"This had better work, Hayashi."
"Trust me, my empress. The Power Rangers would do anything to save the people of their dear city."
Rita Repulsa marched down the dank corridors of the Moon Palace, drumming her fingers on the iron walls. The Evil Green Ranger had a gutsy plan, she conceded. But it seemed like a huge risk, and she was through taking chances. No amount of promise could ensure her victory now.
"Finster!" she screeched as she reached the goat-like artisan's workshop. "I will be conferring with our high counselor. I am not to be disturbed."
"Yes, my queen," Finster replied, bowing and keeping his eyes low to his monster sculptures.
The sorceress continued on, walking through the cold hallways and eventually reaching the room she sought. She opened the metal door and walked inside her personal workspace. The walls were filled to the brim with bags of powders and bottles of ghastly substances. A large object shaped like a well that was filled with liquid sat in the middle of the dim room. Rita pulled up a chair and sat it next to the well, going to retrieve a few pouches of powder too. She then reached over a wooden table and ran her spindly fingers over a small gyroscope. As she turned to her work, a bright blue light shot from the gyroscope and materialized into a tall, hulking shape that was obscured in the low candlelight.
"At your service, my queen," the figure announced in a growly voice, bowing to Rita. "How may I be of assistance?"
"You know perfectly well what's going on, counselor," Rita said, measuring several types of multicolored powder and putting them into a beaker. "My Green Ranger is marching to the beat of his own drum, and while his creative liberties have certainly been entertaining, we are now no closer to taking back Feron Grove and Earth than we have been before."
The counselor blinked a huge eye, then another, then another, and then one more. He crossed his huge arms and answered, "Yes. With Zordon back, his warriors can certainly pose a problem."
Rita struck the surface of the well with her bony fist. "And so can one of mine! I told him to destroy that Dragon Dagger and what does he do?" She groaned as she continued mixing the potion. "And even my dragon spell backfired… This is giving me such a headache…"
"But it seems like you have everything in hand, Queen Rita," the counselor spoke, coming over to see the witch adding a bottle of thick black liquid to the beaker. "Once that solution rains on the Dragonzord, it'll still be under your control no matter what happens, right?"
"It has to work," Rita grumbled, pouring the solution into the well. The liquid churned and frothed, separating just a little bit to show the outside of the Life's End cavern; at that moment, five illuminated streaks touched down outside the cave's entrance, revealing the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Rita snarled again and then turned to look at the shadowy figure with a threatening stare. "And if it doesn't, what do you suggest we do?"
The counselor tapped his foot a few times, growling a little in thought. He then chuckled throatily and said, "Green Ranger's current course of action has merit, as does his purpose. Having the very people those children love and protect be the source of their demise could be the key to our victory."
As the Power Rangers stepped out of the thunderstorm and into the mouth of Life's End, chills immediately crept up their spines, their arms, their legs, every part of their bodies. Though adrenaline pulsed through their veins while they sped through the initial part of the cave, it seemed that the sensations of the hot cavern air and the wetness from falling moisture droplets tripled.
"The HUD says the captives are still a mile away," Red Ranger reported, helping his friends squeeze through a narrow passage. "But their energy readings are split up."
"From what I've read, this place has plenty of secluded chambers," Pink Ranger contributed as the group slowed down to get their bearings. "They're likely sectioned off."
Black Ranger's scan finally finished calibrating to trace enemy readings, and he said, "And those people not alone. From what I see, Rita has sent plenty of guards."
Yellow Ranger tightened her fists and moved to the front of the group, checking out their next detour—a steep vertical drop several feet downward that led to the next path.
"Be careful, guys," she warned as she reached around the stony ground, eventually finding some footholds to begin the descent. Climbing down to the lower level, Misty noticed strange, ragged red and black markings on the wall she was facing—lots of thick lines and faded images of what appeared to be eyes.
"What are all these markings supposed to mean?" Misty asked, finally reaching the bottom. She turned to look around at the darkened walls, and her night vision scan revealed even more images. "They're everywhere."
"Must be some kind of tribal symbol." Blue Ranger, the next one to make it down, remarked. He took hold of his helmeted chin and studied the marks. "Lia?"
Lia kept climbing down the edifice, sliding down the rest, and was soon joined by Brock and Ash. "No way," she whispered. Ash motioned them to keep going down the next tunnel, but Lia continued. "I've heard some things about these symbols, but I haven't found much about them when I researched them."
"What do you remember?" Brock questioned as they navigated through another couple of tight crevices. "Whoa!" Black Ranger and his companions ducked as a huge Golbat soared over their heads, screeching all the way. "I take it the markings don't signify this being a Golbat nest."
"Nope," Lia continued. "From what I've gathered, the eye mark belongs to an ancient tribe of shadow warriors that once practiced in Riko. Other people I've talked to said the symbols marked the sites of ritual sacrifice. All I know is that nobody knows for sure."
"Well, this place is supposedly built on a burial ground, so it's likely the latter," Tracey said, shuddering.
"Then that must be Hayashi's plan…" Ash realized, nervous sweat running down the side of his face. "Come on!"
"10:00. Two hours to go! Hahahahaha!"
Goldar rubbed his gilded paws together with glee as he circled around the prison chamber he was guarding. People chained to the walls only half-heartedly pulled at their bondage, nearly frozen with fear.
"Strength. Knowledge. Indomitable Spirit. Strength. Knowledge. Indomitable Spirit."
Goldar whipped his head around, signaling two nearby Putties to go check on Scorpina's dungeon. He growled and moved toward the source of the chant he just heard. Terry was flexing his arms, quietly repeating his karate class mantra over and over.
"Oh, come now, boy," the ape-griffin hybrid said, pulling Terry by his shirt. "Those little magic words won't save you or anybody else!"
Terry kept his eyes shut, now loudly voicing the virtues he had been learning with his fellow students—two of which were chained to the opposite side of the circular room.
"Look at me!" Goldar snarled, forcing the boy's eyes open. "Save your breath because at midnight you won't have any left!" He then raked his claws through Terry's shirt and to his chest, opening up surface-level cuts and making him shout.
In the adjacent chamber, the Evil Green Ranger sat atop the center stone slab, meditating and holding the Sword of Darkness high in the air; his other hand was wrapped around his Power Morpher. Darren looked on at the Ranger, closing his eyes in disappointment. How could the Power Rangers let one of their own be controlled like this? They had always prevailed against Rita, so how did she gain so much leverage? He then opened his eyes and looked over at Colleen and her mother. The adult looked at the daughter in wonder as the child then closed her eyes and began to breathe steadily. She began to say the words, "Strength. Knowledge. Indomitable Spirit," over and over.
The Feron Grove Union's manager began to smile. His patrons—his friends—were some of the strongest and most driven people he had ever met, no matter what age. And that was certainly helpful in the dank din of Life's End.
While Putties guarded more hostages in two other rooms, Scorpina paced about, dragging the top tip of her three-point sword over the skin of her prisoners, teasing a gash here or a slice there. Her fiendish smile glinted much like her spiny armor in the firelight. She then took the tip of her blade and flicked a pair of glasses off of an elderly man's face, flinging them in the air. With one swift stroke, she shattered the spectacles and giggled at the gentleman's fright.
"You won't be needing those," she spoke, still keeping her grin. Over in the corner near the room's entrance, Mike and Wendy—two of Brock's friends and classmates restrained by neck chains—gripped each other's hands snugly, trying to think of a way out.
"How cute!" Scorpina cooed, putting her face directly in Wendy's. She traced a sharp fingernail across her face, stopping at her lips, which were colored black as she was captured when figuring out her makeup for her punk rock costume for the Full Moon Monster Mash. "Better kiss him goodbye," she continued, lifting up Mike's shirt with her sword and poking at his round belly. "The fattest cow always gets slaughtered first."
Hearing that insult, Mike immediately spat at Scorpina's feet, and the demoness retaliated by slamming him across the face with the flat end of the sword.
"You heartless…" Wendy began to scream, pulling at her chains to try to fight Scorpina. The lady warrior stopped the young woman's speech, grabbing her by her pale cheeks. "You wanna hit someone? Hit me," she managed to choke out.
"I only fight those who actually can," Scorpina said, gritting her teeth. "But I have no problem accelerating your execution. Green Ranger! Can we start Halloween early?"
Hayashi rose from his meditation, unable to think straight with Colleen's voice adding to his own mind's noise. "No, Scorpina," he responded loudly. "The Empress will have her tributes by midnight." He then started toward Collen and her mother, who was speaking softly to her little girl. He struggled to raise the Sword of Darkness to brush both females' blonde locks to the side, prepping its edge at their throats. "But I grow weary of all this talking, and I don't mind crushing some vocal cords!"
Just as the Evil Green Ranger went to smash the sword into his victims, a series of blasts struck him in the top of his back, rocking through his Golden Dragon Shield and sending him to the ground. The prisoners' astonished looks turned into smiles as the five Power Rangers stood at the chamber's entrance, Blade Blasters at the ready.
"This ends here, Green Ranger," Red Ranger said, taking a step forward. "You're days of working for Rita are over! Blast the sword!"
At Ash's command, a rainbow of light emitted from the laser guns, striking Hayashi's raised Sword of Darkness. However, he simply chuckled as the blade glowed with light, and he flung the combined energy of the sword and the lasers back at the Rangers, who ducked just in time. The ray barreled through the cave and struck a faraway wall, blasting it to bits.
"Very competent, Power Rangers," Green Ranger acknowledged in a throaty voice, slashing at Colleen's bonds and breaking the chains. He picked up the young karate student by the shoulders and set her back-first on the stone slab to the horrified screams of her mother and all of the men, women, and children still chained to the walls. "But you need to know that I am the most powerful weapon."
Before the Power Rangers could move a muscle, the Evil Green Ranger put a hand on Collen's throat, holding her down as he dangled the Sword of Darkness high. "The sacrifices were supposed to start at midnight, but if you make one more move, I'll destroy every life in here right now. I don't care what Rita says."
A short silence followed Hayashi's words. All of the captives sat back, heeding the threat Hayashi levied at the Rangers. They didn't want that child to die because of them. All the while, Colleen, tears streaming down to the stained slab, tried to keep calm and breathe regularly.
"If you don't care about Rita, then let us destroy the sword," Pink Ranger urged. "You can break the spell. We know you can. Just let us help you."
"What a broken record!" Goldar shouted from the other room. "You're in a no-win situation, and you know it!"
"Shut up, Goldar!" Green Ranger roared, still poising his blade to pierce Colleen's sternum. He looked down at the girl, then at his sister, staring her directly in the eyes. He then nodded and kept talking.
"Actually, you can help, Pink Ranger," he said, pointing his weapon at her. "I will spare these people's lives if you give me yours in return. All five of you."
