Author's Notes:
Hello everyone! This fic has been long in the making from concept to finally being able to write it down. I plan on making it into a series, as the idea is somewhere along the lines of "if HBO did a rangers series." Please R writing this definitely took a lot and I am so excited to share it with everyone!
Episode 1.1: Threat
June 2030
Sky burst through the doors of the steakhouse and hurriedly approached the hostess. "How long has she been here?" he asked, "I hope it hasn't been too long."
"Don't worry about it Mr. Tate." she replied, "She's only been waiting for about ten minutes or so."
The hostess motioned for him to follow as she led him to a secluded table in the back of the restaurant. "I am so sorry." he said kissing the top of his wife's head before sitting down, "The meeting with the Saturn officers was a lot more extensive than I had planned. I tried telling them that I had somewhere important to be, but they just didn't manage to wrap things up-"
"It's fine, honestly." She cut him off, "Between both of our jobs, I wasn't really expecting either of us to be punctual."
Since their participation in the war against the Troobians, Sky and Syd had become almost completely consumed in their careers. As the SPD Earth base commander and the A-squad pink ranger, their hands were full even while intergalactic crime fell to its lowest rates in years. The couple was lucky to manage a marriage in the process, albeit it was more of necessity rather than romance. Worried about Syd remaining in the field, Sky requested that they establish themselves on paper for legal reasons if something should happen to either of them.
"I wanted to talk to you," she continued, "about your offer."
For the past few months, Sky had urged her to settle down a bit and take a job out of the field. He wasn't entirely keen on his wife putting her life on the line every time some otherworldly creature decided to break universal law.
"I thought you were adamant on staying?" he asked.
"I was, but now I have a reason to keep myself a little safer than normal. Sky, I went to the doctor today…" she trailed off.
"And?"
"And, I found out that we should be expecting a major change in our lives soon. We're going to have a child." She replied meekly with a smile.
Sky was speechless. "Please say something. You're worrying me here. If you don't feel we're ready it's still not too late to terminate-"
He interrupted her with a laugh. "Ready? I've been ready for the past few years!" he exclaimed, "My god, we're having a child!"
He reached for both of her hands and placed a gentle kiss on each of them. "How much longer until we meet?" he asked.
"I'm about five weeks along, so my due date is sometime around February."
"Celebrations are in order!" he declared, "I'm going to order us some wine- oh, but just for me, obviously. What would you like? You can have anything you wish, love."
"Honestly," replied Syd, "I think I can feel my cravings already. I'm feeling some chocolate cake."
xxx
"I didn't do nothing!" shouted the burly green creature as he was lead into the base's booking facility.
"Tell that to the pound of plutonian hallucinogens found in your possession," replied the ranger leading him in cuffs.
Levi Thomas was the typical red ranger type. With a strong, disciplined background of academy work and an alpha male personality, it was no surprise that Sky chose him as the leader of the newest B-squad. Aside from his traits in leadership, he also fit the physical stereotypes of his position. With his tall, toned body, chisled face and tousled dirty blond hair women at the academy often fawned over him. Not that he would normally care; he was often too busy with his work to care about something as trivial as relationships.
"I ain't going to jail today!" exclaimed the creature.
He gave Levi a strong jab to the ribs, loosening his grip enough to escape. With that, the prisoner took off down the hall, leaving startled cadets in his wake.
"Like hell you are," Levi muttered.
He began to persue the offending creature, suddenly disappearing and then reappearing before him. "Next time, try not to run from someone who can transmutate," he stated as he regained control of the prisoner.
A man with a similar, yet bulkier stature bounded down the hallway toward them. "Are you sure you've got this?" he asked.
"Fine Alex, you can help."
Alex Vega was Levi's blue ranger and second in command. A reformed Compton inner-city street thug, he was chosen for his position in order to balance Levi's rigid, type-A personality. While Levi turned down many of his hopeful pursuers, Alex was happy to take them over. He was equally handsome, but in a different way with his tanned skin, dark eyes and hair, and charming smile. "Do you know if we're ever going to do some actual ranger work?" he asked, "We've been on B-squad for months now and we're still stuck doing work inside the base."
"Well it's not like there's a ton of criminal activity," Levi replied, "A-squad is usually able to handle most missions on their own."
The pair headed back down the hallway toward the prisoner holding cells. "I do know however," he continued, "that A-squad is headed to the yearly Rangers' Summit this weekend and will be gone for a while. Commander Tate told me this morning that he'll be briefing us tonight on what duties we'll be taking over during their absence."
Alex bit his lip and nodded as they approached an empty cell. He scanned his ID and the doors slid open. "Guards will be over in a bit to allow you to contact family and an attorney if you wish," he stated as Levi shoved the creature into the cell.
xxx
"Violet, come here and give me your morpher."
B-squad green ranger Violet Carson and yellow ranger Derek Madison were currently scheduled for time in the lab. Much like her older brother, Violet was of great help to the science department in testing suspect samples and repairing weaponry. Aside from her curiosity and abilities in the lab, she also shared traits with him such as her pale skin, dark hair, and genetic power of psychometry.
Derek was a lanky young man with soft brown hair and dark eyes. He was recruited as a technical specialist who began his career as an off the grid hacker, but quickly gained entrance into the SPD academy, as he was able to hack into the system and demonstrate all major security flaws in the system. Within his first couple years, he had designed a whole new security code, as well as continuously develop updates to the morpher grid.
"Ooh! Are you done with the update?" she asked, turning from her work and taking off her lab glasses. She moved from her position at the lab bench to the tech area at the opposite side of the room.
"Yeah, we just need to give it some time to download. We can test it in the sparring chamber later tonight."
Violet reached into her pocked and took out the small mobile device, jumping as it flew out of her hand and into Derek's. "Show off. Look at me! I'm Derek and I'm telekinetic!" she mocked.
Derek gave her a smirk. "When you've got it, why not use it?" he replied. "This may take a while to download; mind if I check out what you're working on?"
"It's nothing too special," Violet replied, "I'm just finishing up the DNA testing for this one case. Just don't forget your eye protection this time."
She turned to walk back to her work, replacing her lab glasses. Derek followed, picking a stray pair from another lab station. "So what exactly is this process?" he asked.
"It's called gel electrophoresis," she replied.
"What now?"
Violet laughed, shaking her head. "Look," she said, picking up a test tube and a micropipette, "In this tube is a sample of DNA. Now I'm going to pick up some enzymes."
She dipped the micropipette into another test tube. "These get mixed with the DNA," she swirled the contents of the tube, "and then injected into the pockets in this gel."
With a fresh pipette, she picked up the contents of the tube and placed them into a small hole in a block of a gel substance. "Now I'll run electricity through this for an hour or so and it'll spread the DNA out into specific sections. If the sections match, then the samples came from the same person."
"Nothing better than an afternoon science lesson!" interrupted a tall, slim young man with shaggy light brown hair and rounded horn-rimmed glasses as he entered the lab.
"Oh hey Doctor Canfiled ," Violet replied.
Doctor Nicholas Canfiled was the newest head of lab sciences at SPD Earth. Beginning as a young prodigy in the STEM fields, he attended MIT on a scholarship and earned doctorate degrees in both mathematics and engineering, as well as a master's in physics. At the young age of thirty-four he was a prime candidate for the position after Kat left the base in pursuit of greater career options.
"Derek, I hope those aren't my goggles you're wearing again," Canfield admonished, "Last time you used them, I found them caked in spicy cheese puff dust. May I remind you that it is a safety violation to snack in the lab."
Violet let out a snort of laughter as Derek shook his head. "I swear sir! I have no idea how they got that way!" he exclaimed.
xxx
"So if you ice it twice each day and stay away from any strenuous activity for the rest of the week, you should be fine. Feel free to take any over the counter painkillers if it gives you any problems, and don't be afraid to come back if it's too much for you to handle, got it?"
Tara Austin was not only the B-squad pink ranger, but also a fifth year resident in the base's medical program. She had the typical cheery personality and beauty of a pink ranger, but she was more than her color. She turned down a track and field scholarship out of high school and instead joined a pre-med program. After completing her higher education, she continued her training with SPD, as she wished to pursue trauma surgery and emergency medicine as a specialty.
She placed a reassuring hand on the injured cadet's shoulder and smiled before picking up his chart and signing off on it. "Make way make way!" hollered a few interns, bursting through the medical center doors with a gurney.
Tara hurried to the scene, pulling her short blonde hair into a messy ponytail. "What's the issue here?" she asked urgently.
"First year cadet, male, age fifteen. He and his buddy thought they were ready to try some of the heavy weaponry; more specifically, one of the large butterfly knives."
The intern pulled down the sheet covering the patient, revealing a large cut across his chest and a deep slash to his left arm. Tara inspected the damage. "The wound on his chest seems superficial; we'll just need to bandage that. However, his arm is lacerated. Nice job packing it on the scene; he could have died from blood loss on the way over here. Let's move him to a bed. Someone needs to get some morphine as well as some local anesthetic and a suture kit. Go!"
A couple of the interns scattered while the rest aided her in moving the patient on to an empty bed. "Hey there," Tara said, "Can you hear me? Can you tell me who you are?"
The cadet mumbled slightly but it was too inaudible to understand. "It's okay. You're going to be okay, you hear me?" she continued, "I'm going to fix you right up."
The interns appeared with her requested items and immediately went to work setting up a line for the morphine and prepping the patient's arm for the stitches. "Just a quick pinch," Tara said as she injected the anesthetic into the affected area.
She then opened the sterile packaging of the suture kit and began stitching the laceration back together. "He's going to have one hell of a set of scars," she commented as she finished her last few stitches.
"Alright, it's done. I'm pretty sure you all can handle the rest."
The interns nodded as she stripped off her gloves and moved on to her next patient.
xxx
It was late in the evening and Levi had called the team together to meet with their commander in order to touch base on their duties while the A-squad would be away.
"So basically," Sky explained, "your team will be the best defense Earth has in place while the A-squad is away. What this means is that your jobs are going to become much harder and much more serious. In fact, I have spoken with your supervisors in your areas of work and have requested that you spend full time under me from tomorrow up until A-squad returns."
He produced several folders from his desk drawer. "These are your schedules for your training and drills as Earth's current top squad. All sessions are mandatory."
"I'm sorry, but does this say physical training at five AM tomorrow?" Derek asked.
Sky closed his eyes and exhaled sharply. "Yes, Mr. Madison, indeed it does. You all have been asking about being 'real rangers,' whatever the hell that's supposed to mean, and this is it. 'Real rangers' understand that they are the planet's main line of defense against any threat. They take this responsibility seriously and therefore take their training seriously. Physical training, five o'clock tomorrow morning. If any of you are even a second late, there will be repercussions. Understood?"
"Yes sir," the team replied.
"Understand that while the A-squad is absent you may be the Earth's sole defenders in the case of a crisis. I don't mean to be a tight-ass, but your commitment could mean the difference between life and death for the civilians on this planet. You are all dismissed; good night."
The rangers gave him a salute and filed out of his office.
xxx
Violet yawned as she stood on the platform with Sky. Several early mornings and late nights of hard ranger training had her exhausted.
Her brother along with his team were leaving for the annual Rangers' Summit conference that day and she was there to wish them goodbye. "Don't let the planet fall into too much chaos while I'm gone," Bridge joked as she helped him load his bags into the spacecraft.
She shook her head. "Real funny Bridge," she replied, "It's not like I'm the only one in charge of keeping the place safe."
"I know. I just worry about having my baby sister being one of the lone defenders of Earth. Just please promise me that you'll be safe."
"It's not that dangerous out there anymore, thanks to you. But if it makes you feel better, then yes, I promise to keep myself in one piece."
He pulled her into a tight hug and kissed the top of her head. "Keep the good reputation of the green rangers alive," he said before letting go.
Meanwhile, Sky was saying goodbye to his wife. "Are you sure that you want to go? Technically you did already resign from your position," he pleaded.
"Sky, I told you, one last event and then I'm done," Syd replied, "It's not like I'm running into battle or anything. I'll just be speaking and networking, and peacemaking. Me and the little one will be fine."
She placed a hand on her abdomen. "Alright," her husband agreed, "Just be sure to call and message often to let me know you're okay. And if you ever need to come home, I can have someone sent out to pick you up in a heartbeat."
"I'll be fine!" she protested before he pulled her close for a quick kiss on the lips.
"Love you," said Sky.
"Love you too."
With that she boarded the spacecraft, the last passenger to do so. The doors shut as Sky and Violet went back inside the base.
xxx
Levi thought that he was dreaming when he heard the first bang, but when he woke up and the ground began to shake beneath him, he knew that something was terribly wrong. He picked up his morpher to check the time. It was 3:57 AM. There was also an alarming message from Sky: "COMMAND CENTER. NOW."
He didn't hesitate as he swung his legs off his bed and grabbed his emergency bag. Another loud bang shook the base as he checked that he had everything and bolted out of his door. "What the hell is going on?" Alex shouted as he appeared from his room across the hall.
"I don't know but it's definitely something dangerous. Did you get the commander's message?"
"Yeah. We all did. Violet, Derek, and Tara are already on their way. I wanted to make sure that you were alright too."
Suddenly, an unmistakable noise echoed through the hall: boots on the ground. "Run," Levi whispered sharply.
They sprinted down the hallway and through a security partition, which Alex promptly closed and locked. "No saying how long that's going to hold up," he said as he turned and continued to run.
When they arrived at command center, they met Sky who was standing at an opening in the floor. "I don't know how much time we have left," he said, "Hurry, get inside."
"What the hell is this?" asked Alex.
"I don't have time to answer. Just get it."
Alex slung his bag over his shoulder and began to climb down the ladder into the darkness. Levi and Sky followed, with Sky closing the opening. It was impossible to gauge just how deep the hole went, but he could tell it was reasonably deep, as they climbed for a good few minutes.
When they finally reached solid ground, Sky turned on a flashlight and shined it against a wall. He reached his fingers into a crevice and pulled, exposing a small circuit board, and then pulled his morpher out of his pocket and connected it. After a few seconds of scanning noises, he unplugged his morpher and the wall split open to a dimly lit hallway.
The hallway opened up into a great cavernous room furnished to live in. Comfortable sofas surrounded a coffee table and a rug to the right, while a large kitchen area was set up to the left. The sitting area was occupied by the rest of their team members as well as Doctor Canfield. "Oh thank God," Tara sighed and she ran into Alex and Levi's arms.
"Is everyone okay?" asked Sky.
"Yeah, just a little startled and confused," replied Levi, "What the hell is this place anyway?"
Sky scratched the back of his head, sighed, and sat on the arm of one of the sofas, facing the team.
"When I was instated as Earth Commander, I had a second base built in case of another attack. After what I had seen in that war, I knew we would have to be up for anything the universe could throw at us. We are currently one-hundred-fifty feet underground in a secured bunker. We will live down here until we discover just exactly what happened and develop a plan of action. As of now, our main priority is ensuring that all of us stay alive and safe; we could be the last defense Earth has in place."
"So you don't even know what happened either?" Alex asked.
"No. I was called up to the surveillance room on emergency just before the attack hit," Sky explained, "We only saw a large mass on the radar and then the bombs started dropping. Whatever it is, it's here to kill."
"So how long do we need to stay down here?" asked Derek.
"It depends," Canfield replied, "We don't know what went on after we secured ourselves down here. The blasts could have been nuclear, leaving toxic radiation behind, the base could be completely crumbled above us, trapping us until we find a way to dig ourselves out, the planet could be occupied for all we know. I'm currently working on developing a probe, to read the environmental conditions outside. Once we know it's safe, a few of us can venture outside and investigate. Until then, we stay here and prepare for the worst."
"Rangers, you are currently the highest ranking squad on Earth," Sky continued, "I expect us all to work full force in investigating and fixing this matter. It's important that you do this on an adequate amount of sleep. I'll show you to your rooms."
He beckoned for the team to follow him, and they followed with what little they had in tow.
xxx
Author's Notes:
If you're reading this, congrats! You reached the end of this hellishly long chapter! I promise all chapters won't be this hefty, it's just that I felt this one needed to be in order to set up the story and introduce a majority of the OCs. I will try to update as much as possible and hopefully at least have a majority of the chapters for this series typed up since I am starting university in a few days. Thank you for the support! -Desmund