Note: Blame Linkara's history of the Power Rangers for this...the basic ideas just wouldn't stop coming and I do have some plans to make this a wild ride.
Earth had changed a lot over the past century, something not unexpected after the events that forged the Systems Alliance. War of a type never imagined, spreading out across the stars, new world, unimagined powers, and battling giant monsters with combining robots.
John Shepard hadn't been accepted by SPD, but the military had taken him in and given him the same chance as those long ago legends had.
And then Akuze had happened, leaving him the only member of his team alive.
He hadn't used his morpher since, but had continued to do the jobs needed to keep it from happening again.
"Commander," the voice startled him slightly and he stiffened.
"Sir," he answered, starting to come to attention as if by reflex.
"Don't bother Shepard," Anderson's tone was more somber than normal, something he took as another side effect of the vista from the ships observation port.
Sure, it was a holographic projection, but it still carried the same weight as looking through a window.
"The alliance has a job for you," his mentor stated calmly.
"What's the mission?"
"That's the hard part," came the answer, "Command has started talking about making ties with the Citadel, opening a few doors to prevent a repeat of the war."
John swallowed hard, he remembered the stories of that, both sides suffering catastrophic losses while Ranger Ops had their own problems with a UAE resurgence.
"What do I need to do?"
"We need someone to build a team," the Captain stated, "But first, I need your morpher."
Slowly, John undid the strap on his wrist, glancing down for a moment.
"Are you sure about this," he asked, "Sir?"
"Necessary evil," the other answered, a touch of sorrow as the older man took the device and sat it on the table while bringing out a sealed case and motioning his protégé over, "But it is necessary concerning what we are doing."
He flipped up a cover from the side and placed his thumb on the sensor
The metallic container released a hiss of escaped gas as it opened to reveal something that John Shepard recognized.
"How did you get them?"
"We tracked down the maker of them a decade ago, a week ago he finished fixing them up," a pause as the man grinned at him, "All seven original power coins are in working condition."
John was torn, on the one hand this was like being told that he had just pulled Excalibur out of the stone, but yet he wondered why him. His last team hadn't survived the duty, and he'd only lived by lending up in a niche of rock unconscious.
"Why me?"
"You've proven you can do what's needed," was the only answer that Anderson gave, "And survived where all others died."
He was about to refute it, but the look on the other man's face changed his mind as the device was held before him.
"And I believe that you'd look good in white…"
"Who else is on the team?"
"Well, there's two current candidates, the first is a native of KO-35," came the grin, "You thought we'd stick you into this alone, you've been working with Alenko for a while and we'll keep what works."
"And the other?"
"A little gift from Eltar," came the answer as the door hissed open, "I present Alpha 5."
Kaiden Alenko stood at the overlook of the lunar colony, watching as the newly completed Normandy rested with its cavernous hanger open wide as the forms of Zords were ushered into the craft.
These were legends, machines that had fought the worst the galaxy had to offer, and even forces from beyond. Only a handful of them were actively ready, but the others were still being repaired.
The red and silver form far below held his attention most of all, a reminder of his new responsibilities, and yet not the ones most associate with the color he'd been chosen to wield. While the red ranger was normally the leader, he never wanted to end up in charge. Something confirmed by the situation, as with the later times of these inherited powers first owners, White was the leader.
Earths transcendence started here, on the moon thanks to the failed containment of Rita Repulsa so long ago and the wormhole that linked Luna and Mirinoi.
"Impressive ain't she," he had to grin at Joker's comment.
"You mean the Zords or the ship?" he asked, a fragment of a smirk on his lips.
"It's not like we'll get to see how I can handle those things they're loading onto her," came the answer from the pilot.
"She's no megaship either," he shot back at the other man.
"Well," came another familiar voice, "Enough arguing, we've got another candidate to pick up near the Relay."
Kaidan jerked to attention at the commanders voice and spun, "Sir?"
He should have expected the new wardrobe, but at least Shepard managed to find something that worked rather than going for the half-expected stormtrooper motif.
"Surprised you're not in armor," he managed to add a moment later.
"Well, figured the morph would be all the armor needed this time, you're wearing more red than usual anyway."
"Figured I'd get a head start on the wardrobe, seems we both had the same idea."
"Anyway, Anderson and Alpha are already onboard; we have a candidate the Citadel sent heading towards a rendezvous point near the refueling station."
"Oh?" Joker managed to add his thoughts with a look of annoyance.
"Seems that the deal is to send a spectre and give the team equivalent status," John commented, "Figures they'd send one of their best and the Alliance thinks we can keep up."
"We always do," came the retort and a shrug.
Ashley Williams ran through the narrow passages of the dig site as the enemy swarmed in.
Her team was down to two, herself and one other, with the rest falling to the surprise attack, not even a chance to morph.
"Send the distress call," Bhatia ordered as they both had a moment of calm, "I'll try to hold them off."
"You can't stop them all," she shot back, wondering if they could even survive.
"We have to try," came Nirali's response, "We have to do this."
"Right," Williams responded with a nod as she held up the badge, "Let's."
"SPD Emergency!"
Arcturus was a marvel to behold, massive domes full of vegetation and life that floated in the void so unlike the various races he was more familiar with had chosen.
Nihlus Kryik stood there looking out of the central spire, waiting for the Alliance Ship to pass through on its way out of the system. He'd been briefed on only a few things concerning the project, something both the Alliance and the Council had kept hidden.
The soft hiss of the door brought his attention from the stars and to the present.
"Ambassador," he stated calmly.
"Nihlus," Udina's comment wasn't impolite, but it was tense, "I must apologize, but there has been a slight change of plan."
"Oh?"
"SPD is relaying a distress call, Eden Prime is under attack."
The turian breathed deeply, and motioned to the human to continue.
"The Normandy isn't going to dock, and we're taking this as an opportunity to show you something we've relegated to emergency and ranger duty," Udina continued as he held out a small case, "But there is something else first."
Opening the case revealed a wrist watch shaped device and something that looked almost like a belt buckle with a golden coin mounted in it, one with the shape of a three toed footprint.
"We believed that with your training and the fact you're used to independent operations, that this was the one most suited to you."
This was the secret that both governments were springing on them, mixing rangers and specters.
"May I congratulate you on being the first turian to be accepted into the Ranger forces," he added with a grin as the Spectre took the offered items, "Green ranger."
"What's next?"
The man grinned, "You'll like this next part."
Udina opened the comms signal out of the room, "Send him on his way."
And the turian vanished from Arturus in a flash of emerald light.
"Nihlus?" the question was asked of him as he blinked and reached around him.
He wasn't on the station anymore.
It hadn't quite sunk in though, the Alliance had managed to keep the fact they had managed to make teleportation work…
May their gods help them whenever the Salarians discovered that fact, because he'd lay even money on the horde of inquisitive scientists, some of which were armed, attempting to get answers about just how they'd managed that feat.
He took the offered hand from the human, "Yeah, that's me."
"Welcome to the Normandy," the man continued with an almost cocky grin, "I'm Richard Jenkins, Black Ranger."
"All rangers," Joker stated from his position at the helm, "We're about to hit the relay, aiming for rapid deployment."
He paused as the flash of energy cascaded over the ship and the momentary vertigo of the relay transit.
"Rangers," Alpha added a moment later, "prepare at launch bay one, I've included a surprise for you there."
"Alpha?" Joker managed to get in a second later.
"Shark Cycles ready for deployment, four ready and waiting."
"Looks like more introductions can wait," Jenkins stated as he stepped into the bay with Nihlus watching Shepard and Alenko exit the other lift, "I guess we're starting with four."
Johns grin was noticeable as he pulled the morpher from his belt, "Ready?"
"Yep," Kaidan responded as he pulled his out as well.
"Born ready," Jenkins added alongside the Spectre's nod.
"It's Morphin Time!"
Codex: Relay Wars
When a Turian patrol encountered the research team investigating a Relay, the brief war became an anvil trapping the Systems Alliance between it and a brief resurgence of the United Alliance of Evil.
The lack of Ranger support on the Turian front led to heavy casualties before teams could reach the new war front.
Codex: Akuze Thresher Incident
The first encounter with Thresher Maws was exacerbated by the creatures consumption of a small research outpost studying artifacts recovered from various villains.
Three Ranger Teams are lost and presumed dead before the larger than usual monster was put down by orbital bombardment.
Codex: Lunar Base
Following the discovery of the wormhole between the moon and Mirinoi, a permanent station was positioned around the stabilized passage for normalized traffic shortly after the incident with the reactivation and subsequent destruction of Serpentera .
Codex: Space Patrol Delta (SPD)
While not quite as heavily armed as the various military ranger teams deployed, SPD does have the largest force of Rangers available at any time using technology developed more for peacekeeping than for outright warfare. As such, SPD has a presence on the more heavily populated worlds in the Alliance as well as teams on several with lesser population.
Codex: Arcturus Station
Originally developed as an offshoot of the Venture Project, the design borrows much from the Terra Venture colonization missions in the early years. it's expansion over the years has maintained the original design esthetics.
It was first positioned as a transit hub and customs facility just outside of the Sol System, but with the discovery of the Relays, it was towed to service visitors from the Citadel systems as the entry to Alliance Space.
