Black Knight's Determination
KuroKishi stood on a mountaintop and looked out upon Stone Canyon. The Lights of Orion were lost to him. The Galaxy Rangers had taken his best chance at defeating the Balban. Now he would have to resort to more drastic means.
Zika…he thought of his little brother. His mind flashed back…
The planet Tauren
3,000 years ago
Yattatoo swarmed across the darkened streets of the planet's capital city, which burned. The Balban generals led their forces across the streets, while their monsters stormed through the alleyways. They looted everything in sight.
KuroKishi Bull Black landed on the street while crashing his fist against the ground, creating a shockwave that knocked the grunts and monsters backward. He unsheathed his sword and turned towards the Balban generals.
"I am the defender of this planet," Black Knight said with a voice like gravel. "Leave now, or be destroyed."
Capt. Zaihabu laughed as he stepped out from the ranks of his men. The villain carried a curved broadsword. "We've been expecting you, Bull Black. We heard legends of the great Magna Defender as far away as the Rigel Expanse."
"Not all the legends are true," the Black Knight said. "Some underestimate my power."
"Ha!" Capt. Zaihabu laughed. "I respect your confidence, Black Knight."
A child screamed from the ranks of the Balban. Sanbashu laughed as he dragged the boy towards Zaihabu. "Look who thought he could join the fight!"
The boy wore dark armor similar to KuroKishi's. The armor was the same that Bull Black had worn when he was a boy.
"Zika…" Bull Black whispered.
"Your little brother," Capt. Zaihabu said as he grabbed the boy. "As I said, we've been expecting you."
Zika must have donned the armor to fight the Balban, Black Knight realized. Zika showed great bravery at such a young age. He would not have stayed behind while the Balban destroyed his world.
"Let the boy go, Balban," Black Knight ordered.
"OK." Capt. Zaihabu let go of the boy, and then slashed his blade through the child with a burst of spark.
Zika screamed and fell back, a small dagger dropping from his hand.
"Zika!" KuroKishi shouted as he ran to his fallen brother's side.
KuroKishi clutched the dagger of his fallen brother. Zika…I will avenge you, and our world…
Pain suddenly shot through the Black Knight's body, forcing him to his knees. He clutched his injured chest and breathed heavily.
"KuroKishi," a voice said from inside his own mind. "Don't give into your hate…it's consuming you…I can feel it…"
"You are stubborn…" the Black Knight gripped the handle of his brother's dagger. The dagger pulsed with yellow energy, and the Black Knight thrust the weapon into his own chest.
The stab released the pain, and KuroKishi breathed a sigh of relief. "There…now stay quiet, and we both might live to see the Balban destroyed."
KuroKishi rose back to his feet and looked towards Stone Canyon. A part of him was sad the city would have to die.
A frozen, stone Yattatoo stood on the deck of the Balban ship. Iresia sat in a meditative pose behind the grunt as her uncle Bukarates stood nearby. Capt. Zaihabu watched impatiently while tapping his blade against his palm.
"Is there a point to this?" the captain asked.
"Yes, captain," Bukarates waddled closer to the stone grunt. "This Yattatoo is frozen in stone, much like Daitanix.
"I can see that clearly," Zaihabu said as he traced his fingers along the edge of his blade.
"Yes…well…" the villain looked to his niece. "Iresia?"
"He is ready," the sorceress said. "Come, Wanga-Wanga."
The tiki-themed monster named Wanga-Wanga walked onto the deck while carrying a spear. The villain moved oddly, as if dancing to unheard drumbeats.
Twirling its staff, the creature stepped forward and thrust its blade towards the stone Yattatoo. The spear-tip pulsed with yellow energy and plunged into the grunt. The grunt's body flashed, returned to normal, and collapsed to the ground.
The Yattatoo shook its head, scrambled to its feet, and ran off the deck.
Capt. Zaihabu grunted with approval. "Impressive…"
"He will need more energy to awaken Daitanix," Iresia explained. "But it can be done. This, I promise you."
"You're not the first general who's made such a promise," Zaihabu said. "Fail me, and you'll wind up dead like them."
Iresia sent Wanga-Wanga into Stone Canyon to gather his strength. The villain fed off violent emotional energy.
Wanga-Wanga dashed into a park and hid beneath a pedestrian bridge. He waited, and eventually, two boys passed by while arguing. One of the boys pushed the other, and the other boy pushed back.
The monster darted out from underneath the pedestrian bridge and attacked the two boys faster than they could shout. His spear glowed with yellow energy and plunged into one body, and then the other, sapping away their anger.
The boys collapsed, alive, but unconscious and weak from the emotional drain.
Wanga dashed off to find its next victims.
Moku's eyes snapped open. He sensed the Balban's attack and warned the Rangers. "Balban!"
Wanga-Wanga moved into the streets. He speared down dozens of people as they screamed and tried to flee. The monster twirled his staff, the tip glowing yellow, and plunged the weapon into every victim within reach. A trail of unconscious victims followed in his path.
Wanga-Wanga twirled his spear to strike his next victim.
Blasts suddenly sparked against the spear and nearly knocked the weapon from the monster's hands. Wanga-Wanga hissed and turned to face his attackers, the Galaxy Rangers.
"Stop, Balban!" Galaxy Red shouted as he and his teammates ran to the scene while hunched over in animal-like stances.
"Stop?!" The monster shouted with annoyance. "I just started! Yattatoo!"
The orange-clad grunts leapt through the air and attacked the Rangers. The lead Yattatoo chopped a sword towards Galaxy Red's head, but the Red Ranger caught the grunt by the wrist and flipped the soldier to the ground. A second soldier moved in behind Galaxy Red, but the Red Ranger knocked the soldier's blade aside and smashed a sidekick against the grunt's chest.
Meanwhile, Galaxy Green snapped a series of low sweep-kicks that knocked several grunts off their feet. He flipped, drop kicked a soldier's sword to the ground, and used his foot to pin the blade down. The Green Ranger struck the grunt's face like a hawk clawing its prey.
Nearby, grunts swarmed around Galaxy Blue. He blocked a sword and sidekicked the grunt in the chest. Another soldier swung a sword towards Galaxy Blue, but the Ranger blocked the blow, grabbed the soldier by the head, and flipped the grunt to the ground. Two remaining grunts closed in at his sides. One chopped a sword towards the Blue Ranger, but he blocked the blow and slammed an elbow against the soldier's chest. He slammed his other elbow against the last grunt's chest, grabbed the soldier by the wrist, and flipped the grunt to the ground.
Meanwhile, Galaxy Pink somersaulted through the air and kicked a grunt to the ground. Galaxy Yellow was nearby. He spun low with a sweep-kick that knocked a grunt aside, then he snapped a foot up to bash a grunt against the head.
Wanga eyed the Yellow Ranger and charged forward to attack.
Galaxy Yellow knocked the last grunt aside, spotted the monster charging forward, and somersaulted over the swing of the villain's spear. The Yellow Ranger landed, and Wanga pushed forward with a spear strike the Yellow Ranger couldn't avoid. The spear slashed across the Ranger's chest with a burst of spark that whipped his body backward.
Wanga-Wanga leapt onto a pedestrian bridge and fled before the Rangers could follow.
Ryouma leaned down next to an unconscious girl. "They're all alive…" he said. "They're just not moving."
Hayate nodded in agreement. "That creature's attacks must have drained their life force somehow."
The ground suddenly shook, nearly knocking the teens onto the ground. Moku's voice spoke through their bracers.
"Rangers," he said. "We have a new problem. Bull Black is unleashing the fury of a volcano. If he's not stopped, the city, and the entire west coast, will be destroyed."
"Black Knight's completely lost it," Hikaru said. "I saw that coming, but won't say 'I told you so'."
"Come on, let's head to the mountains," Ryouma said as he ran off.
The others followed.
BullTaurus, the combined form of Black Knight and his zord, swung his staff while standing on the crater of a volcano. The zord's staff energized with jade-tinted energy that crackled downward, plunging into the crater. The energy blast intensified the volcanic rage. Fire and lava spewed from the mountain.
"Stop!" an amplified voice shouted from behind.
The GalaxyMegazord. Gingaiou, stomped onto the scene.
"KuroKishi!" Galaxy Red shouted. "What are you doing?!"
"Rangers," Moku spoke through their bracers. "KuroKishi has created an artificial volcano. He plans to ignite the volcano, which will produce enough force to collapse the western shoreline, destroying the Balban in the process."
"That's overkill," Galaxy Yellow said.
"All those people…" Galaxy Red said. "Stop, KuroKishi!"
GalaxyMegazord stomped forward and grabbed BullTaurus by the shoulder, pulling the zord backward.
"Stay back, Rangers," BullTaurus said. "This has to be done."
BullTaurus knocked the Megazord's hands away. The Black Knight slashed his staff across Gingaiou with bursts of spark, knocking the Megazord back several steps.
Below, Wanga-Wanga ran towards the mountains. The strength of Black Knight's rage ebbed with so much power, that the monster had felt the Knight's anger from as far as the city.
BullTaurus twirled his staff, which surged with green-tinted energy. He swung the staff downward, and tendrils of energy lashed out into the volcano.
GoTaurus whined with protest, knocking BullTaurus back a step while clutching his chest. "What…my Taurozord, you can't…"
BullTaurus crackled with energy. GoTaurus forcibly powered down the combination, hurling Bull Black downward. The Taurozord reverted back to its bull form, and the Black Knight crashed onto the mountain below.
Bull Black pushed himself to his feet as steam sizzled from his armor. "GoTaurus…why?"
The Taurozord looked down at its master and whined with protest.
"No…" the Black Knight said. "Our enemies must fall. This is the only way…"
GoTaurus whined with disapproval, turned, and stomped away.
"Taurozord!" Bull Black shouted.
The Black Knight was too distracted to notice Wanga-Wanga dash through a blur of motion from behind. The monster lunged forward and plunged its staff into KuroKishi's back with a burst of spark. The monster pushed the staff deeper, driving the Black Knight to his knees.
The Galaxy Rangers leapt down from their zords and landed in animal-like fighting stances.
"KuroKishi!" Galaxy Red shouted as he and the other Rangers leaned forward and charged towards the monster.
Keeping one hand on his spear, Wanga-Wanga armed a volley of feather darts he snapped at the Rangers.
The feather darts exploded around the Rangers with bursts of spark. But they continued their advance.
Galaxy Red leapt into the air and armed his sword. "Seijuukin!"
The Red Ranger landed while chopping his blade across the monster with a burst of spark, whipping the creature backward. The monster crashed against the ground and tumbled across the dirt.
The other four Rangers regrouped around Galaxy Red, standing between the monster and KuroKishi.
Wanga-Wanga pushed himself back to his feet and lifted his fallen spear. "Bah!" he shouted. "That was the most delicious taste of bitterness and anger! I was just getting started!"
Galaxy Green looked over his shoulder to Galaxy Red. "Ryouma, you should get the Black Knight to safety. We'll buy you some time."
"Right," Galaxy Red said.
The Red Ranger lifted KuroKishi by the arm and ran off, carrying the Magna Defender to safety.
Galaxy Green and Galaxy Yellow charged at the monster with roundkicks that the monster used his staff to block.
Galaxy Red ran across the rocky terrain while carrying along KuroKishi, who stumbled with weakness. A group of Yattatoo followed the Red Ranger and Black Knight with swords drawn.
Galaxy Red couldn't outrun the grunts because of the weight of the Black Knight. The soldiers swarmed in too close.
Galaxy Red set Black Knight aside and immediately charged through the Yattatoo. He pushed through their ranks while parrying their swords and slashing through their bodies with bursts of spark.
Two grunts swung their blades at Galaxy Red's head. The Red Ranger used his sword to block the blows, swat the soldiers' swords aside, and cut them down one-by-one.
A grunt slipped past Galaxy Red and swung its blade towards Bull Black. Galaxy Red stepped in and slashed his sword against the soldier's blade, then twisted the weapon downward.
A second grunt slashed towards Galaxy Red's head. The Red Ranger swung his arm to block the blow, and the blade cut against his forearm with a burst of spark.
The Ranger pushed the two soldiers back, parried their swords aside, and slashed them down with a pair of diagonal sword chops.
"Red Ranger…" Bull Black said with annoyance. "Leave me be…You're a fool for trying to save me."
Galaxy Red parried the last grunt's sword. He slashed downward with a strong swing that ripped across the grunt with bursts of spark. The grunt collapsed to the ground, landing alongside its fallen comrades.
"Don't call me a fool," Galaxy Red said. "I'm just doing what's right…"
"Hmph." Bull Black stumbled to his feet. "You should want me dead. After all…it's the only way to free your brother."
"…What?" Galaxy Red turned slowly to face the Black Knight. "What are you talking about…?"
"I followed the Balban to Earth 3,000 years ago," KuroKishi said. "I brought the Lights of Orion here, to destroy the pirates. But Sanbashu defeated me, and I fell into a crevice. There, for 3,000 years, I lingered between life and death. Until the crevice opened. And your brother fell through."
The Black Knight had hurled his sword just in time to cut through Hyuuga's tunic and pin him to the wall, to keep him from crashing.
"I merged with him, using his Aasu to revitalize my own Life Force," KuroKishi explained.
"It can't be," Galaxy Red said. "That's not possible…"
"It is…so you should want to defeat me, Ranger. You should want me dead."
KuroKishi unsheathed his sword, stumbled forward, and swung his blade towards Galaxy Red.
The Red Ranger dodged the blow and snapped into a fighting stance.
KuroKishi lifted his blade, but could barely stand.
Galaxy Red lowered his guard at the sight of the weakened Black Knight. The Red Ranger sheathed his blade.
"I'm not going to fight you," he said.
"You fool…" KuroKishi said. "If you don't defeat me, you will never see your brother again."
"I'm not going to kill you," Galaxy Red said. "And if Hyuuga's really a part of you now, you understand why."
Galaxy Red turned and ran off to rejoin his teammates. He hesitated as he thought of his brother. "Hyuuga…"
The Red Ranger kept running.
KuroKishi collapsed onto all fours, barely able to hold up his head and watch the Red Ranger run off. His thoughts drifted to the brother he lost so long ago. "Zika…"
Wanga-Wanga charged through the four Rangers and twirled his staff. He slashed aside Galaxy Yellow, speared down Galaxy Blue, cut across Galaxy Green and slashed across Galaxy Pink with a burst of spark.
Galaxy Green rolled into a crouched stance and pounced through the air towards the monster. Wanga-Wanga slashed the Green Ranger from the air with a burst of spark, and Galaxy Green crashed against the ground.
Galaxy Red suddenly ran onto the scene, hunched over in his animal-like pose. The Red Ranger leapt upward, somersaulted through the air, and landed while slashing his blade across Wanga-Wanga in an x-shaped pattern. The blade sparked on impact and knocked the monster back several steps.
Galaxy Red pushed forward and speared his blade against the monster with a burst of spark. The blow hurled the monster off its feet.
The five Rangers regrouped. They quickly clawed at the ground and then reached their hands towards the skies. "Shine! Lights of Orion!"
Golden energy enveloped the Rangers and swept across their armor. Bands of gold, each with an emerald gem, formed over their upper left arms. Clawed fist weapons covered their left forearms and hands. Thick golden bands wrapped around their gauntlets and boots. And golden bucklers, each engraved with a black V, formed on their belts.
They snapped into animal-like fighting stances and held their swords forward, blades pointed up.
Wanga-Wanga held his staff forward and charged at the Rangers.
The Rangers returned the charge.
"Power up mode!" Galaxy Red shouted.
The Rangers flashed and transformed into five globes of energy that combined into a single comet of golden power that shot towards Wanga-Wanga. The comet punctured through the monster with a burst of spark, blasted behind the villain, and flashed as the five Rangers rematerialized in mid-air. They twisted to face the villain as they dropped to the ground and landed in animal-like fighting stances.
Secondary explosions ripped across Wanga-Wanga as he collapsed to the ground. He would have died but managed to take a swig of the Balban growth elixir. The potion poured through the monster's veins and caused him to expand and grow giant.
The Rangers looked up to face their revitalized enemy.
"Star Beasts, arise!" Galaxy Red shouted.
The five giant Seijuu appeared, and the Rangers leapt onto their companions. Galaxy Red armed his Kiba Dagger and held the blade towards the skies. "Zord transform!"
The Star Beasts transformed into mystical suits of armor as the Rangers dropped into their cockpits. "Star Beast fusion!" Galaxy Red commanded. "Gingaiou!"
The zords rushed forward—their bodies shifting and changing—and combined into one armored warrior. A golden-hilted, double-edged sword appeared in the warrior's hand. "GalaxyMegazord!" Galaxy Red shouted once the fusion was complete. "Gingaiou!"
Galaxy Red called upon the Lights of Orion. "Shine! Gingaiou!"
The Lights of Orion enveloped the Megazord in golden light, which hardened and transformed into armor.
The Balban monster charged at the Megazord and swung its staff, which the GalaxyMegazord dodged. Wanga-Wanga turned and swung its staff again. Gingaiou blocked the blow and bashed a kick against the monster.
The creature stumbled but stayed on its feet.
GalaxyMegazord pushed forward to attack with a punch. But the monster caught the punch in its jaws and bit down hard, sparking against the Megazord's armor.
Gingaiou swung its arm free while hurling the monster aside.
Wanga-Wanga crashed near the rim of the volcano and climbed slowly to its feet. The monster lifted its mystical spear and spun the weapon into a savage fighting stance.
"GalaxyMegazord Saber!" Galaxy Red shouted. "Blazing Slash!"
GalaxyMegazord held its sword back. Golden energy washed across the blade until the entire saber pulsed with light. Gingaiou chopped the sword through a streak of energy that slashed through Wanga-Wanga and tore a gaping gash through the villain's body. The monster tumbled backward as his energy overloaded and exploded.
The explosion hurled the spear from the monster's hands, and the spear plunged into the volcano. The weapon pulsed with blinding-white energy that shook the volcano, and the entire mountainside.
The massive quakes nearly knocked the GalaxyMegazord off its feet.
"What the…" Galaxy Red started to say.
"Rangers," Moku spoke through their bracers. "The monster's weapon is destabilizing the volcano. If it erupts, it will destroy the entire city!"
"We've got to stop that spear," Galaxy Green said.
The Rangers leapt from their Megazord and landed near the base of the volcano and ran upward. They moved quickly while hunched over in animal-like stances. A wave of power suddenly rushed from the volcano and flowed down the mountain, bashing the Rangers off their feet.
"Gingaman," Moku said through their bracers. "The energy is growing more unstable. You won't be able to make it to the spear and survive."
"We have to try," Galaxy Red said.
Another energy wave flowed from the volcano like a wall of flame and bashed the Rangers with massive bursts of spark. The impact hurled them off their feet and knocked them out of their armor with flashes of light. They crashed against the ground, worn and battered.
Nearby, Bull Black stumbled across the mountainside. His strength weakened with his every step. His armor sizzled from webs of cracks.
"Not like this…" he muttered. "Not like this…"
"Brother…" a child's voice whispered from behind.
KuroKishi turned to see the translucent image of Zika staring up at him.
"Zika?" Bull Black asked with longing. He didn't know if he was hallucinating, and he didn't care. He saw his brother. That was all that mattered. "Zika, it's you…"
"Brother, don't do this to yourself," Zika said. "Don't become what you've always hated."
"What I've…What I've always hated?" Bull Black asked.
"Evil," Zika said. "Sunken into despair. Careless of life. Save yourself, brother. There's still time…"
The image faded slowly into nothingness. "Zika!" Bull Black lunged and collapsed to the ground where his little brother had stood.
He saw a single white flower growing from the cracked earth. The Black Knight plucked the flower and whispered his brother's name, again and again. "Zika…I will not fail you."
Bull Black lifted himself to his feet and pulled his brother's dagger from his chest with a burst of yellow energy. An orb of energy flowed from his chest and landed behind a boulder. The orb shaped into a human form. The form of Hyuuga.
The Black Knight's armor cracked deeper, webbing across his chest piece, back, gauntlets and legs. The green emblem on his chest nearly shattered.
He groaned and stumbled up the mountainside.
Ryouma pushed himself to his feet despite the crippling pain that shot through his body. "Come on…" he said to his teammates. "We have to do something."
"No, Rangers," a voice said from nearby. The teens turned to see Bull Black walk towards them.
The Black Knight hurled his sword, and the blade speared into the mountainside next to the rangers. The sword emitted a shield of mystic energy that surrounded the rangers, imprisoning them.
"I will handle this," he said as he moved farther up the mountainside.
"KuroKishi! Wait!" Ryouma shouted. "You can't."
"Don't worry about your brother," the Black Knight said over his shoulder as he staggered upward.
A wave of energy flowed from the volcano and tore across Bull Black with bursts of spark. The energy wave splashed harmlessly across the mystical shield protecting the five rangers.
Intense heat poured down the mountainside, which ebbed as if ready to explode. The Black Knight fought against the heat, step by step, as explosions sparked against his armor. He fought for every inch he gained. He moved forward with determination, while clutching onto the white flower.
He knew each step brought him closer to death. He staggered more and more with each movement as his armor pealed from his body.
But in his mind he walked peacefully with his brother at his side, hand-in-hand, both holding onto the white flower. The memory flooded the Black Knight with warmth and love that overshadowed even the most intense sensations of pain.
"I knew you could do it, brother," Zika said.
"Thank you Zika," Bull Black said. "For showing me the way."
KuroKishi made it to the rim of the volcano through sheer force of will, and through the memory of his brother. He held the flower tightly and closed his eyes beneath his helmet.
The Black Knight's body collapsed into a sphere of purple-tinted, black light that shot into the volcano. The black light exploded against the spear with a massive burst of fiery energy. The blast vaporized the sphere with a fiery shockwave.
The shockwave poured down the mountainside and splashed across the energy shield that protected the rangers.
The energy shield dissipated, and the Black Knight's sword fell.
Ryouma opened his eyes wide with horror. "No…" he said as he shook his head. "He can't be…"
"He saved us," Saya said. "He saved the whole city."
"But he can't be dead," Ryouma said. "Hyuuga…he can't be dead."
"Ryouma…" a weak voice said from behind.
Ryouma recognized the voice immediately. He turned slowly, almost afraid to look. Then he saw him. Hyuuga.
Hyuuga slowly walked up the mountainside. He looked weak—dirty and exhausted. But he was alive. Hyuuga was alive.
He smiled. "Ryouma…"
Ryouma started to say his brother's name. But his voice caught in his throat. He resisted the urge to break into tears. He walked to his brother, slowly at first, step by step, until the next thing he knew, he was running into his big brother's embrace.
He hugged Hyuuga, tightly, and closed his eyes as tears streamed down his cheeks.
"You're alive…How?" Ryouma asked.
"KuroKishi," Hyuuga said. "He released me, before he sacrificed himself."
"Hyuuga…" Saya whispered. "Hyuuga!"
The other rangers joined Ryouma in hugging Hyuuga. They laughed and cried tears of joy.
"The Black Knight," Hikaru said as he sniffed back a tear. "That bastard saved you. He actually did the right thing. In the end…"
"He was always good," Hyuuga said. "Just…tortured."
He looked to the Black Knight's sword. Hyuuga walked to the weapon and lifted the blade from the ground. "He rose free from that despair in the end. We can't ever forget that."
Hyuuga gripped tightly onto the sword's handle. The blade pulsed slightly with the faintest hint of recognition.
To be continued…