This story coincides with Ninjetti Force, taking place generally around the same time.
Eltarian legend revolves around one basic rule. Great mentors breed great students, who then become even great mentors themselves. This cycle repeats endlessly through time. Each cycle begins and ends with a great struggle. Zordon of Eltar's struggle ended with the war against the United Alliance of Evil. Now his children find themselves in a world void of guidance, they will step up to the plate and become the mentors of a new generation. The real question is, will they be able to stop what threat lurks under the thin veil of darkness?
Tommy Oliver watched the figures move under the gleaming moonlight. They wore bulking coats, covering their faces up to the floppy fedoras resting on their fat heads. They moved in a pack, appearing human in stature, but their movements were vaguely animalistic somehow.
Seemingly harmless, they didn't appear to be interested in hurting anyone, or causing any sort of mayhem. Tommy knew they weren't human, and that was fine. Many aliens were seeking refuge on Earth, a planet swarming with Rangers to protect them from the countless slew of vile creatures that were causing trouble in the rest of the galaxy. These weren't harmless refugees, though, Tommy knew that much. One of the figures carried a brown suitcase, a cheap piece of leather and chrome with the insignia of the medieval dragon rising from a ruined tower, the symbol of a powerful organization that rooted itself deep into the country.
Tommy jumped down at the figures, his fists swung wildly. The figures threw away their disguises, revealing faceless creatures dressed in black tuxedo suits. One of the creatures armed a bo-staff and swung at Tommy. The hero dodged and knocked it from the monster's grip. Tommy grabbed the bo-staff himself and used it to knock down the rest of the monsters. They fled, leaving the suitcase on the ground.
Tommy lifted the suitcase, it was heavier than he expected it to be. There wasn't a lock or any sort of protection, so he simply opened it up. The contents glimmered at the former Ranger. Five gleaming gems, each colored crystal bare an image of an animal. A dragon, a unicorn, a griffin, a phoenix, and a lion. The gems pulsed with a powerful energy, one that Tommy understood very well. Morphin Energy.
A few weeks later Tommy sat in his house, he had gotten in contact with his old friend, but he wasn't sure when he'd show up.
There was a sharp knock at the door, and Tommy let the blond haired Kerovian into his living room. He had met Andros during a short confrontation with the Machine Empire, the Red Space Ranger had asked Tommy to help organize a group of Red Rangers to fight the remnants. The two stayed relatively close.
"So what did you want me to look at?" Andros asked. Following the galactic hero was a familiar face to Tommy Oliver. A small humanoid robot with a dome head. Andros had gotten Alpha 7 shortly after his team defeated Dark Spector.
Tommy revealed the five gems. "I found these a few weeks ago, I can sense the power in them, but I don't know how to use them."
"Ai yi yi yi yi yi!" Alpha exclaimed, "Those are the Thunder Crystals!"
"Thunder Crystals…" Tommy echoed. "What are for?"
Alpha ran his hands across their smooth surface. "They're the power originally used to power the Thunder Zords."
"Why were a bunch of grunts after them, the Thunder Zords were trashed?"
"They still contain a connection to the Morphin Grid." Alpha said, "Who knows what they would do with that."
Suddenly everything clicked for Tommy Oliver, he saw the vast possibilities open up in front of him. "I can use that power to create my own Power Rangers."
"Ai yi yi yi yi yi," Alpha shot up, "yes you can!"
Andros flashed a smile, "I have some spare parts on my ship, we can throw something together."
Alpha nodded, "Zordon would have loved to see this!"
A few months later…
Tommy stood outside his newly constructed command center. Giant archaic towers and an outer structure crafted from the strongest Kerovain metals. His time as a racecar driver had allowed him the funds to support such a project, but most of the magic was thanks to the support of his collection of friends and contacts.
He felt a soft hand nudge his shoulder, he turned to see his wife Kat, staring up at the command center with a sense of awe and terror. "Are you sure you want to do this?" She asked again, "You don't have to, we have friends that can take over. We can continue our lives, you don't have to keep getting drug back into Ranger duties."
"I'm sure," Tommy said flatly, "I can't turn away from the rest of the galaxy, they need me."
Kat stood silently, she didn't need to say more. She didn't need to give a list of all the risks he was taking. He knew them already.
Brandon wore his best suit. It had been three months since Tommy Oliver had come into his life, and since that moment, things had become a jumble of strange events. Brandon kept his cool as he stood in front of the bouncers. They were bulking men in trench coats and fedoras.
"What's the password?" One of the guards asked. For a brief moment, Brandon caught a glimpse of the man's glowing red eyes. He shivered, trying to forget what he was wrapped up in.
"Lord Zed was an incompetent loser." Brandon stuttered out. The two guards seemed pleased and allowed Brandon to enter into the building.
The inside was dim, only the vaguest form could be made out, which was already terrifying enough. More were bulking humanoids, spikes, extra appendages and other terrifying things of the sort. Aliens were common on Earth, but most hid among the population, only free to show their true forms in places like this.
Brandon kept to himself, lurking in a corner with a drink in his hand. He couldn't help but overhear a conversation going on next to him.
"Scorpina is really getting pushy." One of the voice said.
"Yeah, it's only a matter of time before someone stops her. I hear that those Ninjetti Rangers have been plowing into Sankari, they could take her down with no problem."
"I heard she's been after the Hilt of Darkness."
Hilt of Darkness?
Brandon had no idea what that meant, but he didn't like the sound of it. He moved in the hear better, but he was met by a large figure in front of him. The being was a machine, crafted from large, round armor. "You smell like a snitch." The machine said, "We aren't fond of snitches around here." The machine swung its bulky fist at Brandon. Wood slippered in a million directions, but Brandon was unharmed.
The human boy pulled up his wrist to reveal a golden device. On his other hand was a similar creation, only slightly smaller. The small piece opened with a key that slid into the larger piece. "Thunder Change!" He yelled and was enveloped in red energy.
"Y-you're a Power Ranger…" The machine mumbled in disbelief.
Brandon's Ranger form was red and sleek, a white karate uniform covered his chest, his helmet's visor was covered in gold at the top and designed to vaguely resemble a dragon. "Thunder Ranger Red!" He exclaimed, drawing his blade.
Most of the aliens coward away. No matter how tough they appeared to be, no one wanted to mess with a Power Ranger. The Red Ranger slashed into the machine, sending a wave of sparks across his thick body.
Brandon knew he wasn't going to get any more information, so he took the chance to dash out of the building. The two guards tried to block the exit, but the Thunder Ranger made quick work of the villains. Thunder Red didn't stop running for the next six blocks.
He demorphed in a back alley and approached Tommy's apartment. When Brandon entered the living room Tommy was playing around with a pile of wires on the floor. He looked up and smiled at Brandon. "How'd it go?"
"Pretty bad." Brandon said, and explained his experience within the club, "I can't keep doing this alone, I need a team."
Tommy nodded, "That's what I've been working on," Brandon then took notice of Tommy's current project, four Thunder Morphers lay next to Tommy's feet.
"If we're going to stop Scorpina we're going to need a good team of Rangers, good thing I've already been talent scouting." Tommy smiled, "The gears are already in motion, we just have to wait for them to show up."