A/N: New Power Rangers story, everyone! I'm making a new kind of Ranger here, and I think it's going to be exciting! These Rangers are called the Crystal Rangers, and instead of Power Coins, they have Power Gems. You'll see as the story goes on.

Please read and review!

Chapter 1: Origins

Thousands of Years Ago…..

The Crystal Rangers collapsed on the ground, their DragonZords perching on their shoulders as the team fell. Standing in front of them was one of their own, the Green Ranger, fighting them on the side of evil.

"Remonse, you don't have to do this!" the Red Ranger, Zordon, begged of him. "You don't realize what Rita is telling you! You don't realize what you are causing!"

"On the contrary, old friend, I know exactly what I'm doing," Remonse, the Green Ranger, called back to Zordon. "I'm going to destroy you – and help my empress take control of this world!"

"Not if we have anything to do with it!" Zordon yelled back. He called to the other Rangers, "Rangers! Together!"

They all took their weapons and combined them into a cannon, then shot it at Remonse. Remonse only laughed as he was being knocked back.

"You think that can destroy me?" he asked in a condescending way. "I am still the Green Ranger, Zordon. You have no power over me as long as that stays true!"

"Then I can at least stop you from taking this world for Rita," Zordon vowed, then nodded to his DragonZord.

The deep red, half-foot tall gem dragon took off, the others joining him. They all flew towards Remonse and his Green DragonZord. They circled around the pair faster than their eyes could follow so that all that could be seen were streaks of red, blue, black, pink, yellow, and white. Remonse and his DragonZord were now trapped, and Zordon used his power to push the pair into a cave, then the DragonZords sealed the cave. Zordon sighed, demorphing. Their job was far from over, but as the Crystal Rangers, their time had come to end their conflict. It would be up to Zordon to trap Rita, as he was one of the few others with powers, and the DragonZord guardians would hide the Power Gems all over the continent so that Rita wouldn't find them, at least not easily. The Rangers all felt their Power Gems break the connection between the Rangers and the Gems, and the guardians took the gems into their claws, flying off and carrying them in whatever direction they could.

Zordon sighed. It was time to battle Rita.

Present Day

Zordon

Twenty years had passed since the final defeat of Rita Repulsa and Lord Zedd, but Zordon could still feel that there was another evil one out there, biding his time until he felt it was good to attack. Even in the time warp, Zordon could feel the evil coming from his former teammate. He sighed.

"What is it, Zordon?" Alpha V asked, looking up at his master from the controls in the Command Center.

"I sense that our work here isn't done, Alpha," Zordon replied, "although I fear that our Power Rangers cannot be of help."

"Well, they aren't teenagers any longer," Alpha pointed out.

It was true. Everyone from the old Power Rangers team had grown up and started families of their own, pursued lives of their own. They had long since given up the Power Coins to Zordon, and Zordon knew that the power had run out in the coins from the final defeat of Rita and Zedd. He bid the Power Rangers of that time keep them as a memory of their time as Power Rangers, and as tokens of his everlasting friendship with them. They all thanked him and bid him farewell, returning once a year for an anniversary celebration of Rita and Zedd's defeat.

Zordon sighed. "Then let's hope that the Power Gems have found the Rangers to bond with," he said. "I fear that an old enemy may be planning his next move."

Dan

Dan rode on his horse as he herded the cattle and bulls to his family's Texan ranch, noticing that one was missing. He called out to one of his brothers to finish the job and spurred his horse, making him gallop towards where Dan had an idea as to where the missing bull had gone. He stopped at the entrance to a cave, where he saw a cow patty outside of the cave's entrance. He heard a moo come out from the cave, then followed it on his horse.

"Okay, this cave totally isn't creepy at all," he thought out loud as he went onward, keeping an eye out for the bull.

He then noticed a red glow that intrigued him. He knew he had to find the bull, but the pull of the red light… it was enticing to the teen. He followed it to find the source: a glowing red gem in the rock. He reached a hand to get it, then pried it out with his bare fingers. The gem glowed for a moment before the light wrapped itself around Dan, lifting him off of his horse for a moment. He could only look at himself in awe as the light seemed to enter every pore of his body and become a part of the very core of his being. It eventually set him down gently back on his horse.

He looked at the gem, now no longer glowing, and said, "Wow, that was weird."

"Woah, it bonded with you!" a small voice came from where he took the gem out, and Dan looked to find a ruby-colored gem dragon poking its head out of the hole where the gem once was.

"Dude! An actual dragon!" he exclaimed, staring at the dragon.

"DragonZord, to be precise," the creature clarified before clearing its breath. "I am Ruby, guardian of the Red Power Gem. You, young man, are the new Red Crystal Ranger. What's your name?"

"Uh… Dan," Dan replied. "Okay, this day just got really weird," he muttered, looking at his Power Gem.

Suddenly, a group of claylike humanoids came from around the corner, catching Dan's eye. They spoke an incomprehensible language, but they wielded clubs and looked like they were planning on attacking Dan and his horse.

Dan dismounted, ready to fight, and Ruby said, "Now wait a moment! You're going to need to morph to fight these guys off!"

"Morph? What are you talking about?" Dan asked.

"Just hold the Power Gem in front of you, then call out my name!" Ruby instructed.

Dan sighed. "Well, this day's already gotten super weird, so I might as well…" He held the Power Gem out in front of him and called out, "Ruby!"

The Gem glowed like it did before, and it enveloped him in red light, transforming him from the inside out. When the light died down, Dan saw that he was wearing a red skintight suit with a gemstone cut pattern all along the suit, and he was wearing a helmet. What was on the helmet, he had no idea. On his chest was a pattern with three white diamonds, and on his hands were form-fitting gloves. On his feet were boots, and the boots, gloves, and chest shared the same design. A simple white belt with no discernable belt buckle was around his waist, and he pumped his fist in the air.

"Damn, this is awesome!" he said, deciding to try it out.

He kicked out at one humanoid, and it was knocked back, off of its feet. He smiled and punched another, then kicked out at the last one. He smiled as he saw them all melt into the ground.

He then realized he had a dilemma, and asked Ruby, "Uh… how do I get out of this costume?"

Ruby smiled and perched on his shoulder. "Just cross your arms over your chest with your hands in fists. That will make you demorph, and the Power Gem will be back in your hand."

Dan did so, and he found that the red light from earlier glowed around him again, and once the light disappeared, he found himself back to normal.

"Woah… this is unreal," he muttered.

"Well, it's official! You're a Crystal Ranger!" Ruby exclaimed, jumping off of Dan's shoulder and doing a somersault in the air. Ruby then looked back at Dan, asking, "So what did you originally come in here for?"

Dan was taken back by the question at first, then replied, "I lost one of my bulls, and I think he's in here. I came in here to find him."

"Ah, I know where he's at. Follow me."

Dan mounted his horse again and followed Ruby to the bull, who was drinking water from the underground stream. Dan took a rope and roped the bull, dragging him out of the cave and back to the herd. Ruby hid in one of Dan's saddlebags, and Dan was grateful for that. He didn't know how to explain to his parents that he had a dragon in his saddlebags.

Ruby hid around Dan and followed him into the house, and that evening, they started talking.

"So, now that you're officially a Crystal Ranger, there are three rules that you must follow," Ruby was saying. "One: never use your power for personal gain. Two: you must never escalate a battle unless your enemy forces you to. Third and finally: never let anybody know that you are a Crystal Ranger."

"All right, no using my powers for personal gain, don't escalate battles unless I'm forced to, never tell anyone I'm a Crystal Ranger. Got it," he said. "Does the third one count for other Rangers?"

"No, since they're Crystal Rangers, as well."

"Gotcha. Thanks, Ruby."

"You're welcome, Dan."

Thor

Most of the others – Will, Shawn, Maria, Pandora, and Blake – found their gems in similar ways, each with their own Gem – black Obsidian, blue Sapphire, pink Rose Quartz, yellow Topaz, and white Diamond, respectively. But there was one more Gem to find, and Thor was the lucky – or rather, unlucky – guy to find it.

His family had decided to take a break from the hustle and bustle of New York City life, so they took a trip across the state. Thor liked to explore the countryside of New York state, and soon found himself at a sealed cave.

"I wonder where that leads…" he thought aloud as he began to dig through the sealed entrance, then after about half an hour finally managed to get to the other side. After that, it was easier to get the rest of the dirt away, and he found an ornate hallway hidden in the mountainside (he was by the Appalachian mountains). He followed it to find a humanoid sitting on a throne who looked curious and – dare Thor think it – extremely interested in his new visitor. The humanoid had greenish skin and was bald, although he looked very intimidating.

"Ah, it looks like someone was able to break the seal," the humanoid announced, getting off of his throne and walking up to Thor. He bowed, saying, "Thank you, young… human…"

"My name is Thor," Thor introduced himself. "And you are…?"

"Oh, forgive my rudeness, Thor," the humanoid quickly said. "I am the Dark Lord Remonse. Pleased to make your acquaintance. Please, allow me to express my gratitude."

He held out a strange gem with a little green dragon by it, and when Thor put his hand near the gem, it glowed green. Thor took his hand back suddenly, but reached for it again and grasped it, its power enveloping him like it had Dan (although Thor and Dan had never met in their lives). When the light died down, Remonse seemed to be in shock and awe.

"So you ARE the new Green Crystal Ranger…" Remonse said.

"Green Crystal Ranger?" Thor asked, unsure of what Remonse was saying.

Remonse smiled. "It means that you have an enormous amount of power. I can teach you how to use it, if you'll let me."

"Really?" Thor asked. He was fully willing to believe Remonse (given all that had happened just then), and Remonse could see something in Thor that Thor usually tried to hide.

"Really. It can help you get friends, protect others, whatever you wish…" he offered, his voice becoming like honey.

Thor became very interested in Remonse's words. "Teach me. I'll do whatever you wish; just teach me how to use these powers."

Remonse smiled wider. "Of course."