Sights and sounds mingled together for Hayashi while he stood in the middle of one of Life's End's sacrificial chambers, shuddering and looking at his Power Morpher with dread. As the rain and thunder pounded and boomed outside, memories of exploding fireballs, horrified screams, demolished buildings, and broken beings hit the former evil Power Ranger one by one. His sister and his friends stood away from him, straining not to break down as well.
"I knew you couldn't handle it, boy," a growly voice cut in.
All six Rangers turned to see Goldar and Scorpina standing in the entryway with their blades drawn and teeth bared. Goldar chortled as he took a couple of steps forward.
"I have to admit, you produced a fair amount of destruction these past few days, Hayashi," Goldar said. "You even managed to catch me off guard, but I knew you wouldn't be up to the task of finishing what you started!"
"No… How could I do that?!" the older Feran sibling cried, sinking to the earth again and striking the ground. "All those people…"
"But take heart, human," Scorpina said in a mockingly sweet voice. "There's a good chance all those people you hurt won't be suffering much longer."
"That's enough!" Blue Ranger shouted.
"Your days of controlling the Power Rangers are over!" Black Ranger added, charging his Mammoth Axe as he prepared its cannon mode.
"An interesting challenge, Brock!" Scorpina snarled, fighting the urge to step forward, but as she did, a huge rumble shook the cave and a high-pitched roar cut through the air. Scorpina's ruby red lips curled into a smile. "But this will end like it started—with one of your own being your end!"
The heroes had had enough, and they pushed forward to engage the villains, but both of them instantly vanished in a fiery glow.
"That roar…" Pink Ranger realized as she and her team went to tend to Hayashi. "It's the Dragon Dinozord again."
"But the spell is broken, Lia," Yellow Ranger interrupted, wrapping her arms around Hayashi's shoulders and helping him up. "It can only be controlled with the Dragon Dagger, right?"
At that moment, Red Ranger's Communicator beeped, and he turned on the communication frequency before the six-tone warning could finish.
"This is Ash," he said. "We read you,"
"Power Rangers, congratulations on breaking Rita's spell. Hayashi is now in complete control of his powers, and all of Rita's captives are being teleported to safety and medical attention for those who need it," Zordon announced.
"Something's wrong, though, Zordon," Red Ranger replied. The roar of the Dragonzord burst through the walls of the cave yet again as he spoke. "We hear the Dragonzord, but Hayashi didn't call it."
"Indeed, Red Ranger," Zordon continued as the rumbling did also. "Alpha and I have detected a poisonous mixture in the rain similar to the Ghera Serum, but its descent is focused on one fixed point: the Dragonzord. Rita is remotely controlling the Zord and is bringing it to destroy you."
"I can't believe this…" Hayashi whispered. "This is all my fault. Zordon, what can I do to help?"
"Alpha has been working on calibrating the final sequence to bring the Dinozords back from their seclusion. You must attempt to regain control with the Dragon Dagger's music until Megazord can arrive to help," Zordon explained.
"There it is!" Alpha squeaked over the transmission. "By combining your Power Coins, you can give your Zords the final push they need to free themselves. But you must hurry, Rangers! Dragonzord is seconds away from reaching shore!"
"You got it! Rangers out!" Ash shouted. "Let's get outta here!"
All five suited Power Rangers turned to Hayashi, who was looking down and fumbling with his Power Morpher.
"I…I…" he mumbled, still trying to regain steady breaths.
"Come on, man, we need you!" Ash urged, pumping his fist in front of him.
"They won't…"
Before he could say another word, Lia stepped to face her brother and gripped him by the shoulders, shaking him to attention. "Stop mumbling!" she yelled. "You can't stand around feeling sorry for yourself! You can't back out! Everybody needs you. They need us!"
"Of course I want to help," Hayashi muttered, trying to make eye contact with his sister. "But those people won' trust me to save them after what I did."
"But you're not under Rita's power anymore," Lia said, and the others nodded and pumped their fists in agreement. "Power Rangers always fight for good and find a way to win in the end, no matter what. Hey, where do you think I get that from?"
Hayashi looked at his sister and each one of his friends, blinking his eyes and taking in a deep breath. There was only choice now.
In downtown Feron Grove, the heavy rain and lightning still plummeted and crackled, casting light over an otherwise pitch-black cityscape. As another thunderclap rang out followed by more bolts, a huge, menacing shape could be seen towering over some of the tallest buildings.
Police and rescue officials had been erecting barriers and checkpoints all day, but there were still some adventurous citizens creeping around the sides of businesses and trying to push past the officers.
"I told you to get back!" an officer shouted, helping a paramedic try to usher some folks back behind the structures. "That dragon robot is coming back!"
Indeed, Dragon Dinozord was marching to the shore, planting its huge metal feet in the sand and letting out another piercing scream. The rescue officials on the scene held their ground at the barriers as the behemoth approached, but had to retreat when it whipped its drill-like tail around, slicing through several light poles and sending them crashing on the police cars and ambulances below.
"What are we gonna do?" one of the ambulance workers asked a nearby policewoman, brushing glass off of his clothes. "There's no stopping that thing!"
The officer said nothing, turning her head around to see some spectators—including some of the rescued captives that were too curious for their own good.
"Move back inside the truck!" she screamed, but they didn't comply. Before the officer could go toward the people, Dragonzord screeched once more, the red lights on its body blinking furiously and its purple eyes shining bright. The Dinozord waved its arms and locked its humanlike hands in place, producing a round of missiles in its fingertips. Everyone in the vicinity of the beachhead stood frozen, waiting for the inevitable to happen.
Dragonzord roared again, turning its huge body around and looking into the sky. The citizens of Feron Grove did the same, seeing a column of rainbow light rocketing through the late-night sky that descended into the ocean, illuminating the beach like the sun had just risen. Dragon Dinozord swiveled around to face the water and was greeted with the sight of a rising pool of magma and rainbow-colored flames, animalistic bellows issuing from it. The molten liquid and fire quickly shrank away, however, revealing the towering and gleaming Dinozords as they took to the surface. Dragonzord—and its intended victims—backed up in surprise. The Dinozords continued to glow with a brilliant colored sheen, and in a few seconds they were overtaken by a flash of light that, when dissipated, revealed the Megazord.
"Look over there!" someone shouted.
Everyone had to pry themselves from gazing at their robotic salvation to the top of a nearby building in the west. Six points of light touched down on the roof, revealing all six Power Rangers.
"The Power Rangers are back!" a paramedic yelled, pointing in the air.
"Wait…that's that evil Green Ranger! What's he doing with them?" an older woman—one of Hayashi's former prisoners who now wore a swath of medical tape around her shoulder—said.
"Yeah, just whose side is he on?" another captive—a young man with a blonde goatee asked, crossing his arms.
"Alright guys," Green Ranger called out, stepping forward with his Dragon Dagger raised high. "Everyone's all here. Now let's bring the home team together!"
"Prehistoric power lights the darkest hour!" the group screamed, assuming battle poses. "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers!"
The people on the battle scene, as well as anyone within earshot, cheered and hollered as they saw the heroes united as one. As they did, the Red, Blue, Pink, Black, and Yellow Rangers leapt off of the building and shot toward the Megazord, jumping in the cockpit right inside the three-horned head.
"Okay Rangers," Red Ranger said, beginning to move the super-robot forward. "Let's get a hold of Dragonzord so Hayashi can lock it down!"
The Megazord squared off with Dragonzord on the high part of the sand dunes. Both mechs stepped forward and locked arms, Megazord wheeling its opponent around as it tried to hold it in place. Meanwhile, Hayashi brought the flute end of the Dragon Dagger to his silver mouthpiece, closing his eyes and tapping the six-tone melody that brought his Zord to the sea earlier. The Dragonzord's fierce purple eyes began to flicker for a moment—and the Dinozord did go slack for a moment—but the dark color clouded its optic sensors again. Releasing a low growl, Dragon Dinozord flicked its silver arms and butted itself into Megazord with its brawny, gold-colored shoulders. Stunned, Megazord reared its left Triceratops leg back and pushed off the ground, but Dragon Dinozord took the Megazord by the shoulder and, using the momentum, flung it to the nearby street.
"Look out! It's readying the rockets!" Yellow Ranger cried, trying to give the Megazord an extra boost to get out of the way.
"Fire back with the rear cannons!" Blue Ranger suggested, shifting his controls forward.
Megazord did roll out of the way of the incoming missiles, and it fired back with volleys of cannon fire from the guns mounted on its back—the Mastodon's legs. But while Dragonzord stuttered back from the blast, it regained its footing and came forward to stomp the Megazord.
While the fight was going on, Green Ranger kept playing note after note on the Dragon Dagger. Dragonzord's eyes would flicker for a moment, but it would still keep going on its rampage.
"There has to be another way!" he said as his Zord toppled the Megazord with the brute force of its tail whip. By now, nearby spectators had fled on-foot to a safer distance since the ensuing battle was annihilating nearby vehicles, posts, and pavement, and some of them were all looking up at him.
"Hold on…" Hayashi uttered, leaping and flipping off of his perch and hitting the ground running. "Ash, I have an idea. Maybe if I get inside the Dragonzord I can manually override the virus!"
"Wait, man!" Ash called out in Hayashi's headset. "You can't right now…"
Hayashi paid no attention to the Red Ranger's words, instead dashing over the demolished blacktop street and approaching his Dinozord. Instinctively, Dragonzord pushed Megazord away and launched a blast of acidic breath at its partner, forcing him to roll into a crushed-in crevice in the street. Bits of the attack did reach his shoulders, bouncing off his gold shield but stinging him everywhere else it hit.
Dragon Dinozord stood primed to stomp the Green Ranger into the center of the Earth only to be interrupted with a swipe from behind. The possessed vehicle screeched and staggered to the side, ducking its shoulder away. Sparks flew from its shoulder after the Power Sword hit it, and now was the Megazord's time to strike. The fighting machine dodged a few blows from Dragonzord, countering with slashes from its silver blade. Overwhelmed by the sword, Hayashi's robotic partner fell to the surface, giving the Ranger a second to emerge from his safeguard. But he still couldn't reach the cockpit as the Zord snarled and rolled over, sending its spinning drill-tail right at him. Hayashi barely jumped out of the way, one of the serrated edges of the tail cutting across the lower part of his back and forcing him to the ground.
"Hayashi!" Black Ranger shouted. "Dragonzord's got him pinned down now!"
"No, Brock," Pink Ranger, who sat beside him in the cockpit, cut in. "He can make it. Look." She pointed to Dragonzord, who still had its dark eyes focused on the Megazord and its tail whirring. "There's the opening."
"Right. Time to play offense and defense together," Ash said, steadying the controls. "You know what to do!"
At that moment, Megazord raised the Power Sword high in the air, charging at its foe with full force. Dragon Dinozord snarled yet again and lifted off the ground, moving in and thrusting its tail straight for Megazord's Pterodactyl-shielded chest. At the last moment, the mass of combined Dinozords, raised its left hand, which glowed with purple light, and stretched out. The head of the Mastodon appeared in the Megazord's hand, now acting as a shield. With a torque of the wrist, the Mastodon Shield's tusks hooked the spinning tail, and the Megazord lurched back with all its might, lifting Dragonzord overhead and slamming it into the sand of the beach.
"Now's my chance!" Hayashi said to himself, gritting his teeth and taking to the street again. In a few seconds, he forced his pained body onto the sand dunes and onto the shoulders of the prone Dragonzord. Playing a tune on his flute, a side door opened, and he jumped into the cockpit.
"Let's see," Green Ranger said, the howl of cold air blowing inside nearly overtaking his auditory senses. He examined the computer, which flashed solid purple. As soon as Hayashi got in the cockpit, something overtook his mind, and his fingers were now flying over the controls as if he had seen them all his life.
"Hang on, buddy," he said. "Almost got it…"
As its pilot worked, Dragon Dinozord roared in pain and tried to claw its way upward. The bestial mech rolled over a few times, trying to shake Green Ranger off, but he still kept going. Finally, the Dragonzord was able to get to its feet, its teeth bared and a bluish-white beam forming in its mouth. This time, the acid breath would totally vaporize Megazord when it was through.
"Got it!" Green Ranger cried excitedly, bringing his hands together after pressing one final button. "And here's the finishing touch!"
He drew his palms out, forming his gleaming green Dino Crystal, and jammed it into the control deck; the lights, screens, and image of the Green Ranger's Power Coin that stood in the back of the cockpit shined with green light. Dragonzord roared a final time, the huge atomic blast suddenly shrinking down to nothing. The Zord then closed its mouth and placed its hands at its sides. Slowly, the Dragonzord lumbered toward the Megazord, its eyes changing from fierce purple to bright red.
"Scanning for virus serum," Tracey said in the Megazord, analyzing the Dragonzord's makeup to see if Rita's potion was still working its magic. "There's no trace of it left!"
"Check it out," Lia said, pointing outside. The Dragonzord now stood facing the Megazord. The Green Ranger's personal vehicle let out another high screech, but instead of attacking, extended its right hand to the Megazord. Megazord obliged and shook hands. When they did, the gold symbol in the Megazord's cockpit—which featured all five dinosaur spirits that comprised it—glowed with their respective colors. Both robots turned toward the city side of Feron Grove, showing the people that enemies had now become friends.
The Power Rangers leapt out of their Zords and to the streets, where a small crowd of people awaited them, all applauding and shouting happily. Green Ranger, who was coming up from behind the rest of the group, finally made it in line. That's when the celebration stopped and some of the people's wide eyes turned to glares. Hayashi stepped forward, causing some of the citizens to either step back in shock or turn and walk away.
"I know there's nothing I can say that will make anything I did right," he began, standing at attention. "I was under Rita's spell when I did those things, but with my friends' help, I broke through and got rid of her influence. I'm here to fight the good fight. For good."
The people stayed silent, and more cast wary looks and stepped away toward home. Green Ranger took a deep breath and looked to his friends, who were also silent. Apologies wouldn't help a bit right now. He turned his head again, then stutter-stepped back a little when something wrapped around his midsection. It was little Colleen, who had Hayashi wrapped up in a big hug. Surprised, the new Ranger looked up and still saw a few people standing there—hostages including Colleen's mom, Mike, Wendy, Darren, and more—and they were all smiling back at him.