Hot, that was all he could think of as he walked. It was...hot. He had been in a lot of video arcades in his days, and a lot of them could get incredibly hot. Between the video games that would be on from the moment the doors opened throughout the day, and the combined body heat of all the kids that were playing obsessively, feeding all their money into the greedy machines, but this was something else.

Michael had never been a particularly "outdoorsy" kind of person, he was much happier indoors. Whether it was playing his games, watching television, or practicing his hand to hand with his dad, he always preferred being indoors.

When the fighters had first come, he was just coming home from school. He was talking with his friends Reece and Matthew about their plans for the evening, another day "wasted" as their parents would put it, in the arcade. They were laughing and joking as they made their way to their favourite taco stand on the way to the arcade. Seeing them in the distance, at first Mike just thought it was a swarm of insects. Unfortunately, he was soon proven horribly wrong.

That was now a long time ago. He had lost track of the days, he had lost his watch in his rush to escape the robots that swept into his town, destroying everything in their path. He had fought as best he could, but he found his attacks largely ineffective against them. He figured out when he had seen one smash open after being hit by a car that they were not human, but wholly mechanical. His hand-to-hand attacks relied on his opponents feeling pain, that eventually their senses would be so overloaded that the opponent would no longer be capable of fighting back, but that was not the case for these creatures. He couldn't even rely on simply hitting them hard enough to cause some damage; the metal they were made from was incredibly strong. In the end, he had no choice but to pack up what little he could carry from his place and run.

He had heard something about a place called Corinth, a domed city where they would be safe. He knew roughly the way to go, but map-reading had never really been his thing. He thought he was going the right direction, but he was no longer even certain about that.

Now, as he was sweating profusely and struggling to keep going, he was on his own. His parents were already dead when he got to his place. Reece had been killed by an explosion on the way out of town, while Matthew...he had lost him a couple of days back, waking up to find only his backpack left behind. He just woke up and Matthew wasn't there. While it was little consolation to him to think of him simply being delirious and wandering off, he had a nagging suspicion in his mind that his old friend had realised that the little water and food they had left would not last long and had left it for Mike, sacrificing himself to increase the chances that at least one of them would make it to safety.

Mike stopped at the foot of a rocky cliff in some shade, and put down his back pack, pulling out the bottle of water. There were only a couple of mouthfuls left, and it was his last bottle. Checking inside, he pulled out empty food packets, finally finding a pack of beef jerky that still had a couple of strips inside, also the last of his food.

He sighed and took a strip, taking a bite out of it, before looking around. Corinth was still nowhere in sight. He resigned himself to the fact that he had another day, perhaps two to find it, otherwise he was finished, and since he was sure a massive metal dome in the middle of the desert wasn't exactly the easiest thing to miss, his hope was fading fast.

Just then, he heard the familiar bleeping noise as a few grinders showed up. He saw a couple on motorcycles roaring into view, while another four started to round the rocks, forming a semi-circle around him, cutting off any form of escape.

He grabbed a rock, throwing it, and rebounding it off the head of one, smashing one of its optic sensors and tearing off some of the shell, but otherwise, it just kept coming. Mike pulled back into a guard. This was it, he had no way out, but he was going to go down fighting.

"You need bigger rocks!" He heard a female voice call out. Just then, a couple of glowing yellow rocks flew off the side of the cliff, smashing four of the Grinders into oblivion. He turned around, straining his neck to look upwards, finding himself barely able to see, the sunlight was blinding.

"Get down!" She screamed out again. Mike just ducked, at which another couple of rocks tumbled down, crushing the remaining Grinders before they could get back to the bikes.

"Are you alright?" The female asked. Mike just looked upward, smiling as she started to climb down.

"Yeah, thanks." He replied. Just then, some rocks shifted under her feet and she fell, screaming from the rock face, about ten feet above him. Mike rushed forward, catching her as she fell, being knocked off his feet.

As he felt her moving, shifting to try and get off him, the light shone around her. She was completely breathtaking, easily the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his life.

"Wow, smooth as always." She grumbled. "Sorry, thanks for that."

"Any time." Mike told her as she got off him, helping him up. "But I think I should be thanking you. You're the one who saved me."

"Well, I doubt I'd have made it to Corinth with a couple of broken legs." She replied. "What's your name anyway?"

"Mike." He replied. "Sorry to tell you this, but Corinth..."

"Its about ten miles that way, just beyond those dunes." She interrupted him, pointing. He just looked puzzled. "I was up there for a reason. I got lost and thought I could get a better look from up there."

"Great." He replied. "I was just about to run out of food..."

"You have food?" She yelped. Mike looked to the packet in his hand and offered her the rest. She grabbed it and started tearing off pieces, chewing intently. He could see the desperation in her expression as she forced it down, and offered her the last of his water.

"I guess you're hungrier than me." He commented.

"The last of my food ran out nearly two days ago." She mumbled through the food in her mouth. She looked to him, and seemed to stop, almost as if she was gravely concerned about the fact she was talking with her mouth full. She forced down the food in her mouth and swept her mouth with her sleeve. "Um...I'm Emily by the way."

"Emily." Mike said with a little smile. "Well, we should get moving. I doubt they're going to leave the doors open forever."

"Right." She agreed. Mike just caught her arm as she was about to head off for the city.

"Emily, its ten miles, and we've both been walking for days." He told her, turning her towards the bikes that had been left by the destroyed Grinders. "Why look a gift horse in the mouth?"

"I...I...don't know how to ride." She admitted. Mike just smiled.

"Well, my cousin took me dirt biking a couple of times." Mike told her, getting on one of them. "Come on, just...hold on tight."

"So, I quite literally fell for him." Em concluded in the present day, taking her husband's hand.

"That sounds about right." Emily commented, looking to Mike and grinning sweetly. "It seems I'm a klutz in every dimension."

"Neither of us had any family left, and we arrived together, so we were assigned living quarters near each other." Em continued to relay their story, laughing a little hearing her other self refer to her characteristic clumsiness. "We both really got on, and since we had both lost our families, we kind of became one ourselves over time."

"One day, I told Emily I recognised her symbol power and told her that I was from the Forest Bloodline." Michael explained. "We both went into agriculture, using our powers to help the colony. In the end, I guess we both realised that we were made for each other. We've been married for nearly a year."

"So, I'm guessing you two are dating?" Michael asked, pointing to the young Samurai. Mike just smiled and nodded.

"We are." He informed them. "Sorry for intruding, it's just...we were just really surprised to find out we're already married here, and we wanted to see for ourselves."

"Well, some people thought it was young, but we just knew it was right." Em told them. "When the time's right, you just know."

"Jeez, Mike, look at the time!" Emily called out as her attention turned to the clock. "We've been here for ages!"

"You're right, the other farmers will be wondering if we intend to do anything today." Michael replied. "If the four of us work together, maybe you two won't be too late getting back to your friends."

"That'll be appreciated." Emily told them. "After all that's happened, Jayden wants us all to stay in contact."

"Well then, I guess we better get to work." Em answered. "So...the Rangers know about your powers and they're alright with it?"

"Yeah." Mike told them.

"We were always too worried to draw attention to ourselves." Michael told them. "We've been helping the crops, but we've not been doing too much in case they found out."

"We worried that the authorities would think we were...I don't know...a threat or something." Em added.

"Well, if you let them know about your talents, then they'll know the real source of them." Mike assured them. "Something tells me the military will be only too happy to grow these fields inside a couple of days."

Meanwhile, over at the foundry, Jayden was working with the metal workers, using his symbol power to control the flame in the furnaces. It allowed them to heat and pour steel for construction supplies much quicker. It was tiring using so much of his symbol power, but he was only too happy to help.

Just then, he saw Mia coming into the foundry, accompanied by some soldiers. Her clothing was torn, and a little dirty, and she had numerous minor injuries, bruises and cuts across her face, neck and hands. Jayden stopped what he was doing and ran over to her.

"Mia, what happened?" He asked her. "I thought you were at the reservoir helping Kevin."

"I was, but I was just heading out for some supplies when..." She started to shift a little uneasily. "When the other you attacked me."

"Are you alright?" He asked her. She just nodded.

"It's nothing serious; he just wanted to make a point." She informed him. "She wanted me to tell you that he knows you're here. He wants to duel you."

Jayden's blood ran cold when he heard this. Two of his friends had now been hurt by this lunatic. He had caused several deaths just to draw Scott out in the first place. Urumasa's power and influence had obviously driven him completely over the edge. He didn't care what he had to do in order to get the fights he wanted.

"Call the others..."

"He also wanted me to tell you that you must come alone." She told him. "He said that if you don't, he's going to go to the orphanage."

Jayden recoiled in horror as he heard this. So far, only one person had ever been strong enough to resist Urumasa's truly bloodthirsty nature. Dekker only ever sought out the strongest opponents, those worthy of his power. The only other he had seen wield it had been nothing short of a psychopath, and clearly his other self had gone the same way. It made him thankful that Urumasa had never called him after Dekker fell.

"Alright." Jayden replied. "Where do I meet him?"

"Follow me." Mia told him. "I'll take you to him."

In another part of town, the Nighlock Jayden sat, meditating with Urumasa laying across his lap as he prepared for what he had hoped would be the greatest challenge he had ever faced. It was a long time since he had faced that kind of challenge before. On the day he had defeated Dekker, striking his head from his shoulders in retribution for the murder of his adopted father, Ji, he was sure he was going to die himself, but then, he felt the call for the first time, and his hand found the hilt of Urumasa.

Since that day, he had given himself completely to its influence. He left the Shiba House, it had nothing of interest for him any longer, and he travelled the globe in a desperate search for those with the power to challenge him.

After Venjix came, those challenges were only harder to come by. Very few humans were left, and for almost a year, he wandered the wastes, taking down anything he could find moving. While the attack bots were challenging though, they did not satisfy Urumasa's thirst. It knew that these beings were false beings, and it craved blood like an addict. Its hunger only grew, until he happened upon a battle that the RPM Rangers fought outside the dome, and knew that this was what he was looking for.

His eyes opened and he smiled, looking down to Urumasa.

"You will taste the blood of the worthy once more." He said to it in a whisper. "Of that, I promise you."

Meanwhile, Jayden was following Mia through the streets, quietly preparing himself for what was to come. It was as they rounded another corner, taking them even further from the Garage, that he started to worry.

"Mia, maybe you should just tell me the rest of the way." Jayden suggested. "You're pretty banged up."

"I'll be fine Jayden." She replied. "Seriously, you worry too much."

"Mia, it's a long way. You really should head back." Jayden told her. "If nothing else, the others will need to know in case something bad happens."

"Trust me; I'll make sure the others hear about this." Mia assured him. "Come on. He won't wait forever."

At that point, Kevin and Mia were just coming out of an ice cream shop, carrying tubs of ice cream. They had finished up their shift for the day, and they were just getting in a few treats for their friends. They figured that in his injured state especially, Scott would appreciate it.

"Do you think we bought enough?" Kevin asked sarcastically.

"There are thirteen of us." Mia reminded him. "Come on, let's get back before anyone starts to worry."

"I don't think we have to worry too much about that." Kevin replied. "Look, there's Jayden. Hey, Jayden! Over here!"

Jayden and his companion turned around, and the Red Ranger just looked completely stunned as standing right there, only a few feet away was Mia. He looked to the woman at his side, who just gave him a little smirk.

"It was worth a try." She commented. Suddenly, all three of them started to sink to their knees, gasping for air as the air just left them. Mia recognised the energy of her own symbol power working to draw all the air away from their lungs. Through sheer force of will, she managed to fight off the assassin's grip on her, and ran towards her, attacking her in a fury.

Jayden and Kevin were relieved to be able to breathe again, but were still weakened by the experience. The two Mias were busy battling back and forward, struggling for position as they stumbled further and further into the darkness.

"We've got to help!" Kevin called out.

"But which one?" Jayden asked. The assassin Mia had taken the precaution of wearing similar clothing to her counterpart to further the illusion. Between the dark and the fact they were moving so quickly, it was next to impossible to get a look at any one of them long enough to differentiate them.

Kevin squinted to see, before instinctively tracing a symbol in the air, launching a water jet and smashing one of them into the wall. Taking the opening, the other kicked her hard across the face, knocking her out cold.

"Alright, hold it right there!" Jayden yelled, calling out his Spin Sword. Kevin just put a hand on it.

"We got the right one." He assured him with a smile, wrapping his arms around her. "I'd know my girl anywhere."

Jayden just looked to them both for a moment, before taking off his belt, using it to lash the unconscious Mia's hands behind her back, taking care not to take his eyes off the other.

"How can you be sure?" Jayden asked.

"Her disguise isn't detailed enough." Kevin replied. He took Mia's left hand and held it up, showing him her engagement ring. "I saw it reflecting the light."

Jayden checked the other, confirming that she was not wearing a ring at all. He then scooped her up, throwing her over his shoulder.

"Alright, we need to get her back to Dr. K." He told them. "She said my other self has threatened to attack the orphanage if I don't duel him."

"Then we need to find out where he is." Kevin agreed. "And it looks like this is our best lead."

A little while later, the assassin Mia started to come to, finding her arms secured behind her in heavy metal restraints. She was sitting inside a plexi-glass tube in Dr. K's lab. She started to look around groggily, seeing the RPM Rangers and the Samurai all staring at her.

"Well, I guess that explains how that guy in the hospital just stopped breathing for no reason." Flynn announced. "I'm sure Hicks will find plenty of similar cases and link them to you."

"Please, how long do you think this will hold me?" Mia asked them. "Now, if you don't release me..."

Dr. K pressed a button, and the assassin suddenly found herself gasping for air. She looked to them in horror as she allowed her to suffocate for a moment, before releasing the button.

"That tube is air tight. The only air that can get in or out is the air I pump through it." She informed the assassin. "There's a sensor in here monitoring air levels. If the air level in here drops beyond an acceptable level, then the vents in there shut off and the air will be removed."

"It doesn't feel good to suffocate does it?" Jayden asked her. "Now, tell us where to find Jayden."

"Do you really think I'll tell you?" Mia asked them.

"I really think you don't have much of a choice." Summer stated. "Your boss threatened the orphanage. That's really not on."

"That was just something I said to get your Jayden to listen." She responded. "He has something much better in mind."

They all looked around each other in confusion.

"I'm not his only follower. He got one of the smaller mobs to help him set up the cartels." She told them. "After the chaos of the last few nights, everyone's still reeling so much that the city's ripe for the picking, and they've got more than the firepower to do it. They'll be released into the city in the next twenty minutes, unless I return."

She then looked to Jayden.

"He'll meet you where he nearly killed your microphone-haired friend there." She told them.

"Sorry, but the first rule of engagement is never face an enemy on his terms." Mia replied. "You will return."

The others looked to her in confusion.

"If those guys get loose in the city, it'll be another massacre." She reminded them. "If we manage to get to them before they get loose, we can ambush them with enough firepower to take them without much of a fight."

She then looked to Dr. K.

"Find out where they're hiding out." She instructed her. "I need to get ready to make sure she reappears."

She took off her engagement ring and handed it to Kevin.

"Alright, for this to work, I need one of you to make me look like her." She told them. They looked between them both, and realised what she meant. The Assassin Mia was carrying injuries from her earlier battles.

"I think I can manage something with make-up..."

"Thanks Summer, but what if I got wet? What if someone took a look at the injuries?" Mia told her. She looked to her friends and sighed. "One of you will have to make me look like her."

None of them wanted to do it. Mia just looked around, pleadingly.

"If we don't do this, people will die!" She reiterated. She looked to Kevin. "Please."

He took her by the hand and took her into another room; the others just let him go for some privacy. As he closed the door, he looked to Mia, his heart breaking. A few tears were starting to well up in him.

"I love you." He whispered to her.

"I love you too." She replied. With that, he brought the back of his hand across her face as hard as he could.