Chapter 4: Golden Transfer
The Rangers watched helplessly as their zords fell apart and exploded. The three gigantic villains watched with glee. When it was over, they looked down upon the powerless Rangers and laughed. Scorpina said, "You may have destroyed the Sword of Kismet, but now that your powers have been destroyed as well, taking care of you will be a piece of cake."
Meanwhile, up in space, a large structure was making its way towards Earth, unnoticed by any earthly or alien sensors. A computer console inside the structure said, "Approaching Earth. Estimated arrival: t-minus fifteen seconds."
A figure approached the console and looked out of the cockpit. He saw his destination and said weakly, "I hope I'm not too late."
Goldar laughed and reached down to pick up the seven fallen heroes. However, he was stopped when a blue energy beam struck the ground between him and the Rangers. "What?" he asked.
Both the good guys and the bad guys looked up to see the structure heading towards them. It was a large pyramid-shaped spacecraft. It fired more energy beams from the tip at the top.
"Trey," snarled Scorpina. "The Gold Ranger. I'll deal with you later. Goldar, Rito, retreat!" With that, the three villains left.
The seven teens (counting Jenny, despite being twelve) watched the pyramid-shaped structure fly over the city. It landed and hid in the mountains on the outskirts of Angel Grove. It was cloaked, allowing it to blend in. Seconds later, a streak of gold-colored light teleported and landed near the Rangers. There stood before them a figure in what appeared to be a Power Ranger suit. It was black with gold chest armor, gold armbands, and gold kneepads. His white boots and gloves had gold cuffs. His helmet had three horizontal bars connected in the middle by a vertical bar. His belt bore the same symbol. He carried a small black staff with the same three-barred symbol in gold and a red orb on top. The bottom of the staff had a small blade. The stranger took a few steps towards the Rangers, but then moaned and grabbed his mid-section with his free hand, keeling over in pain. The seven heroes, not knowing what else to do, ran over to their mysterious savior to tend to him. Tommy asked, "Hey, man, are you okay?"
The Ranger said weakly, "No, I am not okay. I'm. . . dying."
Rocky held up his communicator. "Alpha? Alpha, do you read me?" He looked at his friends and said, "Nothing."
"The power must have gone out," Billy guessed. "The same thing happened when the Thunderzords were destroyed." Rocky smacked himself on the forehead as he remembered.
"Then how do we get to the Command Center?" asked Jenny. "We can't teleport, and if we try to go on foot, this guy will never make it."
"Leave that. . . to me," said the Gold Ranger weakly. Managing whatever strength he could muster, he held up his staff. The top of the staff opened up, and gold energy came from the red orb on top. It enveloped the Rangers and they teleported away.
Meanwhile, Goldar, Scorpina, and Rito arrived back at the Lunar Palace. Lord Zedd was furious to say the least! "Scorpina, what happened out there? And who was that?"
"Someone that is supposed to be dead," answered Scorpina angrily. "The Gold Ranger. Trey of Triforia! I saw him fall into his own dungeon! The Sword of Kismet went through his suit, as the Earthlings say, like a hot knife through butter! His blood covered half of the blade!"
"His powers must somehow be keeping him alive," said Zedd. "But no matter. With the other Rangers powerless, we should have no problem dealing with him." Zedd glowed red with anger.
When the Rangers got to the Command Center, they noticed that everything, but the emergency power was down. The computers were still intact, but offline. The only thing that was operational was Alpha and Zordon's plasma tube. Fortunately, no harm had befallen their mentor or their robotic colleague.
"RANGERS, THANK GOODNESS YOU ARE SAFE," said Zordon. "BUT WHO IS THAT?"
"We're not sure," answered Tommy honestly as he and Rocky supported the Gold Ranger. "But he's dying. Get the medical table ready, Alpha."
Alpha and Billy prepared the medical table. Tommy and Rocky gently placed the Gold Ranger onto it. When it was done, Zordon asked, "WHO ARE YOU?" This surprised the Rangers. It seemed that Zordon had never met this mysterious Ranger either.
The stranger said, "Zordon. . . it is an honor. . . to finally meet you. I am Trey. . . current prince. . . of Triforia."
"TRIFORIA. RANGERS, YOU HAVE NOTHING TO FEAR. TRIFORIANS ARE TRUSTED ALLIES OF MINE."
Rocky said, "No offense, Zordon, but could you please tell us what's going on here?"
"VERY WELL," answered Zordon. "THOUSANDS OF YEARS AGO, I AIDED THE PEOPLE OF TRIFORIA AGAINST A RAID BY RITA. SHE HAD MANAGED TO GET A HOLD OF THE SWORD OF KISMET, BUT WE MANAGED TO TAKE IT FROM HER. IT HAD STAYED ON TRIFORIA SINCE THEN. EVERY GENERATION WAS CHARGED WITH GUARDING THE SWORD WITH THEIR LIFE. THIS WAS TO HOPEFULLY ENSURE THAT IT WOULD NEVER FALL INTO EVIL HANDS AGAIN. AFTER RITA WAS DEFEATED AND DRIVEN OFF, THEY CUT OFF ALL COMMUNICATIONS WITH OTHER WORLDS AND OTHER BEINGS, AS THEY WERE A PEACE-LOVING PEOPLE. BUT I NEVER KNEW OF A GOLD RANGER."
"But, Zordon," said Kat, "is there any way we can get our powers back? Our zords were destroyed and we can't morph."
Trey overheard this and said, "I think I know. You must seek. . . the Morphin Mage."
This surprised Zordon. "THE MORPHIN MAGE. I ALWAYS BELIEVED HIM TO BE ONLY A LEGEND."
Trey said, "I assure you. . . he is as real. . . as the ground. . . on which we stand. He is the source. . . of my powers. Many years ago. . . after Rita's defeat. . . one of my ancestors. . . sought him out. Knowing that Triforia. . . may need protection. . . he journeyed to. . . the planet Zircon. He found. . . the Morphin Mage. . . and acquired the powers. . . of the Gold Ranger. Upon his return. . . all methods. . . of interplanetary travel. . . were destroyed. The only exception. . . was Pyramidas. . . my zord. A map was also kept. . . in case anyone else. . . would need to seek. . . the Mage. When Scorpina obtained. . . the Sword of Kismet. . . she fatally wounded me. I fell into. . . my own dungeon. . . in my palace. . . hoping it. . . would drive her away. With my people destroyed. . . thanks to Divatox. . . I came to Earth. . . to warn you. But I was too late."
"How are we supposed to seek this Morphin Mage?" asked Aisha. "The power is down and we can't teleport."
"Alpha, how bad is the damage?" asked Billy walking away from the medical table.
"Ay, yi, yi," said the sentient robot. "The good news is, all we have to do is recharge the main power supply. The bad news is, it could take hours."
"We don't have hours," said Adam.
"I'll. . . fix that," said Trey. He managed to hold up his staff and shot a bolt into the computers, bringing the entire Command Center back online. The Rangers gasped in amazement. Trey then said, "The coordinates. . . for the planet Zircon. . . are in the computer. But before you go. . . I must transfer. . . my powers. . . to someone else. Or my powers. . . will be gone forever. They are. . . keeping me alive. . . but I won't last. . . much longer. The next Gold Ranger. . . must be pure. . . of heart and spirit. He or she. . . must be compassionate. . . caring. . . and loyal."
Billy listened to Trey's words. And then it dawned on him. "I know! Trini! She'd be perfect for the powers!"
Trey smiled under his helmet. "I trust this. . . Trini. . . is as pure. . . as you seem to believe, Blue Ranger. Hurry and seek her. . . I do not have much time."
Billy nodded and looked back at Alpha, asking, "Is Trini at the Youth Center, Alpha?"
Alpha quickly tracked her down. "Affirmative, Billy. Ready when you are."
Billy nodded again. Moments later, he teleported away in a streak of blue light.
At the Youth Center, Trini was watching the news while she sat at the Juice Bar, surrounded by other teenagers. A field reporter was reporting live from the scene where the zords laid in ruins. The female reporter said, "As you can see behind me, the Power Rangers did indeed lose a battle that took place here a short time ago. It is anybody's guess as to when Lord Zedd and Rita Repulsa will strike next and whether or not the Power Rangers will be able to strike back. Some may be wondering if they're even still alive. We will keep you up-to-date with any further reports we receive."
"This doesn't look good, people," said Ernie.
"Come on, Ernie," said Bulk. "The Power Rangers have faced bad situations before."
"Yeah," agreed Skull. "But they've always found a way to pull through."
"I don't know what's worse," said Ernie. "This or when Master Vile made us have that 'End of the World' party."
Trini remained silent. She thought to herself, 'Oh, Billy, I hope you're alright.'
Billy walked in and quickly approached the Juice Bar. "Hey, Ernie, what's going on?"
"There was a big explosion not too long ago," answered the Juice Bar's portly owner. "Apparently, the Power Rangers' zords were destroyed."
"Hey, Trini, would you like a ride home?" asked the Blue Ranger.
Catching the hint, Trini said, "Sure. Hopefully, we can get back before things get worse."
They made their way to a secluded area. Trini then threw her arms around him and said, "Thank goodness you're alright."
Billy smiled and said, "Thanks." Reluctantly, he pulled the hug apart and said, "Listen, Trini, I don't have much time, so I'm going to be very blunt. Would you be willing to be a Ranger again?"
This surprised Trini. "Me? A Ranger again? What happened? Did one of the others get hurt?"
"No," answered Billy. "But this guy we've never seen before who drove off Rito, Goldar, and Scorpina did. In fact, he's dying. He needs to transfer his powers to someone else. Our zords and powers were destroyed in the last battle and we have to go to another planet to get new ones. You'll need to try and protect the Earth until we return."
Trini nodded in understanding. "I'll do it. Let's go. If your friend is dying, we need to transfer the powers as soon as possible."
Billy nodded. He touched his communicator and they teleported out, Billy in blue, Trini in white.
As soon as they arrived in the Command Center, Zordon said, "GOOD WORK, BILLY. HURRY, THE POWER TRANSFER MUST TAKE PLACE IMMEDIATELY."
"Help me," said Trey. Tommy and Rocky obliged and helped him off the medical table. They supported him as they helped him to the center of the Command Center. Trey said, "Trini of Earth. . . do you accept. . . the power and responsibility. . . of the Gold Ranger? Do you swear to. . . defend and protect?"
Trini nodded and said, "I do."
The current Gold Ranger lifted his staff and said, "Then take my staff. . . and may the Power. . . protect you."
Trini took hold of the Gold Power Staff. The moment her hand grasped it, gold energy began to flow from Trey to her. The Command Center seemed to flash, and moments later, it was done. There Trini stood in the Gold Ranger suit, feeling far more powerful than she ever had as the Yellow Ranger. "This is incredible," she breathed.
Now demorphed, Trey smiled. He looked to be a young man, no older than 25. He had short brown hair, royal robes, and what appeared to be a scar beneath his left eye. It was also then that the Rangers noticed the stab wound in his stomach. They gasped in horror.
"You chose well, Billy," said Trey. "Trini, you will command. . . Pyramidas. . . one of the most. . . powerful zords. . . in the universe." He then managed to reach weakly into his robes. He pulled out a map and handed it to Adam. "This map. . . will guide you. . . to the lair. . . of the Morphin Mage. I wish you luck. . . on your journey."
"Thank you for trusting me," said Trini.
The Prince of Triforia smiled one last time and nodded. "It was. . . my honor." His head sank as he took his last breath. And Trey died in the arms of the White and Red Rangers.
TO BE CONTINUED
Author's Note: For those who might be wondering, yes, this is the Gold Ranger from Zeo.