Chapter 37: He Who Fights

An hour later and things had changed.

Two giant monsters towered above the weary Rangers, locked in combat with the Sparkling Unizord and the Wolf Shogunzord. The thousands of monsters that had swarmed through Canterlot like a plague of locusts had shrunk to more than a few hundred and there was a garbled report from the fringes of the battle that a monster had been prevented from growing thanks to an extremely charged up blast from one of the human Rangers. It wasn't as much as Applejack didn't believe it; she just wished the guards at the edge had gotten their information correct. A monster destroyed on the fringes of the battle had started to grow after it had exploded, but it had been destroyed by a wayward blast from the Unizord. Discord had left the battle soon after that, muttering something about conserving his remaining power and had taken Tricksy with him.

The Crystal Rangers were one of the only Rangers still fighting with the same energy and imaginative tactics as they had started with, whereas the rest of them were letting the monsters come to them. Shaking her head, Applejack lifted her head to the other Ranger who was fighting like his life depended on it: the Orange Ranger and his battle with Night Shade. Sometime during the growth of the second monster and the destruction of the third, Xonix had changed into a half reptile, half pony form that seemed to be slightly more powerful than his full dragon or pony forms. As it was, the Orange Ranger had been forced to call upon the Hellfire Armour just for the energy boost. Lazily blasting one of the remaining creatures, she settled back to watch the fight.

Weihan clenched his teeth together as the ground in front of him exploded in sparks. He had been barely aware of anything else going on around him since the battle had begun, yet he was all too aware of his flagging energy reserves. The Power from his Ultra Crystal wasn't the problem here as it would keep him safe from harm as long as the armour held out, the issue was with his own strength and since he had the 'brilliant' thought to skip out on breakfast in the morning…well; he was sorely regretting that decision now. The only things he was running on were 'fumes'…and the taunts by the creature in front of him.

"Is that all you've got? The years have not been kind to your skills!"

Ducking a slash from Xonix's blade, he wondered how a change to the features of the Overlord could somehow make him more menacing. By all accounts, a crocodile with hair sprouting from the back of its head, neck and tail should have left him wide open as he rolled on the ground laughing. However, the murderous look in Xonix's eyes was enough to flatten any feelings of mirth that were bubbling up. Blocking the blade with the Dragonbreath Blade, he thrust his Raptor Sabre towards the monstrosity, cutting deep into its side. Pushing more fire into the blade, he smiled under his helmet as the wound instantly – and painfully – cauterised. A small part of him recoiled at the amount of glee he was feeling while doing it, but it was swiftly beaten back by the rest of his mind. In any case, it was natural and normal to feel pleasure at beating the crap out someone who had made your life a living Hell for a few years…right? His voice sounded slightly alien to him.

"At least I'm doing better than you. Feeling a bit drained there?"

Xonix snarled and swung his tail up to the helmet of the Ranger. At least the meddlesome boy hadn't noticed his, rather obvious, earpiece. The same earpiece that was relaying information to him regarding the battle on the other side of the Dimensional Wall. All things considered, the Ultra Rangers were doing slightly better than he thought they would. Four out of six cruisers were destroyed and the remaining two were heavily damaged. The battleship had a few new dents in it, but they wouldn't be able to get through the Centaurus Shield without something of equal or greater strength. And with the Orange Ranger currently occupied with him, their chances would be extremely thin.

"What I have left is more than enough to defeat you!"

A large explosion sounded nearby and Xonix braced himself for the backlash. It didn't come as swiftly as the first monster that had been destroyed, but the after-effects came with more than double the force. His knees buckled slightly as all of his energy drained out within seconds, coming back literally drip by drip. His magic hold on his blade faltered for just a tiny second and he swore as a well-placed strike from the main blade of the Orange Ranger knocked it from his grasp. Shaking his head, he backed away and gathered his remaining magic to him. He would not fall to the Rangers, not here and not now. He saw the final giant beast topple and fall under an onslaught of light blue energy and cried out in agony as the second backlash wave brought him to his knees. The voice of the Orange Ranger sounded above him like the voice of Dark Spectre. There was no way he could stay the hand of the Orange Ranger as he was too consumed by his desire to kill. Wait…

"You're on your last legs now, Xonix. All you need is one slip-up before you face death once more."

Xonix snickered under his breath as a plan began to form. Yes, he could use that to buy time for himself to rest and heal. Of course, he would be sidelined with a blasted Power Coma but it would be worth it. And if the Trotters had done the job he had asked them to do during the battle…well; it would make things all the sweeter. Opening his snout, he injected as much irony in his voice as he could.

"Truly pathetic. Is this what you've become now? A person hell-bent on destroying a perceived enemy? Careful now, you're starting to become appealing to me as a general in my army."

As he had hoped, the words had the desired effect on the Ranger. He could imagine his face twisting in horror and anger, while some small part of his mind agreed with the words. As the Ranger dropped his weapons in denial, he began casting a recall spell that would take him back to his Lair. He just hoped he completed it before the Power Coma hit.

"What? I'm nothing like you or your monsters!"

"He who fights monsters must take care to ensure that he does not become a monster…one of your kind said that. Has the abyss stared back yet?"

Spell completed, Xonix held up his claws in mock surrender as the unseen energies flowed over him. He was just glad to be away from the battle before the Orange Ranger had summoned his Battlizer. Even though it had been two years, he still felt an irrational fear at seeing it. A quick glance at the left wrist of the Orange Ranger showed that his 'surrender' had come seconds before the Orange Ranger would have activated it. By now, the human inside would be doubting himself and second-guessing his motivations. He had seen it happen a thousand times in the past and had used that tactic to fully convert Jabarkas to his side. There was just one final nail that needed to be twisted…and he would take all the pleasure in the world to make it have the desired effect.

"Alas, this battle is not mine. I concede defeat. The battle is yours, as it was always. Your friends at home…not so lucky."

Weihan's eyes widened in shock as he heard the gasps of the others behind him, already regretting not leaving any sort of message before leaping through the portal. His mind threw off the thoughts with a violent shake. The other Rangers could easily take down anything that Xonix threw their way. After all, they could call upon the other Rangers around the globe and Universe for help. Yet, they needed his leadership to stay strong when things reached their lowest point. On the other hand, they had led themselves rather well when he had died…but he had to save them from a rash and reckless suicide attack so there was that. Stepping back, he shook himself once more and forced himself to focus through his internal doubts.

His friends were Ultra Rangers and they had cultivated a support system of Rangers all over the world that could come to them at a moment's notice. They wouldn't be alone against whatever monster or destructive force Jabarkas had sent on Xonix's orders. As the feeling begun to wrap around him, a face flashed up in his mind's eye. Bree would be in the firing line. She was unarmed, unarmoured and would be an easy target, even with her communicator giving her a quick exit. If anything happened to her, AJ would never want to reconcile in the future and…he shook his head. He had to focus on the present moment and not think about what was more than likely happening across the divide. Xonix, seemingly oblivious to his distress, continued on in an annoyingly calm voice that was laced with the barest hint of pain.

"I won't be surprised if there is nothing more than a crater where your home was. The portion of my fleet that was sent will be more than enough to destroy any resistance."

Calling on the full force of his magic, he thrust his hands out to the reptilian creature and screamed in anger, torrents of flame and fire bursting from his palms. Yet, the creature he hated with every fibre of his being was already gone, wrapped up in the tendrils of a recall spell before the first flames had reached his scales. As the Orange Ranger collapsed to his knees and screamed in frustration, the Yellow Ranger carefully fluttered to his side and, despite her fear at his outburst, placed her front left hoof on his shoulder. Breathing heavily, the Ranger felt his arm come up and rest on top of the Pegasus' hoof and he shook his head. His ears were still ringing with the last words of the draconian Overlord.

"You lose."

TBC…