As promised, I'm beginning my own version of the conclusion arc. Hope you all enjoy it.

Legal: I do not own Power Rangers or the associated Names, places, events etc. Anything not covered by the above rights is to be considered purely the creation of the author.

Rating: T – Mild adult themes.

Timeline: Following on from "Dress to Impress"

RJ called the others into the back room to collate their thoughts and touch base with how things were going. Everything had been so chaotic lately that he felt it was essential for them to take a breather and gather all the information they had. Dom was the last to arrive, carrying the chips and dips they had prepared for the "meeting".

"We came as soon as we could." Swoop stated, announcing his presence as he, Phant and Finn arrived in the apartment. They gathered around, making themselves comfortable.

"Right, we all know why we're here." RJ began. "We need to sort out where we are in terms of what's happening."

"The starlight's passed, so we're in no danger of the other Phantom Beast Generals being revived." Finn stated, taking a chip. "So we've only got the ones that exist to deal with."

"I counted three generals and eight beasts when we were being held by Dai Shi." Phant recalled. "We've destroyed Unidoom and Dynamir, so that leaves us with three generals, six Phantom Beasts and Dai Shi."

"We know that there's some serious friction between Scorch and Dai Shi." RJ stated, putting his arm around Lily protectively. It hadn't been long since she had ended up being kidnapped by him and almost forced into a wedding ceremony. Lily looked up at him, smiling.

"Scorch is definitely planning something; I wouldn't be surprised if he made a move on Dai Shi soon." Lily interjected. "He isn't stupid, but the key to my manacles was in the scroll, and he knew I'd seen him hide it behind the tapestry."

"You think he wanted you to escape?" Dominic asked, loading a chip with salsa. He was happy to see her back with RJ, safe and sound.

"It's the only reasonable explanation." She replied. "If I hadn't found that key, I'd be Mrs. Shi by now."

"He also left the scroll of prophesy of Dai Shi's destruction." RJ reminded them. "I think he figured we'd translate it quicker than he would. I think he's hoping we'll get rid of Dai Shi for him."

"Well I for one am happy things am not rosy in that little family." Casey said cheerfully, taking Camille's hand in his own. "Maybe they will destroy each other."

"But we can't let Dai Shi be destroyed, not until we separate him from my brother." Dominic stated bluntly. "We need to save Jarrod."

"I think Dai Shi might find his hand being forced soon." Lily said reassuringly. "When he was telling me what he had planned for the wedding, he seemed to be in pain, it was just like when Jarrod took control of him in the restaurant that time."

"We all know Jarrod had a crush on you back in the temple." Theo chipped in. "Maybe the thought of hurting you, forcing you to marry him was enough to get him to break through."

"No, it's more than that." Lily replied. "I think Jarrod's been getting stronger for a while now. I think he might be close to forcing Dai Shi out."

"Jarrod was a prodigy." Finn stated, recalling the day Mao presented Jarrod to him. His power was so obvious; he felt it long before he saw the child. "His lion was so powerful; he regularly defeated the older students, even after only a few months."

"I can tell you that from personal experience." Dominic chuckled, thinking back to their time training together. He cast his mind back through the years to the time he used to spar with him.

Dominic looked up at him from the ground, cupping his burst lip with his hand.

"It's only practice Jarrod!" He snarled, spitting a glob of blood onto the stone. "We're competing touch contact!"

"Is that what you're going to tell an opponent?" He sneered in response. "You should always be ready to fight."

"This wasn't a fight Jarrod!" He snapped, getting back to his feet.

"No wonder you're no match for me!" He taunted him. "You're so weak. No wonder your parents ditched you here."

"Shut it Jarrod!" He roared, grabbing his tunic. "You've gone too far. Apologise before I make you!"

"Bring it on!" He yelled, shoving him away roughly. By now Dominic's good sense had left the building. He rushed Jarrod, bearing him to the ground and began pummelling him aggressively. The two rolled around on the ground, hammering into each other wherever they could land a fist until they were both grabbed roughly and hauled to their feet. They both immediately looked to their feet as they realised Master Mao had broken them up yet again.

"What is wrong with you two?" Mao shouted, making both of them quail in fright. He didn't normally raise his voice, but when he did, they felt his shame deep in their hearts. It was not a good feeling. "Any time I turn my back on you for two minutes, you're beating each other to a pulp, what's wrong with you?"

"Jarrod burst my lip!" Dominic told him. "He hurt me on purpose."

"Is this true Jarrod?" He asked him. Jarrod could only stare into his chest. He hated disappointing Master Mao. Any time he messed up and felt his shame, it pained him deeply. Mao was far more attentive than his own parents, and he had come to respect him greatly. It always hurt when he thought he was ashamed of him. He just wordlessly nodded to confirm the detail as tears came to his eyes.

"Why would you do this?" Mao asked him. He searched his heart for an answer. He didn't want to disappoint Mao any further, but he knew that he couldn't come up with a satisfactory explanation. There was none.

"I don't like him." He sobbed in response, by now lost in his self-pity.

"Have you gotten to know him?" Mao asked. "Do you know anything about him?"

Jarrod shook his head. The two had never really gotten along, there just always seemed to be an atmosphere between them. Neither one knew why. In truth, Dominic had done nothing to him.

"Don't you think you should know WHY you hate someone before you do so?" Mao questioned him. Again Jarrod just nodded. "Hate is a destructive emotion. Do not take it on lightly."

Jarrod nodded again as he wiped his nose with his sleeve.

"You know what you should do next." He stated. Jarrod took a step forward and extended a hand to Dominic.

"I'm sorry." He muttered. "I shouldn't have hit you."

Dominic slapped away his hand, turning his back on him to walk away. He was still angry at him, and had no intention of forgiving him. Master Mao grabbed his tunic, pulling him back.

"Jarrod has apologised." Mao stated.

"I don't care!" Dominic shouted. "He hurt me!"

"So you intend to hurt him back?" Mao asked. Dom looked at his feet. He knew Mao was disappointed in him; it always hurt to think that he was disappointed in him. "There's a big problem with an eye for an eye as a philosophy."

Dominic was finally able to look up into Mao's eyes. He smiled at his student. "The world ends up full of blind toothless men."

Dominic nodded in understanding before turning back to Jarrod. He shook his hand in a wordless acceptance of his apology.

"You know the two of you are more similar than you realise." Mao told them. "If you could just talk together for a few minutes without beating the hell out of each other you might even become friends."

Jarrod and Dominic looked at each other unconvinced. Being friends was not something they could foresee in this lifetime.

Back in the present, Dominic suppressed a little snigger at this. His baby brother had always been a strong and courageous fighter. It didn't surprise him in the least that Jarrod would be stubborn enough to defeat Dai Shi in a test of wills.

"Jarrod's always been misguided, but he's always been a good person." Finn responded. "His parents really messed him up with their neglect, but at heart he always knew the right path, even if it did take him a while."

"I always thought of him as the jerk that pushed around little kids." Casey stated honestly. "I never thought of him..."

"Jarrod carries a lot of hurt and a lot of anger." Phant interrupted him. "That doesn't stop him being a good person; it just kind of...distorts his vision slightly."

"I can't believe he felt that strongly for me." Lily breathed, realising how much it must have taken for him to fight Dai Shi for control of his own body. "I knew about his crush but I never would have thought it was this strong."

"I promised Dad I'd save him." Dominic told them. This made all the other Rangers sit up and take notice. It was the first time they could remember him calling Master Mao "dad" and acknowledging the truth that he was his father. "He's all I have left. I can't fail him."

"We'll get Jarrod back." RJ told him. "I promise."

"I know you always keep your promises." Dominic sighed. "That means a lot RJ, it really does."

"What do we know of this prophesy?" Swoop asked.

"It seems genuine, it was written in the language of the ancient masters." RJ confirmed. "I still haven't translated it fully, so far all I have is a couple of lines."

"What does that say?" Finn asked his son, shifting closer.

"The one who will destroy Dai Shi will be a good soul who has done no good." He began. "He will have done evil, but have no blood on his hands."

"What's that meant to mean?" Casey asked. "A good soul who's done no good? How does that work?"

"I don't know." RJ replied honestly. "It means as little to me as it does to you."

"Well I for one don't want to put all my faith in a scroll none of us can read." Theo interjected.

"It's not all hokum." RJ told him. "Several mystics have made predictions which came true. This was written by one of the most revered mystics. I'd trust it."

"I think I have to go with Theo on this one." Casey stated. "I'd rather place my faith in something I can influence."

"I agree." Lily said in response. "I think we should try to translate this, but not rely on it. For all we know it could be worthless."

"I guess there's no harm in a healthy scepticism." Finn concurred. "So what about Jarrod?"

"What about him?" Lily asked. "At the moment, it looks like he might be fighting his own way free. In the meantime, all we can do is be here for him if he gets loose."

"The thing is Dai Shi still doesn't have a physical body." RJ reminded them. "If he leaves Jarrod..."

"He still needs a new body." Casey completed. "So he'll possess someone else."

"That's it." Dominic snapped, jumping to his feet. "We get him to possess..."

"Dom, he'd still have a hostage." Casey reminded him. "I know Jarrod's your brother, but we can't let anyone else get hurt by this."

"Casey your family isn't the one being affected by this!" Dominic barked, slamming a fist into the table.

"Dominic, we're trying all we can." RJ told him, holding Lily closely. "We all have an investment in this. True, yours is more personal, but I think we all have a stake in this. We all want to get Jarrod back safely."

"Dominic, we all know this is hurting you." Lily said soothingly, taking his hand. "But getting in a state about it isn't going to help him."

Dominic just slumped further into the couch. He felt so helpless. He had only faced Jarrod once since he'd found out about their true parentage, but Dai Shi's power was too great. He couldn't win a straight fight with him, and he had instead resorted to turning and running in order to save his best friend's fiancée from harm. He'd grabbed Lily and run before any harm could come to her, fulfilling his duty and his promise to RJ. He still hated the fact he couldn't achieve both objectives, but he was sure to lose his fight with Dai Shi, all martyring himself would accomplish was ensuring Lily was endangered.

"We've got a lot to think about." Phant stated. "We've gone over everything useful, what else is there?"

Nobody wanted to say it, but the elephant master had a point. There really wasn't anything more useful for them to discuss. Until Dai Shi made a move, they were stuck playing the waiting game.

Meanwhile back in Dai Shi's fortress, he was training hard with his Rinshi, destroying them in short order. He still longed for the power of rinzin. So far its secrets eluded him. He knew he would soon have to deal with Scorch, and his power over Jarrod seemed to be slipping. He suspected Scorch had something to do with the Yellow Ranger's escape, but since she was in his grasp, he found his control over Jarrod slipping further each day.

He destroyed the last of his opponents with his zukado power as he felt the pull of Jarrod wresting back command of his body.

"Dai Shi, are you alright?" Snapper asked him, seeing the pained expression on his face. Dai Shi waved off his accomplice. So far Snapper and Whiger were under his control, but if they realised how he had been weakened by this latest turn of events, then he was sure to be destroyed. The only reason they allowed him to exist was because they believed him to be a strong leader. If they knew he was about to lose control of his own body, he was bound to lose his followers.

"I must attain a new body, one without the strength of Jarrod's Black Lion." He mused. "But who?"

With that, the attack came back more viciously than before. Jarrod's memories flooded into him, burning painfully in his mind.

Dominic and RJ stood with Jarrod in the main courtyard with Master Mao. Today was an important ceremony. At Mao's behest, RJ stepped forward.

"RJ, you have attained full control of your wolf spirit." He told him. "Do you swear to uphold the traditions of the Pai Zhuq temple, to make yourself available to defend the world from Dai Shi should he be released, and to guide those in time of need?"

"I do." He replied.

"Present your left arm to me." Mao commanded. Jarrod looked down at his own forearm, feeling his jealousy swell in his chest. Despite his own accomplishments, RJ had been elevated before him. He believed he deserved to be a master as much as RJ, but it was not in Mao's plans.

Mao's hand began to glow and form into a sort of claw. RJ winced briefly as he swiped it across his forearm, marking his flesh. The deep, telling cuts started to glow and close, forming into a tattoo.

"In recognition of your achievement, you will be given a title of honour like the Masters of the past." He continued. "You will now carry the title of Master Fenris. Carry it with pride now and always."

RJ bowed to the old master and turned picked up his bag. It was now time for him to leave and go into the world to seek his path in life.

"Dominic, you know you will always have a place here." Mao told him as Dom hefted his own belongings onto his shoulder. "By the time you return, it will be time for you to claim your destiny as the Master of the rhino spirit. Go now, and always know that Pai Zhuq will always be in your heart."

With that, Jarrod watched as they both left, leaving him on his own in this place. Mao saw the look of anger on his face and came over to him.

"Jarrod, your destiny awaits." Mao told him. "Some people take longer on the path than others. Overseeing the newest students will give you the experience you need."

"I'm every bit as strong as them!" He snapped aggressively, his anger finally boiling over. "Why do I not get to be a master?"

"It takes more than just strength of arms to become a master." Mao explained. "Once you have learned..."

"I don't deserve to be kept back with these kids!" He sneered. Mao hated to do this, but he knew that it wasn't the right time for him. Jarrod still had much to learn, and his destiny was better served if he waited a little longer.

His parents had neglected him badly during his life, and left him full of anger, anger that Mao hoped he would be able to curb.

Dai Shi wrested back control, once again concerned over Jarrod's increasing strength. He looked out the door, seeing Scorch making his way along the corridor.

He came to the door and watched the master of the Avalonian Dragon spirit and got an evil smirk. Perhaps there was a way to kill two birds with one stone.