The attack was nothing but brute force, tearing into the museum without a single care for the exhibits, the displays, or the people inside. Kendall was glad she had shut down the building as a precaution. She was glad there were no civilians who were part of this destruction.
She didn't expect anything less from Sledge, especially since he held the power of the dark energem. Wrench had built him a weapon that could harness all that energy into single blasts, each one strong enough to kill. The only thing that had kept the Rangers alive was their speed, as Sledge's blaster took a while to build up energy.
Fury, true to his name, was taking the Rangers with all his strength and pent up anger. They had bested him far too many times and he seemed to be taking this final battle as his chance for redemption. Tyler and Shelby were doing well to keep him busy for now, and seemed to have little trouble holding their own against him.
Off in the distance, Ivan and James were battling with Wrench, while Koda and Chase handled Poisandra and Curio. While none of the monsters looked tough on the outside, they had their own motives that pushed them to fight with all their power, and a lack of care for the surrounding environment or their enemies that made them very dangerous. Tyler had taken up T-Rex Super Charge to give himself and his friends a small advantage.
Kendall found herself matched against Sledge, with Jeremy, Riley and Phillip by her side. Sledge had always been known for using his strength and brute force to win any fight, and with his size, weight and heavy armour to back him up, there wasn't much that could stop him. He had already captured hundreds of other alien monsters throughout several galaxies; he had destroyed Lord Archanon, and maintained control of a ship. The purple Ranger had very quickly realized he was not someone they could outmatch. They needed to outsmart him.
Unfortunately, Sledge was fast. Before Kendall had time to think up a plan, she was forced off her feet, diving to the ground as a blast from the dark energem shot right over her head. It hit the wall of the museum behind her, tearing a hole through it, and the building a block away.
"Ms. Morgan, are you okay?" Riley asked as he came to her side and helped her up. Kendall gave a little nod.
"As long as it keeps missing me, I'm fine," she insisted. She noticed Sledge was being kept busy by Jeremy and Phillip for the time being, giving her a rare moment of peace to think. With Riley by her side, hopefully they could come up with a plan quickly. She had Heckyl waiting in the background in hiding as a last resort plan, but her weapon would be guaranteed to beat Sledge, his crew and the dark energem all at once if Sledge didn't have his weapon on him as a counter-fire. "How are you, Riley?"
"I'm good," Riley assured her and tapped on the armour from his Dino Steel, "You really should have made yourself one of these."
"Starting to wish I had," Kendall said. "Any idea on how we take Sledge out for good?"
"There is a weak spot," Riley quickly pointed to Sledge. "He doesn't have any armour on the left side of his stomach. I don't know why it was left exposed, but we don't seem to be getting through his armour. We might want to focus our attack there. So far, that's all I've got."
"We'll see if it works," Kendall said and took her sabre, rushing back into the fight just after Sledge fired off another blast. Phillip and Jeremy were quick to jump out of the way once again, with the dark energem's powers just barely missing them. From behind, Kendall swung her sabre right for Sledge's left side, striking him on the skin. It did cut, but barely. His skin seemed to be nearly as tough as his armour, leaving Kendall to wonder why he bothered with the heavy metal suit at all.
"You Rangers have been pests for far too long," Sledge called out and pointed his blaster at Kendall's chest. She knew it hadn't had enough time to charge back up again, but she didn't want to risk being wrong. Fortunately, Riley had rushed in to fight with her, and when Sledge had turned to her, he had turned his back on the green Ranger. Riley swung his sabre as well, and hit the same spot Kendall had, cutting Sledge's wound a little deeper. He drew blood, but he had also made Sledge angry.
"That's it!" Sledge shouted and Kendall heard the terrifying sound of the blaster being charged up. She knew what came next and quickly started to run for cover. Riley did the same. Jeremy and Phillip, who were just getting to their feet after avoiding the last blast, hit the ground again.
Sledge didn't point his blaster at a single Ranger. Instead, he pointed it to the ground and fired. The dark energem's power easily tore a hole through the floor, the ground beneath the museum and dropped Sledge, all the Rangers, and his whole crew down into the lab. Dirt, rubble and boulders fell with them, covering the Rangers.
"Curio!" Poisandra screeched out, rushing to her friend's side, giving Chase and Koda the opening they needed. Koda lifted a heavy boulder out of his way and tossed it for Poisandra while she was distracted. The heart-shaped monster didn't see the boulder coming and was crushed beneath it as it fell. She let out another terrible scream but Chase silenced her with a shot from his blaster. Breathing heavily, Chase and Koda looked to each other as their Ranger suits disappeared. While they hadn't been close to the center of the blast, the power from the dark energem had still hit them hard. They wanted to help their friends, but their bodies had the final word. They slumped to the ground, needing a minute to build up their strength.
James found himself swallowed in dirt and rubble, but nothing heavy had landed on him. However, the same could be said for Wrench, who was quick to get up. The fact that his body was made of metal that only dented, and that he didn't feel pain meant he was always quick to rise after heavy blows. As long as he wasn't damaged beyond repair, he could continue to fight. James was almost instantly overwhelmed as he tried to avoid swings from Wrench's axe.
Ivan had also been buried under dirt and rubble, but a few stones had knocked his helmet, keeping him down a little longer. At first he was worried that would be the end of him. He had spent almost a minute completely helpless and had been sure Wrench would take advantage. However, it seemed Wrench had mistakenly counted him out of the fight and was paying absolutely no mind to him. Picking up his sword, Ivan summoned all the strength he had and rammed him weapon deep into Wrench's dented form, tearing through his metal body. Ivan wasn't sure how to robotic alien worked, but he was certain he had hit something vital, as Wrench began to smoke and spark before he hit the ground.
Fury had taken a few hard hits in the fall, having landed on top of a boulder with a few stones hitting him in the back. He too thought this fight was over for him, but when he turned to his opponents, he saw the pink Ranger trying to pull the red Ranger's leg loose from between two heavy pieces of debris. She was distracted. Fury could land a decisive blow and take at least one, if not two Rangers out for good. It would be far more than Poisandra, Curio and Wrench had ever done, combined!
Fuel with anger and power, Fury drew his sword and rushed in for what would be the first of several battle ending strikes. He was stopped just short of a painful strike when the aqua Ranger jumped in front of the pink Ranger, blocking the hit with his sabre.
"Dad!" Tyler called out, worried for his father, who looked more than a little tired. Shelby turned around, saw how close she had come to death at Fury's hand and felt her own anger boil over.
"I can't do this alone," James admitted, hoping someone could come and help him. Ivan had already rushed to help dig Tyler out and Koda and Chase were just now starting to get to their feet. They weren't even morphed yet.
"I am so done with all this crap!" Shelby shouted summoning her tricera drill and turning to Fury, jabbing at him with impressive speed and anger. Without a real plan of action, there was only so long she could fight before she tired herself out. Fortunately, Fury seemed to be fighting the same way, and hadn't taken into account that he could work up the Rangers to be just as fierce and angry as him. He found himself suddenly on the defensive, and every time he tried to turn the tables, he only created an opening for the pink Ranger.
He was so busy keeping his eyes on Shelby; he forgot to watch the aqua Ranger. James struck him once with his sabre, throwing Fury off balance and allowing for several jabs from Shelby to land. By then, Ivan had managed to free Tyler's leg and the two of them joined in on the fight.
Fury's final cry was so loud, it roused Kendall. She opened her eyes and looked around. Chase and Koda were just getting their feet near where Poisandra and Curio had been crushed by heavy boulders. James, Tyler, Shelby and Ivan were finishing off Fury while Wrench's lifeless metal body lay on the ground. Her lab had quickly become a deathbed for monsters and her museum was covered in holes.
Looking the other way, she saw the Prince was doing his best against Sledge by himself. Kendall quickly started to panic. She couldn't find two of the Rangers. Riley was nowhere in sight and neither was her brother. Terror set in as she began to imagine the horror on Mrs. Griffin and Matt's face when she told them she lost Riley in the war.
She couldn't stomach how she would break the news about Jeremy to her own family; her parents, Cammy, Tracey and Anna. Anna: one more young girl who would know the pain of being without a father.
Phillip took a hard hit to the chest and dropped to the ground. Sledge pointed his blaster at the prince, but when he saw Kendall rising to her feet he turned to her.
"Why don't you pests just admit defeat and stay down!" he roared. "I have the power of the dark energem in my hands. There is nothing in this world that is strong enough to stop me!"
He fired his blaster, but nothing came out. Kendall breathed a quick sigh of relief to see it wasn't yet fully charged. She rushed towards Sledge, picking up Phillip's blaster as she passed him and fired at the green monster. Taking Riley's advice, she continued to aim for the left side of his stomach and hoped she could tear his wound open wide enough to cripple him.
Or, even better, she hoped Heckyl would show up. With two Rangers already unaccounted for, Kendall would have used her weapon and spared the others the risk. Sledge, though he did seem weaker from his own attack, wasn't slowing down. Her teammates, if they weren't lost, were running out of energy. There was only so much power their suits could withstand, and only so much fighting their bodies could endure.
But Heckyl didn't show up, and Kendall immediately started to regret giving up her only weapon that could stop Sledge and this fight.
When he was hit by her blast, Sledge let out a cry. More blood oozed from his wound which only angered him more. Kendall was glad for now that he hadn't seen Poisandra's crushed body. She didn't need the brute any angrier than he already was.
"So this is what it comes down to?" Sledge asked, holding his side with one hand while the other kept the blaster pointed at her. She heard the terrifying sound of the blaster charging up and knew this time, when he pulled the trigger; she needed to jump out of the way. She watched his finger, waiting for the right moment to dive. Too soon and Sledge would have time to redirect his aim. Too late and she was dead. "Keeper's little protégée is all I have left standing between me and the energems?"
Kendall wanted to argue that she did still have six Rangers on her team who could come to her aid, but she didn't want to point them out to Sledge. If he had forgotten about them, she wouldn't be the one to give them away.
"He should have picked someone better," Sledge's finger moved towards the trigger. Kendall was ready to dive but stopped when a rock hit her on the top of the helmet and knocked her to the ground. She didn't have time to jump after that, but Sledge had already pulled the trigger. She covered her head, shielding herself as much as she could with the time she had before the blast hit.
Sledge watched it all happen in slow motion. It was as if an act of god had put the purple Ranger right in his line of fire, without the chance to get away. He shot for her, the energy left his blaster and was on a straight track headed right for her.
But then suddenly, someone jumped in the way, and Sledge quickly recognized Heckyl. He had his own blaster in his hands and was quick to pull the trigger. A ball of fire that engulfed the lab was the last thing Sledge saw.