In Viridian Forest...
"You're sure this the location?" Persia demanded.
"It is." Silph Co's CEO confirmed, glancing at the paper in his hands. "According to our computer records, the HM you gave me was last activated at these exact coordinates."
"There's nothing out here." the Rocket Admin growled. "I hope, for your sake, that this hasn't been a waste of my time." The CEO gulped nervously.
"I...I don't know what more I can do for you." he told her. "Maybe I could go back further; find other uses."
"Perhaps." Persia's eyes narrowed as she stared at one of the many trees around them. "Or maybe..." Stepping closer, she leaned in.
"What?" the CEO asked. "It's just a tree. I don't see anything unusual about it."
"You don't have my eyesight." Persia told him. "There's a faint light coming from inside the trunk."
"There is?" The CEO blinked and stared as hard as he could, but he could make out no such light.
"Yes. And do you smell that?" Persia sniffed. "Smells like a lab to me." The CEO inhaled. He could make out no scents in the air either.
"Are you sure?" he wondered. Persia extended her claws and dug them into a crack in the trunk, pulling with all her strength. After a moment, part of the tree tore outward, revealing a passage dropping straight down into the earth. Now that the trunk was out of the way, the CEO could indeed make out a faint light from the bottom. He still could not smell anything though.
"Something's down there." Persia grinned. "Maybe what I'm looking for."
"Well, that's...great." the CEO said, stepping back. "Now, if you don't mind, I'll just be going home to my family." Persia turned her head to glare at him.
"You will wait here." she ordered. "If you're NOT still here when I come back up, I will find you and your family. Understand what I'm getting at?" The CEO nodded sadly and Persia jumped wordlessly down into the unknown.
Poké…Rangers…Kanto! (All five teens show off their morphers)
*beat*
The Rockets are rising (Mewtwovanni, Rhynix, Persia, and Jessica shown)
With powers unrivaled. (Mewtwovanni fires his growth ball)
The world is in danger; (City shown under attack)
It's time for the… (Fuji holds out a box containing morphers)
Poké Rangers Kanto! (Ryan, Red Ranger, and Charizard Zord shown)
Poké Rangers Kanto! (Brent, Blue Ranger, and Blastoise Zord shown)
Poké Rangers Kanto! (Ginger, Green Ranger, and Venusaur Zord shown)
Poké Rangers Kanto! (Allison, Yellow Ranger, and Pikachu Zord shown)
Poké Rangers Kanto! (Rick, Black Ranger, and Golem Zord shown)
*insert your own guitar riff* (Rangers fighting G-Spliced, Jessica morphs into Rocket Ranger)
United they stannnnd… (The team fires the Poké Blaster)
To protect the world from devastation. (Pokémon Megazord shown)
Poké Rangers Kanto! (All 5 Rangers pose with an explosion behind them)
Deep below the surface...
Persia hit the ground, landing on her feet and crouching on impact. In front of her a dimly lit hall stretched for several feet, ending in a metal door with a keypad built into the wall next to it. Standing, Persia walked for it.
'Secret lab.' she thought to herself. 'Dr. Freeman's, I bet.' Grabbing the keypad, she tore it from the wall in a burst of sparks, exposing the wires behind. After fiddling with them for nearly a minute, the door slid open and the Rocket Admin stepped inside.
The lab was stocked to the max with beakers and jars of chemicals, each wiith a label listing its contest. Persia glanced over some of them. Potions of various types, acids, Pokémon extracts. Nothing that would give her any info on where the lab's occupant had gone.
Judging by the amount of dust coating every surface, Persia guessed it had been quite some time since Dr. Freeman had been here, or anyone had, for that matter.
Along one wall sat a bookshelf, mostly filled with the writings of famous scientists. Persia noticed several of Oak's, one from an up-and-comer in Hoenn named Birch, even one written by that traitor Fuji. On the bottom shelf sat several journals. Persia snatched them up. Perhaps there would be useful clues inside.
One notebook sat away from the others, resting on a table instead of the shelf. Persia picked it up and read the words scrawled on the cover.
'Project: Ender' she noted. 'I remember that. That was Giovanni's plan to create an unstoppable weapon and sell it to the highest bidder.' Glancing around the lab, she frowned. 'Is that what Dr. Freeman was working on for him?' The most dangerous thing she could see in the room were those flasks of acid; nasty stuff, but hardly an ultimate weapon.
Adding the book to the others, Persia walked to a door on the back wall of the room. Pulling it open, she found herself looking into a closet of cleaning supplies. The admin started to dismiss it and close the door, but stopped as her keen eyesight once again picked up a faint light through a crack.
Persia rapped on the back of the closet and received a sharp clang in response. Metal, and there was something open behind it. Judging by the slight light appearing around the edges, possibly a whole other room.
'Hmm. How do I open you?' Persia wondered. She looked around the closet, running her hand along everything in it, but she could find no hidden switches, buttons, or keyholes. Perhaps she could tear through it with her claws. It would be time-consuming and annoying, but it would get her inside.
Before she could try, Persia had a better idea. Turning back into the lab, she glanced over the various flasks until she found the acid she had noticed earlier. Grabbing two, she ran back to the closet.
Drawing back, Persia hurled one container's worth of liquid against the hidden door's top. The acid burned and ate away at the metal, smoking and hissing as it formed a hole. Through it, Persia could see there was indeed a whole other room on the other side. Holding the other jar of acid out into the opening, she poured it down until the majority of the door was gone.
Stepping carefully through, Persia looked around. This room was much more barren. The only things notable in it were a metal circle on floor and a control panel sitting against the far wall. Crossing the floor, she examined the latter item to find a spot for a key.
Pulling the key she had recovered from the base's basement, Persia inserted it and twisted, and the panel hummed to life. Glancing over the controls, she grabbed a lever labeled 'Raise' and 'Lower' and pushed it up to 'Raise'.
In the center of the room, the metal ring on the floor rose up, revealing a glass cylinder. Inside, a strange creature stood, eyes closed.
Walking over to the display, Persia examined the beast. It had the general appearance of a Machamp, but was bigger and bulkier, even more muscular, if that was possible. Its skin was a different color; purple, like a Starmie. Persia couldn't tell if it was alive or dead.
Raising her claws, Persia slashed the case, the glass shattering away and falling to the floor. After a moment of the silence, the creature opened its eyes.
"Hello." Persia greeted. The strange being only growled in response. "Do you speak?"
The thing's fist slammed against Persia's face, sending her flying across the room.
Skidding to a halt, the Rocket Admin shook the stars from her head as the monster roared and ran after her. Extending her claws to full length, she ducked its punch and slashed across its stomach, opening a deep wound. Ducking aside as it raised its arms and smashed down, she slashed across its back. Whirling faster than she anticipated, it backhanded her away.
Persia watched in fascination as the bleeding gashes she had created healed in seconds. Unfortunately, her distraction allowed it to close the distance and grab her by the neck, slamming her back against the wall.
Swinging its fist, Persia's head smacked against the concrete, leaving a star-like burst in it. Slashing up, she severed the arm pinning her and tried to kick the thing away, but it merely grabbed her with another hand and smashed her against the floor.
As Persia tried to rise, she saw its arm regrowing. Then she saw its foot raise and stomp down.
Roaring in unbridled rage, the Ender stomped down on Persia's head. And again and again it repeated the motion, embedding her head into the floor until her neck was bent at an odd angle. Satisfied that she was finished, it turned and marched for the opening in the room. Stepping through into the lab's first room, it quickly located the shaft that led to the surface. Digging its hands into the sides, the creature began making its way up.
On the surface...
Sitting with his back against a tree, Silph Co's CEO was staring into the distance, wondering how he got into this mess. And what could Team Rocket possibly want with this strange...whatever it was hidden under the forest?
He was snapped out of his thoughts by a roaring sound echoing up out of the hole. Standing, he approached warily.
"Rocket? Is that you?" he called down, his voice barely above a whisper. The only response was more roaring and a crashing sound; sounds of a fight. Before long, the noises went silent.
As he was about to call again, a growling reached his ears. Much closer this time; right underneath him. Stepping back, the CEO turned and ran, ducking behind a tree and peeking out.
Soon, the Ender arrived, leaping free and landing hard enough to make a small crater. Roaring at the sky, it turned and stomped off into the forest.
'What happened to the Rocket?' he wondered as he watched the beast leave. 'Maybe I should go...' Then he remembered her threat towards his family. If she was still alive down there, he didn't dare leave. 'Damnit.'
Pulling a Pokéball, he released his Pidgeotto and commanded it to take him to the bottom of the shaft.
As they descended, he examined the holes in the sides. There was a layer of what appeared to be steel lining the whole way down, but that creature had punched straight through it like paper. The CEO shuddered at the strength it must possess.
Reaching the bottom, his Pidgeotto rested on his shoulder as he walked into the lab. Quickly noticing the acid-burned hole through the open closet door, he approached and peeked through.
Seeing Persia laying on the floor, the CEO cringed at the sight of her clearly broken neck. Part of him sighed in relief; she was gone, her threat taken with her. Spotting a handful of notebooks lying beside her body, he carefully stepped in and grabbed them up.
Running back to the passage to the surface, his Pidgeotto lifted him up and carried him to the forest above, and then further up into the sky. As they headed for Saffron City, he started to flip through the notes he had recovered.
At Team Rocket's Base...
"Jessica!" Jessica dropped the wrench she was holding in surprise as Rhynix stepped into the vehicle bay, yelling her name. "What did you do?"
"What are you talking about?" she asked. "I've been trying to repair my Zords all day."
"Well, somebody sent a monster out. Come. I'll show you." Jessica followed her fellow admin back to the monitoring station, where one of her camera-bots was following the Ender through the forest.
"Did you do it?" Jessia asked.
"Of course not." Rhynix scoffed. "Mewtwovanni's meditating, and I was given express orders not to send another monster after the Rangers without his permission."
"Then it must be Persia." Jessica decided. "She's the only other one with access to the Fuser."
"But she hasn't come back from her mission." Rhynix pointed out. "So it couldn't be."
"Maybe she made it before she left. Where did she go, again?" Jessica asked.
"Saffron City, I think." Rhynix scratched his head. "I believe she was going to interrogate Silph Co's CEO about something."
"Then I'll go check it out." she told him. "You stay here and tell the boss what's happening if he comes to."
"You got it." Rhynix agreed.
"Rocket Power, unleash!" Quickly morphing, Jessica teleported for Saffron.
Somewhere in northern Kanto...
"It can't be!" Alakazam sighed as his trainer paced back and forth in front of him. "You're sure?"
"I recognize the brainwaves." he insisted. "The Ender has been awoken." Sitting on her bed, his trainer stared out the window, lost in thought.
"We should've went back." she said at long last. "I told you we needed to get the key."
"And I told you we would never make it in and out alive." Alakazam replied. "The chances that they would find the lab and figure out how to get into the secret room were so small that the risk was not worth..."
"Well they clearly DID find it!" she interrupted. "They released him from his cyrogenic chamber. And now the world is doomed."
"Not necessarily..." Alakazma said. His trainer turned to stare at him.
"If you have an idea, I'd love to hear it." she told him.
"I know some people who could maybe help us." he said. "Five very noble young adults who have been defending the region lately."
"You mean the Poké Rangers?" she laughed. "They can't stand up to the Ender."
"If we explain how he works to them, they might be able to. Maybe not, but maybe." Alakazam told her. "You and I need to go to them. I suspect they will try to stop him anyway. Wouldn't it be better if we try to help?"
"I suppose it's better than nothing." she sighed. "Fine. Let's go see the Rangers."
"There's just one thing." Alakazam hesitated. "I don't actually want to say it, but I just...you know I can't keep secrets from you."
"Heh. Of course not, my old friend." she smiled. "That guilty conciensce gets you every time."
"Right. It just that...your son is one of them." he said at last. Dr. Freeman blinked at him. Alakazam waited nervously for her response.
"No. Absolutely not." she said at last. "You go. I'm staying here."
"Damnit Emilia!" Alakazam snapped. "You can't run forever!"
"I will not expose him to me and my mistakes!" she insisted. "The last thing I need is for Team Rocket to know I care. They'll go after him to get to me."
"He's already out there fighting them." Alakazam reminded her. "If anything, they'd come after you to get to him."
"All the more reason to stay in hiding." she surmised. "How long have you known about this, anyway?"
"I can't talk about it." Alakazam turned away. "I promised I wouldn't talk about it."
"Hmph. Well, it doesn't matter. He's better off without me." Standing, she walked to the window and looked at the sky. Clouds were gathering; it would rain soon. "Go. Give them any information they need to fight the Ender. I'll still be here when you return."
"If you insist." Alakzama said sadly, teleporting away and leaving his trainer staring at the sky, not even really seeing the gathering storm.
In Saffron City...
"So you're telling me this 'Ender' was hidden in a lab under the forest?" Jessica asked. "And you tracked it there."
"Not it. We tracked an HM that had been used at that location." Silph Co's CEO explained. As he had arrived back at his company's headquarters, terrified at what he had read along the way, he'd discovered the Rocket Ranger waiting for him in the boardroom.
"And Persia unleashed it?" she continued.
"Persia...was that her name?" the CEO wondered. "She never gave one. I suppose she must've, and it cost her life."
"She's dead?" Jessica asked in surpise.
"I saw the body." The CEO shuddered at the memory. "That thing crushed her head into the..."
"Stop." Jessica held up a hand. "That's no great loss. And I guess that's all I really needed to know from you."
"Wait!" As Jessica turned to leave, the CEO grabbed her arm and held her back. "You don't understand; the entire world is in danger!"
"Please. I'm sure the Poké Rangers will destroy it before it can do anything." she muttered, pulling free of his grip.
"I wouldn't be sure." Stopping, Jessica glanced back to find him holding out a notebook. "This is a journal from the lab. It contains details on the Ender. I don't think it can be destroyed."
"What?" Grabbing the journal, she began to flip through it. The CEO continued talking as she did so.
"It hates all life. It will rampage across the planet, destroying and killing everything and everyone it comes across. And there is no stopping it. I don't know what we can do."
"Arceus above..." Jessica muttered as she read about the Ender's abilities.
"You see!?" The more he talked, the more panicky the CEO sounded. "What are we going to do!?" Flipping the book shut, Jessica turned and walked for the door.
"I've got to get out there." she said. "YOU just stay here and pretend none of this happened."
"What could you possibly do?" he called after her.
"I don't know." she admitted. "But I'm going to find out."
At Fuji's Lab...
"Alert! Alert!" Ryan, Allison, and Brent looked up as the computer rang out its warning. "Mutated DNA approaching Viridian City."
"Ginger, Rick." Ryan spoke into his morpher. "Where are you guys?"
"At the café, of course. Working." Rick said back. "What's up?"
"We got trouble coming to Viridian. Let Joe and Jessica take over and meet us there." he told him.
"Oh, uh, Jessica couldn't come in today. HEY, JOE!" Ryan listened to Rick yelling for their other employee. "Can you hold down the fort alone for a while?" An affirmative answer came back. "Thank Arceus for this guy. We're on our way."
"Right. Let's go guys." Waving to Brent and Allison, he ran for the door.
"Be careful out there, guys!" Fuji called after them as they left. Bill leaned over his shoulder as he examined the image coming up on the computer screen. "Something seems different about this one..."
Shortly, at the edge of Viridian City...
The five teenagers gathered and formed into a line as Ender stomped out of the forest. Spotting the quintet in front of him, it growled low in its throat.
"Ready, guys?" Ryan asked.
"Ready!" the other four confirmed.
"Poké Power, unleash!"
"Golem!"
"Pikachu!"
"Venusaur!"
"Blastoise!"
"Charizard!"
Turning back to the treeline, the Ender snapped a towering tree with a single punch, lifting it over its head.
"Watch out!" Ryan yelled. The Rangers rolled aside as it hurled the tree at them, the trunk crashing down into the pavement right where they had been standing, sliding back and carving a long gouge into it. When they looked back at their foe, it was charging towards them.
"Rock Tomb!" As Rick raised his mace, boulders rained down around the Ender, but it punched through them with little trouble. "Stone Edge!" Using the brief moment it slowed, the Black Ranger smashed his weapon down, sending a stone spire bursting from the ground and hurling the Ender into the air.
"I got him!" Ryan draw back his Charizard Saber. "Air Slash!" Swinging the blade, a blast of slicing air shot up and struck Ender straight on the chest, sending it crashing to the ground.
As it pulled itself to his feet, the Rangers could see the attack left a gaping wound stretching from its left shoulder down to its hip. But before their eyes, the gash stitched itself shut, quickly healing the beast. Snarling its rage, it charged towards them again.
"Hydro Pump!"
"Solarbeam!"
"Thunderbolt!"
Together Brent, Ginger, and Allison fired attacks against their opponent, the force pushing him back. Lowering his shoulder, the Ender pushed against them, slowly shoving its way through.
"Flamethrower!" Ryan added to the mix, stopping the beast's forward momentum. Roaring in annoyance, the monster stomped the ground, sending pavement flipping into the air. Drawing back a fist, it punched the flying rubble and sent it shooting at the Rangers.
"Protect!" Letting up his attack, Brent crossed his weapons, blocking the attack. Taking the chance, the Ender leaped above and fell towards them, arm drawn back. "Withdraw!"
Armored shells appeared over his Blastoise Cannons and the Blue Ranger raised them, catching the Ender's punch. For a moment, nothing happened. Then, cracks began to spread.
Brent watched in shock as the shells shattered under the force of the monster's blow. Drawing back a foot, the Ender kicked him in the chest, sending the Blue Ranger flying back and smashing through the wall of the nearest building.
"Brent! Razor Leaf!" Ginger snapped her whip, sending dozens of leaves slashing at the beast, opening cuts all over its body.
"Rock Slide!" Before the monster could retaliate, Rick buried it under a pile of boulders.
"Flamethrower!"
"Thunderbolt!"
The Red and Yellow Rangers resumed their attacks as it tried to tear free, the heat of their flames and lightning charring the thing's body. Swinging an arm, it backhanded the entire pile of boulders at them, forcing the pair to let up and duck aside.
"Power Whip!" Whirling, the Ender grabbed Ginger's attack and pulled, yanking her off her feet. Twirling her overhead, it swung her around, using the Green Ranger to smash the entire team to the ground.
As he tried to pull himself up, Ryan saw the creature charging towards them, raising all four of its arms overhead. Closing his eyes, he raised his saber to try and block the hit.
After a moment of nothing, he opened his eyes to pretty much the last sight he'd expected to see. Standing over them, the tip of her spear embedded in the Ender's chest, was the Rocket Ranger.
"Explosion!" she called as the monster reached for her. The tip of her spear shot off like a rocket, carrying the Ender away as it roared in surprise. Crashing to the ground, it was engulfed with a colossal fiery blast.
Turning and looking down on the four Rangers laying before her, the Rocket Ranger held out a hand.
"Come on now. This is no time to be resting." she told them.
"Get away from them!" Hearing Brent's voice, the Rocket Ranger twirled the remaining part of her weapon, deflecting his water blasts.
"Brent, it's okay...I think." Ryan said. The four of them got to their feet, all staring at the evil Ranger. "You saved us. Why?"
"Don't misintrepret my actions. I still intend to destroy you all." she told them as the Blue Ranger joined the group. "But not today. This thing has to be stopped."
"What are you talking about?" Brent asked. "Didn't you guys make it?"
"No. Well, yes, but..." Pulling out the journal she had taken from Silph Co's CEO, she flipped it open. "According to this, it was created by a Team Rocket scientist years ago, but sealed away because it was uncontrollable."
'Indeed.' The whole group started as Alakazam appeared a short distance away. "But apparently, some people just can't leave anything alone."
"Who are you?" Jessica asked. "And what are you implying?"
'I am somebody who was there when the Ender was created, unlike you.' he said, approaching the group. 'And I'm almost certain it was Team Rocket who unleashed it.'
"...by accident." she admitted. "I AM here trying to stop it, you know."
"Why?" Allison asked. "Wouldn't you guys benefit from its rampage?"
"Wouldn't be much point in trying to rule the world if there was nothing left to rule." the Rocket Ranger told her. "My boss is indisposed at the moment, but I'm confident he would not approve of this thing being allowed to roam free."
"Well, you've put it down." Ginger pointed out. "So, we're done here?"
"I hope." the Rocket Ranger turned to stare at the spot where it had exploded. "But I seriously doubt it."
'It IS taking an unusually long time.' Alakazam noted. 'I'm not sure why though.'
"Excuse me?" Ryan said, stepping up beside the Pokémon. "You wanna let us in on the secret? Any of the secrets?"
"Not the time, Ryan." Brent muttered.
'Look.' Alakazam pointed, ignoring Ryan's hint. As the flames from the blast started to die down, a red crystal sphere rose into their air.
"What is that?" Rick asked.
"The core." the Rocket Ranger said. As they watched, flesh appeared and grew around it, and soon the Ender was back, staring and breathing heavily as it growled at them.
"Alright, here's the plan." Ryan told everyone. "We reduce to its core again, and then blast it. If we can destroy the core, we can destroy it for good. Am I reading this right, or am I missing something?"
'It's our best shot.' Alakazam agreed. 'But I don't know if the core CAN be destroyed.'
"We have to try." Jessica told him. Frowning under her helmet, she looked at her headless spear. "Has it been ten minutes?"
'I don't think.' he replied. 'Why?'
Roaring, the Ender charged before she could reply.
"Hydro Pump!" Crouching, Brent fired the attack from both cannons at the Ender's feet, knocking its legs out from under it. As the monster faceplanted, Allison held out her Pikachu Striker.
"Thunder Wave!" A burst of electricity struck the monster's body, paralyzing its muscles as it tried to rise.
"It takes ten minutes after the first Explosion for..." Jessica started. In a flash of light, her spearhead reappeared. "For that."
Tearing itself free of paralysis, the Ender raised two hands and smashed the ground, sending out a shockwave that tore up the pavement and knocked the entire group off their feet. Rising, it rushed for them.
"Smokescreen!" Ryan and Jessica called simultaneously. The obscuring cloud enveloped them and Ender stomped into it, looking around for his targets.
"Iron Tail!" Her Pikachu Striker glowing silver, Allison slammed it against the back of the Ender's knee, piercing through and severing the lower limb. Staggering and off-balance, it toppled, grabbing for its assailant as it fell, but she and the other Rangers rolled out of the cloud before it could grab them. Alakazam teleported next to them.
'Okay, Rocket, you be ready to hit it with your Explosion again.' the Pokémon commanded. 'Red Ranger, you keep an eye on her; make sure she behaves. The rest of us will distract it.'
"Who told you you could give orders?" Ryan asked.
'Just do it.' Alakazam told him. The group stepped back as Ender crawled free of the smoke, snarling up at them.
"Why is its leg still missing?" Jessica wondered. "It should've reformed by..." As she spoke, the limb restored itself and the Ender rose.
"You were saying?" Brent asked sarcastically. "Let's go guys!" The four other Rangers and Alakazam ran to the side, hurling ranged attacks and drawing its attention.
"No, there's definitely something there." she insisted, turning to Ryan. "That Alakazam said it took longer than normal to reform after I blew it up, and that leg didn't heal as fast as its other limbs."
"Just focus!" Ryan told her. "They'll be ready any minute now."
As the Ender pursued them, the Rangers drew it further and further away. When they finally got it far enough, the four Rangers rolled under its grasping arms and ran back for Ryan. Meanwhile, Alakazam used Psychic, using its telekinesis to hurl the monster high into the air.
'NOW!' he telepathically shouted back at them.
"Explosion!" Jessica called again, firing her spearhead and blasting the monster apart once more. From the blast fell the core, approaching the ground.
"Let's put em together." Ryan ordered. The Rangers quickly combined their weapons.
"Poké Blaster!"
"Aim, and...FIRE!" On Ryan's command, the Golem Mace was fired out and slammed into the core, a direct hit, creating a brilliant flash of light. As it died down, the weapon flew back and Rick caught it.
But the core still remained.
"Not a scratch..." Rick muttered. The beast began to reform around it.
"Thunder!" Detaching her Pikachu Striker and raising it, Allison sent a massive bolt of lightning into the sky to come crashing down on the core, blasting the reforming flesh off it. "Again!" She repeated the attack a second time.
"She can't keep that up forever." Ryan said. "We have to destroy it."
"Smokescreen it." Jessica told him.
"What? What is that going to..." he started.
"Just do it. I have a theory." she insisted.
"Fine. Smokescreen!" From his sword, Ryan fired another obscuring cloud as the Yellow Ranger let up her attack, surrounding the core.
"Alakazam, what's happening?" the Rocket Ranger called. "Is it reforming?"
'Hold on...' Closing his eyes, the Pokémon sent his psychic abilities probing outward. '...no. No it isn't. Why?'
"I got it!" Jessica cheered. "It's oxygen!" The Rangers all stared at her. "No, really, think about it. When I first blew it up, it couldn't reform for a while, because it was stuck in the flames from the blast. Only when they died down did it restore itself." Turning, she pointed to the Yellow Ranger. "And then when you cut off its leg in the smoke, it didn't heal until it crawled free. Because the smoke stopped oxygen from getting to it."
"So we just have to keep it away from oxygen and it won't reform." Allison nodded.
"Yeah, but how?" Ryan asked. "The whole planet is covered in oxygen."
"Then we'll have to get it off the planet." Brent said. "I don't suppose Team Rocket actually has a rocket?"
"Nope. Red, how high can your Charizard Zord go?" she asked.
"High enough." he nodded. "Onix Carrier Zord!"
"Your Smokescreen is fading." Ginger pointed out as the massive Zord burrowed to the surface. Cursing, Ryan whirled and fired another before the Ender could reform. The Onix Zord's first section opened and the Charizard Zord flew free, landing in front of the group.
"Okay, you bring the core." Jessica told Ryan. "Make sure it stays covered in smoke. I'll drive."
"Absolutely not!" Ginger cut in. "You are not touching another one of our Zords!"
"Yeah, I have to agree with her." Ryan said. "You bring the core. I'll drive."
"I can't!" She held up her headless spear. "I used my second Explosion for the day. It'll take thirty minutes for the head to reappear. Do you really want to wait that long?" (A/N: Perhaps a quick explanation of the Rocket Spear. It can use Explosion 3 times a day. After the 1st, the spearhead takes 10 minutes to reform. After the 2nd, 30 minutes. After their 3rd, it won't reform until the next day.)
"How do we know you won't try anything funny if we let you do that?" Brent asked.
"I promise, I'm not going to steal your Zord, I'm not going to attack you with it, I'm not going to do anything." she insisted. "We're allies today."
"We can't trust you." Ryan said.
"Smoke." Rick reminded him. The Red Ranger turned and covered the core again.
'If I may..." Alakazam stepped up. "I can see into her mind. She is being truthful. She will not turn on you today.'
"Oh, that's great." she snapped. "Anything ELSE you want to tell them about me?" Alakazam stared at her in silence for a moment.
'No.' he said at last, speaking only to her. 'I SHOULD tell them who you are, but I will not.'
"Well isn't that kind of you." she muttered.
'No, it's not that.' he told her. 'I just recognize your...well, I didn't know you existed, but...I have to put some thought into this.' Jessica realized whatever he had seen in her head had truly rattled him.
'I leave you all to deal with this thing.' Alakazam spoke to the group. 'I have places to go and things to look into.'
"I wish you would stay." Ryan told him. "I have so much I wanted to ask you."
'I'm sorry, Ryan. I cannot answer your questions.' Alakazam told him. 'Hopefully someday I will be able to. Goodbye.' With one last questioning glance at the Rocket Ranger, he teleported away.
"Let's go." Jessica said, leaping up into the Charizard Zord. Grabbing the core, Ryan leaped after, unleashing Smokescreen to keep it under control as they moved.
"And up we go!" Taking a seat at the controls, Jessica lifted off, the Charizard Zord rising and shooting into the sky.
"Make sure the heating is at max." Ryan told her. "We don't wanna freeze up out there."
"I got it." Jessica assured, dialing it up. "You just keep an eye on our passenger."
Higher and higher they rose, through the layers of the atmosphere, faster and faster.
"Have you got us up to..." Ryan started.
"Escape velocity?" Jessica finished for him. "Yes, I said I got it." Engines running at maximum, the Zord passed 25,000 MPH and shot out of the Earth's orbit, into the void beyond. "We're out! Dump him!" she called.
"On it. Open the throat." he told her. The Rocket Ranger flipped a switch and a chute to the Zord's mouth opened, providing a path straight into space. As the vaccuum pulled the smoke away, Ryan released the core and it shot out into the blackness, the chute shutting behind it.
"And Fire Blast." Jessica said. As the core floated into the void, the Charizard Zord blasted it, sending it spinning into the distance, away from the planet. Ryan sighed in relief.
"It's done." he remarked. "You know, we make a pretty good team."
"Don't push your luck." she muttered, turning the Zord around and descending towards Earth. "This may be a bit late, but this thing can take reentry, right?"
"Heat's not gonna bother this Zord." the Red Ranger assured her.
"I hope you're right." she said. The Zord descended through the atmosphere, remaining in one piece as they flew into the sky below. Finding Viridian City, Jessica brought the Zord in for a landing, hopping out afterwards with Ryan right behind her.
"It's done." Ryan told the others.
"She actually didn't betray us?" Ginger asked, shaking her head. "I admit, even with what Alakazam said, I was certain she would."
"I told you we were allies today." she reiterated. "Goodbye, Rangers." The Rocket Ranger nodded to them all. "Next time we meet, we will be enemies again."
"But why?" Ryan asked. "If we can work together once, then surely..."
"No." she said. "This is how it must be." And with that, she teleported away, leaving them all staring after.
Meanwhile, deep underground...
Persia body rose from its the floor it had been smashed into, neck still bent awkwardly. Reaching up, her arms gripped her head and twisted, snapping it back into place. The light seemed to return to her eyes.
"Ugh. Guess I'm down to 8 lives." she muttered, rising to her feet. Looking around, she realized the notebooks were gone. "Hmm. No way that thing was smart enough to take them...which means it was probably that no-good CEO." Grinning, she made for the exit. "Oh, we're gonna have so much fun."
Next Time: Mewtwovanni breaks out his secret weapon for the first time. With it enhancing his newest monster, what sort of abilities will it gain? Find out next time in 'Shock Value'
(A/N: This chapter used to be a few more back, but I had to shuffle some stuff around because I noticed a logical problem in the old order. I honestly don't know if anybody would've noticed, but I did and it kept bugging me afterwards. I'll explain in a few chapters, just because I like sharing these little looks into my writing process with you. Anyway, be sure to drop a review with your thoughts and I'll see you guys next time. Mewtwo out!)