Hi everyone! I hope everyone is well :) I'm really sorry I didnt update for ages, the USB I was working on with this story on it broke, and I lost some edits, so I hope this chapter still makes sense without them because I cant remember them all :/. And also, I went back to school (schoolwork, argh), my dog is still sick, and I started working on a Ninja Turtles story. Which is probably the main culprit, so if you feel inclined to check it out, please do :) Again, thanks to all my reviewers etc, and please review this chapter if you enjoyed it.

Alura xx

Chapter 7

As soon as they arrived at the command centre, the Gold Rangers helmet fell apart completely, breaking into three large pieces that fell with a crunch to the command centre's floor. The others powered down, hoping that the gesture would make her feel a little more casual in their presence. They didn't want to be intimidating to her. Alura put her hands over her face so that the Rangers couldn't see her, but it was too late. Her wavy brown hair fell down to just above her waist. Billy quickly sat her down on a bench as she swayed, and he noticed one of her gloves had blood on it from the wound on her head.

"You're hurt." He said gently, giving her back her communicator. "Let me see it."

"No…" she spoke in her normal female voice now. "It's Okay."

"Gold Ranger," boomed Zordon. "You must stop being so stubborn. It may very well cost you your life one day."

"Like you can talk, Zordon!" she retorted, feeling a little more dizzy at her outburst. The others glanced at each other.

"We understand that there's a lot that you don't want us to know about you," said Tommy. "But Zordon is right. Your hidden identity could very well cost you your life. And I would rather that you live with some people knowing who you are than you die because you're protecting your identity." Tommy's voice grew stern. "Take your hands away from your face. And that's an order."

Tommy hardly recognized himself. It was one of the few times that he had used his authority as a Red Ranger against someone who wasn't a part of the Zeo team. Perhaps it was because the Gold Ranger reminded himself of a younger, lost version of himself.

Reluctantly, the Gold Ranger put her hands down onto her lap and looked up. Other than the blood on her forehead caused by the teeth marks, she was beautiful. Not sexy, but just beautiful. She had dark brown eyes that had a bit of purple close to the pupil and small lines of gold rocketing out from the center. She had long eyelashes and her lips were a healthy colour. Except for her eyes, she could pass as a human. Despite all of this, Tommy still sensed something sad about her. Perhaps there was a painful past behind those eyes?

She looked down; hiding her eyes from them as Billy gently wiped her head wound with disinfectant.

"It's pretty deep, but you'll be fine." As usual, Billy was the only one who was concentrating at this point. Adam Rocky, Tommy, and even Alpha were still staring at her. Kat and Tanya cleared their throats and poked them all sharply in the ribs.

"Ow!" they complained, but Alura didn't seem to notice.

"I… I guess it's nice to see you all face to face." She said, looking up at them again.

"Likewise!" Rocky extended a hand towards her with a goofy grin. Alura was slightly puzzled, and Adam pulled Rocky back, slapping him slightly upside the head.

"I don't understand why your helmet broke," Said Billy, picking up the pieces of helmet and setting them on a workbench next to her. "Normal Ranger armour wouldn't crack like that."

"Honestly, you consider me as normal?" Alura almost laughed at the notion. "The only part of my armour that actually protects me is my shoulder shield. The rest might as well be material."

"Of course," said Zordon. "As the power increased, it became concentrated into just the shield, because that is where power is inserted. My own Eltarian armour used to operate in a similar way."

Alura, nodding as she remembered her knowledge of Eltarian armour, took the pieces of helmet and held them together. "That's right. The more power I have, the weaker my armour is. Of course, I try to put what magic I have into my armour, but it most often ends up in the battle."

"You have magic?" asked Adam.

"Well," shrugged Alura. "It's more accurate to call it excess power. The power sometimes leaks through to my normal form, giving me powers that most certainly aren't normal."

"What did Rita want anyway, Zordon?" asked Adam. "I was honestly a bit surprised to see her."

"I do not know, Rangers. It was most likely a random attack, as Rita seemed to be looking for the Gold Ranger."

"My apologies." Said Alura, holding a hand over her head wound, but not obscuring her face like she had before. "I should have contacted you by communicator, not face to face. She just wanted to rant at me for something. I told her to stay away from all of you." Alura shrugged. "I doubt she'll do it, though."

"Indeed. And that 'something' the Rita wanted to rant at you about has proven to be the best defence this planet has come across for a long time." A new voice rung in the command centre. The Rangers spun around to see a familiar figure teleport in.

"Ninjor?" they collectively gasped in surprise and delight. They hadn't expected to see him after they had lost their Ninja Powers. Tanya was a bit puzzled by this warrior, having never seen him before, but she smiled at him anyway.

"Greetings, Rangers." He said. "I trust the Gold Ranger has been looking after you all."

Alura rolled her eyes at Ninjor's sarcasm. 'Hello again, seniorum amicus.'

"Now young lady, don't call me that! I'm regretting teaching you Latin. It makes me feel old!"

"You are old."

"…Oh." Ninjor turned his attention back to the Zeo Rangers. "Anyway, I'm just popping by to tell you a few things about your friend here."

"Ninjor-"

"She may be stubborn, but she is also modest. She has been protecting you for a lot longer than you think."

"What are you talking about, Ninjor? She's only just met us." Adam stated.

"Or have you just only met her?"

Adam and Tommy glanced at each other, both confused, and now, suspicious.

"Don't-"

"A few years ago when I gave Zordon the first five power coins, I met the Gold Ranger." Ninjor made himself comfortable, sitting himself next to Alura, who was visibly stiffening at his words. "She had tracked Rita's signal to this planet, and was trying to help the original team without making herself known. During this time, she worked out how to set up an undetectable forcefield around the planet Earth, stopping anyone with negative or 'evil' energy from reaching the surface."

"It's imperfect." Alura spoke, startling the Rangers as she interrupted. "It covers the planet, but there are weak spots. The largest ones are directly over Angel grove, and over the largest Island of Japan."

"Nevertheless," continued Ninjor, determined not to be spoken over. "If it wasn't for this forcefield, you would be having a lot more monster attacks. Rita, Zedd and Mondo would be able to send ten monsters down at a time, accompanied by 200 putties or cogs or the like."

"Is this true, Gold Ranger?" boomed Zordon, glaring at her from his tube. "And if so, why were you not using this power to protect your own planet against these threats?"

Alura nodded. "It's true. I did put up the forcefield. But… I only had enough power to maintain it on one planet. At the time, Earth was in more immediate danger, so I put it up here, and I put up a temporary one around Aerovillia. As it turns out, the one around Aerovillia wasn't strong enough to hold out all of the Alliances forces when they attacked." She looked down. "Besides," she seemed both sad and angry at the same time. "If you all knew what my planet was like, you wouldn't want to save it either."

"I've told you not to say that." Said Ninjor

"Who are you, my Father?" Alura was obviously not happy that Ninjor was telling the Rangers all of these things."Zordon, do you have any files on Aerovillia?"

"Yes, Gold Ranger."

"Please put them on the viewing globe."

There was a moment of silence as they all looked to the viewing globe. It showed a bunch of hooligans on huge motorbike like vehicles, roaring around the streets. The sky was dark, and the people were laughing. Not like they were happy, but like they had caused harm to someone else and were enjoying it.

"I was the evil one there, because I was the odd one out. I was the only one who even attempted to be virtuous besides my father. Any Aerovils who were true of heart I took to colonies on the moons and other planets so that they didn't have to live among sinners. The last one to go was my Father, but he refused to leave, because he thought that I should be protecting everyone. Even protect those who didn't deserve it. The biggest thing threatening Aerovillia was its people." Alura felt a single tear roll down her cheek, but she quickly wiped it away. "I… couldn't save them from themselves. I tried to help them… but I just couldn't."

"Thank you." They all turned to see Tommy speak. It was surprising to see him look at her like he was, and he sounded like he really meant it. "I… think Earth would have been defeated a long time ago if it wasn't for that forcefield. So… thanks."

Alura was slightly surprised. No one… no one had ever really… thanked her for her deeds.

"…You're quite welcome."

The moment was suddenly interrupted by what almost sounded like a telephone. The Rangers all jumped at the sudden sound.

"Zordon," said Alpha. "We are receiving a communication from the Aquitar Rangers. Should we respond?"

"Please do, Alpha."

The Rangers and Billy moved to the viewing globe. Ninjor glanced at Alura. She nodded, and, understanding her concerns, Ninjor stood in front of her, deliberately concealing her from the view of anyone who would appear on the viewing globe. She wouldn't mind seeing the Aquitar Rangers, but she knew that they would mind seeing her. They had their differences after all… Besides, she shouldn't even let them know that she was alive and on Earth.

The image went static for a moment, and then two aliens appeared on the screen.

"Aurico! Delphine!" Tommy was obviously pleased to see these Alien Rangers. "How can we help you?"

"Sorry, Rangers." Said Delphine, moving her head slightly in an Aquitian fashion. "We realize that the attacks against your planet have increased, but we would not contact you unless absolutely necessary."

"Of course, what seems to be the problem?"

"We need your assistance in retrieving an item." Aurico said. "An item that we can use to heal Tideus and Corcus."

"Heal?" said Adam, feeling concern for their fellow Power Rangers. "What happened to them?"

"The two went on a mission to one of the moons of the planet Aerovillia to retrieve any surviving Aerovils after the planet was destroyed," explained Aurico. "We are not sure if they found anyone, but they became severely dehydrated whilst there."

"Our water alone is not enough to properly hydrate them again. We fear that without the healing power of the Ice Sword, they will not recover. However, the sword is hidden in a cavern many miles below Aquitars surface, and the cavern requires at least eight warriors who are pure of heart to enter in order to get the sword. Otherwise the sword will shatter and we will have no healing item."

"We'll be there within half an hour."

"Thank you, Rangers." Delphine nodded. "Cestro will send through co ordinates shortly."

The image went static and disappeared. Ninjor sat back down next to Alura before the Rangers could notice that he had stood in the first place.

"Rangers," said Zordon. "You must take great care on Aquitar. These caverns hold many dangers."

"Please be careful," said Alura. "All of you must go in order to access the cave. I know, because I've been there before."

"You've been there-" Alura looked away, avoiding the question, and Tommy changed the subject. "What about you?" asked Tommy. "Will you be okay?"

"Don't worry about me. I'll stay here and protect Angel Grove in your absence." She took her hand off her head wound, and the Rangers saw that it had already healed over slightly. "I heal quicker than you do."

"We shouldn't be too long." Said Tommy. "Today's Friday, so we should be able to be away until at least midday tomorrow without too many people noticing."

"And, as usual, I'll call your parents." Said Zordon, sounding almost as if these events were just a regular day for him. "Good luck Rangers and may the power protect you."

They assembled for teleportation. Tommy nodded at Billy, Ninjor and Alura. They all nodded back, and the Zeo Rangers teleported out. Alura stood the moment that they left.

"Ninjor," she said. "Now that Zordon and the Rangers know about the forcefield, you need to go back to the temple and guard the forcefield generator. With your life if necessary."

"Will do." Ninjor saluted her in a mocking yet friendly sort of way.

"And Billy…" Alura turned to him. "Thanks for your help... but go home and get some rest. You look tired."

Billy adjusted his glasses, but didn't say anything. Alura picked up the pieces of her helmet and held them together. A Gold light channeled from her hands to her helmet, engulfing it, before subsiding to reveal the helmet completely mended, and as good as new. She put it on, Billy and Zordon gaping at each other in astonishment. If anyone could see his face beneath the visor, they would have seen Ninjor roll his eyes at the display of power.

"You can contact me if you like," she said. "But if there's trouble, no doubt I'll already be there."

"Good luck Gold Ranger, and once again, may the power protect you."

Alura nodded and then pointed at Billy. "And look after this one, Alpha."

"Of course." Beeped Alpha as she teleported out of the command center.

"I hope she'll be alright," said Billy. "She's a good person to have around. I like her."

Ninjor just stood, wondering if he had made a good decision. Regardless of whether he had or not, the Rangers now knew a bit more about her. And he knew that in the long run, it would help. Billy spoke briefly with Zordon, then teleported home, making the decision to build some more spare communicators in his lab.

Ninjor was about to leave himself when he was stopped.

"Ninjor, old friend." Zordons voice stopped Ninjor. "We must talk."

As night fell on Angel Grove, Alura stood on the top of a tall building, watching over the city. The Rangers had not yet returned. The rest of the day had been uneventful, but Alura remained suspicious of the Alliance of Evil. They would know that the Rangers had gone from the city, but they would also know that the Gold Ranger was still there, and that she was a force to be reckoned with. She had given a piece of her mind to Rita, and Zedd and Mondo would know that they could be next. Alura could see humans walking on the street below her, and she watched the closely. If Aerovillia had taught her anything, it was that corruption could come from anywhere, not just from her most hated enemies.

She launched herself off the building and, as she fell, transformed into the dragon. Twisting her body like a snake did, she glided through the air and scanned the perimeter of the city. Ninjor had warned her that by doing this it might increase the chances of power fluctuation, she knew that it was the only way that she was going to scan the city properly. And indeed, something was wrong. In the distance she could see an orange glow against the sky, but it wasn't the sun setting.

Fire.

When she got close enough to the source of light, she realized that a whole six story building was alight. She landed about a block away from it, changing back into her Ranger form before she ran into any civilians. She approached cautiously as a group of firemen desperately tried to extinguish the blaze. Alura ran up to a man who was wearing full firemen gear and had a big mustache. He turned to Alura and sighed with relief.

"Thank god." He grasped Alura's shoulder in a manly sort of way. "Power Ranger, we could really use a hand."

A young man came up to them, covered in soot and with desperation in his eyes.

"Sarge!" he yelled above the noise of the fire. "There's still some people trapped on the fourth floor, but we can't get to them and the buildings about to collapse!"

Alura couldn't help thinking that she was supposed to be protecting the city from evil, not from fires, but she pushed that thought to the back of her mind.

"You guys put out the fire if you can," said Alura in her male voice. "I'll get the people out!"

Without hesitation, she ran towards the building.

"Wait!" called the young firefighter. "There's something else!" But the Gold Ranger had already disappeared into the smoke.

"What is it?" asked the Sarge.

The young man turned to him, in an almost frightened way. "…This fire was caused by a monster…"

...

Climbing up the flaming stairs, she saw a line of firemen coming down them.

"Get out, Ranger, it's too dangerous! The building's about to collapse!"

"Get yourselves out!" Alura pushed past them, and continued up the stairwell.

She reached the third floor and was confronted with what appeared to be a flaming man. She panicked for a moment, but as she looked closer, it didn't appear to be a man, but a sort of demon. From its aggressive body language she could tell that it was a monster, its face contorted in a gleeful fury. Angry at the destruction the monster had caused, she produced a forcefield around it, compressing it until there was no air around it. The monsters flames went out almost immediately and it glared at her through the smoke. She kicked the monster and it went flying back into the wall behind it. Alura wasn't sure that it was fatally wounded, but she knew that it would probably be destroyed when the building came down.

She leapt up the stairwell, producing a protective field around herself as the heat intensified. As she landed on the fourth floor, there was a crash behind her, and she was the stairs cave in and the ceiling began to crumble. She dived out of the way, and part of the roof came down on what was left of the stairs. Looking back at it, she knew that there was no way that civilians could get back down that way. At least the monster wouldn't be able to come up there after them.

"Hello?" she yelled above the crackling flames as she waded through the burning mess that covered the floor. "Can anyone hear me?"

"Help us!" Alura ran towards the screaming and found its source.

"Can anyone hear me?" Alura could hear the muffled sound of a baby crying from behind a burning door.

"Help us, we're in here!"

"Stand back!" Alura kicked the door open, flames and wood exploding over her armour and forcefield as she ran to the civilians. They appeared to be a young family, a young man and womman huddled together in a corner, clutching a baby, and all their faces were sooty and tear streaked. They were obviously terrified. Alura rushed to them. "Are you okay?"

"We're fine," said the man. But even as he spoke, the roof began to cave in, and flames burst through from the upper story. Acting quickly, Alura kicked at the outer wall of the building, smashing through the bricks with a power kick, revealing a 12 meter drop below.

"Hold tight!" she secured a forcefield around the family. She lifted the forcefield, and the family inside were lifted too. Moving with steady speed, Alura lowered the family into the arms of waiting firemen, and as soon as she was sure that they were clear of the building, she released them from the forcefield. They cried with relief as the firemen took them to safety with blankets and oxygen. The young fireman just stood watching Alura, waiting for her to come down.

Alura was just about to jump down herself (as it was an easy height for a Power Ranger to jump from), when suddenly she felt something grab her ankle, She swiveled around to see the fire monster on the floor, who was fully flaming and angry, and who began to pull her back into the building. It roared and released fire energy. The Gold Ranger produced a forcefield, not around herself, but around the burning building, containing the fire from spreading.

"No!" shouted the young fireman. "Don't do it!"

But it was too late. He saw the Gold Ranger dragged back into the burning inferno as the Gold warrior began to compress the forcefield, suppressing the air that the fire needed to burn. The building began to smolder as it collapsed, and most of the flames were extinguished by the falling building material. As the rubble lay still, the forcefield flickered, releasing smoke, but no flames into the sky of Angel Grove. It flickered on and off for several minutes, then disappeared completely. The Gold Ranger was nowhere to be seen.

Ooh, what do you all think? Who is the young fireman? Is Alura alright? Find out next time, on Power Rangers Zeo! (Hehe, sorry, I just had to do that)