Chapter 21: Reflections Part 1

"One final adjustment to the Hypertransistors and we should be good to go," Kat told Boom and Spencer as they worked on RIC. Kayden watched, his arms folded as they worked, having decided to stand back and let Spencer work on their project instead, since the Gold Ranger had helped rebuild RIC to begin with.

"This is going to be beyond incredible!" Boom was almost bouncing in his excitement. "Oh! Can I do the honours? Please?" he lifted the remote and pleaded with Kat, who rolled her eyes.

"You know, it really should be up to Spencer, you know, since RIC was rebuilt by him," she pointed out.

"I don't mind," Spencer said as he walked back over, checking the information on a tablet. "It wasn't just me anyways, Bridge, Cam and Miko helped," he said.

"Okay, but be careful," Kat relented. Spencer stood back beside Kayden as they all turned to face RIC.

"SPD Battilizer...engage!" Boom activated it. Sparks exploded out from RIC, making them all jump, and his head flew off, skidding to a stop by the Commander's feet. He looked down, humming.

"I see the Battlizer is not quite finished," Kruger commented dryly.

"A temporary setback sir, I'm sure we'll have it fully functional right away," Kat glared at Boom, who nodded quickly.

"See that you do," the Commander nodded, turning and leaving as the others sighed.

"I gotta go. It ismy day off, and Teddie and Chase are in town," Spencer pulled off the goggles he'd been wearing and dropped them into Kayden's hands, laughing to himself as the three continued working on RIC.

"Man, Kruger picked the best day for our day off," Annie lifted her head to the sun, enjoying the warmth of the day as the Rangers stood in the park.

"Totally," Syd agreed, tossing her the frisbee they were throwing to each other.

"No disasters..." Jack caught it next and moved so Bridge couldn't get it. "No sirens..." with a grin, he threw it to the Green Ranger.

"No talking skeletons," Bridge nodded.

"Huh?" Z frowned. "Whatever," she decided as Sky caught it. He held it out to her, only to pull it back when she reached for it. "I just wish Sam were here to enjoy it," Z finally got it from him and threw it.

"Where is our sparkly friend anyway?" Annie asked as Syd caught the frisbee.

"Kruger sent him to check out a disturbance in the Strata Quadrant," Z explained as Sky caught the frisbee again before she could. "He should be back soon though," she added as Sky tossed it to Jack. As it flew through the air, another figure leapt up and caught it. He then flipped through the air, landing easily.

"Oh, I'd give that an 8/10," Annie nodded to the young man. He winked and tossed it back to her. Wearing a sleeveless hoody and a pair of jeans, he bore a strong resemblance to Spencer, down to his easy smile.

"Only an 8? That was a flawless landing," he complained in his New Zealand accent.

"Yeah, but your flip was sloppy," he glanced around to Spencer as he and Teddie approached.

"Perfectionists," Chase rolled his eyes.

"Hey guys," Jack grinned as he caught the frisbee next. "I hope you've been tormenting him as much as requested," he said to the two younger teens.

"When don't they?" Spencer asked when the frisbee reached him.

"That's mean!" Teddie pouted, and Spencer reached out to mess up her hair, which had been tied in pigtails out of her face. Wearing a pale blue shirt with a pair of shorts and a dark green jacket wrapped around her waist, Teddie seemed to be enjoying the sun as much as the rest of them.

"True though," Chase grinned.

"So where's Sam? Thought he had the day off today," Spencer asked the team.

"Strata Quadrant," they chimed.

"Well wherever he is, I'm sure it's not as nice as New Tech City right now," Sky commented as he grabbed the disk from the air before Z could.

"Sky? Are you actually enjoying yourself?" Syd asked him, eyes glittering in amusement. He rolled his own.

"It's the perfect day!" he exclaimed as the frisbee reached him again. "What's not to enjoy?" the Blue Ranger asked. He tossed it again, higher this time.

"I got it!" Syd called as she reached for it, only for a red light to clip it. Syd jumped back as it turned to green slime, hitting the ground in front of her and narrowly missing her shoes.

"Sorry to horn in on your fun!" they looked around and their eyes widened as a familiar figure approached them with a laugh.

"I thought we already caught this creep," Z frowned.

"We did," Syd frowned, remembering him well. "I still have the bruises," she complained. "It's Rhinix."

"You'll pay for destroying my horn!" the alien yelled furiously, and Syd walked towards him.

"It's you who's going to pay!" she declared, holding up her Morpher. "Let's see what the Judgement Scanner has to say! Judgement mode" she activated it, and it began to flash between the green circle and red cross. It then flashed and remained on the red cross. "Guilty!"

Spencer raised his arm, glancing to the twins behind him.

"You two, out of here," he told Chase and Teddie.

"What? But we can help!" Chase protested.

"I don't doubt it, but I'd rather you leave it to us," Spencer told him. The two groaned, and ran off.

"We'll just have to catch this creep again," Annie cracked her knuckles.

"Let's Ranger up!" Sky called.

"Ready?"

"Ready!"

"SPD, EMERGENCY!"

"Catch me if you can!" Rhinix goaded, running off as the Rangers Morphed. They chased him through the city, firing blasts at him, but the horned alien dodged, still laughing as he turned a corner. They followed, but when they reached the other side, he was gone.

"Where'd he go?" Syd demanded as they looked around.

"Hey-" Bridge was suddenly blasted off his feet by a jettison of water.

"Bridge!" the others turned around as he landed on the ground hard.

"Hello Green Ranger," another familiar figure greeted.

"Hey! I remember you!" Bridge frowned.

"No wait!" Jack stopped him. "Bridge can handle it," he said confidently. They watched as Bridge pushed himself back up. They continued fighting, and this time Bridge gained the upper hand, spinning in the air to counter Hydrax's water jet. He then knocked her to the ground, and the others ran over.

"Nice work Bridge," Annie laughed.

"Thanks," Bridge held up his Morpher as Hyrdrax got back to her feet. "It's judgement time!" he declared. She gasped as it began to judge her. "Based on all the evidence I've gathered, I have absolutely no doubt you'll be found..." the light flashed into a red X.

"Guilty!" the Rangers called.

"That's the Fernovian, Hydrax, the bank robber!" Annie recognised the plant-like alien.

"That's right!" she laughed, and leapt away as they ran over to her. As she disappeared, a loud, nasally laugh echoed through the square.

"Oh no," Z put her hands to her helmet. "Don't tell me..." she pleaded.

The Megazord leapt to the side to dodge Bugglesworth's attacks, before leaping into the air. With a powerful slash, they knocked him back.

"Let's see what the scanner has to say about you!" Z called on the Judgement Mode. Bugglesworth whimpered as the light flashed red.

"Guilty!"

"It's gotta be Bugglesworth!" the Yellow Ranger groaned, looking up.

"You got it!" the whiny voice of Bugglesworth called from the balcony above. With a giggle, he blasted them with bubbles, throwing the group to the ground. "Reunited and it feels so good!" he laughed, turning and rushing off. Getting to her feet, Z leapt up to the balcony, but he was already gone.

"Oh man, he's gone too?!" Z ran over and looked down.

"He's not here either!" Spencer shook his head.

"Oh come on!" Annie's fist hit the ground.

Regrouping at the SPD base, the Rangers reported what had happened while they were in the park.

"Guys I'm sorry, but until this is sorted you're safer staying with Gram and Grampa," Spencer said down the phone as they waited for Kat to return.

'This sucks. It's your day off Spence!' Teddie complained.

'Yeah, we haven't seen you since the picnic,' Chase called down.

"I know, and we'll hang out after, but right now I gotta make sure everyone's safe. Alright?" Spencer felt guilty for bailing on his brother and sister, but he had a job to do, and they were the only ones who could do it.

'Alright. But you're buying us ice-cream,' Teddie told him firmly.

'And we're going skateboarding,' Chase added. Spencer couldn't help but chuckle at their demands.

"You drive a hard bargain guys, but alright," he agreed, and heard the two cheer. "I gotta go. Laters," he hung up, slipping his phone into his pocket as he rejoined the conversation.

"Maybe they busted out of their containment cards?" Jack suggested.

"Kat said those cards were foolproof, and that there was no chance of escape," Sky shook his head.

"And I was right," they looked around as she hurried back in, carrying the cards in her hands. "They're all still here," she laid out the cards containing Rhinix, Hydrax and Bugglesworth.

"I don't get it," Syd frowned as the three criminals pounded on their cells, trying to escape. "We saw them run around the city," she insisted.

"Yeah, you can't be in two places at the same time!" Bridge nodded. Z then tapped him on the shoulder.

"Excuse me?" she raised an eyebrow.

"Well...you can," Bridge glanced from Z to her clone. "But you're one of a kind! Well...two, technically," he glanced to Annie, who waved. "I mean..." Bridge glanced to Z, only to find her clone had vanished.

"This is a very serious problem," Kruger told them as Jack rolled his eyes. "We simply don't have the manpower to recapture every criminal in our files," he reminded them. "I want you to search the city grid for any disturbances," he ordered.

"Jack," Kat called the Red Ranger back as they turned to start working. "I'm going to need your Morpher to upload the new weapon's system," she said.

"No problem Kat," Jack's eyes lit up at the mention, and he handed it over.

"It's gonna be awesome Jack," Spencer called over, before raising an eyebrow. "Kat, you did fix the problem of, you know, the head blowing off?" Jack's eyes went wide at the question. Kat rolled her eyes.

"Of course I did," she told him. "Don't worry Jack, it's completely harmless to you," she insisted.

"Alright, but I'm gonna be real upset if my head blows off," he said slowly. Spencer snickered, turning back to the computer.

"Excellent Kat. We're going to need it when those goons show up," Sky nodded as Jack shot Spencer a glare. The Gold Ranger just smiled innocently back. Sky held his Morpher out to Kat. "You can upgrade mine next," he suggested.

"The technology was designed to work in conjunction with the Red Ranger's Morpher only...sorry Sky," Kat apologised when Sky's smile fell.

"No big deal. I'm sure it'll be amazing Jack," Sky walked off.

"Thanks..." Jack started, and when Sky disappeared out, he sighed and followed.

"I always wondered why only the Reds get the Battilizer," Annie glanced around. Spencer just shrugged in response.

"You're going to burn out if you do nothing but work, you know," Spencer didn't look up from the tablet he was using. Annie took a seat opposite him with Bridge, both looking at the Gold Ranger.

"Something about these guys just isn't adding up," Spencer told them, eating his lunch while keeping his eyes on the information on the tablet.

"You mean, other than them being criminals we've already caught and locked up?" Bridge asked with a raised eyebrow.

"You're getting as bad as her, you know," Spencer told him flatly, finally looking up to raise an eyebrow at the Green Ranger. He just smiled back pleasantly. "No, it's just something about these goons showing up, it's just weird," Spencer shook his head.

"I'd settle for knowing how someone's copying them," Annie said as she took a bite of her sandwich.

"I just want it over and done with soon," Spencer ran a hand through his hair. "This was meant to be our day off," he complained.

"Aw Spence," Annie grinned at him. "You want to hang out with Teddie and Chase! You miss them!" she accused. Spencer snorted, lifting the tablet.

"Like a hole in the head," he said flatly as he hid behind it.

"Wow," he glanced at Bridge. "You're kind of a bad liar," the Empath told him, and with a growl Spencer got up, grabbing his tray and stalking off. "He's surprisingly easy to annoy," Bridge commented to Annie.

"Spence might seem all cool and collected, but you just gotta know the right buttons to push," she told him, biting into her apple. "What about you Bridge? Any other Bridge's running around?" she asked with a grin.

"Nope! Just me," he shook his head. "What about you?" he asked.

"Probably for the best. I don't think the world could handle the risk of them being as weird as you," Annie told him, smirking as he blinked, looking confused, before she nodded. "I have a little brother, Miles. He's only 10," she said, before laughing. "And totally like my dad. My mum gets so mad, cause we both took after dad way more," Annie pushed her hair from her face.

"I'd have thought the world wouldn't be able to handle more than one of you, you know, with how mean you are," Annie frowned at Bridge as he grinned.

"Rude!" she exclaimed.

"You started it," Bridge told her, unapologetic.

"And I'll finish it!" she exclaimed.

"Remember I beat you the last time," he reminded her.

"You got lucky, it won't happen again," Annie warned him, poking him. "I'll kick your butt anytime, anywhere," she challenged.

"How about on-"

'Rangers to the Command Centre,' the pair looked up as Kat's voice echoed through the base.

"Sky must be back," Bridge was up and rushing out as Annie blinked at him rapidly.

The Rangers considered what Sky reported, having interrogated a dangerous criminal imprisoned in another station.

"A copycat criminal. That makes perfect sense," Z agreed as she and Jack walked over to Sky.

"So all we gotta do is catch this Slate guy and we're golden," Jack nodded.

"I'm Golden," Spencer called as he scanned the city. "But the rest of you will be good," he glanced over to grin.

"Do you ever stop making those jokes?" Z asked.

"Never," Kayden responded as he passed her.

"Excellent job Tate," Kruger nodded his approval. "You didn't fall prey to Mirlok's tricks," he praised.

"Wasn't a problem Sir, just kept focused on the task at hand," Sky nodded.

"Jack!" he glanced over as Bridge called him.

"We got a problem," Annie folded her arms.

"Hey, that's that guy," Jack frowned as they walked over, seeing the footage on the screen. "The one your parents knew," he remembered.

"Zurgane. This guy's even copying him now?" Spencer adjusted his glasses as they slid down his nose. "We need to take him out before he goes for someone even more dangerous," he said to the others.

"Why would he want to copy Zurgane? He's totally ugly!" Bridge exclaimed. "Plus if I remember correctly, he has really bad breath," he added. Spencer arched an eyebrow at Annie, who shrugged.

"It's gotta be Slate. No way he got out," Z determined.

"This time we got his number. Let's bag this copycat!" Jack told his team. They nodded, hurrying out.

The Rangers sped to the co-ordinates where Slate was causing mayhem, finding him leaping through the wreckage of a building. They leapt through the air, landing nearby.

"We've had enough of your games!" Jack yelled at him as he turned to them in surprise. "You're nothing but a big fake!" the Red Ranger shouted at him.

"And just who am I?" Slate asked in Zurgane's low, scratchy voice. "Am I Zurgane?" he threw out his arms and changed forms. "Or Bugglesworth?" he asked in the irritating voice that made Z yell in frustration. "Or maybe I'm..." he changed again. "The Fernovian bank robber Hydrax!" Slate laughed as Bridge frowned. "Or I could be..." changing once again, he took on the appearance of the green, horned alien. "The dreaded Rhinix!" he laughed when Syd let out an annoyed cry. "Perhaps I'm General Tomars?" he changed into the Dimension Jumper.

"At this point, I don't care!" Jack ran at him and threw a punch. With a laugh, Slate turned to what looked like black ink and dropped to the ground, moving quickly away from his attacker.

"Meet your true enemy!" he reformed in what seemed to be his true form. "Slate! The master of disguise!" he introduced himself.

"You've got some serious identity issues pal," Z told him.

"I'm all of Grumm's warriors rolled into one! How pleased he'll be when I destroy you once and for all!" Slate laughed, ignoring her comment. He then rushed at them, flipping through the air and attacking. The Rangers attacked, but he was fast and strong, tossing Bridge into some crates before kicking Spencer into Sky. The two tumbled to the ground, before Jack caught him, and Syd and Z kicked him to the ground. "Okay, you got a couple of lucky hits! But I know the one creature, you won't be so happy to see!" he then changed again. "Devastation is back!" he declared.

"Oh man, him?" Spencer groaned as he pushed himself up.

"Fury Circle!" he raised his hand, and the light shone under the Rangers. Lightning struck down and they cried as they were drained of their energy.

"You know what to do!" Sky yelled. The Rangers blasted the circle underneath them, turning it purple.

"It's working," Syd smiled, and the circle shattered.

"No!" Devastation cried out in horror.

"Let's get him!" the Rangers fired multiple blasts, and Slate hit the ground, forced to return to his normal appearance.

"You're not supposed to beat my superior genius!" Slate cried out.

"You're not that smart," Bridge told him.

"And you forgot one key detail about those goons you're impersonating," Spencer told him, and grinned. "We beat every single one of them," the Gold Ranger pointed out.

"You're just a weak imitation!" Sky scoffed. Slate leapt to his feet.

"I'll show you who's weak!" he leapt over their heads, and when they looked around, they found a robot rushing through the city. Slate laughed loudly as he piloted it.

"Kat! Send the Runners!" Jack requested.

'On their way,' she responded. Before long, the Zords were racing through the city, their sirens blaring, and the Rangers formed the Megazord.

"You'll never take me in!" Slate declared. The Rangers caught his punch, and flipped him through the air. They the went over, restraining the robot, and when Slate struggled, his robot began to spark dangerously. "I'm overloading!" he cried in horrror.

"Slate, you are accused of numerous crimes, including identity theft," Jack called as they got up and activated Judgement Mode.

"Can't you guys take a joke?" he gulped nervously.

"Guilty!" the Rangers echoed when the light flashed red.

"Guess not!" Slate cried.

"Ready!"

"Fire!" they blasted his robot, and it exploded, throwing him from it.

"I don't believe it!" he cried out as he struggled to get up. The Rangers landed nearby, facing him. "What are you going to do with me?" Slate asked as he jumped up and stretched, falling into a fighting stance.

"You and all your identities are going away for a long time!" Jack grabbed his Morpher. However, as he went to confine slate, a purple light caught his wrist, knocking his Morpher from his hand as he cried out in pain. "Watch it!" he warned his team.

"Morgana!" Z scowled when she saw the attacker.

"I don't think so Ranger boy," Morgana smirked as she approached. "Grumm has a little present for Slate!" she summoned a purple orb of energy, and threw it at Slate. He screamed, and transformed into Devastation again.

"Alright!" he laughed, before multiple others split from him, forming the other criminals he'd replicated.

"Oh great!"

"Not again!"

"This is fantastic!"

"Take about deja-vu!"

"It's show time!" Devastation laughed.

"Oh man," Jack gulped. Morgana smirked as she stood with them, and the Rangers fell into their fighting stances.

"Attack!" Morgana yelled, and the fighting resumed. While Z fought Bugglesworth and Bridge took on Hydrax, Jack faced Devasation and Sky was against Tomars, leaving Spencer to fight Zurgane and Annie fought against Morgana.

"You're a feisty one, aren't you?" Morgana taunted as she blocked Annie's kick.

"So they say. But then again, only old people call me that," Morgana's expression darkened and Annie smirked. Clearly she'd struck a nerve. She bent backwards, her hands touching the ground, to avoid Morgana's angry blast of power, and pushed up, kicking her wrist up. It snapped up and Morgana cried out as Annie spun, kicking her repeatedly before Annie pushed to jump up, her boots slamming into Morgana's chest and throwing her backwards. "Getting slow in your old age?" she mocked. Morgana let out a furious shriek.

Nearby, Spencer wasn't faring as well, slamming into a car hard and sinking down.

"Oh man, I'm going to be sore after this," he muttered, getting back to his feet and rolling under Zurgane's swing. Jumping up, he threw an energy-ball, but it was batted aside, and he raised a shield to block the swing that was coming for him. "If Chase thinks I'm getting on a board after this, he is mistaken," he muttered, pushing forwards to punch Zurgane.

Nearby, Kruger raced into view on his ATV, blasting Devastation before he could hurt Jack.

"No dogs allowed!" Devastation blasted at Kruger, who dodged easily on his vehicle. He then leapt off, joining in the fight. However Devastation was powerful, and before long, the Rangers were all on the ground. Morgana blasted Annie, catching her full on, and the Silver Ranger screamed as she hit a car hard and bounced off, landing face down.

"Good work my friends," Morgana smirked as they stood together.

"Hey Jack...how about trying out your new toy?" Spencer asked as he rolled onto his back.

"I hear that!" Jack grinned. "Let's go RIC!" there was a loud bark as the dog rushed into view. "SPD, BATTILIZER!" Jack called. RIC transformed, and part of him connected to Jack's Morpher. "Activate Battilizer! Cyber Mode complete!" with a sword in his hand, Jack grinned. "Yeah! Now we're talking!" the Red Ranger smirked. His suit had changed, with silver armour on his arms and legs. "Give it all you got!" Jack grinned.

"Boys and their toys," Morgana looked unimpressed. "Get him!" she ordered. Jack raced to meet them, easily fighting them all off at the same time.

"Okay...that's kinda awesome..." Annie groaned as they watched Jack easily dodge Devastation's attacks and take out the tyres Rhinix threw his way. Grabbing his sword again, he floored them and deflected Morgana's attacks. When Zurgane and Tomars rushed him, he evaded their grasps and kicked Zurgane hard, slamming him to the ground. Without waiting, he then did the same to Tomars, and dodged Morgana's attacks.

"Hey!" she gasped when he kicked a car at her at high-speed. She leapt up, barely able to dodge it in time.

"Battilizer! Sonic Mode!" Jack and RIC combined completely, giving Jack jets on his back. "Battizer Mode 2, complete!" he flew through the air, and Morgana rolled out of his way.

"You don't scare me!" Morgana scoffed, summoning another blast to throw at him. Jack let out a surprised cry, and dodged each attack she threw at him.

"Hah! Fire!" he blasted her, and Morgana cried out as she was tossed into a pile of tyres.

"Everyone okay?" Kruger asked as the others got to their feet.

"Time to get rid of you freaks," Jack called as Slate's identities stood together. "Battilizer! Full power! Fire!" with his sword, he swung powerful blasts that slammed into them all, and they collapsed as Jack landed. Where they had been standing, Slate's containment card landed on the ground.

"Nice work Jack!" Kruger nodded as the Rangers cheered. Morgana stumbled as she got to her feet, glaring angrily at Jack.

"Want some more?" he challenged, seeing her expression. With a growl, she turned and walked away, disappearing in a flash of purple. "Didn't think so," Jack smirked.

"Hey Teddie," Chase called as he slowed to a stop, kicking his board into his hands. "I think Spencer's already an old man, check it out," he grinned, indicating to where their brother was rubbing his back.

"I figured he already was with his attitude," Teddie said as she stood beside him, handing him an ice cream.

"Hey, I can hear you, you know," Spencer shot them frowns. "I can easily go back to work and file my report instead, if you want," he threatened, but all it did was serve to make them laugh more.

"Easy bro," Chase grinned at him. His smile was as easy going as their dad's, and made Spencer sigh. "Just relax for once," he told him.

"Yeah, yeah," he shook his head. "You've gotten good on that board of yours," Spencer commented.

"It's all he does," Teddie smirked as she took a seat on the bench, letting her feet swing. "Well, that and pick up girls," she giggled.

"Can't help it if the ladies like a guy who's good on his board," Chase shrugged, unashamed.

"Hey Spence," Teddie quickly changed the subject, to the Gold Ranger's relief. "What's it like being a Ranger?" she asked curiously.

"At the moment, sore," Spencer admitted, rubbing his back again. "But worth it," he added as Teddie and Chase exchanged amused grins. "Why? You interested in joining SPD?" he asked. Teddie quickly shook her head, and Chase looked horrified, to Spencer's amusement.

"You're the hero of our generation Spence, not us," Chase told him.

"You could be if you focused," Spencer replied.

"No thanks," Teddie told him firmly. "I couldn't handle the uniforms and-"

"Authority?" Spencer finished for her. Teddie flushed.

"All those codes and stuff, it's too...formal for my liking," she shrugged. "Plus, it would eat into Chase's time, and he needs that to pick up girls," Teddie smirked at her brother.

"She's not wrong," Chase, once again, didn't look the least bit ashamed. Spencer shook his head with a grin. "What about you? Any cute girls in your team?" he asked.

"None your age," Spencer told him, and stretched as Chase grinned. "And from what I've gathered, all taken at this point," he snorted.

"What? Even Annie?" he paused as he realised his slip. "Cute!" Teddie giggled.

"Yeah well...don't tell her I said anything," Spencer groaned, rubbing the back of his head. "Come on, I do want to see Grams and Grampa before you guys head off," he told the two, getting to his feet.

"Oh! Then you can treat us to dinner!" Teddie suggested, hugging her brother's arm.

"Oh, how kind of you," Chase dropped his skateboard and skated alongside the two. Spencer snorted, fixing his glasses.

"Dream on," he told the two, who started laughing.

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