Chapter 3 - The Birth of X-Ranger
Brett was enjoying his supper with the Mizuno family. They were having a dish called Sukiyaki which comprised of noodles, beef, vegetables, and soy sauce. It was pleasant to be able to relax like this after all the crazy events that have happened up until now.
"This is certainly good food, Dr. Mizuno, thank you." Brett said.
"You're welcome, Brett." Dr. Mizuno said gladly.
"Oh yeah, how long have you been playing guitar?" Ami asked.
"I've been at it for around four years now." Brett answered. "It's one of the many things I enjoy doing."
"You are quite skilled with the instrument. What was the name of that song you were playing a few minutes ago?" Dr. Mizuno asked.
"It's called 'Even if it breaks your heart.' It's one of my favorites." Brett said.
"Meow!" Luna expressed happily.
*chuckles* "I see it's our little companion's favorite as well." Dr. Mizuno said as she patted Luna.
Everyone laughed. Brett finished the last of his food and excused himself to go wash up. Dr. Mizuno loaned him some pajamas that belonged to her ex-husband.
"These should be about your size." Dr. Mizuno said, handing the young man his new sleepwear. He slipped into the bathroom and changed into them while taking care of other preparations for bed.
After a few minutes, Ami came around the corner of the hallway and bumped into Brett who was stepping out of the bathroom.
"Oh! Hi, Brett." Amy smiled. "How's your head feeling?"
"Eh, it's alright. Don't worry yourself. I'm a lot more resilient than I look." he insured.
"Even so, you shouldn't push yourself. Let me know if you experience any discomfort." Amy instructed, which made Brett chuckle.
"Yes, 'Dr. Mizuno'." he teased while playfully tapping her nose. "I'll be sure to do just that."
The gesture made Amy blush hard and sport a small pout face but soon smiled. The two then turned toward their bedrooms and wished each other a good night's sleep.
Late that night
As Brett was sleeping away peacefully, Luna quietly crept into his room and jumped onto the bed.
"Brett? Brett? Come on, now. Wake up." she whispered in his ear while pushing on his side.
"Mmm... go away... I'm trying to sleep..." Brett murmured in his sleep. As he rolled over, his arm accidentally knocked the black cat off the bed. Annoyed, Luna jumped onto the bed headboard.
"Ok then, I didn't want to do this to you, but you leave me no choice. By the moon, wake up!" she shined a light from her crescent moon over Brett's face, forcing him to stir out of his slumber.
"Ga-! What the hell-!?" he opened his eyes and saw the black cat towering over him. "Oh, it's you..." he muttered.
"Good evening to you too. I've been trying to talk to you all night; you're quite the heavy sleeper." Luna said smiling.
Brett was taken aback; he had never had a cat talk to him. Then again, he should've expected this to happen sooner or later.
"I wanted to thank you for saving me from those kids and for getting rid of that bandage. It hampered my sensory abilities and kept me from being able to speak." she said.
"No problem, Luna." Brett said.
The cat blinked for a second. "Wait... How do you know my name? I don't think I've even told you." Luna asked which made Brett gasped.
"Oh! Uh- Um-" He desperately tried to make up some excuse but ended up giving into defeat. "Ok, I will be honest with you. I had already known who you were, even before we met." he confessed.
"What!? But how is that even possible?" Luna asked.
"I'll explain everything to you. Just try not to freak out, please?" the boy replied.
After 5 minutes of listening to Brett about his origins and how he came here through the events leading up till now, Luna had a look of incredulity.
"This is truly astounding! I would never have thought-!" she exclaimed.
"You promised you wouldn't freak! Then again, I can't blame you... It's been a big pill for me to swallow too." Brett said.
"Brett, you mentioned you found a platinum ring in your room before coming here, right?" Luna asked.
"Yeah, it had weird writing on it." the boy nodded.
"Did it look something like this?" Luna jumped into the air and performed a somersault. Sparkles emanated from her body and unveiled the ring.
"Exactly like that!" Brett exclaimed as he retrieved the ring.
"Hmm... I see. It seems that it responds only to you." Luna said.
"Huh? Wait a minute. You're saying that this thing reacts to me?" Brett asked.
"Precisely!" the black cat clarified.
"What is this writing on the inside of it?" he asked.
"It's an inscription in ancient Lunar language. It reads 'Upon the righteous bearer; the path will shine brightly.'" Luna stated. "The ring appears to be a gift to you from Queen Serenity herself."
"Me? But what am I supposed to do with it? I don't know how this thing supposed to work." Brett said.
"Don't worry; I can help you. If I'm not mistaken, this ring seems to be the key to unlocking your dormant powers that I sensed in you earlier." Luna said.
"My powers?" Brett asked as he suspiciously raised an eyebrow.
"Yes. When you removed the bandage, I immediately sensed something strong in you. This ring will help you access those powers." Luna explained.
"Okay... but what do I do exactly?" the boy asked.
"You must have faith in yourself. Believe that you have the will to harness your power. Put the ring on and try summoning it." Luna said encouragingly.
"Alright. I'll give it a shot…" Brett got out of bed and slipped on the ring. He stood still and held his fist up, focusing hard on the ring in hopes it would do something. After a few seconds of concentrating, Brett's body started to glow; his clothes began to take on a new shape.
When the bright light dissipated, Brett found himself dressed in a whole new attire. A new pair of green cargo pants with a black sleeveless top, a light blue jean jacket with silver X logos on the upper sleeves, and black combat boots. An orange sheath carrying a sword was strapped to him as well as a yellow utility belt. His strength, speed, agility, and raw power had all increased tremendously.
"Whoa! What just happened to me?" Brett yelled in surprise.
"You did it! You transformed." Luna congratulated.
"Oh man, I love the texture and style of this clothing. And these new enhancements make me feel like a warrior now!" Brett said, fascinated by his power.
"Well, you are a warrior now, Brett." Luna giggled. "Now what you need is a name." she added.
"A name? Hmm..." Brett pondered for a second. He looked at the silver X logos on his jacket and then it hit him.
"X-Ranger." he said proudly. "That's my new name."
"Interesting choice for a name." the black cat mused. "Well, now it's time to get down to business. You need to test out your powers so you can get familiar with them. Follow me!" she said, hopping up on the window sill.
"Right behind ya!" X-Ranger said, following suit.
The two ran a few miles away from Ami's house to Ichinohashi Park. There, Luna decided this was far enough for X-Ranger to start his training. Nobody was around, fortunately, to bother them or see what was happening.
"I can't believe how much faster I am now! This is incredible!" X-Ranger said in excitement.
*giggles* "Well you're easily amused, aren't you?" Luna said with a sly smile. The young fighter laughed embarrassing while scratching the back of his head.
"This seems like a good spot here." Luna said as she jumped onto a tree stump. "Now let's practice on some of your attacks."
"Umm... How are we going to do that?" X-Ranger asked.
"First, you need to focus your power and equalize it throughout your body. I want you to try bringing it out." Luna explained.
"Uh... Okay, I'll give it a shot." X-Ranger said as he got into a stance. He tried to concentrate his power, but nothing was happening.
"Rrrrrr! It's not working!" he said in a strainful tone.
"Keep going! Don't let up!" Luna encouraged.
X-Ranger continued trying to power up. After several minutes, a blue aura started to appear around his body; his power now attuned to him.
"No way... Luna, look at this!" X-Ranger said excitedly.
"Excellent! You've got it!" the feline instructor praised. "Now, raise your power as high as it can go."
"Okay then." he nodded, resuming his stance and powered up further. The aura surrounding him started to grow as the wind picked up.
"GrrrrrrrrrrraaaaaAAAAAAHHHHHH!" X-Ranger yelled as he increased his power. Luna observed the scene but was getting nervous as the ground started shaking violently.
"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHH! RRRRRRRRR!" the shouting continued as the young fighter kept making the area around him quake.
"STOP! X-Ranger! That's enough! You're making the whole park shake!" Luna cried, her eyes wild as can be.
"AAAhhhhh...!" X-Ranger heeded the black cat's order and ceased his actions. When the ground settled down, Luna looked in awe as she saw her student basking in a constant fluxing aura of bright blue energy.
"Sorry, Luna! I guess I got lost in the moment." X-Ranger said. "But I could've gone further. This feels like only half of my power.
That last sentence made Luna's eyes boggled in shock. "That- was- only half!?" she managed to choke out.
"Amazing! He's not at his maximum and yet he is much stronger than before!" Luna thought.
"So what now, Luna? Want me to take it another step up?" X-Ranger asked, still surrounded by his aura.
"Huh? NO! No! Don't! Don't do that. You're ready for us to move on now." the black cat said, snapping back to the subject at hand. "You know, in the past, I've dealt with beings whose powers are magic-based. You, however, are different. Your powers are energy-based." she added.
X-Ranger smiled. "Guess I'm just one of a kind. What's next?" he asked. Luna pondered for a moment and eyed a tree next to them.
"Let's see if you can use your energy to attack that tree over there." she instructed.
"Okay then! Hmm, let's see what this does." X-Ranger curiously stretched his hand out to a tree and tried channeling his energy into it. A small blue orb of energy formed and he shot it at the tree, creating a burnt mark.
"Hey, that seemed to work." he said. "I'm going to try that again. Double time!" the young warrior prepped both hands with energy balls. One after another, X-Ranger fired energy blasts at the tree until he got too carried away and made the tree start tipping in their direction.
"Aw, crap!" he shouted as Luna yowled in fright. Instinctively, he lunged forward and attempted to catch the falling tree.
*CRASH*
Luna slowly peered out from behind her paws and saw X-Ranger lifting the entire weight of the tree in his hands. He then rotated in a different direction and tossed the tree aside.
"I'm so sorry, Luna! I didn't mean for that to happen!" X-Ranger apologized. Luna didn't say anything at first due to being too stunned at her student's strength.
"It's ok..." she voiced. "No one got hurt at least. But you seriously need to be more careful! Your recklessness could end up putting others or yourself in danger! You have to learn self-control." she lectured.
X-Ranger frowned and nodded his head in acknowledgment at his teacher's words. She was right. He was indeed powerful but being careless could cause unintentional harm.
"I'm sorry. I'll try to do better." he promised.
"That's good." Luna smiled. "For now... let's just focus on combat training and your sword skills."
"Sounds good to me, let's get started." X-Ranger said as he pulled out his new sword.
For the remainder of the night, Luna trained X-Ranger to sharpen his senses and to harness his strength at full potential when fighting. His skills with the sword were coming along quicker than she first anticipated. Even his hand to hand combat was impressive. She eventually allowed him to use his energy blasts again once he displayed enough control. The young combatant was starting to bloom into something great.
As the dawn began to break, X-Ranger now had a firm grasp on the basics of fighting, thanks to an excellent instructor.
"Man, I'm tired!" he yawned as he sat down on the grass.
"You certainly have improved, X-Ranger. I am proud of your efforts!" Luna praised.
"Well, I did have a good teacher to guide me." X-Ranger said, making Luna blush at the compliment.
"Why thank you." she replied. "Now that you have control of your power, I wish to ask you for a favor, please?" Luna asked with a pleading voice.
"What is it?" X-Ranger asked.
"Since you're familiar with this world and everyone here, I need your help to find the Sailor Guardian of the Moon and assemble the others. The Negaverse has returned, and we are going to need all the aid we can get. Will you help me?" Luna pleaded.
X-Ranger held his chin in thought. True, he could help Luna and the Sailor Guardians fight the evil forces of this world like the Negaverse, but he was more focused on trying to find a way back to his world where he belonged. It was down to a choice: help and guide the Sailor Guardians or refuse and look for a way home.
Luna was nervously sweating as she waited for X-Ranger's answer. She looked at him as his eyes softened and smiled at her.
*chuckles* "Of course, I help you, Luna." X-Ranger answered, giving the black cat hope. He was never one to turn away from someone who needed help.
"Thank you, X-Ranger! One more thing, can you give me the identity of the Sailor Guardian of the Moon?" she asked.
"Yeah, her name is Usagi Tsukino. She has blue eyes and blonde hair wrapped in pigtails. I should go ahead and warn you that she's a bit of a klutz and a crybaby." X-Ranger said.
"You can't be serious..." Luna sweat dropped in disbelief.
"I know she doesn't sound like what you expected, but Usagi is very sweet and good-hearted once you get to know her. She'll just need to adjust to this sort of thing." X-Ranger said.
"You sound as if you already met her." Luna smirked.
"You can say that. I did save her from being road kill yesterday." X-Ranger said.
"Well... that's one way to make friends." Luna replied. Just then, the two noticed the sunlight shining down over the forest.
"Oh, damn it! We've got to get back to Ami's before they find out I'm missing!" X-Ranger cried. He quickly scooped the black cat up and took off running as fast as possible.
"Hold on, little lady!" he said.
"Oh, my!" Luna exclaimed.
At Ami's House
X-Ranger hurriedly leaped into the second story window of Ami's house into his bedroom. As he put Luna down, he heard footsteps coming from the hallway towards his bedroom door.
"Oh no, Amy's coming! Luna, quick, how do I transform back!?" X-Ranger frantically asked.
"Your ring!" she replied hastily. "Take it off! Hurry!"
X-Ranger removed his ring and instantly reverted back just as Ami opened the door.
"Brett, are you awake?" Ami said. Brett cringed for a second.
"Yeah! Yeah! I'm just uh... doing stretches. I like getting good and loose in the morning." he said, trying to act as nothing happened.
Luna couldn't help but giggle at this scene. Ami was pleased to see that Brett got a "good night's" rest.
"Well, breakfast will be ready in a few minutes. Come on down when you can." Ami s.
"Sure, just need to shower first." Brett responded.
He walked into the bathroom, stripped his clothes off, and got inside the shower. After that, Brett slipped on some clean clothes Dr. Mizuno had laid out for him. The morning then proceeded well; the two teens finished their breakfast and Brett decided to walk Ami to school.
As they were walking down the sidewalk, Ami wanted to find out more about Brett and decided to bring up a few questions.
"Brett, can I ask you something?" Ami asked.
"Shoot." Brett chirped.
"You don't seem like you're from around here. Can I ask where you're from?"
"Oh, well I'm from overseas in America." he said.
"Really? You're from America?" Ami asked in surprise to which the young man nodded. "If you're from America, then how did you get all the way over here?" she questioned.
Brett sweated nervously. He had to make up an answer that would be believable. "Well... The thing is, I received a scholarship from a university in Tokyo. They invited me to come over here by cruise and negotiate arrangements. I was close to arriving, but a storm came over and rocked the ship around. It caused me to fall overboard." he said.
"Oh, my! That's scary!" she exclaimed.
"Yeah, I struggled to keep myself from drowning. I washed up on the shore after that speedboat fin hit me in the head and you know the rest." Brett continued.
"I had no idea... I'm so glad that the worst didn't happen to you. You're very fortunate." Ami smiled.
"No kidding." Brett said, relieved that his story paid off.
They soon arrived at the Juuban Municipal Junior High School where Brett dropped Ami off.
"I'll pick you up right after school, okay?" Brett said.
"Ok, see you later." Ami said, waving at him.
Now it was time to get down to business, Brett walked a few blocks, thinking of a plan for the afternoon. The first thing to do was to get a part-time job for his spare time. Brett remembered Motoki telling him where the Hikawa shrine was at and decided to pay a little visit.
At Hikawa Shrine
Brett arrived at the sanctuary, hoping to be to get work here. He walked around until an old man came up to him. "Hey there, my boy, what do you say about a part-time job here in the shrine?" the old man said.
"Sure, that would be great. That's what I came here looking for actually." Brett smiled. "This is perfect! I can work here in my spare time and put a few bucks away." he thought.
Just then from behind the corner of the shrine, a young black haired girl with a kimono outfit came into view. Immediately, Brett recognized who it was.
"Of Course! Rei Hino lives here. I can't believe I forgot!" he trailed in thought as Rei walked over.
"Who is this, Grandpa?" she asked.
"This is our new man on the job, Mr. uh..." the old man pondered.
"Oh! I'm Brett Ralston. Pleased to meet you." Brett stated, extending his hand toward Rei. She shook his hand and smiled at him.
"I see you've met my grandpa. I'm Rei Hino, his granddaughter." Rei introduced. "Here, come on inside and have something to drink." she said, leading Brett inside the shrine.
Rei's grandfather left her in charge of showing Brett around and what to do. She took her position quite seriously and had the poor bastard working hard all around the temple, but he didn't mind the toughness Rei displayed as the boss.
Brett then noticed a dignified smell in the air and saw two crows appear from a tree and Rei fed them seeds.
"You're pets?" he asked.
"Somewhat, they are my friends, Phobos and Deimos." Rei said smiling.
6 hours later
"You sure are a hard worker. And I thought you couldn't handle it." Rei said.
"I'll sure say; it's been a while since we've had fresh blood around here." Rei's grandpa said, patting Brett on the back.
"Well, this is the first time I ever worked in kimono before. My God, this thing is itchy." Brett said, scratching himself.
"Don't complain! I have to wear it too." Rei snapped.
"Yeah, but at least you make it look good." Brett countered, still scratching himself. Rei blushed in response to the compliment.
"I'm gonna go wash up." Brett muttered. He walked into the room where the tub was and jumped in after quickly ridding himself of the kimono.
*exhales* "Rei sure knows the role of a damn slave driver, but she's got some good qualities in her." Brett said, relaxing in the soothing water. After taking a bath, he went to change into his clothes and headed for the school to pick up Ami.
"I wonder how Ami is doing." Brett said to himself as he walked out.
"Brett!" Rei called as she ran to him. The brown-haired boy turned around and saw her.
"What is it, Rei?" he asked.
"I didn't want you to leave without this." Rei said. She handed him a good luck charm she made for him.
"Hey, thank you, Rei! This is sweet." Brett smiled.
"Oh... you're welcome." Rei blushed while acting coy.
"Well... I'll see you tomorrow!" she smiled, waving goodbye and heading back inside the shrine.
"You bet." Brett responded, waving back to her.
After leaving, Brett noticed something inside the charm; he smiled once more when he opened it to find a small lock of Rei's hair inside.
"Thank you, Rei." Brett thought, heading for the school.
At the school entrance, Brett could see Ami waiting for him with Luna. They were both pleased to see him. The trio then headed on back home. While on the way, Luna gave Brett a look of seriousness, telling him they needed to talk. He understood and nodded.
At Ami's house
"So what's up, Luna?" Brett asked.
"I've received reliable information that the Negaverse is gathering the energy of humans; we need to find Usagi quickly." Luna replied.
"Yeah, one second..." Brett slipped on his platinum ring and transformed into X-Ranger. "Okay, now I'm ready."
"Do you know where Usagi would be right now?" Luna asked.
"At this time, she is probably at her house. We should try there." X-Ranger suggested. Luna hopped on his shoulder, and they set off to find Usagi.
At Usagi's house
The duo quickly arrived at the neighborhood. X-Ranger landed on the roof of Usagi's house and peeked through the balcony window to find her sleeping peacefully on her bed.
"That's her, Luna. Listen, you better do this without me." X-Ranger said.
"You're not coming? Why?" Luna asked, looking puzzled.
"I don't want my identity to be known. Not now anyway. Just trust me on this." he said.
"If you say so." the feline responded as she jumped down onto the balcony and sneaked into the bedroom window.
X-Ranger sat on the rooftop out of sight waiting for Luna to go through the whole scenario with Usagi. Then he heard a very familiar voice.
"Moon Prism Power, Make Up!"
Looking through the window, he saw Usagi transformed into Sailor Moon and was ready for her first mission as a Sailor Guardian. Sailor Moon and Luna took off to the jewelry store while X-Ranger discreetly followed after them.
At Jewelry OSA-P
"What have you done to my mother?! Someone help!" a girl's voice sounded off. Sailor Moon dashed in and saw a corpse-like woman named Morga holding Naru by the hair.
"Don't worry, your mother is down in the basement all tied up, but I will get rid of you first." Morga said.
"Let her go." Sailor Moon demanded.
"What?" the Negamonster reacted, wondering whose voice was that.
"I said, let her go." Sailor Moon repeated, stepping from the shadows.
"Who are you?" Morga demanded.
"I'm uh... I am Sailor Moon! The champion of love and justice! I will right wrongs and triumph over evil, and that means you!" Sailor Moon declared, striking a pose.
X-Ranger incredulity watched the scene from behind one of the pillars. "You'll never see me doing something like that... Well, I guess I better get Naru's mother out of the basement." he muttered quietly.
"Sailor Moon? Never heard of you and probably never will again. Now tremble before the might of the Negaverse!" the monster roared. It commanded its possessed civilians to attack Sailor Moon.
"Ahh! Woah! Aaack!" the heroine cried, dodging each attack by sheer luck.
"HA! HA! HA! You can't stop me-" the monster laughed, but was cut off by a rose landing right in the middle of the scene.
"I think I know who this is." X-Ranger thought.
"Huh? And who might you be?" the monster asked. Up in the upper window above them, a man in a tuxedo with a top hat, a mask, and a cape blowing in the wind.
"I am Tuxedo Mask. Sailor Moon, look inside your heart and find the warrior in you. It is your destiny." Tuxedo Mask encouraged.
"But I don't want to be a warrior..." Sailor Moon trailed, tearing up. The possessed civilians began to attack her again. "Aaahhh!" She screamed.
"Is this private!?" X-Ranger yelled, kicking one of the civilians in the face and out for the count. He landed in front of Sailor Moon in a protective stance.
"What!? There's more of you? And just who are you supposed to be!?" Morga snarled. X-Ranger looked up and smirked.
"You're worst fear, freak." he remarked, angering his opponent.
"Get him!" she roared, ordering her minions to attack.
X-Ranger scowled and punched one attacker in the gut, then roundhouse kicked another and knocked out a few more with some rush attacks. Sailor Moon watched on in astonishment as Tuxedo Mask joined in and assisted X-Ranger. Together, they soon managed to dispatch the remaining possessed people.
"Grrr! I have had enough of you both! That this!" the monster roared, unleashing black lightning toward the two combatants.
"Look out!" Sailor Moon shouted.
X-Ranger looked over his shoulder and saw the lightning coming for them. With a swing of his hand, he knocked the bolts away and redirected them to one of the pillars.
"Wh- Wha- How did you do that?" Morga exclaimed in shock.
X-Ranger smirked; he unsheathed his sword as he jumped high then slashed the monster's chest, gravely wounding her.
"Aaagh!" she screamed, blood gushing from the wound.
X-Ranger hastily turned his attention to Sailor Moon. "Sailor Moon, use your tiara and yell 'moon tiara magic'." he instructed.
"What good will that do?" she asked.
"Sailor Moon, you need to trust him! It will work. Do it!" Luna encouraged.
"Well... okay then!" Sailor Moon said. She grabbed her tiara, and it started to spin like a frisbee. "Moon Tiara Magic!" she shouted, throwing her tiara toward Morga.
"Aaahhh! I shall return!" she cried as she disintegrated into a pile of dust. Sailor Moon jumped for joy at her success. Tuxedo Mask walked over to Sailor Moon.
"Good job, Sailor Moon. You've done well, but others will test you. Do not be afraid." Tuxedo Mask smiled.
"As long as we work together and believe in ourselves, we can accomplish much." X-Ranger said proudly as Tuxedo Mask nodded in agreement while Sailor Moon smiled. Luna continued observing the scene from behind the pillars.
"It seems his training has paid off. I'm proud of you, X-Ranger." she smiled thoughtfully.
X-Ranger put his sword back in its sheath as he started to walk away from the scene. "Well, see you guys around." he said.
"Wait!" Sailor Moon called. "Who- Who are you?" she asked. X-Ranger looked back at her and smiled.
"My name is X-Ranger. Know that I'm on your side and will always be there to help you." he replied. With that, the valiant hero jumped and exited through the window, out of sight.
"What a hunky guy!" Sailor Moon trailed with hearts in her eyes. Tuxedo Mask sweat dropped while Luna sighed at her boy-craziness.
Chapter End
Thank you for reading! Be sure to leave your thoughts and comments in a review. Until next time!