Episode 19: Part 1

As the griffin zord passed overhead, a pair of angelic Vanguard Rangers swiftly dove down upon the battlefield like hunting birds pouncing upon their prey. Captain Barbatos's eyes grew wide in surprise as a female White Ranger swooped over the battle with her Keyrune, laying down an arctic sheet of paralyzing ice on the enemy troops. Right behind her, a male Red Ranger followed up and crisscrossed her pattern, spraying a searing jet of flames into the monsters' ranks. As they made another pass, the White Vanguard Ranger summoned her bright bow and strafed the foot soldiers with another punishing hail of deadly icy arrows.

"All right!" Hannah cheered giving a wave to their newly arrived allies, "Now that's what I call an air-strike!"

The Red and White Rangers swooped back around and touched down near their old teammates. The Red Vanguard Ranger summoned his straight saber sword and ignited it with elemental fire, "Sorry we're late everyone. We got here as fast as we could."

"Joe Hale, am I glad to see you," Danny sighed as he clapped his leader's shoulder and let him take command again, "We'll fill you in later, but we've got a little tag team throw-down going on right now."

The White Ranger glanced over and saw a pack of Magog and Nightmarcher troops regrouping to attack again. Turning to her own spouse, she gestured over toward the monsters, "Shall I? Or do you want to take this, dear?"

The Red Vanguard Ranger smiled and traced a bright sigil with his Keyrune, summoning a golden suit of armor and another pair of wings, "I've got this one Claire. Besides… I could use the practice."

The Ocean Rangers watched in awe as the enhanced Red Vanguard Ranger surged forward and tore into the combined might of the Magogs and Nightmarchers. The air rippled with heat as Joe slashed his way through the foot soldiers with the grace and precision of a veteran swordsman. As he tumbled through the melee and parried aside stray blows, he spread his four wings, using them as offensive weapons to batter the last of the enemies aside.

"Wow!" Alex cheered as she shoved General Kuta away for a moment, "What a way to make an entrance!"

"I know, right? I've gotta find me some snazzy armor like that too!" Desmond added with an awestruck laugh.

Seeing their forces fall into disarray before the Red Vanguard Ranger, General Kuta waved the survivors over, "Fall back! We got what we came for!"

The mollusk warrior opened his maw and sprayed a dark inky cloud of smoke that blanketed his immediate surroundings allowing the Benthic-Cambion forces to retreat. As the smoke cleared and the adrenaline of battle tapered off, the two teams of Rangers powered down and gathered around their newest arrivals. Danny was the first to put an affectionate arm over Claire, a petite Chinese-American woman with glasses, "Hey! Long time no see. What's up, Doc?"

Like David, Claire (Li) Hale was a medical doctor by profession and she gave a gentle eye roll before returning the hug with a smile. "Nice to see you again Danny. Even if your wedding was less than a week ago."

Nearby, Joe Hale was greeted warmly with a hug from Izzy and another bearhug from his best friend Nick. As he stepped away from his old team for a moment, he turned to address the Ocean Rangers. Even in his college days, Hale had never had any particularly striking or patrician features, but now that he was older and more experienced, he carried a strong aura of calm but refined authority about him. Whether it was more from his ancient connection to the great Archangel Auriel, or the wisdom of being a veteran Red Ranger, it was hard to tell.

"Ocean Rangers, it's good to finally meet you," he began with a smile, "Danny gave me the basics about what was going on here so just know that we're here and ready to help in any way."

Desmond stepped forward and shook hands with his older counterpart while giving a reverent bow of the head, "Thanks Mr. Hale… uh, sir. We really appreciate it. I'm sure you already saw that things are getting a little crazy here."

Desmond was interrupted as he heard Naomi trying to break free of Cam and Hannah, who had been gently restraining her, "We have to go! We have to hurry now! They have my Dad and God knows how many other people!"

"Naomi please, you have to calm down!" Hannah urged her, "We need to take a breath and just sort everything out right now."

Joe nodded and glanced toward the small crowd of shaken people who had almost been taken prisoner, "Right. First thing's first. Claire, Nick, and Izzy, go see to any of the injured. Kara and Danny, I want you both to do a quick sweep of the area to make sure it's safe."

As the other Vanguard Rangers nodded and went to work, David stepped forward and headed toward the civilians, "I'm a doctor. I'll help with the injured too."

While David went to help Claire, Joe turned to Desmond with a grimace, "It's too bad we couldn't meet under better circumstances. Do you have any suggestions about what to do for the hostages that were taken?"

"I'm afraid not," Desmond sighed, "But once we're done here, I'll take you to someone who might."

Later that day, both teams of Vanguard and Ocean Rangers assembled at Ocean Point temple to confer with the great tiki Kanohi. Now it was time for the visiting Vanguard Rangers to stand in awe, marveling at the temple ruins and the mystical kahuna before them.

"Welcome to Hawaii Vanguard Rangers," the tiki said gravely in a deep voice, "I'm sorry you've been dragged into our conflict with the sea witch Hine Nui. She will stop at nothing to overrun these islands and reestablish her power over the oceans."

"All the more reason for us to assist your Rangers then," Joe answered solemnly. "Besides, we'd be pretty crummy Power Rangers if we didn't."

After a pause, David stepped forward, "Kanohi, I was thinking… our enemies are likely performing a ritual to summon a terrible sea monster… one the Vanguard Rangers called Leviathan. Why would they be taking human prisoners? Is there some kind of… blood sacrifice that is part of the ritual?"

Kanohi pondered the question for a long moment, his glowing eyes flickering with magical fire before speaking again. "No. If Hine Nui is using the kind of spell that I think she is, then she requires something physical from the subject being called, such as hair or skin. Ultimately the spell is supposed to be dispersed into the water and attract the beast that way."

Hannah furrowed her own brow in thought, "But why the people then? Is Hine Nui trying to lure us in by taking hostages?"

The Rangers fell silent before Claire gave a hesitant look and adjusted her own glasses, "It's possible... but maybe it's not to lure us in… perhaps it's a lure for the monster instead."

"Hold the phone… you mean like the bait at the end of a giant fishing hook?" Desmond exclaimed in shock, "Those people are going to be monster chow?"

Naomi's face blanched and she suddenly felt sick to her stomach, "Then what are we waiting for? We have to find out where the people are being held!"

"The question is, how?" Danny muttered crossing his arms, "No doubt they're going to be herded onto the coastline, but it's still a big island. We could maybe split up and start flying along the coast?"

Alex grimaced and thought of her brother Isaac, "We're kinda short on both time and manpower. Unless there was some way for the Navy and Air Force to lend a hand…"

At that moment, Cam felt his phone vibrate in his pocket and he pulled it out, seeing that it was a call from Captain Ramos. He shot the others an apologetic look and gestured toward a corner of the temple ruins, "Excuse me everyone… I really need to take this."

As he stepped aside to take the call, the others gathered back around Kanohi. After a few minutes of quietly chatting amongst each other, the Blue Ocean Ranger returned to the meeting and put his phone away while gesturing for the others to pay attention. As he spoke, Cam wore a grave expression, "Well guys… that was the Navy. Captain Ramos just said that the Fleet detected this Leviathan thing again. It's close and it's on a definite crash course with Oahu."

"Do they know where Leviathan is going to land?" Naomi asked desperately.

The Blue Ranger nodded, "Somewhere on the southeast tip of the island. Maybe around Hanauma Bay… but it's just a ballpark guess. Ramos said he's leading a small naval task force there to intercept the monster right now."

Desmond nodded and cracked his knuckle, "If that's the case, I'm willing to bet the prisoners will be there too. Looks like it's time for us to mount a good old fashioned rescue operation."

He glanced to the Red Vanguard Ranger and gave a sheepish look, 'Err… sorry, I didn't mean to step on any toes. What do you think?"

Joe gave a gentle smile to his eager young counterpart, "It's a good idea, but we'll have to be smart about it. First priority will still be getting the civilians clear and keeping the Navy forces from any direct harm."

Alex gave a quick look to Kanohi before turning the Red Vanguard Ranger, "Will you be leading this attack?"

Joe smiled and shook his head before Kara spoke, "Actually, we figured you could take point on this one. This is your home island and the stakes are personal for you."

Izzy stepped forward and put a reassuring hand on the Yellow Ranger's shoulder, "Don't worry Naomi. I promise you we'll do everything we can to rescue your father and all the other people too."

"All right. Then it's settled," Desmond nodded to all his new allies, "Let's regroup and head for Hanauma Bay."

As the twelve heroes adjourned their meeting, and left the temple ruins, they prepared to head back out into their next great battle... a battle in which no one was quite certain about what to expect either. While the Vanguard Rangers were fighting some familiar enemies, they were still in a strange new environment and unfamiliar with the terrain.

Instead of the familiar mountains and flat plains around Hyperion Falls, Hawaii offered its own surprises in the form of wild jungles and unpredictable coastlines. Similarly, the Ocean Rangers were fighting in their own environment, but the new Cambion enemies were ones who still had very different fighting styles and approaches toward battle. Now more than ever, it would be important for the two teams to rely on each other and complement their advantages too.

Some time later, the joint Cambion-Benthic forces assembled on the coastline of Hanauma Bay. As it was part of a lush nature preserve area, the distinct ring-shaped bay served as a secluded point for Hine Nui's servants to welcome the great sea beast onto the island. While General Kuta and Captain Barbatos kept their small crowd of abducted prisoners corralled with their troops, Mujina made herself busy with a large glass decanter containing a glowing green liquid.

The concoction created to attract Leviathan had been brewed by Hine Nui and was now ready to be tested. From where he was sitting and watching beside a few other miserable prisoners, Mr. Sato watched as Mujina chanted a few words in a foul sounding language and poured the magical liquid into the waters of the bay.

After a minute or two of silence, Barbatos turned to Kuta, "Did it work? Where is Leviathan?"

The mollusk warrior snorted, "Give it time. My Queen's spells always work. What we should concern ourselves with, is if this will be enough to appease that beast's hunger when it arrives."

As he spoke, the swamp hag Mujina returned to the two and crossed her arms, "It's been done. Now all we have to do... is wait. It's not like these human sheep here will be going anywhere either."

"That's where you're wrong swamp thing," a defiant voice called out, causing the villains to all turn in unison. As they did, they spotted twelve unmorphed Power Rangers walking up the beach to confront their enemies. "Those human sheep will be coming with us," Desmond announced standing front and center of the combined formation.

Kuta sneered and began to laugh, "You must be joking Red Ranger. You're far too late. There's no way you will be able to stop Leviathan from being summoned. He's already been called and he's going to eat these humans prisoners."

"Then I guess we'll have to take care of this quickly," Joe called, "Unless you'd like to offer yourself up as an appetizer for Leviathan instead."

Barbatos stepped beside Hine Nui's generals and drew his weapon addressing the Vanguard team, "Go back home Red Ranger. You have no business being here. This is not your fight."

"The hell it is," Alex interjected as she cracked her knuckles, "If you're helping our enemy Hine Nui, then you're going to get your demon butt kicked just like everyone else."

Nearby, Desmond saw Naomi clench her fists toward where the prisoners were being fenced in by several monster foot soldiers. Under her breath, the Yellow Ranger murmured quietly, "Hang on Dad... I won't let you down now."

Giving a nod, Desmond raised his Ocean Bracer, "Ok everyone, these monsters don't seem to know who they're dealing with. I think it's time we got their attention."

As the other Ocean Rangers followed suit, the Vanguard Rangers produced their Keyrunes and raised them up. At once, the two teams simultaneous cried out their morphing calls as they were enveloped in bright colorful light, "Point Break! / Vanguard Ascend!"

"Fierce as the Raging Volcanoes, Red Ocean Ranger"
"Steady as the Surging Tides, Blue Ocean Ranger"
"Free as the Howling Winds, Yellow Ocean Ranger"
"Vibrant as the Verdant Earth, Green Ocean Ranger"
"Bright as the Shining Sunlight, Pink Ocean Ranger"
"Fearless as the Coming Dawn, Orange Ocean Ranger"

"The Radiant Torch, Vanguard Red!"
"The Swirling Tempest, Vanguard Blue!"
"The Rumbling Mountain, Vanguard Green!"
"The Stinging Blizzard, Vanguard White!"
"The Dancing Whirlwind, Vanguard Pink!"
"The Surging Thunderbolt, Vanguard Gold!"

"The Light of the Past, and the Hope of the Future!" the angelic Rangers chorused together amid a radiant nimbus of light.

At the forefront of the charge, the Ocean Rangers grouped together and summoned their weapons amid a colorful splash of watery light, "Riding the Waves to Victory!"

As Joe gave a nod to Desmond, the Red Ocean Ranger leveled his spear toward the three enemy commanders and their squads of enemy foot soldiers, "They're not going to stop this wave! Let's wipe them out everyone!"

Following his charge, the combined twelve Rangers surged forward, hoping to defeat the enemy and rescue the hostages before an even bigger problem could surface.

A/N:
Hey readers, sorry for the little delay! I've been on Best Man duty for a big wedding this past weekend. Once I catch up on some sleep, I'll be updating again soon and finish the next few crossover chapters. Thanks for your patience!