Chapter Twenty One. Blood Ties.
Previously On Poke Rangers SDI...
With the invention of a sixth morpher, Miranda and Commander Bristow made the decision to try and bestow the powers upon Duo. Yet, they proved too strong for him to handle and threw him across the room. Meanwhile, someone broke into the Aquabase and stole the said morpher. Someone later revealed to be Zork's Apprentice. As nobody noticed that the device was gone, Zork attacked again at his giant size. As the SDI Megazord and the Guardian Battlezord went to battle him, they couldn't hurt him until he eventually froze them solid with an attack. With the Megazords down, Zork set his Apprentice upon them, who easily defeated the rangers with his power. Once down, he kept the Megazords before leaving the rangers alone to contemplate their defeat...
"Ah, man!"
Looking over to the elevator, both Miranda and Dominic could see the elevator coming down to the lab. With a group of dejected looking rangers stood on the moving platform.
"This doesn't look good," Dominic said, folding his arms. "They look really down and depressed."
"Can you blame them?" Miranda asked. "They were soundly beaten and lost their Zords. That's a pretty good excuse to be..."
"Thanks for rubbing it in, Miranda," Luke said, shooting an annoyed glance over at her. "Like we're not depressed enough as it is."
"Is it worth me telling you all to keep your chins up and not get too down?" Dominic asked, leaning back on the counter.
"Probably not," Danni said. "That guy was tough."
"How did he get hold of that morpher, anyway?" Xavier asked. "I thought the Commander had it in his safe."
"Somebody stole it, clearly," Bristow replied, walking into the room. "They stole it, and the demons are using its power to engage in nefarious activities against us."
"So, how can we counter him?" Katie asked. "Surely there's a way that we can do that?"
"I don't know," Nahir said. "I mean... the swords didn't do anything."
"The Emergency Fearow was useless," Xavier pointed out.
"We'll see what we can do," Miranda replied, already stroking her chin in musing. "Maybe... Ah, we'll work something out. Go on. Lick your wounds and we'll see where we go from here."
"Guess there's nothing to do then," Luke muttered. "Just wander away and see where it takes us. That seems appropriate. What's next? Lay out a red carpet and ask the gold ranger and Zork to not make too much of a noise while they steamroller this region to the ground."
"Well, since they've got our Zords," Nahir pointed out. "It wouldn't take them that long."
"And, the mood just got worse," Katie said, trying to sound cheerful in the face of adversity. "Anyway, if you'll excuse me, I need to go check that I'm not suffering from internal bleeding."
"That's all we need," Xavier muttered, shaking his head.
SDI ready!
The five rangers salute at the camera. Shots of Waterfall Shores.
Somewhere out there, a signal is calling
Darkia and Joltara shake their heads. Ramelow stalks away.
Verger is falling.
The Aquabase is shown, the train bay rises up out of the ocean.
The danger is here.
Danni leans back in her chair, shaking her head. Shots of her climbing up the Merlin's Plateau. Danielle Tanner. Yellow SDI ranger. Created by Joseph Winter.
Better call on SDI!
Katie drops into the pool, ducking under the water. Shots of her scuba diving. Katie Myers. Blue SDI ranger. Created by Blue Bongo.
Poke Rangers SDI!
Xavier sprays a fire with a hose. Shots of him diving through a window. Xavier Jackson. Red SDI ranger. Created by Blazin' Saddles.
Poke Rangers SDI!
Nahir reads a book, shaking her head as the alarm goes off. Shots of her sat in the medical bay. Nahir Moon. Pink SDI ranger. Created by Famousgirl01.
The trials will test you.
Luke does a chin up on a door frame. Shots of him stood at the helipad. Luke Sunderland. Green SDI ranger. Created by MakubeDaKiddX.
Better call on SDI!
The Aura Carriers charge along the track. The SDI zords start to emerge from them.
S.... D..... I....
Commander Bristow and Miranda appear. Arcady tests a weapon.
Powers on display
The Skull Tower appears. Darkia, Joltara, Ramelow and Kable bow down before the altar.
Rangers on the way
The SDI Megazord forms. The five zords come together.
They'll save the day.
The SDI Megazord swings its sword. The Guardian Jet transforms.
Poke Rangers SDI!
The five rangers pose. The Emergency Fearow Cannon flies from the roof of the train bay.
Poke Rangers SDI!
Mal and Tim run into a cave with a camcorder. They're chased out by a swarm of Zubat.
S... D.... I....
The Aura Carriers fly up off the track and into the sky. Aura Carrier Megazord forms.
Poke Rangers!
Poke Rangers: SDI. Created by Blue Bongo. Verger Region created by Blue Bongo. All other rights reserved.
Go!
"Okay, Darkia," Zork said, walking into the chamber at the peak at the Skull Tower. "Hope you've got a knife handy, because you're about to eat your words."
"Wow, that small modicum of success really went to your head," Joltara commented. "So, your Apprentice managed to defeat the rangers and you stole their Megazords. I bet in the next fortnight they've got them back and your Apprentice has completely betrayed you and joined the side of good."
"Now, whose being a pessimist," Ramelow pointed out. "I can't see it happening. You've got a pretty good grip on your Apprentice. Can't see him going off the rails and..."
"Just to be on the safe side," Darkia said, smugly. "You better hand the Megazords over to me and I'll keep them from falling back into the right hands."
"Not a chance," Zork replied. "I'm keeping a hold of them. In these..."
Holding up a pair of jewels, one red and one blue, all eyes in the room instantly fell towards them.
"... I can keep them for an eternity if need be, utilising all of their power. Not a chance I'm giving them to you. Knowing the way you tend to do things, you would probably lose them."
"I don't like your insolence," Darkia growled.
"Yet, I'm on the road to bringing down the enemies of Her Majesty," Zork said. "And, when I do that, I'll be taking your mantle."
"You succeed and I'll give you my mantle," Darkia replied, sarcastically. "So, what's your next plan of action?"
"You will soon see," Zork answered, cryptically. "But, I need Kable for it."
"Done," the demon summoner said, bouncing over. "I'm glad to be of service."
"I've never seen the base so... So panicked," Xavier said, looking out of the window. "Everyone seems to be on a state of high alert."
"Some of them are searching for the Megazords," Danni remarked. "Some are trying to find our new opponent. And Miranda is trying to build weapons."
"You think we should be out helping, rather than just sitting here and feeling sorry for ourselves?" Katie asked, removing the ice pack from her stomach. "I mean... We've been beaten before. We were knocked down, but we got back up and kicked the thing that knocked us down onto its ass."
"We weren't just beaten," Luke pointed out. "We were decimated. He couldn't have beaten us harder if he'd tried. He could have tied one hand around his back, and we'd still probably have been beaten."
"Bright side of life mean anything to you, Luke?" Katie said, wincing as she sat up in her chair. "Can you ever just focus on that little way of sunshine that's around us all?"
"You ever think you can get in the real damn picture?" the green ranger demanded. "There was no bright thing to grab hold of here. We lost, and you've got a huge bruise on your stomach to prove it. Xavier got blasted to absolute hell by that Draco Meteor, I was taken down..."
"That didn't hurt that much," Xavier said, trying to keep a straight face. "I've just been throwing up blood for the last few hours."
"Maybe Luke's got a point," Nahir remarked. "We were taken completely apart."
"Holy crap, the world has gone insane," Danni commented. "You two agreeing on something. We're all doomed here."
"I'm not saying we give up," Nahir said. "I'm saying that we go down to Miranda's lab and see if she's got anything at all that can cheer us up."
"She's not a magician," Luke began to say, before the other four rangers began to leave the rooom. Following the rest of them out, he couldn't help but shake his head.
"Well, we thought that you need a new weapon to take him on," Miranda said, looking over at them with a smile. "We toyed with what to come up with. From exploding boomerangs to something similar to what we came up with in the Dragon Staff."
"Don't look at me," Dominic remarked, watching Luke turn around to him, his mouth open to make a smart comment. "And, don't say it."
"What?" the green ranger asked, mock innocently. "No exploding chew toy?"
"Anyway, we finally decided," Miranda said, ignoring them. "And, here they are."
Opening the cabinet up behind them, the rangers all let out huge sighs of relief.
"Wow, they look awesome, Miranda," Xavier said. "Want to fill us in on them."
Nodding, she brought out one of the weapons. A piece of metal shaped like a Lugia's body, the limbs placed strategically to allow for a grip. The tail bent one way, before the body and wings bent the other, before the neck and head finally bent the same way as the tail. Connecting the appendages were rods of metal. Instead of the normal dark blue colour on the body, each one was a shade of one of the ranger colours.
"Like this, they may not look like much," she said. "But, do this..."
Pushing down on a hidden button somewhere, a pair of large blades erupted out of both ends of the handle, making the weapon twice as long.
"Double bladed weapons," she explained. "Lightweight, but deadly. Plus, you can combine them with your Defense Blasters to create a powerful beam weapon. If one of you were to use this attack combination, it would be incredibly potent. But, with all five of you doing it, you can call for the sacred Aeroblast strike. Even stronger than the Emergency Fearow."
"But, can it stand up to the Dragon Staff?" Katie asked.
"In theory, they can," Miranda replied. "Rangers, these are your Lugia Lancers."
"I take it all back," Luke said. "You are a magician."
"I pefer the term techno-witch," she said, with a grin. "But, you're all welcome."
Right on cue, the alarms began to sound all around them, and the monitor screens burst into life. Showing six very familiar demons on screen, wreaking havoc in Waterfall Shores.
"Oh crap," Xavier said. "Didn't we already destroy them? Theres' Tridigger."
"And Coolbee," Katie commented.
"Not Soundscreech," Luke muttered.
"Sablezing," Danni scowled, seeing the smoke demon. "Not her again."
"And, Firespeeder?" Nahir asked. "Did Zork bring them all back from the dead?"
"Wonder if this is part of some greater scheme," Dominic said, darkly. "But, I guess we won't know until it hits us all."
"Let's go and test the Lugia Lancers out on these revived demons," Katie remarked. "Should be an ideal time to see if they work or not."
"Right on," Danni said, picking up the weapon with the yellow trim. On cue, the rest of the rangers eached picked up the weapon in their colour, checking them over.
"Can't wait to see how this handles," Nahir remarked, grinning. "I'm going to give that damn Rapidash a taste of this."
"Let's go and get them," Xavier shouted, as they ran over to the elevator. "SDI! Time to battle!"
"Oh look!"
"The rangers are here," Zork said, with a smirk, as the five of them got out of the Defense Driver. "Welcome!"
"What the heck do you want?" Luke demanded. "And where did you find those five demons?"
"Brought them back from the dead," Zork replied, sarcastically. "From the underworld."
"We destoyed them before," Xavier said, stepping forward. "You really think that we won't do it again."
"Then please, prove it," Zork snickered, shrugging his shoulders. "If you destroy them all before the time limit, I'll give you your Megazords back."
"Why don't we believe you?" Katie demanded.
"Fine then, don't," the Angel of Death snapped. "Either way, you still have to destroy them. Otherwise, they'll destroy the city. How fast you do it is up to you."
"Fine, we'll beat your stupid game," Nahir yelled.
"Enjoy," Zork replied, before vanishing away from view. Leaving five demons and five rangers facing each other down.
"Something isn't right here," Danni said. "Better do it as quickly as possible."
"Amen to that," Katie remarked, glaring at Coolbee. "Let's kick some demon ass."
Tridigger had the body of a Diglett, but also had a moustache underneath the pink nose. There was a large pointed horn on his head and he wore a set of silver armour. At the end of his arms, were a pair of pointed drills. While, to complete the look, he walked on a set of legs similar looking to those on a Rhydon.
Coolbee was shaped like a yellow and black striped Poliwrath, with a blue swirl on the middle of the body. There were a pair of Beedrill wings on his back, and also a par of the stingets at the point where the white hands would normally be. Instead of a pair of erect eyes upon the demon's head, there was a giant Beedrill head.
Soundscreech looked like a giant Exploud, only he had black and blue fur. His tail was shaped like a microphone, and he had two mouths, and no ears. One to the left side of his face, one to the right.
Sablezing, was a purple and black demon with the body of a Sableye and the head of a Weezing. There was a toxic symbol on her stomach and the holes in the side of her head expelled out gas at random intervals. The eyes in her head were glittering diamonds which seemed to see through everything around them.
And finally, Firespeeder was a humanoid Rapidash demon with Fearow wings upon his back. Stood on two white furred legs with hooves at the bottom, he wore a belt made of brown feathers. On his upper body, which had two arms ending in Fearow talonned hands, he had flames covering the entire area. Atop his neck, he had a typical Rapidash head, but with a Fearow beak instead of a horn.
"No time like the present," Xavier said. "Let's do it. Lugia Lancers!"
Taking out the weapons, the rangers went to battle against their opponents, each picking the one that they had a personal history with.
"Come on!" Tridigger growled, bringing up his drills to slash at Xavier. "I'll cut you up and mutilate you!"
"Same thing, moron!" the red ranger replied, blocking the strike with his Lugia Lancer. "Then again, you never struck me as the brightest."
"You dare!" the demon snarled, trying to smash the weapon with his drills. But, it held strong against the assault, as Xavier parried it away. Returning the weapon back to slash at Tridigger, Xavier heard groans of pain as the blade cut against the thick rock-like skin.
Meanwhile, Danni was fighting Sablezing. Slashing at the smoke with her new weapon, trying to inflict some damage. Laughing in boredom, the demon formed into her corporeal form. And promptly got a Lancer through the face, the attack bringing a yell of pain from her.
"You bitch!" Sablezing howled. "You'll pay for that."
"Already am now I'm seeing you again," Danni quipped, withdrawing the blade and spinning around to strike her in the stomach. Doubling over, she managed to fire a Sludge Bomb towards the yellow ranger, the blast enough to send her staggering back.
"Is that all you got?" Danni asked, straightening up. "Didn't hurt."
"SO GOOD TO SEE YOU AGAIN!" Soundscreech roared, seeing Luke rushing towards him, the Lugia Lancer raised to attack.
"So good that Dominic insisted on some basic staff combat," the green ranger muttered, deflecting the waves of sound with his weapon. "It's more or less the same."
Jumping high above Soundscreech, he slashed the weapon against the demons head, bringing a belligerent bellow of pain from the demon. A bellow that was enough to send Luke a few extra feet into the air. Using the momentum, he managed to flip and drive the pointed edge of the Lancer back into Soundscreech's head.
Crashing her weapon against Firespeeder, Nahir was just trying to keep her focus on inflicting as much damage to the enemy as possible. Brushing her anger and fear towards the Pokemon back, she suddenly felt the blade crash against the wings of the demon.
"You don't have two other pink rangers to back you up this time," Firespeeder cackled, still blocking her.
"I don't need them," Nahir shot back, pulling the weapon away. Spinning around, she hacked at the area underneath the wings, the demon yelping in pain. Thrusting the blade up, she felt it cut through the wings easily, separating them from the rest of the body.
Finally, Katie was battling Coolbee. Managing to keep her composure, despite the memories of the creature infecting her with its poison. Blocking strikes with its needle arms with her Lugia Lancer, she spun the weapon up and managed to cut through the tips of the appendages. Causing the demon to howl in pain, a sound that was compounded as the blue ranger jerked her arms up and managed to hack the head off completely.
As the demon collapsed to the ground, the glamour faded away to reveal a Misdrabeing on the ground. Looking around, the blue ranger spotted that the other rangers had all defeated their opponents. And four other Misdrabeings were down defeated on the ground.
"What the heck?" Danni asked. "That's not right."
"Something wasn't right here," Luke commented, as the five of them regrouped. "I mean... There's no possible reason why they would disguise a couple of Misdrabeings as demons like we thought before... Unless..."
"Aquabase, come in," Xavier said, using the communicator in his helmet. "Do you read me?"
"Rangers," Miranda replied, almost shouting with anger. "You better get back here right now. We know what happened."
"Well, that's a relief," Katie remarked. "Let's go."
Upon arriving back in the main control deck of the Aquabase, the rangers were shocked to find the place in disarray. A hole had been blown in the wall, and several pools of blood were on the ground. Yet to be cleaned up. Dominic and Miranda were stood by the main console, watching and waiting for them to come back.
"No!" Danni shouted. "No way!"
"I'm sorry to tell you this," Miranda said, sadly. "But, that battle against those demons was a diversion. Just to get you out of here."
"Someone's been taken," Dominic said, shaking his head. "While you weren't here."
"So, who is he?" Nahir asked. "Who was taken?"
"While you were distracted, Gold Ranger got in here and kidnapped the Commander," Dominic said, causing the rangers to gasp. "By the time we knew anything was wrong, it was too late."
"This wasn't anyone's fault," Xavier said. "We couldn't have known this was going to happen. And, if we'd stuck here just in case, those demons would have destroyed the city."
"Now, we need to get him back," Miranda remarked. "I've got the satellites scanning the area for anything, but..."
"Can't you just follow his locator chip?" Katie asked. "Like when you were grabbed by Ramelow?"
"Something's blocking its signal," she replied. "We've got to search manually."
"Miss Underwood."
Looking around to see who was speaking, Miranda caught sight of one of the technicians.
"Yes, Joel?" she said. "What is it?"
"We've got an incoming transmission from somewhere," he replied. "Can't trace the source."
"Put it up on the big screen," Dominic ordered.
As the technician did so, a huge image of Zork appeared on the screen, arms folded.
"Long time no see, Rangers," he snickered, the twin jewels around his neck. "Well, other than that moment about half an hour ago. I see you defeated my demons. Too bad it took you too long. So, I keep your Megazords."
Almost as if to rub it in, he held the two jewels up.
"Okay, chuckles," Katie said. "Where's the Commander?"
"I'm sorry, I don't know who you're talking about," the Angel of Death replied, sarcastically. "Can you be a little more specific. Commander of Queen Misteria's armies. I can rustle him up for you. Although, he doesn't speak your language, so you might have to mime."
"Commander Bristow, bird brain!" Nahir yelled. "Your psycho student took him. Where is he?"
"Oh, him," Zork said, airily. "He's safe for the moment. At least I think he might be. My Apprentice is currently standing guard. And, that is why I'm here."
Losing his calm demeanour, he stood to attention, his face growing more serious by the second.
"If you ever want to see him again, come to the docks in Waterfall Shores. Come unmorphed. If I see any colours, then the Commander loses a finger. All five of you."
"Well, this is obviously a trap," Luke said, sarcastically.
"Clearly," Zork replied, rolling his eyes. "Oh well, I'll be sure to let the Commander know that you were too cowardly to come and help him."
"Oh we'll be there," Xavier said. "And, if we don't see the Commander upon arrival..."
"You'll hang around and wait for my terms," Zork demanded. "I've got all the cards here. You can't dictate anything at all. I'll see you in an hour."
"What's depressing," Danni said, as the image faded away. "Is that he's right. And that a jibe about cowardice was enough to wind up Xavier."
"Hey!" the red ranger exclaimed. "We still need to get Bristow back. I was just trying to psych him out."
"Failed miserably," Luke muttered.
"Whatever, we're going to be there," Xavier said. "We're not going to be morphed, as he said. But, there was nothing about not being able to take our morphers."
"Cunning," Katie remarked. "Did you literally make that up on the spot?"
"Why thank you, I did."
"Well, you got him," Zork remarked, as the Apprentice hurled Bristow to the ground in front of him. "Congratulations."
"It's not done until he no longer draws breath," the Apprentice said, angrily. "You want me to torture him and..."
"That is not the way," the Angel of Death remarked, sounding shocked. "We do not torture our enemies no matter the cause. We just make their deaths as painful as possible as a warning to others. Torture is a human method. Then again, that's all I can expect from you. For it to be in your nature."
"I apologise, my Master," the Gold Ranger replied, bowing his head in what could have been shame.
"You can't change who you are, I suppose," Zork said, grimly. "No matter how much I have tried. But, no torture."
"Wait, you were human once?" Bristow asked, looking at the Apprentice. "Then, why..."
"Silence, fool!" Zork thundered. "You're gaining nothing from us. Even if you do, you won't be around long enough to use whatever small trifles you might gather."
"I'll take care of it," the Gold Ranger said, looking down at the man on the ground. "Don't worry."
"They lie and they decieve," Zork warned. "He will tell you anything to save his own skin."
"I won't fall for his tricks."
"Then, all is coming to fruition," Zork laughed, vanishing away. Leaving the Apprentice and the Commander alone in the dark building. "Take care of him and we should be sitting pretty. When you've done that, come help me destroy the rangers. Even with their new weapons, they will be no match for the two of us."
Bowing his head, the Apprentice waited for all traces of the Angel of Death to completely vanish, before grabbing the Commander by the throat.
"Time for you to say good night," he snarled. "Soon, your pathetic band of rangers will be gone and the might of the Queen will reign supreme."
"You are a human?" Bristow asked. "Why do you follow the demons? Why...?"
Throwing him back against the wall, the Apprentice didn't reply, just watching as Bristow slid down and hit the ground in pain.
"You don't have to do this," the Commander muttered, spitting out blood. "You can always rebel..."
"Why would I rebel against the only being to ever show me any love," the Apprentice demanded. "Queen Misteria is my mother. For twelve years, she has loved me and..."
"Twelve years?" Bristow said, suddenly butting in. "There's a problem there. If we're talking human terms, you sound more like twenty years old. So, where were you for the first eight years of your life?"
"I don't know and I don't care," the Apprentice snapped. "If I had a human family, they're probably glad I'm gone. Because your entire race is deceitful. Untrustworthy. Murderous and shallow. They made the show of mourning, but once the pathetic excuse for a funeral was over, their lives returned to normal."
"There was never a funeral," Bristow said, finally breaking his silence.
"What?" the Apprentice demanded. "What did you just say?"
"I said that there was never a funeral," the Commander replied. "Twelve years ago, I had a son... An eight year old son. The light of my life. The reason that I walked away from my previous dangerous job and became the father that he would have deserved."
"Is there a point to this story?"
Ignoring him, Bristow continued on with the tale, his voice trembling as the words tumbled out of his mouth.
"But, fate conspired against me," he said, the words cracking in his mouth. "With the boy's mother already sick... With my wife sick, life was tough. I took him to the park one day... And before I knew it there was an attack. Gunshots. He was hit. My Andrew was hit with a stray shot in the neck. There was so much blood. I thought that I was going to lose him for sure. No way could he have survived. The paramedic said the same."
Taking a moment to pause, the Commander could notice a slight change in the demeanour of the Apprentice. The Dragon Staff had become lowered, ever so slightly.
"I was riding in the back of the ambulance with him, holding his hand. praying and hoping that something would happen to save him. In short, I was hoping for a miracle. And, as the colour drained from his face, I saw something. At the time, I believed it was a miracle, but I know differently now. Black smoke appeared above his body and spoke to me. A female voice told me that she could save his life. That he would go on living, only in the darkest of dimensions at her side. And, should he survive that, I would see him again in twelve years. I didn't believe what she said was possible, but I was desperate so I did what any parent would do. I said yes. Begged her to save his life. And, right in front of me, my son vanished. Never to be seen again."
Rubbing at his eyes with the back of his hand, Bristow finally spoke again, to finish the story.
"In that twelve years, I discovered that the smoke and the voice were a trick of Queen Misteria. She sensed an opportunity and leaped out of the depths to take my son back with her. That's why I agreed to join SDI. So I could eventually find my son again one day."
"Who are you?" the Apprentice demanded, his legs giving way as he dropped to his knees. "And, why do I feel this emotion?"
"Because," Bristow replied, holding out his hand. "Unless I'm very much mistaken... I'm your father. And you are my son."
At his words, the Apprentice let out a gasp of shock, his head dropping.
"That's... Not possible," he said. "Really, it's not."
"Andrew," Bristow said, getting to his feet and walking towards the gold ranger. "I'm your father."
"No!"
"I'm your father!"
"You're not!"
"I am..." Bristow insisted, sensing a breakthrough. "... Your father."
This time, the reaction showed. The levee finally broke, the gold ranger armour vanishing away to reveal the blue haired teenager sat on a crate looking forlorn.
"She told me that you didn't care!" Andrew yelled. "So..."
"Calm down," Bristow said, before noticing the scar on his cheek. "Where did you get that? Who gave it to..."
"It was Zork," Andrew replied, sullenly. "I deserved it. We were training and I lost concentration..."
"Nothing gave him the right to..."
"I deserved it!" the teenager yelled. "Okay! Why do you care? You never even searched for me! You claim you did, but I bet that..."
"I did!" Bristow said, speaking softly before noticing a strange purple glow emanating around from his sons hand. As Andrew brought it up, he was suddenly powerless to move. Powerless to break away as his son placed his hand on his forehead. Only holding it there for a moment, before breaking away, his skin going pale at what he had seen.
"It's all true," he said. "You... You're not lying. But, Zork said that..."
"Just calm down," his father said, noticing the golden Pokeball around his sons neck. "I'm not lying. Humans do lie. But, not all the time and sometimes for good reason. When I told your mother that you'd gone to a better place, I honestly hoped that it was true. And, how did you know I wasn't lying?"
"I'm empathic," Andrew replied. "Can sense emotions mainly. But, in certain situations, I can get surface memories off things. That's how I broke into your safe. Managed to gain a fragment of a past time when you put the code in. Still fresh. It's actually how I managed to figure out the morpher and the weapon so quickly."
"That's amazing," Bristow said, surprised. "When did you learn to do that?"
"Honestly?" he answered. "I don't know. As far back as I remember, I just knew how to do it."
"So, that's how you got the morpher then," the Commander replied. "Interesting."
"You mean when I broke into SDI to steal it," Andrew answered, folding his arms. "Came in through the plunge pool. You want it back..."
He tossed it over to Bristow, shaking his head.
"Take it," he finished, bitterly. "All the training I've done, it's all been based on a lie. On something that anything that wasn't a demon was evil. Now I've met you, I..."
"Andrew, you're not to blame for any of this," Bristow said. "Not all humans are evil, but for the most part, these demons are evil. They're being lead by an evil space mutant from the future who wants to burn the entire planet to the ground. He's corraling them to that point."
"I thought I was doing a good thing," the teenager continued, sadly. "Even when I beat the rangers, I was so proud. Nothing more than to make my Master pleased. Now, he'll probably reject me. Be grateful if he doesn't destroy me himself."
"Listen to me, Andrew," Bristow said, before pulling off. "Oh damn, he'll be attacking the rangers right now."
"I need to find him," the Apprentice muttered, getting to his feet. "Need to clear my head."
Turning around and heading for the door, Bristow made the decision for one final gambit.
"Son," he said, watching Andrew turn around to see what he wanted. "Catch."
At the movement of his arm, the morpher sailed through the air, caught by the blue haired boy.
"I know that you'll make the right decision if you need to."
Finally managing a smile, Andrew pocketed the device and carried on out of the room.
"Alright, where is he?" Xavier shouted, as he and the other four unmorphed rangers arrived onto the scene. "He better show up, because he's starting to annoy me. Zork needs an ass kicking."
"Don't disagree with you there," Luke muttered.
"There's a shock," Nahir said, sarcastically. "Normally, you..."
Before she could finish her words, another orb of black fire came crashing down out of the sky, completely taking them by surprise. As it exploded against the sidewalk, they were thrown up into the air by the explosion and sent crashing to the ground.
"Well, look at that," the Angel of Death remarked, swooping down on his wings. "You actually came. Bravery is always a prize asset, but stupidity isn't."
"Give the Commander back!" Katie shouted, trying to get back to her feet, before collapsing again holding her stomach. "And our Zords."
"You look in pain there," Zork laughed, the rangers down on the ground, unable to move. "And, all it took to bring you down was one. Not me, but him. Twisted by demon blood, what once was a human is now a monster. A monster I created. A beast. Neither human nor demon, something that won't ever be accepted by either race."
"Zork!"
Looking around in surprise, the Angel of Death saw Andrew striding over to him, an annoyed look on his face.
"Watch your manners, Apprentice," he snapped. "Did you take care of the Commander?"
"No, I let him walk away," Andrew replied, sarcastically. "I'm not a monster. And, I'm not your Apprentice any longer. Yeah, I know how you've being lying to me from the start. It ends now!"
"You would betray me?" Zork demanded, bringing his sword up. "I shall tear your limbs from your body."
"You can try," Andrew said, taking out the golden Pokeball. "But, I'm about to stand with humanity. You reap what you sow. And you have sewn me."
Pushing down on the button, he activated the device. The Pokeball bursting to life in his hand.
"SDI! Time to battle!"
Instantly, he transformed into the armour, taking up a battle stance against Zork. Much to the clear chagrin of the Angel of Death.
"Last chance," he warned. "Renounce your betrayal and I might only take three of your fingers as penance."
"You've already taken so much from me," Andrew replied, staring down the opponent. "Nothing else. You're going down. Master."
Growling in anger, Zork brought out his knife, transforming it into its sword form. In retaliation, Andrew brought out the Dragon Staff, extending it out to its full length.
"Anyone know what's going on?" Danni wondered, watching the two of them circle each other. Both daring the other to make the first move.
"Not a clue, but it looks like it's on," Luke quipped. "Maybe they'll destroy each other and do us all a favour."
Finally making the decision to attack, Andrew leaped forward, swinging the staff. Only for his strike to be blocked by Zork's sword, the clang ringing out around the area. Laughing out loud, the Angel of Death went on an attack of his own, thrusting his sword towards the gold ranger who easily blocked it with his staff. Dropping down to the ground, he tried to aim for Zork's legs, while the foe went up into the air using his wings.
"Really got to take it up a level," he said, without a trace of irony or sarcasm in his voice.
Ignoring him, Andrew brought the weapon back, pushing down on the button. As Zork landed back on the ground, he slammed the Staff into the ground.
"Earth Strike!"
As the weapon crashed into the ground, a huge shock wave rang out, managing to send Zork crashing back off his feet.
"You'll pay for that!" he howled, jumping back into the air. Black flames began to crackle from his hands. "With interest."
"Bring it on!" Andrew yelled, knowing instantly what was coming. Already, he was preparing the staff to try and block it.
"Sacred Fire of Darkness!"
"Miror Coat!"
With Zork unleashing the burst of black flames towards the gold ranger, Andrew thrust the staff in front of the blast, spinning it like a baton to try and reflect the energy back towards the Angel of Death.
Grunting with the effort, he managed to deflect it down into the ground, where it faded into nothing.
"What?" Zork yelled. "Nothing blocks that attack!"
"I just did," Andrew shouted. "And, I guess you trained me too well. Because you're going down!"
At his words, the staff began to glow with a golden blue light.
"Dragon Fury Attack!"
Leaping through the air, Andrew sent the Dragon Staff crashing against the body of the Angel of Death, bringing a howl of agony from the demon.
"You... You!" he roared. "Nobody does that to me! I'll be back for revenge. One of us is going to end up destroyed come the end of it!"
"Any time any place," Andrew shouted, as Zork vanished into thin air. Leaving just the six rangers alone. "I'll be waiting."
Drawing deep breaths, the gold ranger turned around to see the other rangers on their feet, looking at him with interest.
"Okay," Xavier said. "We've got a lot to discuss."
"Indeed," Andrew replied. "That would appear to be an understatement."
Bending down to the ground, he scooped something up in his hands and held them out to the other rangers. A red jewel and a blue one. Right where they had been dropped by Zork.
"But, I believe these belong to you."
Crushing his hand shut, the jewels shattered under his grip. The energy released from within them, the SDI Megazord and the Guardian Battlezord appeared behind him.
"Well, aren't you full of surprises," Danni remarked.
To Be Continued...
Author's Notes.
Whew. Action.
And, it never goes right for the bad guys, huh? All it took was a little empathic help from his father... And Andrew joins the team. Well, helps them out. Is he going to join the team permanently? Well, you'll have to wait and see.
Half way through the arc. And then we're back to regular action.
Anyway, thanks for the reviews. All appreciated.
Next chapter... The Arbok's Curse. Part One.
Heh, another two parter. Preview below. Also, new credits next chapter.
Okay, so thanks for reading.
Don't forget to review! Please!
Chapter Twenty Two, The Arbok's Curse, Part One, Preview.
Bristow: You're welcome on the team, if you want it.
Andrew: I don't know.
Zork: You would dare to betray me! Suffer the consequences.
Katie: What is it?
Zork: When the Arbok reaches your throat, you will perish. Tick tock, Apprentice.
Xavier: Can't that guy ever give up?
Andrew: Apprently not.
Coming soon.