It was late at night in New Tech City, a soft breeze drifting through the open window of an in town apartment. The middle aged woman smiled as she took in the serene city lights and went back to knitting, jolting suddenly as she caught a bright flash from the corner of her eye. A loud boom followed not long after and she inwardly groaned, jumping from her seat and shutting the window. She hurriedly collected her children and ushered them into a shelter, often used during dangerous attacks and battles in the city. Thankfully they had become less frequent after the defeat of the Troobians, but not unheard of.
Outside the red ranger powered down his battelizer, anticipating the destruction of the criminal Karthix. When the smoke cleared Karthix emerged, his iridescent purple exoskeleton still very much in tact. "I wish you would just die already," Sky growled in frustration. The A-Squad red ranger and his team had been fighting the intergalactic assassin for what seemed like forever, and they still hadn't been able to contain him or even leave a scratch on him.
"And I wish I had a pony, unfortunately life just doesn't work that way," a very familiar voice came over the com link in Sky's helmet. Sky scowled in disbelief, looking around him for the source of the comment. The Fire Squad red ranger strode confidently toward him, the rest of her squad in tow. Sky couldn't resist smiling, though his pride took an instant hit when he realized what her presence meant. Back-up had been called in. The Commander didn't believe he could handle the situation.
"Mere?!" Dozer asked in disbelief, temporarily forgetting the battle at hand.
"Hey Dozer. I gotta say, I'm surprised the uniform fits you," she joked easily.
The A-Squad blue ranger looked over his current attire in mock deliberation. "It's no green, but it's works. I think you stretched the butt out though."
"Shut up," Meredith protested, smacking her old friend across the arm.
"Let's focus guys," Sky ordered his team, still not acknowledging the presence of his former second in command.
"Lucky, Crater…you guys take the south side. We'll drive him back so you can get a jump on him," Meredith commanded her yellow and black Fire-Squad rangers.
"What are you doing?" Sky asked, approaching the girl who donned the same color as he.
"He's Tanzonian," Meredith explained simply.
"Meaning?" the A-Squad pink ranger finally spoke up.
"Meaning his exoskeleton makes him virtually indestructible. We have a device that can crack it, leaving him vulnerable but it needs to be applied to the back of his neck," Meredith continued, nodding to her remaining squad. The green and blue rangers took off running toward Karthix.
"Wait, where are they going?" Dozer asked.
"Josh and Aidan are keeping him busy until the others can get into position. We'll need to draw his fire as well, if we're done with this little powwow that is," Meredith added, eyeing her former leader. She could practically hear him sigh through their helmets.
"Let's go," Sky nodded in affirmation. The rangers bombarded Karthix and kept his focus, allowing Lucky and Crater to successfully place the device. Once it had been activated they regrouped, trying to ignore the blood-curdling scream it was eliciting from the alien.
"One last hit and he should be weak enough to contain," the Fire-Squad blue ranger observed. All parties grabbed their weapons and took aim, firing on a combined command of Meredith and Sky. A large explosion shook the entire street, leaving Karthix lying helpless, groaning and trying to sit up unsuccessfully.
Meredith stepped forward and took out her morpher, clicking it into judgment mode. "You are charged with the murders of a Frenovian diplomat, a Druidian cardinal, and several civilians," she announced, waiting as the device deliberated the truth. After a few moments a bright red X flashed, declaring that he was in fact guilty. Without wasting any time she hit him with a blast of anti-matter and Karthix was secure in a containment card. Satisfied, Meredith took a deep breath and went to pick up the card, powering down as she did so. Everyone else followed suit, both squads faces revealing relief and gratefulness that it was over. Everyone except for Sky. Meredith flicked her side-swept bangs out of her face, hesitantly making eye contact with the other red ranger.
Sky's resolve hardened, annoyed that another squad had swooped in to dominate his case, but mostly caught off-guard by the impromptu appearance of his former best friend. Her uniform was black instead of the usual grey, with red now traveling the length of her arm. Even her hair was longer, the dark golden blonde having been lightened by the suns of many planets. But her light blue eyes, so much more expressive than he let his own piercing gaze convey, still had the same mischievous twinkle. He had missed her, and that only annoyed him more. She walked toward him, the rest of their squads now dissipating as they planned to head back to base for debriefing. "You guys were great out there. Anyone else wouldn't have lasted nearly as long against him," she almost congratulated. Meredith extended her hand, holding the containment card out for him to take. Sky lowered his eyes to the contained criminal and then back to the girl in front of him. She was letting him bring it in. Giving him and his squad the credit for the capture when clearly they were over their heads.
"I don't need your pity. You earned the capture, you bring him in," Sky replied a bit coldly.
Meredith rolled her eyes at his stubbornness. "We just happened to have access to the right technology that's all. You guys were out here doing the real work…" she tried to explain, noting Sky cross his arms over his chest. "Fine, you won't take him? I'll just leave him here then. You explain to the Commander why you left a containment card lying in the street," she said as she set the card down at her feet. "See you back at the base," Meredith smiled sweetly as she strode past him to the waiting S.P.D. jeep.
Sky turned and watched as she hopped into the passenger seat of the jeep, realizing she really was just going to leave Karthix there. "Real professional Ols…" he growled and shook his head, lowering himself and hastily picking up the card. He began to massage his temple as he marched back toward his motorcycle, mentally berating himself for letting the nickname slip. He took another deep breath and put his helmet on, deciding to do an extra round of simulator training when he got back to blow off steam. 'You're going to give me an aneurism,' he thought, trying to lower his blood pressure and frustration for his former teammate. He revved the engine and hit the gas, following both squads back toward the S.P.D. base.