Author's Note: Where did everybody go? I only had two reviews last update. I know that school, Uni and College has started back up, and I understand it is difficult, especially if you have homework. But I'm taking time out of my busy Uni schedule to update; so please take a second to review. I appreciate your thoughts, opinions and view. Thanks. Love you guys.

Disclaimer: No copyright infringement intended in the making of this series. I simply own my OCs and anything that is unrecognizable from the show. Power Rangers belongs to Saban although Operation Overdrive was created by Disney. Enjoy.

Warning: Rated T for safety.


Title: Secrets and Lies

Summary: Aliyah thought that Rebecca and Tyler were the only family she had left until she landed in San Angeles six months ago. Now, after being approached by a man who claims to be her mother's brother, she's pulled into another life and death battle for Earth.


"It's not just a bird." Rose said, walking backwards as she explained why they were in Turkey to the other Rangers. "It's the Hou-ou, the legendary Japanese king of birds that, according to legend, if you set it free, it will give you clues to find the Touru diamond. The world's most precious diamond. Also, according to legend, it bestows the holder with great power."

"It's kinda funny, you know," said Dax. "We come to Turkey to pick up a statue of a bird. Turkey - Bird. Get it?"

Mack paused and exchanged a look with Aliyah.

"Do you stay up late thinking of stuff like that to say?" Ronny asked, chuckling. Her hand was locked with Tyler's as he pushed through the crowds of people, ever since he had admitted she was cute and he enjoyed spending time with her, the green and yellow Rangers had been inseparable.

"Playtime's over." Will called from the front of the group. He had been leading the way, using his Tracker to pinpoint the location of the house they were supposed to be going too. "Our sources said they'd leave the door open."

"Are you sure you it said 'leave the door open'?" Aliyah asked, stopping outside one house in particular. The front door had been blasted off of its hinges and was smashed all over the floor. "Or did it actually mean 'blasted off its hinges'?"

"Maybe it's a cultural thing." Ronny suggested.

Rose shook her head. She had made the translations herself. They were correct. "Something's wrong," she said, leading the team inside.

"Let's just find the safe, get the Hou-ou statue, and get out of here." Mack said, holding up a small flashlight. The others nodded and followed suit as they crept along the darkened corridor and into the side room. It was completely trashed, debris and boxes littered the floors, and the small safe in the corner of the room was open, but the inside was empty.

Tyler sighed. "Perfect," he groaned. "Someone beat us too it."

"Suddenly I have a feeling of Deja vu." Aliyah muttered, shining her torch around the room.

~*Secrets and Lies*~

"Will's still up in Andrew's office." Dax said, sliding down the pole and landing in the Overdrive base where the rest of his friends were hanging out, while Rose searched for any signature traces of the Hou-ou.

"Dad's probably giving him a new Zord or something." Mack said. "For all the great work he's been doing."

"Hey, hang on," said Tyler, spinning around on his chair. "I haven't even had my first Zord yet, why does Will get a new one?"

Mack shrugged.

Tyler gaped at the red Ranger and turned to Aliyah, who was sitting beside him cradling a ball of white fluff. "This so not fair," he complained. "I'm the only person that doesn't have a chance when it comes to Zord battles."

"I agree." Aliyah nodded. "So does Cookie. But the decision isn't mine to make."

"It's a wonder you didn't name that thing Saba." Tyler said.

"Why would I name it Saba?" Aliyah frowned.

"Because it's a cat?" said Tyler. "Just about every cat you own is called Saba."

Aliyah rolled her eyes and shook her head. "You're delusional," she said, as the elevator doors opened and Andrew walked into the base. He was wearing a white suit, complete with dinner jacket and tie.

"Is it white appreciation day or something?" Tyler asked.

"Dude, you are so ripping off my colour!" Aliyah whined.

"You've probably been speculating on why I called Will into my office," said Andrew as he faced the rest of his team.

The rest of the Rangers shook their heads.

"N -"

"Yes!" Aliyah said, before the others had a chance. They glared at her, but she ignored them. "Yes, we were wondering why he was called in. Did he get a new Zord? Please say no before Tyler has a fit, he so deserves a Zord before anyone else, he's the only Ranger on the team without one."

"I let Will go." Andrew answered. Silence fell and all six Rangers turned their attention to their mentor.

"Will? Gone?" Ronny repeated.

"This was not an easy call to make." Hartford continued. "But his actions left me no choice."

"What actions?" Tyler asked. "So, yeah, OK, he broke a few rules, and he quite a bit to learn about team-work, but they're things that are a work in progress, you can't just kick him out for things like that. Aliyah even forgave him to the Atlantis mission."

"Actually, I didn't," said Aliyah. "I just buried it deep, but I never actually forgave him."

Tyler rolled his eyes and turned back to his uncle.

"I'm not telling you this because you deserve to know," said Andrew. "I'm also warning you. I asked Will to leave me his Tracker, but he didn't. That's a lot of power for someone so... unstable."

Aliyah snorted. She was unstable. Will? Not so much.

But Andrew's words had struck the others to the core, making the question whether or not Will would really betray them.

~*Secrets and Lies*~

Will watched Miratrix train with a cocky smirk. He had seen Aliyah and Tyler practicing their Ninja moves against one another enough times to tell that the villainess before him was one of the same, she may not have been exactly like the white and green Rangers, but she came in at a close second.

When she had finished her routine, Will clapped and startled her.

"Impressive." He said. "Very impressive."

"What do you want, Ranger?" Miratrix snarled. She wasn't doing anything wrong to order an attack.

"I've been looking for you." Will said, stepping closer.

Taking the approach as defensive, Miratrix drew her swords and charged him. "Too bad for you," she hissed. "You found me."

Will sighed and drew his tracker. He run it across the trunk of the tree and morphed, before ducking under Miratrix's swords and rolling across the grass. He summoned his drive defender, and clashed it with her weapons, before sweeping her feet out from under her. Miratrix growled and jumped at Will, kicking him several times, before he jumped up and kicked her in the stomach.

Miratrix hit the ground and rolled back to her knees, preparing for another attack.

Will raised his fist to strike her but stopped. He hesitated and shook his head. "No," he said, powering down and walking towards her.

"You had me." Miratrix said, looking up at him in confusion.

"Very observant. But i'm not here to hurt you." Will explained. "Rather, I have a little proposition." He grabbed her wrist and pulled her up. "You and I join forces. Think about it. No one could stop ever stop us."

"You and me?" Miratrix asked. "Won't the other Rangers get jealous?"

"Doesn't matter. They fired me." Will said.

"Oh, what did you do - forget to clean your zord?" Miratrix laughed.

"No, just sold some of the Zord technology to a rival - needed money. And, frankly, being a Ranger doesn't really pay too well." Will said, following her as she walked away.

Miratrix stopped and turned back to face him. "Do you take me for a fool?" she asked.

"Au contraire," said Will, smoothly. "You see, you're a woman out for her own gain. Nothing more powerful, and if I must say, more attractive than that."

"Stop. I'm blushing." Miratrix told him. "You're cocky. I like that."

"I prefer to call it confidence." Will corrected.

"And there's nothing you wouldn't do to team up with me?" Miratrix asked.

Will paused for a moment, his eyes lingering on hers. He smirked and shook his head, before finally answering. "Nada," and walking away.

Miratrix watched him go, as her hand strayed to the jewel around her neck. She played with it for a few seconds, overthinking the whole deal. With a Ranger on her side she could finally release her partner, Kamdor, from his prison. It was an opportunity that she couldn't miss.

~*Secrets and Lies*~

"Will may have broken a rule or two..." said Ronny as she paced around the Ranger base. The others had instigated a search for Will, via his tracker signal, while she still tried to wrap her head around everything that Andrew had told them. She still didn't believe that Will had been fired.

"Two? Try a couple of hundred." Aliyah called from the otherside of the base.

Tyler shot her a look. "That's an exaggeration," he answered. "One, two, maybe three rules. But that doesn't mean that he's a bad guy, and is going to turn against us."

"Yeah. It's just a Tracker." Ronny said, thankful that someone was going to supporter her.

"With enough power to cause worldwide destruction." Aliyah reminded the others. "What happens if Will decides to team-up with someone? Like Miratrix or Moltor, or even Flurious? Can you imagine the shit we'd be in if they got their hands on his Tracker? Better keep looking, even if it is only to get his Tracker back from him, trust me, he can do whatever he wants after that, I don't care, but we need that Tracker back."

Ronny sighed and looked at Tyler as she realized Mack, Rose and Dax were on Aliyah's side. It was four against two, hardly a fair argument.

"Don't worry," said Tyler in a low whisper. "Stand by your gut, and don't back down. Aliyah's just bias to evil Rangers because of events that have happened in the past, and if this is all just a ruse, she'll be the first to jump and defend Will if he gets in over his head." He tilted Ronny's head back and smiled. "You'll see."

Ronny returned the smile and nodded, looking around as Rose announced she had found Will's location.

"Let's go." Aliyah said, putting Cookie down and jumping to her feet. The small kitten, which wasn't very big, curled up in the corner of the room and watched as her mistress and friends abandoned the base. She had've to wait either for them to come back or for one of the two men that lived at the mansion to come down and take her back upstairs.

~*Secrets and Lies*~

Will smirked as he landed outside of the building, holding the item that Miratrix had sent him in for. He knew that helping her steal was against regulations, but he had to keep up appearances if he was ever going to earn her trust.

"Did you get it?" Miratrix asked as she walked towards him.

"You mean this?" Will asked, showing her the item.

"It is the only thermal bivalve reticulating laser in existence. And now it's mine." Miratrix reached out to grab it, but Will pulled it away. She frowned and looked up at him, falling deeper into his smile as he handed her the device, for a split second she had thought he was second-guessing their deal.

"Glad you're happy." Will said, grabbing her arm as she tried to leave. "But what about us?"

Before Miratrix could answer, the sound of engines ripped through their silence. Will and Miratrix looked around as Tyler, Dax and Ronny drove towards them on the ATV and bikes, while Mack, Rose and Aliyah arrived in the 4x4.

"There he is." Dax smiled, pointing at Will and jumping from his ATV. "And see, he hasn't turned bad. In fact, look who he's captured."

"Nice going, Will, you got her." Ronny applauded.

Aliyah narrowed her eyes at the scene; she had a sneaky suspicion that things weren't exactly how the others perceived them to be.

Will shot the Rangers a look of hostility, before smirking. "Got her?" he asked. "No. I'm afraid you're mistaken. It is us who have gotten you." He morphed and fired his defender at them.

Quickly, Aliyah grabbed Mack and Tyler by the shoulders, the two instantly knew to latch onto the Ranger closest to them, forming a chain-link. When Will's lasers hit, they melted through each of the Rangers and exploded against the bikes.

"Lucky escape." Will growled.

"Wish I could say the same for you." Aliyah shot back, grabbing her Tracker. "Ready?"

"I hate when Dad's right." Mack complained.

Tyler shot him a look. "Forget your father," he said. "I hate it when Aliyah's right."

"Overdrive Accelerate!"

"You're going to regret finding me." Will said, lowering his blaster and running at his former team-mates. He kicked Dax and Tyler, swept Mack's feet out from under him, and jumped up and mid-air spin, knocked Ronny backwards into Rose.

Aliyah jumped over her fallen team-mates, and spun in mid-air, kicking Will in the head as she landed behind him. "You're gonna regret ever crossing my path, Aston!" she snapped. "Give me the Tracker!"

"Not a chance!" Will shouted rushing at her. He aimed a punch for her face, but Aliyah blocked him and, catching his wrist, she jumped up to kick him in the chest but he grabbed her ankle and spun her away.

Aliyah spun over in mid-air and landed in a crouch, just as Mack rushed at him. Will blocked all of the red Ranger's attacked. After jumping into the air again, and kicking Mack several times, Will finally hit his former leader in the chest and knocked him down.

"Hey!" Aliyah shouted, rushing at Will again. She grabbed his arm and twisted it behind his back, but was flipped over as Will kicked her in the back of the knee and twisted her over. He grabbed her by the chest and slammed her into the ground, knocking the air from her lungs.

Tyler shot to his feet and rushed at the black Ranger along with Ronny.

"Will, stop this." Ronny yelled, grabbing his arms.

"Oh, please." Will scoffed, jumping up and kicking her in the chest. He sent her flying backwards into Dax, while Will dealt with Tyler. He kicked the green Ranger in the gut, and sent him crashing to the floor.

Jumping backwards from his former team-mates, Will watched as they regrouped. He counted them quickly and found that he was one short.

"Ah!" Aliyah shouted as she landed on Will's back. She tightened her grip around his shoulders and reached for his tracker on his belt.

Will caught her wrist and pulled her over his shoulder. She hit the ground for a second time, and coughed as Will grabbed her arm, forced her to her feet and then slammed her into a stone wall. "Try again, white Ranger!" he said, tightening his hold around her throat.

Instantly, Aliyah's body froze in fear. Images of Hunter's face sneering down at her as he strangled her, sprang to mind, and followed by images of Vida, when she had been controlled by Necrolai, followed.

Will laughed as he felt Aliyah go limp. "Hey, I know I have this under control," he shouted to Miratrix, oblivious to the fear and anger that was building up inside of Aliyah. "But -" he broke off as Aliyah grabbed his wrist, twisted it, and kicked him in the stomach. He groaned and fell to one knee, leaving his face exposed.

Aliyah grabbed the back of his head and forced it down, colliding it with her knee as she kicked up.

"Argh!" Will hissed as he felt the front of his helmet smash into his nose. Blood spurted down over his lips and chin, but he couldn't wipe it away without demorphing. "What the hell?"

"You want to play rough?" Aliyah yelled, lunging for him again. She landed hard against him, with Will grabbing her waist as they rolled a couple of times. He slammed her into the ground once or twice, but lost his grip as she bucked her hips and knocked him off of her, only to climb back onto him the second he landed. "How's this for rough?" she asked, pulling back her fist and smashing it into the front of his helmet. The visor cracked under the pressure and Will cried out as his head hit the back.

Aliyah was out for blood, he couldn't see it in her eyes, but he could feel it every time her fist made contact with his body. In a way he was thankful for the helmet, even if he had smashed his nose against it, but it was protecting him from the ferocity behind her attacks.

"Hey, a little help?" Will shouted to Miratrix.

"Give me a second, OK?" Miratrix called back. She pulled the rock from around her neck and slotted it into the laser.

"Aliyah!" the other Rangers shouted, rushing forward. Tyler grabbed his cousin around the waist and tried to pull her off of Will, but she gripped his sides with her knees and refused to budge, all the while deflecting his fists and still punching him. She was shaking with fear and anger, and knew that she had to stop, but it was like she was possessed. She couldn't stop, not until she had finished.

Suddenly a bright light blanked the area and, when it cleared, a blue ninja stood in front of Miratrix.

"Whoa." Dax and Rose breathed.

"You took your time getting me out, Miratrix," said the new guy.

"Who is that?" Ronny asked.

"I am Kamdor! Prepare to fall!" the new guy said, pulling out a sword. He leapt at the Rangers, struck Ronny, Rose, Dax and Mack, before striking Tyler as he tried to break up Will and Aliyah. The green Ranger cried out as he rolled away from the fighting duo.

"Tyler!" Ronny shouted rushing to his side. She helped him up and they each drew their defender swords, and rushed off to help the others fight Kamdor as he took to the stairwell. He knocked Mack down, kicked Tyler in the stomach and knocked him into a concrete beam, tossed Ronny over the side as she leapt to defend Tyler.

Jumping over the side of the stairway, Kamdor drew a second sword and crossed the two weapons. They lit up with blue lightning, and he threw it at Dax and Rose, blasting them off of the stairway.

With five out of seven Rangers defeated, Kamdor turned to the still fighting Aliyah and Will. The black Ranger had managed to get the upper hand in the fight and had shoved the white Ranger away. She was kneeling a few feet away from him, breathing heavily, but still shaking with unrestrained fury.

Jumping to his feet, Will rushed at Aliyah and aimed a punch to her head. His fist connected and she reeled backwards. Rolling over several times, Aliyah looked up at Will through her visor, blood trickled down over her lips and chin from her nose, but she didn't care.

"Go on." Aliyah encouraged him. "Take your best shot, but be warned, it'll your last."

Will kneeled beside Aliyah and grabbed her wrist, hauling her halfway up off the ground. "I'm not the enemy here," he whispered to her, before throwing her roughly back onto the ground, and then walked away.

"Come," called Kamdor. "There is much to do."

"What about the Rangers?" Will asked him.

"They are defeated. They pose no problem," Kamdor answered with a laugh.

Aliyah blinked as she allowed Will's final words to process her scattered mind. She was still furious over the fact that he had tried to strangle her, but then realized that she hadn't told him, or the other Rangers that she had a phobia of being strangled. But that still didn't explain his or her actions, and it most definitely didn't explain why he was telling her that he wasn't the bad guy.

He had just fought them, and helped free Kamdor, so if he wasn't the bad guy, why was he with Miratrix?

~*Secrets and Lies*~

"Well, if there was any doubt about Will, I guess that's been resolved." Mack said as he and the others walked into the base. Aliyah winced as she pinched the bridge of her nose. Her hand was covered in blood, and there was a red stain on her lips and chin from where she had wiped the blood from first contact, causing it to smear.

"I'd have bet anything that Will would never go to the other side." Ronny sighed, leaning into Tyler as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "And I don't lose bets."

"You lost to me." Aliyah said, but she regretted it as pain shot through her nose. "Ow - i'm gonna kill Will."

"Hey, now you know how it felt when you did it to him." Tyler pointed.

"HE TRIED TO STRANGLE ME!" Aliyah shouted, causing more pain to shoot across the bridge of her nose. She knew it wasn't broken, but the blood was still flooding from it.

Tyler sighed and rubbed his head. "Yeah, but he didn't know that you had a phobia of being strangled," he said. "You can't blame him for that."

"You have a phobia of being strangled?" Rose asked.

"Death by suffocation." Aliyah answered. "I've been strangled before in the past, both times by people who were my friends, and under the influence of evil. But I also have a stupid prophecy over my head that was activated last year; it stops me from turning evil. But if I am exposed to the forces of darkness, I die a slow and agonizing death by suffocating."

The Rangers, save for Tyler, stared at Aliyah with wide eyes.

"Why are you only telling us this now?" Mack asked.

Aliyah shrugged. "I thought your father would have told you," she said. "Guess not."

"I can't believe he's with her." Dax suddenly exclaimed, turning to his friends. "You don't just hook up with a friend's ex."

Aliyah, Ronny and Rose all shared a confused look.

"Man law." Mack, Dax and Tyler explained.

Ronny scoffed and shook her head, while Rose smiled and nodded. Meanwhile, Tyler dropped his arm from around Ronny and approached Aliyah. He patted the controls table and instructed her to hop up, and tilt her head back while he placed an ice pack over the bridge of her nose which was starting to bruise.

~*Secrets and Lies*~

Will stared at his reflection as he treated the bloody nose he had acquired from Aliyah. He wasn't exactly sure what he had done to inflict such a vicious response from her, but he knew it had something to do with the action of putting his hands around her throat. Was she afraid of being strangled? He'd have to ask her if he ever got out of this situation... and if she still trusted him, obviously.

Splashing water on his face, Will held a cloth under the cold water and rung it out, before dabbing it to his still bleeding nose. He had managed to wipe the blood stains from his mouth and chin, but just needed to stop the flow of blood from his nose before he faced Miratrix and Kamdor.

The flow wasn't has heavy as he expected it to be, and he had it cleaned up in a matter of seconds. Ringing out the cloth, Will returned to the chamber where Kamdor and Miratrix were waiting for him.

"You sure you trust him?" he asked Miratrix.

"Trust Kamdor?" Miratrix asked. "Two years ago, I got into some trouble on a distant planet and he was captured, saving me. They confined him for eternity inside that crystal. But it took me two years to find the device that could set him free. By the way, did I thank you for that?" she added, sending a flirty smile at Will. "Thank you."

Will smiled and nodded.

"Shouldn't it be us who doesn't trust you?" Kamdor asked the black Ranger.

"I was just saying -"

"Silence! You'll need to prove yourself."

"I'm getting a little tired of proving myself." Will sighed.

"Had I known those we were fighting were your former friends, I would have destroyed them." Kamdor said, curling his hand into a fist.

Will frowned. "Are all Ninja's this angry?" he asked, realizing that Kamdor formed a fist whenever he was angry, just like Aliyah did.

"How many Ninja's do you know?" Miratrix asked.

"Other than you two?" Will asked. "Two. The green and white Rangers are Lightning Ninjas."

"Lightning Ninjas?" Kamdor repeated. "They died out years ago."

"Apparently not," said Will. "Because, according to my knowledge, there are still three in existence to this day."

"Three?" asked Miratrix. "Must be a family pack. You say two of them are here in San Angeles?"

Will nodded.

"And the third?" Kamdor asked.

"Couldn't tell you," said Will. "I've never seen or met her."

Miratrix looked thoughtful. "Lightning is the most powerful element of them all," she said, looking at Kamdor. "If we can get our hands on the two Lightning Ninjas, we could use them to in our fight for the Jewels of the Corona."

Kamdor nodded and turned to Will. "Since you are so eager. Prove yourself by capturing the Lightning Ninjas, but destroy the Power Rangers in the process," he said.

~*Secrets and Lies*~

"How about now?" Hartford asked.

"Nothing." Rose sighed. "Not a sign of Will's tracker's imprint anywhere."

"How can he block his signal?" Mack asked.

"You know Will," said Ronny. "If there's a way, he'll find it."

"Or he could've just switched his Tracker off." Aliyah suggested. Her nose had healed up better than expected, but she was still furious at Will, and his statement of 'not being the bad guy' was playing on her mind.

Tyler frowned and leaned closer to the computer. "Wait a sec. Go back," he said, pointing at the screen. "There - what's that?"

"That's an awfully weak signal." Rose said, shaking her head.

"But it's a place to start." Mack said. "Come on."

The others nodded and followed him out.

~*Secrets and Lies*~

"I'm picking up a signal over there." Dax said, holding up his Tracker and pointing in the direction of a huge tree.

"You are so predictable!" Will laughed, stepping into view.

The Rangers too a step back in surprise, although Aliyah clenched her hands into fists and glared at Will.

"You know we have to bring you in." Mack said, putting his hand on Aliyah's shoulder and stepping in front of her. He managed to block her view of the black Ranger, but he could still feel the anger radiating off of her. After hearing her story, he couldn't help but be a little more protective of her, despite her being older than him.

"Oh?" Will laughed, holding his hands up in defence. "You don't get it, do you? I let you find my signal. You didn't find me. I brought you here."

"It's a trap." Rose gasped, reaching for her Tracker.

"Ready?" Tyler asked, taking the lead. He wanted Will to pay for hurting Aliyah, although he understood completely that the black Ranger had no idea what he had done, he had still caused her harm, and that didn't sit right with the overprotective green Ranger.

"Ready!"

"Overdrive Accelerate!"

Will growled and morphed too, before jumping forward and taking out as many of his friends as he possibly could. Unfortunately for him, they all stepped back away from his hits and he landed amongst them.

"Ha!" Aliyah and Mack shouted, kicking up at the black Ranger, only for him to block them and push away.

Will then ducked as Dax and Tyler jumped at him from behind. They skimmed over him and landed in front of Aliyah and Mack, who were getting back to their feet, before doubling back in to fight. He grabbed onto Dax and kicked Tyler into a tree, before shoving the blue Ranger away and kicking him to the ground.

"This ends!" Aliyah shouted, jumping forward.

Will laughed and leapt into the air. He spun around, kicked Aliyah in the chest and sent her flying out of the clearing. With both Lightning Ninja's out of the way, Will grabbed his Tracker and pointed it at his former friends.

"Drop your Tracker. It's over." Mack said, pointing at the black Ranger.

"You're right. It's over - for you." Will nodded, firing.

The blast hit the rangers.

"RONNY!" Tyler yelled as the smoke began to clear showing the spot where the team had once stood was now empty again. "What did you?" he shouted at Will.

"Only what the deserved." Will laughed, walking over to his former friend. "Tyler, listen to me -" but before he could finish there was a rustle in the tree line. Kamdor and Miratrix entered the clearing, holding Aliyah between them; her tracker was in Kamdor's hand.

~*Secrets and Lies*~

Mack blinked and looked around, for a second he didn't believe what he was seeing, but soon reality caught up with him and he realized that he was standing in the Overdrive Base with Spencer and his father looking back at him.

"What just happened?" he asked looking around at the others.

"How did we get here?" Ronny asked.

"How did we leave there?" Rose frowned.

"Are my arms on the right side?" Dax asked, swinging his arms around. "They feel weird."

"I will answer all your questions." Andrew said. He paused and frowned, doing quick head count before realizing he was two Rangers short. "Where are Aliyah and Tyler?"

Ronny jumped and looked around. "They were with us a second ago," she said. "Tyler was fighting with Dax and Aliyah was with Mack."

"Yeah, but Will knocked Aliyah out of the clearing, remember?" Rose asked. "And Tyler was shoved against a tree. You don't think it was intentional, do you?"

Mack shrugged. "Why would it be?" he asked. "What can Aliyah and Tyler bring to Kamdor, Miratrix and Will?"

"Aliyah's power, maybe?" Dax asked.

"No one here knows about Aliyah's prophecy." Andrew answered. "Especially not Will. They must want them for something much more basic. Now, onto how you were brought here and not destroyed. I modified Will's Tracker to send you here."

"Why?" Mack asked.

"Because he and Will have set us up, right?" Rose asked, realizing the plan.

"As always, Rose," smiled Andrew.

"Then Will hasn't joined Miratrix?" Dax asked.

"Not exactly." Andrew said. "Will has infiltrated Miratrix's ranks in order to get her to lead us to the Hou-ou, which she stole from under us in Istanbul."

"How do you know it was her?" Mack asked.

"Well, if it was Moltor or Flurious, someone surely would have seen a monster walking the streets." Andrew said.

"Good deduction, Mr. Hartford." Ronny nodded.

"So you really didn't fire Will." Rose said.

"No. Will convinced me in order to go undercover successfully, we all had to be convincing, or it could cost him his life."

Mack scoffed. "It nearly cost him his life with Aliyah," he said.

"That was all a part of the plan," said Andrew. "I needed Will to get close to Aliyah and let her know there was more than met the eye during these battles. I knew that she would brush it off in her anger, but it would linger in her subconscious. It has been playing on her mind all day, but she hasn't spoken up about it because she isn't sure whether or not she can trust Will's judgment."

"So you successfully kept us all in the dark," said Rose. "Even with Aliyah knowing the secret?"

Andrew nodded.

"But what do they want with Aliyah and Tyler now?" Dax wondered. "If Will really isn't on their side, why did he separate them from us, and send us back here but keep them?"

"Yeah." The others nodded.

Andrew shook his head. "I don't know," he answered. "All we can hope is that Miratrix has bought Will's plan, just like you all did, and he has a second plan in mind to help Aliyah and Tyler."

~*Secrets and Lies*~

Aliyah struggled against the ropes that bound her hands behind her back. She was sitting in a small cavern, beyond which was a much bigger room where Will was meeting with Miratrix and Kamdor.

"Will you stop struggling?" Tyler asked. He was sitting opposite her, his hands were also tied behind his wrist, but he had stopped with his chances of escape when he realized he was tied tightly.

"No. We have to get out." Aliyah said. "We can't use our powers without alerting them, but if I could just reach my boot."

"Why, what do you have in your boot?"

"My laser."

Tyler rolled his eyes and watched as Aliyah struggled to get hold of the small device in the fold of her boot. "You're not gonna get it," he said. "Why hide it there? You know you can't reach."

"Shut up." Aliyah grunted, straining her fingers. She brushed over the fur at the top of her shoe, and growled as she skimmed the top of the laser.

Tyler, however, had paused and was straining to hear what was happening in the next room. "Hey, Ali, shut up a minute," he whispered.

"I'm trying to get us out of here!" Aliyah snapped.

"Listen!" Tyler hissed.

Aliyah fell silent as Will's voice drifted back to them from the other room.

"The prisoners are secure," he was saying. "But I still fail to see why you wanted them alive and the others dead."

"They're Lightning Ninja's," said Kamdor. "They are powerful in their field. They will come in handy in the fight against Moltor and Flurious for the Jewels and the Crown, and once we have what we want, we'll dispose of them just like we did the others."

Tyler and Aliyah swallowed and exchanged looks.

"Hey, look on the bright side," shrugged Aliyah.

"There's a bright side?" Tyler asked.

Aliyah scowled.

"Sorry. What's the bright side?"

"At least they don't know about the prophecy."

~*Secrets and Lies*~

Ronny frowned as the computer she was using to search started to pick up a static frequency from outside the base. "Hey, cool it, everyone. I'm picking up something," she called to the others.

"Oh, it's probably just static." Mack said, walking over to investigate.

"No. It's too rhythmic." Dax said.

"Shh." Rose shushed, listening intently. "It's Morse code. It might be a message from Will, Tyler or even Aliyah."

"Can anyone translate Morse code?" Mack asked, looking around at his team-mates.

Ronny and Dax stared at him, and then the three looked around at Rose who had held up her hand with an impish smile.

"By the age of four."

Ronny smiled and shook her head, as Rose jotted down the translations.

"It's from Will. It seems Mr. Hartford was right." Rose smiled. "Miratrix has the Hou-ou."

"Anything on Tyler or Aliyah?" Mack asked.

"Only that they're alive." Rose said. "For now..."

Ronny panicked and looked to from Dax, to Mack, and then to Rose. "What do you mean 'for now'?" she asked.

"I don't know." Rose said, as the code stopped as Will disappeared. "But I don't think we're going to have to wait too long to find out."

~*Secrets and Lies*~

After several failed attempts at getting her laser, Aliyah was rubbing her wrists to ease the blood flow in her veins. The ropes, which had burned in to her skin from all her thrashing around, lay shredded at her feet. "Why didn't you tell me that you had a switch blade in your pocket?" she asked, looking to Tyler.

"Because it was enjoyable to watch you struggle." Tyler answered.

"You're cruel."

Tyler shook his head. "Nope. Just proving that even you can fail at something," he said.

"What do you mean?" Aliyah frowned.

"Nothing. Just, you always seem to win. You never fail."

"I always win because I have people there to help me," said Aliyah. "As you just proved. I would never have been able to cut the ropes if you hadn't offered your services. And, besides, I never claim to be good at everything. Yes, I failed in getting us out of trouble, but you stepped in and helped. So no, i'm not perfect; I would never want to be."

Tyler smiled and shook his head.

"No, no one is perfect," he agreed, holding his hand out for her. "C'mon, we have to warn the others."

Aliyah nodded in agreement, took his hand and they both streaked off into the surrounding trees.

~*Secrets and Lies*~

Kamdor led the way into the quarry. He was angry at being played a fool by the Lightning Ninjas that had seemingly got away from him, and now he just wanted to get the jewel without interruption. The rest of the Power Rangers were destroyed, the black Ranger had seen to that, and this left him and the two Ninja's left standing in the way.

But Kamdor had a plan. Once he was in possession of the next jewel, he would destroy the black Rangers, re-capture the green and white - keeping an eye on them at all times - and force them to help him find the rest of the jewels. Then, once he had the crown and all five jewels, he would destroy the last two remaining Rangers, and be crowned the most powerful of all evil villians on Earth.

"Here." Kamdor said, looking up at the sky. The sun was in the perfect spot.

"Here?" Miratrix repeated.

Kamdor nodded and looked to her.

Miratrix hesitated, and looked up to the sun. She held the Hou-ou statue up, blocking the sun from her face. There was a split second pause, before the statue was consumed by a bright light and a chirping golden bird flew from it. The bird slipped through Miratrix's fingers and flew to the North.

"Hurry. It will lead us to the diamond of Touru." Miratrix said, as their bird flew away.

"Not so fast!"

Miratrix, Kamdor and Will looked around as two blurs jumped over them, blocking their path. It was Aliyah and Tyler, both decked out in their traditional Ninja gear.

"You're not getting that bird." Aliyah said.

"And who's going to stop us?" Kamdor laughed. "You two? You don't stand a chance."

"Three and against two," said Miratrix. "Hardly seems like a fair fight."

Tyler smirked. "Three against two? Count again," he said, as the rest of the Overdrive team landed around him and Aliyah, surprising both Kamdor and Miratrix.

"Rangers? You didn't destroy them?" said Miratrix, looking at Will.

The black Ranger smiled.

"You tricked me."

"Kind of like how you tricked Dax, huh?" Will said, striding towards his friends.

"Guess you don't know about man law, Miratrix." Dax laughed, stepping out of line.

Aliyah rolled her eyes. "So not the time, dude," she said to the blue Ranger. "Let's just deal with these two."

"Follow the Hou-ou." Kamdor growled at the female beside him. "I will take them up in battle."

"As you wish." Miratrix nodded, running off.

Aliyah looked around at Mack, Dax, Ronny, Rose and Tyler. "You guys go after Miratrix," she said. "Will and I'll handle Kamdor."

"We're on it." Ronny nodded, running off with the others.

With the others gone, Will turned to Aliyah.

"Thanks," he said. "For staying."

Aliyah shook her head. "Don't get the idea that I stayed for you. You still got a long way to go, in order to regain my trust," she said.

"Then why are you here?" Will frowned.

"To make sure he doesn't break your neck." Aliyah said, nodding at Kamdor.

~*Secrets and Lies*~

With the loss of the Lightning Ninja's, and the destruction of his monster, Kamdor returned to the quarry where he found Miratrix trying to decipher a blanket of parchment.

"The Rangers are powerful," he concluded. "I underestimated them. It will not happen again."

"Good." Miratrix nodded. She stood up and held out the blanket to her partner. "The Hou-ou returned with this," she said. "It's a clue to the location of the next jewel. But the only problem I have is that I cannot understand its writings."

Kamdor took the parchment and held it up to reveal a number of symbols surrounding a small picture in the centre.


Copyrighted ©

Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx

Chapter updated Monday, 07th October, 2013 at 04:22am