A/N: This is a random story that popped into my head. I gave the idea to a couple of authors, but realized, I couldn't part with the damn thing.
A/N: Story is AU, and it will be set during Super Samurai-after 'A Strange Case of the Munchies', but, before 'The Master Returns'. Empusa is based on the Greek demigoddess of the same name, and I'm building on her background for this story. In addition, this will be reminiscent to 'Potion Notion' from season three of Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers.
Summary- After an intense battle with a Nighlock, the rangers, and even the occupants of the Sanzu River, begin to feel the side effects. As a result, Mentor Ji gets a migraine, and Octoroo becomes angered. With a four love triangles brewing and Spike mixed in, this has to be the most interesting day.
The Most Interesting Day- A Nighlock's Spell
Chapter 1- Nighlock Nonsense
Xxxxx
R. Dunn Community Park
19 E. Panorama City Pkwy.
Panorama City, CA
"Go go Samurai!"
All of the rangers yelled, as they arrived at the scene where the latest Nighlock attack occurred.
Earlier, the gap sensor sounded off in the living room. Mentor Ji tapped on the watered map, and he pointed to the location, a park in downtown Panorama City. The rangers firmly nodded in comprehension and immediately headed to R. Dunn Community Park.
The adrenaline was powerfully coursing through their veins, as they were approaching their destination.
After they arrived, they noticed there were arguments angrily exchanged between two men, with a woman caught in between, or two women, with a man caught in the midst. The rangers were utterly confused with the mess that was happening in front of them.
There was no time to think though, since the Nighlock was ready for battle.
Empusa was the name, and she had firery red hair sticking upwards and an obsidian, horned tiara. A smooth bodice, black as charcoal, framed her body. Intricately carved, blood red hearts were splotched all over too. Around the perimeter of her armored suit, there were tiny opulent gems. Her fingertips were as long as porcupine needles, and her mouth housed the most ghastly looking vampiric fangs. Her eyes were pure white like sheep's fur with lips unnaturally decorated with a haunting honey-wheat color. They were surprised to see this creature, since she wasn't the run of the mill Nighlock. Honestly, she appeared more human than anything else.
"Ew, she looks horrible," Emily, the Yellow Ranger, commentated, while her knees were shaking. Her helmet was able to mask the fear she felt. She drew her spin sword.
"You know, if she wasn't trying to kill us, she'd be mildly attractive," Mike, the Green Ranger, quipped, and Emily enviously smacked his arm. "What? She would, in a Mike Myers comes in contact with Linda Blair from the Exorcist kind of way," he examined.
"Focus," Jayden, the Red Ranger and leader, silenced them, as he tightly held his spin sword right in front of him. "We don't know what this Nighlock has up their sleeve."
Antonio, the Gold Ranger, pondered about it some more. "You know, she doesn't have any sleeves."
"Wait a minute, is this even a woman? You don't know that," Kevin, the Blue Ranger, analytically questioned his teammates. "It could be transgendered," he pointed out.
His teammates faced him, their helmets cocked to the sides.
"You guys, Jayden's right, we should get back to the task at hand," Mia, the Pink Ranger, returned their attention back to the monster, as she gripped her sword tensely. She had a bad feeling about this.
"My name is Empusa, and I am the child of Miss. Chief," she began with her heavy Russian accent. "Serrator has appointed me to do what my mother hasn't done, which was destroy the wretched and disgusting goody-goody Power Rangers. It's up to me to ruin your existence," she evilly heckled them. Her fingertips were fully engulfed with raging flames.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, you and every other monster has tried to destroy us," Antonio mocked carelessly, while his gloved fingers grasped his shiny, yet lethal Barracuda Blade.
Empusa's mouth curled into a callous rictus grin. "The people behind me are the indication of the power I uphold, and you will feel my wrath," she informed. Just behind Empusa, no one was in love anymore. The people possessed broken hearts, and men were angered to their core with women loudly crying. Furthermore, the men were crushed by the woman that had left them for another man.
"At this rate, the Sanzu river will be flooded in no time," the Pink Ranger stated in a melancholic manner. "We have to do something."
"There is nothing you can do rangers. Moogers," she summoned them forth, "ATTACK!"
Without delay, the rangers raced forward.
Kevin grabbed his spin sword, and he maneuvered the weapon. Left, right Moogers came at him. "Is it just me, or are these guys becoming more annoying," he furiously kicked the foot soldiers away, while slashing the others.
Antonio rapidly moved through his crowd of Moogers. "No problem, amigo, we got this," he shouted and barely earned a scratch after he was done. "Excellente!"
Emily and Mike teamed up, and they combined their attacks. Green and yellow relentlessly collided with the bodies of these henchmen.
"Great job, Mike," she praised him. Mike placed a hand on her shoulder, and she became soft under his touch.
"No one can mess with Yellow and Green, we are mean," he plafyully growled.
With determination fueling her body, Mia grasped her spin disc and placed it on her sword. Her fingers barely touched the round, pink object before pink wind rushed around. "We can't let them fill the River any more than it has," she yelled.
With the rangers swords speedily coming into contact with the Moogers' artillery, and sparks flying everywhere, Jayden had his own combat with the Nighlock.
"Silly ranger, you think you can handle me," Empusa beckoned ruthlessly with her fingers.
Jayden whipped his spin sword against the Empusa's finger nails. One strike caused them to fall. Her fingernails rapidly grew back. The Red Ranger huffed under his helmet, and he struck her body. She stumbled but wasn't deterred. Success thought the woman, as her fingernails excruciatingly scratched across him. The potent flames were able to burn the upper part of his suit. The smoke cleared to reveal the deepness of the wound. Blood was drawn with skin slightly attaching to the droplets.
"Ahhh," the Red Ranger hissed deeply, after using the butt of his sword to get up. Staggering to claim his disk, he was able to. "I will not let you hurt anyone else!"
"Ha, you can not beat me," the monster confidently taunted.
"I will," he growled. "Blazing Strike!" Red fire raced towards the monster's direction. The attempt was weak. Her fire met head on with his move.
The combustion grew to skyscraper heights.
In the center of the blackened smoke, Jayden jumped forward. Empusa flew towards him. They battled, but eventually, they were at a stalemate.
"Oh, Red Ranger, you haven't lost your touch, have you," Empusa asked with reason.
"Never," Jayden pushed her away and sliced her armor cleanly.
Empusa didn't care at all. In fact, she was in the mood to be hurt it seemed. Jayden incredulously looked at her. "Don't be surprised about that, but I do know your secret Red Ranger," she secretively whispered to him.
Frozen by her words, he was left defenseless. She struck him, and he collapsed to the ground. He wondered what secret she knew. He shook his head to ward off any pain he felt. He rose.
Empusa smirked, knowing she had stirred an emotion inside of him.
The two fought harder than before. They whipped, flipped, dipped, dodged with stealth movements. This showdown was in full force now.
Meanwhile, Bulk and Spike were in their training gear and carrying their haphazardly put together kendo sticks. The day was beautiful, and they walked to the communal park. They were in the mood for samurai training, which should've been no surprise. As they turned the corner, the two became increasingly excited at the scene before them. Their bodies jumped up and down. They bum rushed the nearest bush, and hid behind it futilely. Bulk's larger than the average body stuck out noticeably.
"Spike," Bulk grabbed the cloth surrounding his nephew's upper body like his life depended on it. "Rule number 26 of being a Samurai, always help your fellow kind."
Spike didn't listen, as he saw his love fearlessly locked in combat. His face contorted to his usual lovesick grin. "The Pink Samurai Ranger," he admired lovingly.
An idea popped into the man that's held a significant tie to several incarnations of power teams. "Nephew," he cooly began, "rule number two of being a Samurai," he forced his nephew to look at him, "protect the one you love."
The two glanced at the fight, and they nodded. Spike soon left, while Bulk clasped his hands together with cheerful tears in his eyes.
"I will protect the Pink Ranger," the son of Eugene 'Skull' Skullovitch promised, and he headed towards her. It's obvious he was in a lovestruck stupor, since he was heading into a battlefield.
"Dragon Splash," the Blue Ranger bellowed, and the blue oceanic waves showered the oncoming Moogers.
"Seismic Swing," the Yellow Ranger commanded, and yellow dust barreled towards them.
"Forest Vortex," the Green Ranger drew a cross with his sword, and green energy struck the foot soldiers.
"Barracuda Bite," the Gold Ranger whirled around with the gold brightly displayed. "Fantastico!"
"Air Wave," the Pink Ranger cried urgently, as a gust of pink wind hurled forward.
The rangers minus Jayden regrouped. Their chests elevating up and down at an abnormal speed. They hadn't even battled the Nighlock, but the fact the Moogers were coming by the truckload, they were understandably worried.
"We need to help Jayden," Mia regathered her strength, and she turned to his direction. He was continuously escaping the monster's proficient moves, while he concaved his body to the front, back, side to side, and still held his sword flawlessly. Her heart fluttered.
Suddenly, Spike made his appearance and stopped by her.
"Get out of here," Kevin shouted at him, angry that he was obstructing their fight.
"Guys, help Jay-hum, ehm, the Red Ranger," the Pink Ranger concealed her voice and their identities.
The Yellow Ranger's hand graced her forearm. "Are you sure?" Mia nodded in confidence. "Alright, let's go!" The other rangers attended to their leader's needs.
"You need to get out of here, this is no place for a civilian," she gently told him.
"As a Samurai in training, I have to protect those in need," Spike explained his presence nervously.
A little exasperated, since she was really a Samurai, and she wasn't doing this for fun, she told him off. This pained her, but he needed to understand. "Listen, you have no idea what you're getting yourself into. You randomly show up, try to dress the part, hold the items, but you do unnecessary things, and what does that get you?"
"But-"
"No buts. What you do is make believe, while we are out here risking our lives. Stay away," Mia ordered adamantly, and she ran back to her friends.
Spike watched, very hurt by her words. He slumped his shoulders forward, defeated by her coldness. The Pink Ranger wasn't who he imagined her to be. Slowly his feelings for her were leaving. At least he still had Mia. Maybe she wouldn't act so cruel to him. He dreadfully headed to his Uncle's direction. Noting his nephew's stance, the smile Bulk had disappeared. He remembered the same hurt his best friend went through when Kimberly Hart, at the time, would continuously turned him down in favor of Tommy Oliver; and how much hatred Skull felt after she had played with his emotions. Bulk wrapped his arm around his nephew, and they walked home.
No training today.
Soon, the rangers rejoined Jayden. His Fire Smasher was in his hands now. "Be careful, she's not to be underestimated."
"Of course, I am not. You have not seen what else I can do," Empusa smirked. She retracted the flames. There was a little costume change, since her nails were altered to a puke like green color.
"Amigo, you gotta use the Black Box," Antonio suggested, and Jayden listened.
"That little thing," Emupsa cackled. She extended her fingers towards them, and with quickness, long worm like creatures flew at the speed of light.
"Get down," Mike urged, and he protectively pushed Emily out of harm's way. "Oh no." His body fell forward, as the worms latched onto his suit.
"Mia!" Jayden, Kevin, and Antonio shouted for her to get down.
"Huh," the Pink Ranger curiously surveyed her surroundings but was forced to the ground. She didn't see who came to her rescue, but she became thankful.
"What are these things," Kevin cried in frustration, as little teeth were feasting all over his body. He was hit too.
Antonio pulled them off. "I'm so—I'm so," he immediately shut his mouth, as he flirtatiously smiled at both, Kevin and Emily.
Jayden's steps faltered following Empusa's perfect aim. "Mia! Mia!" He desired her attention, and he laid flat on the ground.
"Jayden," the Pink Ranger shouted, after she heard her name. She became explicitly worried about him. She army crawled his way. "Emily!"
"Y-y-yeah," the Yellow Ranger answered with some struggle, as she examined herself. There were no injuries thankfully. "I'm fine."
Empusa's body began to severely dry out, her body erupted with stone like cracks. She gasped at how weak she became. "You'll see the direness of this situation," she promised malevolently. She cleared her throat, since she was about to collapse. She was determined to get her point across though. "Next time, I won't be so easy." She leapt upwards and disappeared into the miniature opening that led to the Sanzu River.
Antonio, Jayden, Kevin, and Mike were able to flick the leeches off of them. The bugs, one by one, vanished. Mia and Emily got to work, and they each went to check on their teammates. Mia with Kevin and Jayden, and Emily with Antonio and Mike. The Blue, Gold, and Green ranger were just about fit.
However, Mia gasped at Jayden's suit. He appeared to have gotten hurt, and she became angry that he hadn't said anything about it. "Are you okay," Mia soothingly perused Jayden's body. Softly exhaling a breath at Jayden's hand resting on her thigh, Mia observed him. He nodded. "Alright, well we should go then."
"Mia, will you be the one to tend to my injuries," Jayden hoped so.
"Jayden, of course. Don't demorph, at least, not until we get back," she directed, and he smiled inside of his helmet.
"Mike, come on, I'll help you up," Emily offered, while she extended her hand. Mike eagerly grabbed hers, and he didn't let it go. The Yellow Ranger became vastly confused with his gesture, since he's never done something like that before. "Mike?"
"Shhh, we'll talk when we get back to the Shiba House," Mike softly murmured, and he examined everyone. "Are you guys okay?"
Kevin nodded. "Nothing that I couldn't handle, unlike someone I know," he signaled Jayden's condition with no care in the world. Emily and Mia became shocked by his frigidness. "Come on, Mia, Antonio can help him. We gotta get ready for our date."
"Huh, date," Mia asked, puzzled. She turned to Emily, who was still baffled about Mike.
"What do you mean date?" Jayden and Antonio queried at the same time and through gritted teeth. Both weren't happy with this new information.
"Oh, if that's the case, then my girlfriend and I will join you," Mike added blissfully. "Kevin, we got this dude."
"Who's your girlfriend," Mia inquired.
Mike arrogantly grinned. "Emily of course."
Antonio became very upset. "Emily, you and Mike are dating?!" He ogled her hungrily, but was very upset with her betrayal. Though, he was conflicted about his feelings for Kevin.
"Huh? What? Not that I know of," Emily responded, though her heart raced when she was in Mike's arms.
"Uh, maybe we should get back," Mia offered as a distraction.
Jayden nodded, as he resumed his position as leader. "Mia's right, we fought a tough battle, and from what I can see, this Nighlock isn't done yet."
The rangers headed to the Shiba House. From left to right, Kevin, Mia, Jayden, Mike, Emily, and Antonio, walked in a more isolated direction. With Jayden morphed, they didn't want to alert any citizens. Along the way, Kevin smacked Jayden's hand away from Mia's back, Jayden grabbed his Samuraizer attempting to utilize any symbol power for his own benefit, while Mike had a few choice words to mention to Antonio. He even summoned the weeds from the ground to stop Antonio's movements. The Gold Ranger became very perturbed with, not only the Green Ranger, but the Pink Ranger too. He scoffed at her, twisted his head when she spoke up, and irritably rolled her eyes at anything she had to say.
What exactly was in those leeches, no one knew, but the female rangers were determined to find out. Otherwise, Mentor Ji was about to go crazy.
Next Chapter- Monster Mayhem. (Empusa and Serrator's relationship, Master Xandred argues with Empusa, Deker and Dayu)