what we wanted," he told her, putting out a small device, handing it to her.

Hayley paused slightly, taking the device from him, taking a look at it. It was no smaller than a cassette box, but had wires sticking out of either end of it. "Are you… I mean, are we sure this is the only way?" she asked him.

"You told me yourself, if Atom had been stopped before his creation, none of this would have happened. Stopping him will safe countless lives, save the future…" he paused. "Save my parents," he sighed.

"Your parents were one of the greatest rangers I ever worked with, but I theres something you should know about them. They were..."

"It does matter Hayley, as long as they're safe. I'll go back and stop all of this from happening," he told her.

"But they..." she was cut short again.

"Whatever it is, I'll deal. If they're alive, nothing else matters to me."

"But you're not looking at the whole picture. What if you go back and make things worse? What if you going back in time gives him access to technology he wouldn't have had? Then, even if you are successful, you will cease to exist. You've done a lot of good, saved a lot of people. Tampering with the timeline only leads to more trouble than its worth, I don't think you should do this," Hayley told him.

"Hayley, I…" he paused. "Get down!" he screamed, shoving her to the side and grabbing his weapon, firing behind her. The beam connected with a drone, forcing it to explode on impact.

"That was close, another second and I…" before she could finish her sentence, another drone snuck up behind Zaylen, stabbing him in the side with a sword. As he fell to the ground, Hayley picked up his weapon and fired at the drone, destroying it. "Oh no, Zaylen," she cried, tending to him.

"Its not as bad as it looks," he pulled the sword out slowly, and within seconds, the wound began to heal. "I have to go Hayley, I have to do this," he insisted.

She sighed, nodding slightly as she walked over to her equipment, looking the device up to a small panel. "You need to know that this is one way. I barely have enough power to get you there, much less back. And, the timeline is a tricky thing, there's no way to know if you'll end up in the right time or not. You could end up there a week before it happens, or a year after it happens. Theres no way to be sure," she warned him.

"I know the risks Hayley, just do it."

"Subspace buffers are online, phase sequencers are functional, and the temporal field modulators are…" she was cut short.

"Save me the techno babble, just do it," Zaylen said.

"Good luck," she sighed, pressing a button. Within seconds, a portal opened.

Zaylen glanced back, nodding at Hayley, then stepped inside, and disappearing…


next time on Virtual Force: Beginnings - Patrick and Jen prepare for their first day back to school, a stranger makes his way to Reefside, and a former ranger returns.