Power Rangers: Element Guardians
Elements Rising Pt. 1
Lighting split the night sky. Torrents of rain poured down from the heavens above. The ground was flooded with slippery mud, making it near impossible for the young man to run any further. But he couldn't give up. He wouldn't dare give up the golden box to his enemies, not when the whole universe is at stake. Because what was inside this box, was the key to saving, not only Earth, but countless other planets from alien domination.
"After him!" Shrilled a woman. "Don't let him get away!"
The young man looked behind him to see six wolf-like creatures chasing after him. He held the box tightly for all it was worth and kept running. He didn't know how long he was running or where was he headed. For all he knew, he had to get out of this forest, but it seemed like a never ending maze. That is, until he found himself running near the edge of a cliff. The man turned around to see the wolf creatures surrounding him. He couldn't run away and he couldn't move forward without getting killed. He was trapped. The wolf creatures stepped aside to make way for a young woman dressed in blood red. She was tan skinned, with raven hair and grey eyes with a hint of red in them. Her clothes were scantily clad, leaving little to the imagination. She had on a headdress with a viper on it. And she smiled an evil smile. The man stared the woman down, knowing what she was capable of. Yet, he was not afraid.
"Give me the box," said the woman. "And I promise I will show mercy on you."
"You expect me to believe anything that comes out of your mouth, Sa'Sheen?" The man sneered.
The woman known as Sa'Sheen shrugged. "Not really. But King Riktal won't be so lenient."
"Well tell King Riktal that he will be sorely disappointed."
Before Sa'Sheen could stop him, the man opened the box. All of a sudden flashing lights as if they were majestic fireflies emerged from the box. They were in eight different colors and they were circling around everybody. Then they disappeared into the sky. Sa'Sheen saw this and grew very furious. She stormed up to the man and drew her sword, holding it to his neck.
"What have you done?!" She growled.
"I've hid the rings where no one can find them. Not even me." The man declared. "Only the ones who are worthy will find them."
"You better tell me where you've hidden them. Or I'll slit your throat open."
"Your threats are meaningless, Sa'Sheen. I told you I don't know where they are. Only the Power Rangers will find them."
"The Power Rangers are nothing but mythical legends. The king will find them and when he does, you're going to wish I've shown you mercy."
"He will never find them. He can do his worst."
Sa'Sheen put her sword down and smirked. "You're brave," She commended. "Let's see how brave you really are when Riktal is through with you." She stroked the man's cheek tenderly. All of a sudden, the man felt his bones stiffen and his knees start to give out. He tried to fight it but the heaviness and tiredness engulfed him and he sank to the ground, unconscious. Sa'Sheen snapped her fingers and two of the wolf creatures picked the man up and proceeded to carry him back to the palace, Sa'Sheen following closely.
P.R.E.G*P.R.E.G*P.R.E.G*P.R.E.G
PLANET EARTH-2 YEARS LATER
La'Monica Willis-Cranston looked down at her class schedule then looked the building standing before her. It awed yet scared her at the same time. This was the first time she was away from home and although Angel Grove was just four hours away, it was very fearful. All of the students were hustling and bustling as if they had somewhere to be. La'Monica thought that they seem to know what they were doing. If she were to be honest with herself, she had absolutely had no clue.
"Are you lost?"
La'Monica turned around to see a young girl staring at her. She had black hair and green eyes. She had on a blue halter top, white jeans, and sky blue flats. She also had a knowing look on her face.
"Uh yeah. I'm trying to find Pearson Hall." La'Monica replied.
"Oh, that's the second building to the left." The girl said. "I'm going there actually, wanna come?"
"Ok, that'll be good." La'Monica gathered her things and followed her new friend. "By the way, my name is LJ Willis-Cranston."
"Nice to meet you, LJ. My name is Alex Diaz." The girl introduced. "What does 'LJ' stand for?"
"La'Monica Jennifer. Don't really care for my first name so I just go by the initials."
"Good thinking. My parents named me Alejandra because they thought I was going to be a boy. So I just go by Alex. Where are you from?"
"Angel Grove. What about you?"
"Right here in Malvern Hill."
LJ looked at Alex curiously. "Are you a Sophomore?"
"Nope. Freshman just like you. The reason why I'm so familiar with this campus is because I took some college classes here. Also my parents were alum."
LJ nodded as the girls strode into the building. They saw many students walking and hurrying to find their rooms. That was the struggle of Orientation. Alex and LJ looked at each other knowingly. College was going to be tough.
"Do you know what room you're going to be staying in?" Alex asked.
LJ looked at her papers. "I think Room 1425."
"No way!" Alex exclaimed, looking at her papers. "That's my room number too. We're going to be roommates."
LJ smiled. "Well, that's a load off my shoulders. Let's go then."
The girls gathered their things and headed upstairs. Once they got to the room, they found out that the door was already open. Confused, Alex and LJ went inside and found a redhead girl struggling to put her shoeboxes in a closet. She was pretty short for her age so it was out of reach for her.
"Do you need any help?" LJ asked.
"No, I think I got it," the girl grunted as she tried to put a shoebox up on the top shelf in the closet. But when she tipped it, a whole bunch of shoeboxes came tumbling down like an avalanche. Alex and LJ watched the clumsy scene unfold as the girl just sat there, dumbfounded. "On second thought," she said. "Maybe I do need help."
Alex and LJ laughed as they came over to help the girl reorganize her shoes. "This is a lot," Alex observed.
The girl shrugged. "What can I say? I like shoes." She looked at her new friends. "Are you my new roommates?"
"Apparently so," LJ replied. "I didn't think we would have another roommate joining us but the more the merrier. I'm LJ Willis-Cranston."
"And I'm Alex Diaz." Alex added.
"Nice to meet you. I'm McKayla Whitley." The girl introduced. "My family just moved here from Turtle Cove."
"I have family in Turtle Cove." Alex said. "What part?"
"The bay area. When they found out that I was accepted to Malvern Hill College, they moved to be close to me. I don't mind but I can't say the same for my little sister."
"She doesn't like the move?" LJ asked.
McKayla shook her head. "She's starting her Junior Year in high school. Hates being away from her friends."
"She'll be fine," Alex assured. "Malvern Hill is a nice place." She looked at her watch. "Cool, the Promenade is open. I'm going to get something to eat, you guys wanna come?"
"What's the Promenade?" McKayla asked.
"It's the Student Lounge there." Alex said. "They have all kinds of stuff there. Sort of like a hangout area."
"Sounds good to me." LJ said.
"I'm in," McKayla agreed. "Will there be any cute guys there?"
Alex and LJ laughed again. "There better be," Alex said. "We're in college after all."
P.R.E.G*P.R.E.G*P.R.E.G*P.R.E.G
Justin Nichols roamed around the Promenade in search of his best friend. This was his Junior Year at Malvern Hill College and he wanted to make sure that all of the fine young ladies were properly greeted. He looked around to see two young women sitting at the bar, drinking and conversing. He smiled and strutted over to them.
"Welcome to MHC, ladies." He greeted. "Allow me to introduce myself. Name's Justin and I will love to make your stay as comfortable as possible."
The girls looked at Justin and laughed. "No thanks," said one girl. "We'll be fine."
Justin sighed as the girls left the bar. Women, he thought. So fickle, yet so beautiful.
"It's nice to see some things haven't changed."
Justin smiled as he turned around to see a tall, Indian boy with jet black hair wearing a red plaid shirt, blue jeans and red Nike gym shoes. Justin came over and hugged his friend. "Raj! I've been looking all over for you, man!"
Rajesh Patel hugged Justin back. "I was getting everything settled in my room. It's good to see you."
"Likewise. Who's your roommate this year?"
"Don't have one."
Justin looked at Raj incredulously. "How did you pull that off? My roommate is Malcom McGee."
"Wow, I feel sorry for you." Raj snickered. "I requested a single room two months ago."
"I should've done that. So, are you ready to meet some ladies, Patel?"
"Is that all you think about?"
"Besides music and food? Pretty much."
Raj shook his head. "It's a wonder you're still here. I'm surprised you haven't dropped out."
"And forfeit my football scholarship? Man, my mama will kill me. Besides, I would miss out on all of this beauty. And speaking of beauty, here some angels coming our way."
Raj looked toward Justin's direction to see two young girls coming their way. One was a Latina girl wearing blue and the other was a redhead wearing pink. Justin, being the gentleman that he is, decided to meet them halfway.
"Hello ladies and welcome to MHC." He greeted.
"Are you the welcoming committee?" Alex asked.
"You can say that," Justin replied. "I'm Justin Nichols. And you are?"
"Not impressed." McKayla nudged Alex in her arm.
"Sorry, she's a little bit spunky." She apologized. "I'm McKayla Whitley and this is Alex Diaz. We're Freshmen."
Raj came over to the girls to introduce himself. "Nice to meet you McKayla and Alex," he said. "I'm Raj Patel and you've met Justin. I'm a Sophomore and he's a Junior."
"Cool." McKayla remarked.
"Are you two roommates?" Justin asked.
"Yeah, and we're waiting for our other one. She stopped by a bulletin board."
"Is she as pretty as you lovely ladies?"
McKayla giggled while Alex just rolled her eyes. Raj shook his head at his best friend's antics.
"Excuse my friend, he's very friendly." He apologized.
"Yeah, we noticed." Alex remarked.
LJ looked around for Alex and McKayla and saw them talking to two boys. She smiled as she came over to them.
"Hey girls!" She called out. McKayla and Alex turned around to LJ's voice.
"Hey, where've you been?" McKayla asked.
"They have flyers for soccer tryouts. I'd figure I'd give it a…"
LJ's thought was unfinished when she looked up and saw a face she hasn't seen in almost two years. The boy, for his part, was equally surprised yet nostalgic.
"Hello LJ." Raj greeted.
LJ snapped out of her reverie and looked at Raj hard. "Rajesh," she said stoically. "I didn't know you went here."
"I'm a Sophomore here."
Alex, Justin and McKayla kept looking from Raj's direction to LJ's. They didn't know what to do so Justin broke the awkward silence.
"Do you two know each other?" He asked.
"LJ and I used to date before I moved here," Raj explained.
"He broke it off and left with no explanation." LJ added.
"I'm really sorry about that."
"It's a little late for apologies." LJ grabbed her backpack shoved right past Raj and Justin. Raj looked back at his ex-girlfriend feeling guilty.
"I should go talk to her," McKayla suggested and went after LJ. Alex and Justin looked at Raj and he still had that forlorn look on his face.
Justin put his arm around his friend. "Cheer up, Raj." He comforted. "There are plenty of fish in the sea for the both of you."
"And who knows? Maybe she'll forgive you eventually." Alex added.
"I highly doubt it but thanks." Raj grabbed his backpack. "I gotta get back to my room. I'll see you later, Justin and it was nice meeting you Alex."
Alex smiled a compassionate smile as she watched Raj exit the lounge. Soon it was just her and Justin. The older boy smiled one of his infamous grins. "So cutie pie, what's your schedule?"
"None of your business," Alex replied as she grabbed her things and leave to find McKayla and LJ. Before she did she said this to Justin: "Call me cutie pie one more time and I'll kill you." Justin's eyes widened as he watched the young Latina leave. He smiled. "She likes me." He said to himself.
P.R.E.G*P.R.E.G*P.R.E.G*P.R.E.G
After her classes, LJ rode her bike through the town of Malvern Hill. She usually rides her bike to take her mind off of things. This time, it was the surprise of seeing Raj again. The last time they saw each other wasn't a very good one. Without any explaination whatsoever, Raj broke off their five-year relationship with each other and said that he was moving from Angel Grove to another city. He didn't specify which one though. LJ cried for weeks, thinking it was the end of the world. But as the saying goes: Time heals all wounds. It has been two years and LJ was finally moving on with her life. That is, until Raj reentered the picture. Dismissing her thoughts, LJ stopped riding her bike and paused to look at the stores on this street. Malvern Hill was a bit smaller than Angel Grove but it had some nice buildings and neat stores. One store, however, caught LJ's eye. It was a small bookstore called "Cestri's Books." LJ loved books so she decided to check it out. She got off her bike, parked it on a nearby bike rail, and entered the store. The store had a rustic, yet mysterious feel to it. As LJ walked around, she saw hundreds of old books stacked neatly on old wooden shelves. She also saw some stairs leading to a room of some kind and far in the back was a metal bookshelf. LJ walked over to the bookshelf to see what kind of books they had. The books were archaic and dusty but there was something about them that fascinated LJ. She reached out to grab a book when a woman's voice interrupted her.
"Can I help you with something?" The woman asked.
LJ looked behind her and saw the petite woman coming towards her. She was of average height, long black hair and almond-shaped eyes. She had on a blue polka-dotted dress that fit her perfectly. LJ smiled a nervous smile.
"Um…how much are these books?" She asked.
"Oh, these books are not for sale," the woman replied. "They're from my personal collection. The rest, however, are up for grabs."
LJ nodded as she walked from the metal bookshelf to the counter where the register was. The woman looked at LJ curiously, as if she had seen her before.
"Is this your first time in this bookstore?" She asked.
LJ nodded. "Yeah, I go to the college uptown. I'm from Angel Grove originally."
"Angel Grove. Nice place. I visited there once or twice. I moved to Malvern Hill two years ago and opened up this bookstore."
"So you're Cestri?"
Cestri nodded. "It's nice to meet you…uh…"
LJ extended her hand. "My name is LJ."
Cestri extended her hand to shake LJ's. "So what can I do for you, LJ? Do you need a book for school?"
"No, not really. I was just looking around. Never been to an antique bookstore before."
"It's not all antique," Cestri laughed. "We have some modern books as well." She eyed something on LJ's hand. "That is a beautiful ring."
LJ looked at the ring on her left hand and smiled a sad smile. "Thanks," she said. "An old friend gave this to me long ago."
"Very special to you, huh?"
"You can say that." LJ then looked at the clock on her cell phone. It was an hour before curfew. "Oh crap, I gotta go. I have to be at my dorm by 11:00."
"That's ok, I was going to close up anyway. But come back anytime. I would love the company."
"You don't have any other employees?"
"Didn't think to hire any. It's a small bookstore so I get by pretty well on my own. Don't want to make you late for curfew so you better get going."
LJ nodded and proceeded to head out the door. "Bye, Cestri." She called out. "It was nice meeting you."
Cestri simply waved as she watches LJ get on her bike and rode off. She then locked the door of the store and proceeded to head upstairs to the room in the back. It turns out that the room was a small apartment, big enough for two people. Cestri walked over to her closet and got out a medium-sized rectangular box. She opened it and looked at the contents inside. There were eight bracelets in different colors. Cestri took one out and held it. She then looked up to the heavens. "Don't worry, my love." She whispered to herself. "I will finish what you started. And wherever you are, I will find you."
Alex and McKayla were talking about their classes and the teachers they have when LJ walked through the door. It was about 10:45 PM.
"Hey, where'd you go?" McKayla asked.
"I rode my bike into town and stopped by a local bookstore." LJ replied.
"You mean Cestri's Books?" Alex asked.
LJ nodded. "I think it'll be a great place to work."
"A bookstore?" McKayla repeated. The idea didn't sit well with her.
"I haven't been to Cestri's Books before," Alex said. "But I heard it was kind of weird."
"It's not," LJ reassured. "It's a tad bit mysterious but it has nice vibes to it. Even the owner is nice and she works there all by herself. Maybe we can give her a little break?"
Alex and McKayla looked at each other. "We could use the extra cash," Alex reasoned. "And it's only 10 minutes from campus."
McKayla sighed. "All right," she conceded. "I don't like the idea of working in a bookstore but I'm sure it wouldn't hurt."
LJ smiled a big smile. "Awesome, we'll go there after class tomorrow."
P.R.E.G*P.R.E.G*P.R.E.G*P.R.E.G.
Cestri looked the girls in question. They all had smiles on their faces as if they thought that the job was theirs. But it was up to the owner of the bookstore and Cestri was a little hesitant.
"Why do you want to work for me?" She asked.
"Come on, Cestri," LJ began. "You've been on your own for two years. Isn't time you brought in some help?"
"And it's very convenient for us." Alex added. "It's not far from campus and you close the store at a reasonable hour in time for us to make it before curfew."
"And it's not Barnes and Noble." McKayla said. She saw her friends' looks then quickly added: "But we can work with that."
Cestri laughed. "Okay, you've made your point. You're hired."
The girls cheered. "So when do we start?" LJ asked.
"Right now. You can start by stacking these books on the shelves. I gotta do some inventory." Cestri instructed. She then went in the back to do some inventory. Alex, LJ and McKayla proceeded to grab a cart full of books and stack them on the proper shelves. Nearly two hours later, the bell rang, signaling that someone entered the store. The girls looked up to see Justin and Raj walk in.
"Oh my God," Justin exclaimed. "Did I just die and went to heaven?"
Alex sighed. "Are you stalking us?"
"No we're just here to get some textbooks and this store is closest to the campus." Raj explained.
"Why are you here?" Justin asked.
"We work here now." McKayla said.
Raj and Justin looked at each other, then back at the girls.
"Are you serious?" Raj asked.
"Why does that surprise you?" LJ snipped.
"Well, it's just that…. Cestri never hired anybody before and now she hired you guys?" Justin pointed out.
"We're hard workers." Alex said.
Cestri came from the back and saw the boys. "Hey boys," she greeted. "Is there anything I can help you with?"
"We're here to get these textbooks for class." Raj said, handing Cestri a piece of paper. Cestri read it and smiled.
"I'm sure we have these books in the back. Let me check." Cestri retreated to the back to look for the books, leaving the five kids alone. There was a long silence then Justin broke it.
"Do you guys know what's back there?" He asked.
"The supply closet, maybe." Alex said.
"No, not there. Behind the metal bookshelf."
Everyone's direction shifted to the metal bookshelf in the very back.
"There's nothing behind the bookshelf," LJ said. "It's just a shelf with old books."
"Look, ever since Cestri opened the bookstore, that bookshelf has been off limits and no one knows why." Justin explained. "It can't be that dangerous unless she had something hiding behind there."
"You think she has a monster behind there?"
"No. She has some sort of secret passage way behind there."
Raj just shook his head. "Justin, you've been saying conspiracy theories about this place since it first opened. I'm sure it's just an old bookshelf."
"No one knows where Cestri is originally from. She just came from nowhere. Even she is a mystery."
"Shh, she'll hear you." LJ shushed.
Justin lowered his voice to a whisper. "I think it's time we solve this mystery."
"There's nothing to solve," Alex said. "Cestri is a nice girl. Why are we intruding her space?"
"We're not. We are just seeing what is special about that bookshelf and I for one intend to find out."
McKayla, who was silent throughout this conversation, decided to speak up. "Maybe it won't hurt to check it out." She said.
Alex and LJ looked at their friend like she was crazy.
"You actually agree with this crap?" Alex asked.
"Alex, everything about this place screams haunted bookstore." McKayla said. "Maybe we should know what we're getting into."
LJ shook her head. "I don't like this." She said. But there was a part of her that wanted to find out what was behind that bookshelf. She turned to Justin. "Say we go along with you on this. How do you plan to explore the bookshelf without Cestri finding out?"
"She goes to the bank every night around 9:00." Justin observed. "She does this like clockwork. Raj and I will come back here around that time and we'll investigate."
"Whoa, hold on a minute." Raj interjected. "I never said I was going along with this."
"Come on, Raj." Justin implored. "You said so yourself that you wanted to find out about this place."
"But I never wanted to invade her privacy!"
"It's not like we're peeping through her bank statements. We're looking at a bookshelf. Come on, man. I can't do this without you."
Raj sighed. He didn't want to do this but he didn't want to leave his best friend high and dry either. "Fine, I'll do it."
Justin clapped his hands in triumph. "Excellent. I knew I can count on you." He turned to the girls. "You girls are in?"
Alex, LJ and McKayla looked at each other as if they were having a mental conversation with each other. Then LJ spoke up. "Fine, we'll do it. But if anything goes wrong, I'm pulling the plug."
"Good deal." Justin agreed. "We'll be back around nine."
Cestri came back from the back with three textbooks in her hands.
"These are all I could find back there." She said, giving the books to Raj.
"Thanks, these are perfect." Raj thanked. "How much do we owe you?"
"They're $10 a piece."
Raj handed Cestri $40 and Cestri gave him his change.
"Thank you, Cestri." Raj thanked.
"You're welcome. Come again!"
"Oh, we will." Justin said, giving knowing looks to Alex, LJ and McKayla.
The boys exited the store and the girls looked at each other, wondering what they gotten themselves into. Cestri noticed their looks. "Is everything all right?"
"Yeah, yeah everything is fine." LJ said. "Just a little tired."
"You girls can take a break if you want."
The girls looked at each other again. "That's a great idea." Alex agreed. And with that, they hurried out of the store. Cestri looked at the girls curiously then shrugged it off.
P.R.E.G*P.R.E.G*P.R.E.G*P.R.E.G
It was almost 9:00 PM and the girls were in the midst of closing the store. Cestri came downstairs with a moneybag in her hand. She grabbed her jacket and proceeded to head out the door.
"I just have to go to the bank to make a deposit," She told the girls. "I'll be back before your curfew."
"Don't worry, Cestri." LJ assured. "You can count on us to watch the store while you're gone."
Cestri smiled. "Of course I can. I'll see you in an hour." She left the store, leaving the girls to mend the store. As they waited for Justin and Raj to arrive, LJ started to have second thoughts about the whole operation.
"I still don't feel right about this," She said. "We shouldn't do this to Cestri, not after she gave us jobs. It's like we're violating her trust."
"Well maybe Justin is wrong about this?" McKayla thought.
"He could be." Alex agreed. "But he's right about one thing. Cestri is a mystery. No one knows where she's from. And everybody knows everybody in Malvern Hill."
LJ started to say something when she heard a knock on the door. It was Justin and Raj. She signaled them to come in and they entered the store.
"Is she here?" Justin asked.
McKayla shook her head. "She went to the bank at 9:00 just like you said. She'll be back in an hour."
"Good. That gives us plenty of time to investigate."
"What if you're wrong, Justin?" LJ asked him. "What if the metal bookshelf is just a metal bookshelf?"
"Then I'll be the first to admit I was wrong and apologize."
"Let's just get this over with," Raj decided. "Cestri will be back soon."
The kids nodded and walked over to the bookshelf. They examined it for a few minutes, unsure of what to do next.
"What do we look for?" Alex asked.
"Something that will lead us to a secret passage way. Like in the Indiana Jones movies." Justin said.
The kids proceeded to take out every book that was on the shelf and putting them back. They also looked for a lever or button that will supposedly open the bookshelf. They didn't find anything. After searching for twenty minutes, Raj finally gave up.
"Justin, it's been twenty minutes." He said. "Maybe there is no secret passage way."
"Yeah, I think you guys should leave." LJ suggested. "Cestri will be back soon."
Justin thought about it and sighed in resignation. "All right, we'll leave."
He and Raj proceeded to get their backpacks and head out the door. LJ and Alex went back to the counter to close the register. McKayla started to follow when she caught sight of a discarded book on the floor. She picked it up and put it back on the shelf. When she did that, the shelf turned around and McKayla screamed. Alex, Justin, LJ and Raj heard it faintly and turned around to see what it was.
"Where's McKayla?" Alex asked when she realized that McKayla was nowhere to be found.
Justin looked at the bookshelf again. Then he walked over to it because, in his mind, he thought the bookshelf did something to McKayla.
"McKayla!" He called out. "McKayla, can you hear me?"
"Justin, she's not behind the bookshelf." Raj said.
"Yeah, maybe she went to take out the trash or something." Alex added.
Justin started to agree with them when he heard McKayla's voice on the other side. Justin! She shouted. Justin can you hear me?
"McKayla! Are you okay?"
I'm fine. But you guys gotta see this.
Justin looked back at his friends. They had a look of shock and curiosity because they heard McKayla's voice too. They walked up to the bookshelf.
"What happened?" LJ asked.
I picked up a book and placed it on the middle shelf. McKayla explained. When I did that, the shelf turned me around to the other side.
"Which book was it?"
The thick, black book second from the left.
LJ followed McKayla's direction and eyed a black book in the far left. She realized that this was the book she almost took out before Cestri interrupted her. LJ looked at her friends, unsure of what to do next.
"Take the book out." Justin suggested.
LJ nodded and took the book out slowly. All of a sudden, the shelf turned around again, taking the four scared kids with it. They fell in a heap on the ground. McKayla saw them and immediately rushed over to them.
"Are you guys alright?" She asked.
"I think so," LJ said, as she got up. "Where are we?"
"A secret passage way." Justin awed. "I knew it!"
"It's not a secret passage way," McKayla corrected. "It's some sort of lair."
The kids looked around and found out that McKayla was right. It was a type of secret lair. It resembled more of a mysterious cave with passages and real solid rock walls. Although it looked archaic, it was technologically modern. It had a lab, rooms with sophisticated weapons, locked doors and a giant-sized television. Justin was floored.
"How does someone afford all of this?" He asked.
"Better question is why does Cestri have all of this?" Raj said.
LJ was going to look at the lab when something else caught her eye. In the center of the lair was a fancy box. Curiosity getting the better of her, LJ walked over to the box and proceeded to open it when Raj stopped her.
"What is your problem?" LJ interjected.
"You don't know what's inside this box!" Raj said.
"I know. That's why I'm opening it to find out."
"What if there's like a bomb in there or something?"
"I don't think Cestri is capable of anything like that. Nothing exploded here yet and we've been here for ten minutes."
Raj rolled his eyes as he let LJ open the box. Cautiously, LJ proceeded to open it. She had to cover her eyes because what was in the box shined a luminous light. Then she saw what was in the box: five rings. Raj, Alex, Justin and McKayla came over to LJ's side to see what was in the box.
"That's what's inside the box?!" Justin exclaimed. "It's just some rings!"
"They're very pretty." McKayla shrugged. "But why would Cestri keep rings in a box?"
LJ picked up the gold ring and eyed it for a few minutes. "She probably has a good explanation for this."
"What are you about to do?" Raj asked.
"Put the ring on." LJ said as if it was obvious.
"You don't know what that ring is capable of. It could be dangerous."
LJ sighed. "I'm not a baby, Raj. I can take care of myself." She proceeded to put the ring on her right hand. Everyone took a step back, not knowing what this ring could do. But nothing happened.
"See? Nothing happened." LJ assured.
Justin proceed to take the green ring from the box and put it on his left ring finger. Again, nothing happened. He looked at his friends and shrugged. Seeing that nothing happened to her friends, Alex took the blue ring out and placed it on her finger. Then McKayla took the pink ring and placed it on her finger. Nothing happened and she sighed in relief. McKayla then turned to Raj who still had a hesitant look on his face.
"Why don't you try it?" She asked.
"I don't know, guys." Raj was undecided.
"Raj, nothing happened when we put on the rings." LJ said. "They're perfectly harmless."
"But they're Cestri's rings. What if she finds out that they're missing?"
"We'll put them back." Justin reassured. "You'll only regret it later."
Raj eyed the last remaining ring in the box. It was red. Something about this ring allured him but he didn't know why. Sighing in resignation, Raj took the ring from the box and put it on his ring finger.
"See? What did I tell you? Nothing…"
Justin's thought came unfinished when there was a sudden tremor that shook the lair. The kids were freaked out.
"What was that?" McKayla asked.
"I don't know," LJ said. "But we need to get out of here. Let's take these rings off." She proceeded to take off the ring on her finger but it wouldn't budge. Seeing that LJ couldn't get her ring off, Justin and Raj started to take their rings off but they wouldn't budge off either.
"It won't come off!" Justin exclaimed.
"What's going on here?" Alex asked, terrified.
Before anyone could respond another tremor rocked the entire lair, this time it was stronger like an earthquake. The kids wanted to get away but they were too afraid to move. Suddenly, bursts of energy emerged from the rings. Everyone looked up and as if they were fireflies, the energy circled around them.
"What's happening?" McKayla asked.
"I don't know." Raj said.
The energy bursts continue to circle around them when suddenly, they appeared in five different colors and each color engulfed the five kids like a tidal wave. Pink energy absorbed McKayla's body. Green energy absorbed Justin's body. Blue energy absorbed Alex's body. Red energy absorbed Raj's body. Gold energy absorbed LJ's body. Then the color energy combined to make a luminous burst of light which blinded everyone and illuminated the dark lair. Then the light exploded, sending the kids flying in different directions. Finally, it was dark. LJ's eyes fluttered open and she could see her friends lying on the ground unconscious. She wanted to get up but her bones were on fire. She heard the bookshelf turn over and saw feet coming toward her. Then all LJ saw next was black.
A/N: THIS IS ZABE ROGUE AND I'M BACKKK! I KNOW I LEFT YOU GUYS HANGING WITH MY STORIES BUT THERE IS A GOOD REASON FOR THAT. I DIDN'T HAVE A COMPUTER FOR OVER TWO YEARS. I FINALLY GOT ONE AND IT IS AWESOME. I THOUGHT I COULD BRUSH UP MY WRITING SKILLS WITH A LITTLE POWER RANGERS FIC I'VE BEEN BRAINSTORMING FOR A WHILE. THIS IS MY FIRST PR FIC SO TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK. IN THE MEANTIME I WILL TRY TO UPDATE MY STORIES AS SOON AS I CAN. MISSED YOU GUYS! PLEASE REID AND REVIEW!