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Return of the Dragon
Chapter 1: Tommy's Gamble
Tommy Oliver opted to train alone at the beach rather than be among his friends. Even as he performed a kata, his thoughts never left the dread filling his soul. Zordon and Alpha 5 had a bioscan performed on Tommy earlier in the afternoon to determine if there was any chance at saving what little remained of the Green Ranger powers. For all the advanced technology and powers wielded by Zordon and the Power Rangers, Tommy was still a victim of Rita Repulsa's magic. It was Rita's spell that gave Tommy the Green Ranger her powers and a spell that took them. Tommy only assumed the mantle of the Green Ranger again under the most desperate of circumstances: to save his friends.
But Tommy never wanted to be a liability. The young martial artist prided himself in conquering adversity on his own. The evening air reminded him of simpler times before Rita tapped him to become the Green Ranger, the days before he was forced to become the Green Ranger against his will. After the spell was broken, the thought crossed Tommy's mind to surrender the power coin and attempt to return to a normal life. It was a life filled with martial arts competitions and Tommy was one of the best.
It was ultimately the desire to atone for his sins that drove Tommy to fight against Rita and her evil minions. Being under a spell was no excuse to Tommy. Rita evidently saw something in Tommy that led her to select him to be an instrument of destruction. The strength of Tommy's will as well as his pride prevented him from wallowing in self pity. The Book of Proverbs said that pride goeth before destruction. In Tommy's case, it could not have been further from the truth. Rita Repulsa's vengeance would not rest until Tommy paid his debt in full. She used her magic to deplete the Green Ranger's powers and only by Tommy surrendering them to Jason Scott were the remnants of the power saved.
Regaining the Green Ranger powers replaced something that Tommy lost that day, but he was always walking a fine wire. The powers could not be replenished. They would ultimately fail. It was a reality Tommy faced and one that Lord Zedd understood. A chain was only as strong as its weakest link. Breaking Tommy was a personal mission of Lord Zedd's after he evicted Rita from her palace. The Green Ranger joining Zordon was seen as Rita's greatest mistake and it ultimately proved to be her undoing. Lord Zedd was obsessed with correcting the error.
Tommy ended his kata and gazed at the waves coming in from the ocean. He was in the situation he dreaded most. He was a liability. His friends were able to fight Lord Zedd's forces with new Thunderzords. Tommy barely had any power left to summon his old Dragonzord. Kimberly Hart tried to encourage Tommy, ever hopeful that she was. She refused to succumb to the cynicism that Tommy welcomed with open arms. Tommy's relationship with his girlfriend was taking a major blow as he began accepting the inevitable. His days as the Green Ranger were coming to an end.
"I just wish there was something I could do," he said. The option of returning to Rita's service was presented to him when she used the Green Candle to rob Tommy of the Green Ranger powers. He never considered it for a second. Unlike before, Lord Zedd was not offering Tommy the opportunity to serve him. Tommy would not have served him willingly, so Zedd did not place the offer on the table.
"A penny for your thoughts?" asked an older male voice, catching Tommy by surprise. The Green Ranger had been so lost in himself that he did not notice the stranger's approach.
Tommy turned to face the source of the voice. He was a man of about sixty years with long silver hair. He was of Native American descent and was dressed in a green buttoned shirt and black jeans. Unlike Tommy, the man wore his hair down rather than in a ponytail.
"Excuse me for startling you," he said. "I am Michael Dawson."
"Tommy Oliver," said the Green Ranger before he extended his hand for a handshake.
"I know who you are," said Michael as he shook Tommy's hand, "Green Ranger."
Tommy immediately released his grip from Michael's hand. Shock would have been an understatement to describe the reaction firing through Tommy's brain. No one was supposed to know the secret identities of the Power Rangers, a rule put in place for the Rangers' own protection. Yet this strange man knew a secret that only a handful of people on Earth could know.
"Do not be surprised, Green Ranger," said Michael. "I am not affiliated with Lord Zedd." His gray eyes were like a focused hawk, conveying the seriousness and truth in his words. "I have come to you with a message."
Tommy decided that it could not harm him to listen to Michael. He knew the Green Ranger's secret, so the situation dictated he listen lest he upset the man. "I'm listening," he said.
"Your powers are on the verge of destruction, which is why the people I represent have asked me to approach you," Michael told him. "The death of the great champion that you are is inevitable unless you accept the quest that only you can complete."
Hope tempered by realism crept into the Green Ranger's mind. "If there was a way to restore my powers, Zordon would find it," he told Michael. "Why would you come to me now?"
"To address your first point and your question, I will tell you that Zordon does not know everything there is to know about the power coins," Michael told Tommy. "They were forged by a being known as Ninjor in another age. He recognized the threat posed by Rita's magic and forged another power coin to replace the one that was lost." Michael held up his hand and a replica of Tommy's power coin appeared in a flash of green light. "But it's not as simple as replacing your power coin, Tommy. Rita's magic was stronger than he anticipated and we have been unable to re-establish a link with the Morphing Grid to create another Green Ranger."
"Let me guess," Tommy said. "This quest is supposed to be a way to re-establish that connection."
"There is no guarantee that it would work, but your options are wearing thin," Michael said to Tommy. "Even you have accepted the inevitability because you know what Zordon will find in the bio-scan. Your powers are at death's door. You can either cling to what little power remains in that coin or you can continue listening to what I have to say."
Tommy had no other options. He wanted to speak to Zordon to determine Michael's intentions because he knew little about the mystery man. However, Michael seemed to know many things about Tommy. Tommy still did not trust Michael.
Michael must have sensed Tommy's mistrust. "I am a neutral party," Michael said to Tommy. "I do not wish to see Lord Zedd rule this world and it needs you to return to full strength. As a show of good faith, I have acquired the remains of the Green Candle that Rita used to take your powers."
The remains of the extinguished candle appeared at Tommy's feet and the Green Ranger felt electrical sensations from the tainted artifact. He lifted the spent candle wax from the sands at his feet. The electricity quickly turned to pulses of cold, dark energy coursing through his veins. "So evil," he commented.
"It remains in the grip of the dark powers that Rita summoned," Michael commented. "The wax contains a residual essence of the Green Ranger's powers. You will need this to serve as a conduit for your new Green Ranger powers. However, I mentioned a quest you must undertake. Simply repowering a coin will not suffice. The powers you wield remain tied to your life force, but that tie was mostly severed as a result of Rita's spell. Using Green Ranger powers at their full strength will kill you."
"What must I do?" inquired Tommy.
"You must find Dulcea on the planet Phaedos," Michael said. "She is the only one who knows how to reverse the effects of this spell. However, she must do this at the Temple of Cleansing and she is under a spell herself. She cannot leave the plateau to which she is tied, a curse placed on her courtesy of the original Green Ranger. Your powers as they stand are too weak to break the spell, but you can receive a boost by visiting the Temple of Power."
"I'm interested," Tommy said, "but I need to discuss this with Zordon. He never mentioned you."
Michael laughed. "Zordon and I have not always had the best relationship," he said. "You could say we are rivals, but I am an enemy of Lord Zedd first and foremost. You could simply tell him The Phantom sends his regards when he questions my intentions."
Tommy nodded his acknowledgement. "Who are you?" he asked. "Who are you really?"
"They had a lot of names for me," Michael told Tommy before he flipped the new Green Power Coin in Tommy's direction, which the Green Ranger snatched from the air with his left hand. "Some just called me a ghost from the darkness, but my mother named me Erebus. I've just enjoyed living on your world so much that I took a name here. Take care of yourself and remember what I said, Tommy. Your fate is in your hands."
Michael turned and walked away from Tommy, leaving the Green Ranger speechless. He knew he Zordon would be able to shed light on the mystery, so he quickly teleported to the Command Center. Green energy crackled around him as he transported at luminal velocity. Tommy arrived in the Command Center with new artifacts in tow.
Alpha 5 was diligently working at one of the many consoles in the Command Center, no doubt trying to find a solution to Tommy's problem. Zordon was the first to greet Tommy. Trapped in his time warp, the old wizard seemed to be alert at all times as seen from the giant tube.
"Tommy, we have not finished analyzing the results of your bioscan," Zordon informed him before his eyes settled on the waxy remnants of the Green Candle. "I thought I sensed a minor disturbance in the Morphin Grid. How were you able to acquire the Green Candle?"
"Someone who called himself the Phantom said he went to Rita's old dark dimension to get it," replied Tommy.
Alpha 5 looked to Tommy's direction before asking, "Did you say the Phantom? As in the…"
"Alpha, now is not the time," Zordon said to Alpha in an uncharacteristically harsh tone. "I never expected Erebus to be active on this world and I have difficulty believing his intentions are honorable."
"Zordon, I don't know what this is about," Tommy admitted. "But he told me about some quest and he seemed legit. He also gave me a new power coin." The Green Ranger produced the spare coin from his front jeans pocket. "There is a way to restore my powers."
Zordon seemed to be briefly lost in his own thoughts before he spoke. "It is interesting that Erebus only chose to reveal himself now if he had this information," he said. A second later, his gaze rested on the Green Ranger.
"I must go to some planet called Phaedos," Tommy told him. "There's a ritual that can be performed by Dulcea, but it's not that simple. I have to free her from some spell she's under."
"Phaedos," Zordon said. "I've heard of this world. A great power rests there. It may be your only option, but be wary. The journey will be perilous. If you choose to embark on this quest, you must go alone. If the other Rangers go to assist you, Earth will be open to attack by Lord Zedd. This will be a great risk to you because your powers can fail at any minute, leaving you vulnerable to any attack. Given Lord Zedd's obsession with depleting the Green Ranger powers, I have difficulty believing that he will permit you to leave this solar system uncontested."
"But Zordon, if we don't do something, the team will be short one member," Tommy said as he approached Zordon's tube before coming to a stop a foot away from the giant column. "When I was under Rita's spell, the other Rangers risked everything to save me even though the easy choice would have been to end my life and take the power coin. I can never repay that debt and when I lost my powers the first time, I was devastated. Rita had a victory against me and if I sit around, knowing that the results of the bioscan will be negative, she will win again."
"Tommy, just remember that you will be alone," Zordon warned. "Phaedos is beyond my reach and Lord Zedd has many friends in the darkness of space. The choice is yours, but I would prefer your friends be made aware of the situation. I will contact the other Rangers."
Tommy already knew the choice he was going to make. Kimberly would not like it because she was always the optimist. She believed that Zordon could find a way to save the Green Ranger powers and the Pink Ranger desired to keep him close so that Lord Zedd could not target him. Breaking the news to Kimberly would be the most difficult.
~*~*~
Lord Zedd glared intently at the mass held in his right hand. Seated in his granite throne, Zedd was a fearsome sight with his muscular structure and brain exposed and a metal exoskeletal structure on his body present only for show. His internal skeletal structure was mostly intact, but Zedd was still permanently damaged from his attempt to take the Zeo Crystal thousands of years in the past. Some of his power was taken from him in that instant, but he still had few peers.
The structure Zedd grasped was the Green Crystal , a piece to his final solution to what he called the Ranger problem. When he first arrived on Earth and expelled Rita Repulsa to deep space in her dumpster, Zedd underestimated Earth's defenders. They were still children, but as he soon learned, they were very resourceful. But they had a weak link, something that led to the creation of the Green Crystal.
Gaining the Green Ranger's power coin was a massive coup for Rita Repulsa, but it was a situation she bungled because like Zedd, she underestimated the resolve of her enemy. She tried to recover the energies with the Green Candle, but even that plan failed. All Rita managed to do was severely deplete the energies that the power coin could utilize. Little did the incompetent witch know that her failure provided the instrument that could have permanently ended the Ranger problem.
Goldar, the ever sycophantic gold-armored winged simian beast, approached Lord Zedd's throne. His presence drew Lord Zedd away from introversion and towards the once proud general of Rita Repulsa's forces.
"What scheme have you hatched today, milord?" Goldar inquired with his gravelly voice.
"This," Zedd indicated by hoisting the Green Crystal. "At last, the end of the Green Ranger is at hand. This crystal is siphoning the last of his powers. Soon, Rita's mistake will be no more."
"That is great news, milord," Goldar said, shaking his sword for emphasis. "The the Rangers will be short one teammate and we can destroy them."
"My plan is much more intricate than that, Goldar," Zedd told him. "Once the Green Crystal is charged, I can use it to crush the Rangers once and for all. I won't do it with brute force, but by cutting them off from their source of power. Zordon was a fool to use his own energies to supplement the Green Ranger. His past act of desperation will be his doom. I will possess the ability to disrupt Zordon and the abilities of the other Rangers to morph. It will grant me the ability to use their powers against Earth itself."
"It is a very brilliant plan, milord," Goldar told him.
"Of course it is," Zedd said with a sinister tone and he stared into the pale green glow of the crystal. "Zordon will rue the day he took up arms against me as he watches on helplessly."
~*~*~
Ten thousand years earlier…
A powerful thunderstorm raged in the night around three men gathered on a grassy hill. Wind and rain ripped at the blades of grass and cloaks worn by the trio. Lord Zedd stood at the highest point on the hill, his long blond mane clinging close to his head due to the weather. Zordon and Erebus stood side by side, against Lord Zedd. They wore black cloaks with hoods covering their heads. Zordon's skin, long ago bronzed due to time in the sun, was drenched despite the protection his cloak generally afforded.
Zedd drew a line in the mud with the point of a broadsword. "Gentlemen, you surprise me," he said. "I thought you would make me wait for your answers all night." A flash of thunder illuminated his face, the white light seeming to electrify his cold blue eyes. The crash of thunder followed soon afterwards.
"We came here to dissuade you from your path, old friend," Zordon told Zedd. "We will not follow you down the dark path."
"Zordon, you disappoint me," Zedd said. His voice was rich and deep, the sort of voice when combined with his photogenic good looks, often made women swoon. "You presume to speak for Erebus whom I know has flirted with the darkness on multiple occasions. Master Vile has offered to spare this world we call home if we all defect."
"You're a coward!" barked Erebus. "Master Vile would never keep his promise. If that's your motivation, then you are not the brave man I thought you were."
"Do you think my motives are so petty, Erebus?" asked Zedd. "The old alliance is crumbling. I seek to bring freedom and security to this galaxy, something we all want. I simply discovered a greater power to make those dreams a reality. If you will not come with me as equals, you are my enemies."
"Zedd, we serve that alliance you call doomed," Zordon pleaded one final time. "You served it proudly and you are our greatest champion. Everything you have done will have been for nothing. The people of your world will forever vilify you for allying with Master Vile."
"Master Vile can be overthrown," Zedd told his friends. "This is something you have been unable to accomplish playing by the rules. Master Vile will fall before me and the galaxy will finally be at peace."
"But at what price?" Zordon asked before drawing his sword. "Your ambitions cannot become a reality, Zedd. If you will not listen to reason, we will stop you."
"You can try," Zedd snarled before rushing towards Erebus and Zordon.
~*~*~
Present Day
"So that's the situation," Tommy said after explaining the earlier events to the other Rangers.
Jason stood across from Tommy, deep in thought. Zack leaned against a console at the far end of the center ring away from Zordon. Billy adjusted his glasses after he processed the information. Trini, the ever stoic one, remained silent. Kimberly, by Tommy's side, grabbed his arm and was the first one to speak.
"Tommy, it's too dangerous," she said. "No one will be able to help you. Zordon will think of something. You have to trust him."
"Kim is right," Zack commented. "You don't even know who this Erebus guy is. It could be a trap."
"Erebus is an old comrade in my war against Lord Zedd," Zordon told Zack. "Erebus has no logical reason to lead Tommy into a trap. He is powerful enough to finish Tommy himself if that was his desire."
"Zordon is correct," Billy surmised. "Constructing an elaborate ruse of this sort is not logical. He retrieved the Green Candle, obviously at great risk to himself."
"That's what I don't like," Zack admitted. "How could he steal it from right under Lord Zedd's nose? Wouldn't Zedd have noticed it?"
"It's been two weeks since Lord Zedd last attacked the Earth," Trini stated. "He is planning something big."
"I thought about that too," Jason said. "I don't like this at all because Tommy will be alone against whatever Lord Zedd throws at him. But if we do nothing, Tommy is still a sitting duck. Lord Zedd's monsters are more powerful than Rita's and if we lose the Green Ranger powers, we'll be at a severe disadvantage."
"But if Tommy goes to another planet, he could lose his life," said Kimberly.
"But if I do nothing, it could come at the cost of this world," Tommy said. "We took an oath to protect this world from the forces of evil."
"Tommy, I won't stop you from going," Jason said, giving the Green Ranger consent to go to Phaedos. "You'll still be alone out there. Give this some thought."
"I already have," Tommy told his leader. "I'm going."
Kimberly stared up at her boyfriend, worry written on her face. She squeezed his arm, giving him a silent plea to remain on Earth. Tommy could see it in her eyes, the fear of loss.
"I'm sorry," Tommy told her. "It has to be done."
"Just come back in one piece," Kimberly requested as she released her boyfriend.
"Tommy," Zordon said, forcing the Green Ranger and his comrades to face the old wizard, "Alpha and I have been preparing for the possibility that we could restore your powers to full. If you succeed, your Dragonzord remains at a disadvantage against Lord Zedd's advanced monsters. Observe the Viewing Globe."
The Rangers turned to the Viewing Globe in unison to observe a replay of the Dragonzord rising from the waters. It was a scene witnessed by Tommy on numerous occasions.
"Once your powers can support it, we will be able to activate the Green Dragon Thunderzord," Zordon told them.
The Viewing Globe showed lightning striking the Dragonzord before it transformed into a large flying green dragon. Unlike with Jasons's Red Dragon, which was a Chinese style dragon, the Green Dragon had the characteristics of a European style dragon. It was majestic and had a massive wing span. The video then showed the Green Dragon transforming into warrior mode. When it stood upright, it resembled an armored knight with the gold Dragonzord emblem on its breastplate. A giant broadsword descended from the heavens and fell into its right hand.
"It's amazing," Tommy said.
"Man, Lord Zedd won't know what hit him!" Zack exclaimed enthusiastically.
"The Green Dragon Thunderzord can combine with the Lion, Firebird, Unicorn and Griffin Thunderzords to form the Thunder Megadragonzord," Zordon told the Rangers, drawing their attention. "But none of this will be possible unless Tommy is successful."
"I understand," Tommy said.
Zordon said, "I will attempt to provide you some cover when we teleport you offworld. Once you get beyond the solar system, you will be beyond my reach to observe. Are you ready?"
"I am," Tommy said. Then to the other Rangers, he said, "I will return. I promise."
Alpha punched some buttons on the console, preparing the Command Center's systems for long range teleportation. "We're almost ready," Alpha told Tommy. "I discovered the coordinates for Phaedos in our database when you first mentioned the planet." He pushed one last button and said, "Here goes nothing."
Tommy closed his eyes as he was enveloped by energy and was transported out of the Command Center in a green stream. The green stream flew into the air and beyond the atmosphere of Earth. Deep space awaited Tommy Oliver.
~*~*~
Lord Zedd felt a sensation of emptiness coming from Earth, prompting him to search for any disturbances in the Morphin Grid. What he soon witnessed confirmed his suspicions. A green teleportation stream rocketed past the moon towards deep space. He quickly rose from his throne so he could attempt to track it. After reaching the balcony, he gazed into space with his crimson gaze. The red beam shined from his visor and observed the trajectory of teleportation.
"Clever," he said. "Going to Phaedos will do you no good, Green Ranger. You are all alone now. This will be easier than I hoped it would be." Lord Zedd quickly burst into wicked laughter, feeling the waves of triumph flow in his direction. "Soon, this world will be mine and the Power Rangers will be no more!"