Power Rangers: Galactic Strike Force
Chapter 7 - The Search
By: Pink-Green-White-4ever
Last Revised: May 31, 2007
Genre: Action/Romance
Ships: Tommy/Kim, Billy/Cestria, Pallaton/Rhiannon, Peta/Kaia, Chogan/Kimana, Ashley/Andros, Cassie/T.J, Kendrix/Leo, Maya/Damon, Conner/Kira, and Zhane/Karone with mention of Tommy/Kat
Timeframe: AU, 1 year after Dino Thunder
Setting: Earth, Eltar, Aquitar
Disclaimer: I don't own Tommy, Kim, Billy or any of the characters from the series Power Rangers. I do own the Strike Force characters. PLEASE DON'T SUE!
AN: I apologize for the long delay. As I said in Chapter 6, lots of stuff has gotten in the way. Hope this makes up for it.
"You never realize what kind of love you have, until you almost walk away from it; then it may be too late." -- Source Unknown --
"I have found love in you, and found you in the search of love." -- Source Unknown --
"Love is born with a smile, grows with a kiss, and dies with a tear." --- Source Unknown --
--
"Everyone set?" Tommy asked. The two teams were poised and anxious to get their mission over with. For the Strike Force team, the absence of their mentor and leader shadowed their hearts. They wouldn't be whole again until she was safe. For the original Ninja Rangers, this mission was their last, hopefully, and yet again the lives of six of their friends hung in the balance. It was nothing new, but unlike times before, it was crucial that they were successful.
"We're ready," Peta told him. The Gold Ranger held Kaia's hand tightly, knowing there was a slight possibility that he might not see her alive again.
Tommy nodded and turned to group with other four members of the original Ninjetti. "Guys…"
"Don't say it," Aisha growled. "We all make it out, no ifs, ands or butts, understood?"
Tommy, Adam, and Billy grinned. "So what's the plan, oh fearless leader?" Rocky joked, hoping to break the ice.
"You guys, keep the hallways open; we're going after Jason, Zack and Justin first before we go look for the girls."
Aisha shook her head. "Adam, Billy and I should go after them. You, Sani and Kaia should go after the girls. We can join you when we got the others safe and sound."
Adam and Billy nodded, making Tommy roll his eyes and Rocky laugh. "Out voted, as usual," Rocky ribbed Tommy, who glared at him.
"Are you…?" Tommy stopped mid sentence when Aisha stood in front of him, hands on her hips, head cocked to the side, and a gleam in her eyes. "Alright, I'll retract the question."
"Thank you," Aisha grinned, and then she sobered. "Are you ready for this?"
The White Ranger swallowed and nodded. "As read as I'll ever be."
"We've arrived at a small planet," Pallaton announced over the loud speakers.
Tommy, Billy, and Rocky headed for the bridge while Aisha and Adam got the others ready to deploy. "Well?" Chogan asked.
"Pallaton, stay with the ship, keep it cloaked. Chogan, head out with the others," Tomm commanded. Pallaton nodded and gave them a thumbs up as the four moved to disembark.
"Let's move!" Rocky called out, the two teams waiting at the end of the cargo ramp as Pallaton took the ship down through the planet's atmosphere and landed, hitting the cloaking system as soon as they set down.
--
"My Lord, we have guests," Scorpina informed him as she entered the room where the wedding was to take place.
"The Falcon and his pathetic followers are too late. By the time they get past all our traps, the Crane will legally be mine!"
Scorpina nodded and strode back out to where the three women stood. "My Lord is ready. WALK!"
First Tanya entered, followed by Katherine and then Kimberly. Goldar had Jason, Zack and Justin standing near the altar. "My lovely bride," Zedd laughed.
Kim tried not to cringe. As she moved closer and closer to the front of the room, her system argued for her to act. 'TOMMY!' she uttered silently, wishing he had arrived sooner.
"Are you ready, my pet?" Zedd all but purred.
The Pink Ranger waited until Kat and Tanya were behind her as she stood with Zedd, before she put her plan to work. "I'd rather die than marry you, Zeddie!" Kim growled, tossing her veil at him. Kat and Tanya rushed toward the boys while Kim took on Zedd, who was struggling with the veil still. "Get out of here! I'll hold him off!"
"We're not leaving you!" Jason yelled, fighting against the bonds holding him.
Kim parried a blow from Zedd with her forearms before she shouted, "Jason, for God's sake, just do as you're told for once! GO!"
Zack and Kat grabbed his arms and drug him toward the exit, which was now blocked by Goldar and Scorpina. "Damn it!" Zack hissed.
"Zack, you and Tanya take Scorpina. Kat, Justin, help me with Goldar!" Jason ordered. The four followed his orders immediately and without question. Before they really had a chance to fight, a series of explosions went off, rocking the building. "You will die, Pink Crane!" Zedd yelled.
"That's fine, but I'm taking your ugly ass with me if I do!" Kim responded, locking their hands and arms together even as she dug down deep into the well of power inside of her. "I'm not a helpless little girl anymore, Zedd! I don't need my White Knight to rescue me at every turn; you picked the wrong Ranger to mess with!"
"I'm going to kill you, and then drop your lifeless body before him. It'll be fun to watch the life drain out of him before I rid myself of his pesky presence as well!"
Kim's jaw clenched and her eyes narrowed. She managed to let the teams that were coming to save them know what was going on and where they were, over her link with them all, before she closed herself off from them and began to battle Zedd earnestly.
--
Halfway down the hallway they were traveling down, Tommy fell to his knees and uttered a heart wrenching cr. "Tommy?" Billy called out, dropping to his knees beside the White Ranger.
"They're all in the throne room," he managed to choke out, feeling the bile rising in his throat. Billy's fingers tightened on Tommy's arms while Adam and Aisha caught each other, the three of them feeling Kim's message and power slam into them before it was suddenly gone, as if yet again it was cut off from them. A look at Sani and Kaia told the others they were experiencing the same thing.
"We've got to book it!" Aisha managed as the Rangers got to their feet and started racing down the hallway.
--
"We've got company!" Rocky announced to the others of his group. A swarm of putties came flying down the hallway at them from a door that had slid open.
"What are these things?" Peta growled even as he engaged two of them.
"Zedd's putties! Aim for the Z on their chest!" Rocky told them, taking four of them on by himself.
The four younger Rangers nodded to him before engaging the putties. Chogan and Kimana paired off while Peta and Rhiannon found themselves back to back. The four were momentarily amazed as they fought that Rock was holding his own before they were too busy to think beyond survival.
"As if I didn't take out enough of you during my Ranger days!" Rocky growled, expertly swinging out and hitting the putties around him. He was startled to see the putties multiplying every time he hit the Z on their chests.
"This isn't working!" Rhiannon cried out.
"I take it they didn't do this before?" Chogan asked Rocky.
Rocky just shot the younger Ranger a look. "No, they didn't!" he hissed. The Red Ape was fast losing the control he had on his temper. "WOULD YOU FUCKING CLAY BRAINS DIE ALREADY!" he yelled, thrusting his hands into the Z's of two putties. His palms flared red and then the putties melted into a puddle on the floor.
"Okay, that was gross!" Kimana snapped, ducking the fists flying at her head.
"It may be gross, but it worked!" Rocky hollered, noting for a split second how much like Kim Kimana had just sounded.
Nodding to each other, the four younger Rangers pooled their powers as they'd seen Rocky do and used it to melt the putties around them. When they were done, the five stood together, chests heaving as they caught their breaths. Suddenly, Rocky cried out and fell to his knees.
"Rocky!" Rhiannon cried, sinking down on her knees next to him. "What's wrong?"
The four Strike Force Rangers suddenly felt the white hot surge that had just rushed through Rocky's body as the Red Ape gasped. "Kim. They're in the throne room. Kim's facing Zedd, on her own," he answered, almost as if he were in a trance.
--
"WHOA!" Aisha cried out when the group skidded into the throne room. Zack and Tanya were more than holding their own against Scorpina while Jason, Kat and Justin were keeping Goldar, at leas they thought it was Goldar, busy. And then there was Kim, at the front of the room, facing Zedd, by herself.
"Tired Kimmie?" Zedd taunted.
Kim cringed at the way he said her name. "Not on your life," she hissed. She hoped Dulcea and Ninjor had been telling the truth about her powers, because she was about to put it to the test.
Carefully, the Pink Ranger began gathering her powers. The others were amazed and scared when her body lifted a foot off the ground and her shoulder-length auburn hair began flying around her head and face. Her body was suddenly haloed in pink power that was shot through with black and white.
"What's happening?" Kaia cried out.
"Kim's losing control of the balance of power she's carrying!" Billy yelled.
"What?" Tommy struggled to understand.
The Blue Ninjetti shook his head. "She never wrote about it in her diary, in case someone ever took that, but part of her illness has been struggling to balance the control she has over her powers – one half is good, the other evil."
"Say what?" Zack uttered as he and Tanya dropped the unconscious Scorpina on the floor.
"When Zedd and Rita took Kim's coin, they tainted her Ninja powers. She was still recovering from that when Maligore changed her."
Tanya looked confused. "But Lerigot changed her back!"
Billy nodded. "He had to do it faster than when he did it with Jason, and something happened in the process, something we didn't discover until she was training with Ninjor and Dulcea to restore her Ninjetti powers."
The team watched on in horror as Zedd struck out at Kim, sending her flying against a wall. "You guys help Jason! I'm going to help Kim!" Tommy ordered. No one questioned Tommy's orders as they rushed off to help the trio of Rangers battling Goldar while Tommy rushed to the aide of the fallen Pink Ranger.
"Are you afraid to face me alone, Jason?" Goldar taunted.
"BACK OFF!" Jason ordered the others, who did as told, including Sani and Kaia.
"Prepare to die, Power Brat!" Goldar hissed.
"Not in this lifetime!" Jason hollered. The others gasped in surprise as Jason's body suddenly glowed. A voice inside his heart and mind prompted him to call out, "I summon the power of the Tyrannosaurs and Red Dragon!"
The red power filled Jason from head to toe before dying down. "What madness is this?" Goldar demanded.
Jason just grinned, his body filled with awareness that he'd never had before; he was still tied to the Morphin Grid. "Once a Ranger, always a Ranger."
The pair were soon locked in combat while the others watched on. "I feel useless," Kaia muttered.
"Then allow me to keep you busy!" Zedd cackled, sending bolts of energy at the Rangers.
"EDENOI RED FOX RANGER POWER!"
"ELTAR BLUE ELEPHANT RANGER POWER!"
"Ninja Ranger Power!" Billy ordered, Adam and Aisha on either side of him.
"THE FROG!"
"THE BEAR!"
"THE WOLF!"
Justin, Kat, Zack and Tanya grabbed Scorpina's body and dragged her toward the opposite side of the room.
Meanwhile, Tommy approached the pink, white and black glowing figure that was lying in the rubble of her impact on the wall. Tommy's fear was only held back by the knowledge that Kim was still alive, as he felt her through their link.
"Kimberly," he whispered, reaching down to scoop her up.
"Tommy," she moaned in pain, her eyes clenched tight to ward off the headache and nausea.
"It's me, Beautiful," he tried to reassure her, and himself. "Anything broken?"
"Just my pride," she coughed. "And maybe a rib or two."
Tommy cringed when she sat up and winced in pain. "Other than that?"
Kim blew out an unsteady breath and let him pull her to her feet. "I'm so sick of him interfering with my life," she ground out, changing the subject. "This twisted fascination with me has to go."
The White Ranger attempted to smile but was suddenly awestruck by his beloved Crane. Her hair was haloed around her in a mass of waves that hung down to just below her shoulders. Her normally doe-brown eyes were the same pink that surrounded her body in a haze. She wore the Strike Force Ninja uniform, piped in luminescent pink. "Handsome, now is not the time to gawk," she teased gently.
Tommy reached out a hand to touch her cheek. He was amazed when the pink power enveloped his hand and caused his body to tingle. "LOOK OUT!" Katherine's voice ripped through the air. Kim and Tommy turned in time to see Zedd's attack barreling toward them.
