Disclaimer: I do not own the Power Rangers, DC Comics, Justice League, He-Man, Doctor Who or any other property used within this fanfiction. They all belong to their respective copyright holders. This is a fan work and no profit is being made.
Author's Note: Superman as depicted in this fic may appear a little underpowered and a little over-vulnerable to magic. I have taken the opinion the for the purposes of my series Superman is extremely vulnerable by magic and may be more so than an average human. Given the nature of the Earth he lives on that also explains why some of his abilities are more limited than in the comic books... this Superman cannot move a planet, but then nor can He-Man.
Active members of the Justice League for the purposes of this story are: Batman, Wonder Woman, John Stewart, Flash, Hawk Girl, and Martian Manhunter with Captain Shazam and Cyborg as addition members and Superman as semi-active. For the purposes of this story Shazam is known as Captain Shazam and is still in that searching for a name phase.

First Encounter with the Enemy

Metropolis

"I think that's the last support in place," Flash reported, absently twirling a hammer as he spoke.

Batman nodded, surveying the mass carnage of their recent encounter. They were not fixing the mess, just making the area safe for others to move in and coordinate rebuilding. Green Lantern was removal a few dangerous buildings before they collapsed, while Wonder Woman and Mart Manhunter searched for anybody trapped under rubble. Flash had been assigned to carrying out emergency repairs and Captain Shazam... Captain Shazam had been sent off carrying provisions to the emergency camps that had been set up.

"As soon as we're done here get everybody back to headquarters and start searching," he instructed.

His communicator signalled that Hawk Girl had finished her task and that Superman had been made comfortable while he recovered. It had not been a great day for the League, but there had been few deaths and they had forced their opponent to withdraw. It still felt like a loss.

"What will you be doing?" Flash asked.

"I'm going to bring in some help," Batman told him before heading toward the Batwing.

Inside he pressed a few buttons, setting course for the city of Angel Grove. A few more button presses and he had opened a new communication frequency.

"It's me. We need to talk."

A short time later Batman found himself in the Power Ranger's Command Center, watching as the Power Rangers reviewed the battle from earlier in the day. He had no doubt they had seen parts of it on the news broadcasts. This was a team he had watched grow into their role as the planet's first line of defence against alien invasion and since they had been collectively inducted into the League, he was proud of how much they had grown.

This was also the first time in a while that he had sought their assistance. By arrangement the Power Rangers were not actively involved in the day-to-day activities of the Justice League because it was felt the Power Rangers already had enough responsibility. And while the League were willing to step in and assist when the Power Rangers found themselves in need of help, the situation had never arisen.

So, this was perhaps the first time that the Power Rangers were being asked to join the Justice League against a foe and Batman had to admit, they needed all the reservist help they could get.

"Was that Superman?" Zack asked as the Rangers watched the events unfolding on the Viewing Globe.

Despite being reserve members of the Justice League for a while, the Power Rangers had had little opportunity to interact with the elder hero. Since the founding of the Justice League, two years before Batman had been born - despite Batman being a founding member and present at the signing of its charter - Superman had gradually withdrawn from the public eye. He still made the occasional rescue around Metropolis, but many considered him retired. He often disappeared for long periods. Most League members were unsure why he had made such a choice and those in the know refused to comment except that they fully understood and respected his decision. Every now and then though there would be some event that would require him to step in briefly before disappearing again.

"The events you are watching took place in Metropolis," Batman explained. "Superman happened to be the closest to hand and agreed to help out until assistance arrived."

Superman had at first not even considered it a matter for the Justice League, having assumed that the large explosion that rocked his city had been caused by a gas main or something. There had been no calls for help before the explosion indicating that there was an aircraft in trouble, although once he had seen the impact crater, Superman had been confident it had been caused by a falling object.

"You'll have to excuse the quality of the camera footage," Batman continued. "Background energy at the source disrupted transmissions."

On the screen they could see Superman approach the crater although as Batman had suggested the audio feed had been almost lost. On the ground there was a pile of torn purple robes and a staff with the head of some unknown creature upon it.

They watched as Superman knelt to touch the robes before withdrawing his hand quickly and grasping it as if hurt. Then as the robes started to move Superman took a step back to allow whoever it was room. There was clearly a conversation, but they were unable to hear it, just glean a few hints of what was being said from the look of confusion and then distaste on Superman's face. He clearly made some sort of overture and appeared disappointed at the response before his face shift to one of determination.

And just like that the battle started and ended. A bony blue hand reached from inside the robes, summoning the nearby staff before shifting toward Superman and unleashing an energy burst that sent one of the Justice League's mightiest members flying backwards through the nearest building. Given the size of the crater, the building was a significant distance away and Superman was still moving fast enough to rip through the middle floors and out the other side before doing the same through sever others.

"That blast managed to propel Superman almost a mile through obstructions and caused widespread damage to the city. We were lucky so many civilians had already been in the process of being evacuated or we could have lost more."

"I don't understand," Zack said. "How does somebody take down Superman just like that."

"Magic," came the reply. "Superman has his weaknesses just like the rest of us. One is best left alone for now, but the other main weakness is magic. And this guy was absolutely swimming in magic. He identified himself as Skeletor. I wondered if you had heard of him?"

Batman was looking as Zordon, aware that the ancient Sage of Eltare was familiar with many evil magic users.

"I am unfamiliar with the name," Zordon admitted. "Nor does his appearance or energy signature appear to match any known species."

"Could he be one of Zedd's creations?" Trini asked.

"I do not believe so," Zordon replied. "While Lord Zedd is known to have allies that are indeed this powerful, he is incapable of creating a monster of Skeletor's power using a simple spell. Alpha and I would have detected any of the ceremonies he would have needed to summon such a power."

"So, we're dealing with a new villain who appeared from nowhere, caused a great big hole in Metropolis, fought and defeated Superman in less than a minute and you're now calling in the rest of the Justice League," Zack summed up. Something seemed wrong about that. "Why has it taken so long to track him down?"

"It hasn't," Batman answered. "The Justice League were on the scene moments after Superman was taken down, ready to show Skeletor what he was messing with... we found that we had no idea what we were facing either."

Metropolis
Earlier

"Well that was easier than I thought," Skeletor crowed as he examined his surroundings and then himself.

He had clearly survived the impact, something he had not been completely certain about before the landing. It seemed that his magic and the strange magic of whatever world he had landed upon were more than compatible. Using those potent energies had been an almost instinctive reaction and if the crater around him was an indication, they had likely saved him from death.

And then as he was gathering his mind on what he should do next, he had been confronted by one of the natives. It had not taken much for his to believe that the blue suited, red caped individual was some sort of hero to this world, so he had made his intentions clear for the floating oaf. And when his demands for absolute surrender had been met with defiance, he had unleashed a show of his new power.

To be honest he had been disappointed when the powerful being had been knocked away so easily. It made him worry how productive the people of this world would be as slaves.

It was only when he looked up again that he realised he was no longer alone. Six new beings stood before him, clearly heroes if their costumes were an indication. He realised that here lay an opportunity to send a message to the entire planet with just a demonstration of his power.

His gaze travelled to each of his new opponents, assessing their power and gleaning a little about their personalities. For Skeletor was more than just a master of magic. He had learnt the art of learning about his enemies and turning that knowledge to his advantage. And right now, his magic was telling him that they were not magic users, which made him smile inside.

The one on the far left, the stern dark-skinned warrior in the green suit was dangerous. That much Skeletor would give him. He had been around soldiers in the past and this man had the stance that spoke of being both trained and disciplined. The ring he wore on one hand crackled with green energy. Not magical energy, Skeletor could sense that this power was very different from the source he had been using since his arrival. Still it was potent and an unknown element. He would be weary of this one.

Next to him stood a scarlet covered individual. Unlike the first, this one was not from a military background. He fidgeted back and forth with lightning crackling around him. This was a man who was used to moving about. And again, Skeletor sensed there was some sort of power at play, but this was not a magic user.

The next was female and there was no doubt that this was a warrior. Her red battle dress and large shield spoke of a fearsome fighter. Her shield likewise showed signs of use. This woman was akin to Teela, Captain of the King's Guard and Skeletor had no doubt that if he were to meet her in combat, she would test his skills. There was something else about her though that made his cautious. He senses that she wasn't a magic user, but there were power forces behind her armour and weapons. In short, she was a threat.

And so was the avian woman beside her. He wondered if this world like Eternia was made up of races that evolved to suit their environment. This woman had a large pair of wings sticking out of her back, but it was the mace she carried that caught his attention. That was a weapon he felt could harm him easily if given the opportunity. She looked annoyed and eager for a fight. He guessed that she had combat training but had not yet mastered the patience needed.

The green skinned being behind them he assumed was male. Tall, muscular with red eyes, Skeletor found there was very little he could glean from this opponent. There were some signs of age, but nothing that helped suggest what sort of warrior he would be. Something told him there was more than mere muscle.

And then there was the last one, dressed in black with elongated ears. It was a costume that spoke of intimidation, but he could not sense any power within him. He dismissed him as he would a normal soldier. A problem he could easily overcome.

It was the scarlet-clad one that spoke first, drawing his attention.

"You'll have to forgive Superman," he told him, causing Skeletor to realise that had been the name of the blue clad warrior he had so easily dispatched. The name was hardly fitting in his opinion. "He has a real problem with magic. Can't handle it at all... which is why we keep him around."

Skeletor caught a glimpse of something white to one side and turned in time to see a red uniformed warrior with a large yellow and a hint of a white cloak an instant before the warrior slammed a fist into his face.

There was power behind that punch Skeletor realised as he flew sideways across the crater. There was magic at work with this warrior. And Skeletor was not certain what sort of magic. It felt old, familiar even and there was a sense he often felt around He-Man that this was borrowed power and not the warrior's own.

And now that he could see him clearly from his position on the ground, Skeletor changed his assessment from red uniformed to red with the addition of gold and white in places.

"Now that's how it's done!" the warrior proclaimed, causing Skeletor to once again ponder his new foe. There was an immaturity about the way he spoke. Could it be that the people of this planet finished ageing emotionally after they reached their physical peak? "Ew, that's not very nice."

And at that point Skeletor realised that his hood had fallen during the confrontation, revealing his full face.

He summoned his sword to his free hand, already plotting how he would proceed to fight these new combatants. He realised he needed to either defeat them or hold them at bay long enough to withdrawal. At this moment he felt no loss in escaping fight again.

"Stop playing around and take him," the black clad warrior growled.

For the first time Skeletor wondered if this was a coalition of heroes and villains raised to oppose him? He raised his Havok Staff and sent forth another burst of magic... the fight was on.

The fight was on. Flash raced forward, dodging around the energy blast and reaching the villain in moments. He started to pepper the villain with punches only to find himself thrown back by another magical surge. Skeletor unleashed blast after blast at him and Flash readily placed himself in a position to be hit before dodging, allowing the others their opportunity to close in.

Then with a growl Skeletor seemed to change the rules of their little game as he shifted from shooting at the Flash to casting spells at the area around him, summoning up monsters made from debris. He narrowly avoided the head of a large earth snake as another came at him from the other side.

"Flash!" Hawk Girl cried, breaking off her assault on the villain to smash one of the worm things with her mace. The construct shattered on contact, but there were others and from the looks of it Skeletor had not restricted them to the battlefield. "We need to keep those things contained."

John Stewart spared the situation a glance. He trusted his teammates to know what needed to be done. "Go, we'll deal with Skeletor, he instructed." Lives came first.

"Deal with me? You have no idea what you are dealing with!" Skeletor cackled before unleashed a bolt of energy.

John blocked it with a rapidly conjured shield from his ring. Then he retaliated with a large green fist that slammed toward the villain only to be intercepted by a rock, which shattered on impact. In that moment Skeletor had moved as was facing off against Wonder Woman.

Skeletor used the opportunity to learn more about the female warrior. And he had no doubt that this was indeed a warrior. She had strength, speed and reflexes along with the skills honed through hours of practice. He had also been correct that there was some magic about her for despite his liberal application of magical energy into his sword as they fought, she was not overwhelmed.

She was however playing with him and Skeletor was annoyed at himself for not realising sooner. She has used their personal spar to move him into a position where her comrades could strike at him once more. He found himself almost admiring their ability to work together. It seemed as if they were of one mind,

"Oh!" he realised, sending a pulse of magic through his own thoughts to find the presence he had suddenly detected.

There it was, hidden within his thoughts, absorbing what he knew and using that knowledge to direct its comrades. It seemed the green skinned creature was telepathic and a powerful mind reader at that. But Skeletor was not without his ways of dealing with such intrusions and summoned forth illusions known to invoke fear. It was pure luck that one image included fire. It was a small hint but enough and he sent a gout of flame at the green-skinned nuisance, causing him to recoil and breaking the groups connection.

The flying female and one that moved at high speed were making short work of his creations. The female warrior and the one with the lightning bolt on his chest were heading back from saving some building that had been hit accidentally during their encounter and the bald soldier was once again unleashing an onslaught in his direction.

It seemed the green-skinned warrior had also recovered enough to fight again and Skeletor was surprised when it sprang at him and transformed into some sort of large creature with sharp teeth. He made a note that this creature was also a shape shifter of great skill. He was rapidly becoming a greater threat and a definite nuisance.

There was a slight sound to his left. He dodged just in time as a metal object sliced through a piece of his robe. He looked up to see the dark armoured warrior, the one he had so readily dismissed. Recognising an easier target when he saw one, Skeletor attacked.

Batman had observed the fight from the beginning, cataloguing the events and comparing them to known encounters with other villains. This Skeletor was a magic user, that much had been clear when he had taken down Clark so easily. But the style of magic he wielded spoke of some sort of warrior training as other arts. He had been strategic in his approach to try and split them up and had shown that he didn't care if innocents were hurt in the process. He had taken a punch from Captain Shazam at full strength, withstood a flurry of Speed Force enhanced punches from Flash and stood up to some of John's more aggressive constructs.

So, he was powerful.

At the same time though he had not broken through John's shield, had barely held his own against Diana and had failed to do more than temporarily incapacitate Martian Manhunter. Which meant he was either not as strong as they had first believed or was playing with them for some reason.

When he had sensed an opportunity he had moved in, unleashing a Batarang. There was a lot to be told about an opponent by how they reacted to such an attack.

There had been movement before it struck, enough to change where it hit. That was followed by the plucking of the metal shuriken, a brief inspection before it was discarded. He saw Skeletor turn his attention toward him and knew the villain was reassessing some earlier evaluation. When the blast from the energy staff came though, Batman was already on the move. Two more batarangs were flung, one digging into the ground next to Skeletor's left foot. The other glanced the villain's hand.

There was a moment of triumph followed by realisation as the villain heard the beeping from the weapon next to his heal. Just moments before it exploded, knocking him to the ground and causing him to lose his staff.

Instead of retrieving his staff, Skeletor decided to use his sword, striking at the caped crusader. He even split the sword into two blades, proving himself a skilled combatant in multiple forms of combat. Fortunately, Batman had been training for much of his lifetime and knew how to fight against swords.

As they fought, he was aware of the rest of the Justice League moving in, even as Skeletor grew tired of their little battle and retrieved his staff.

Skeletor was outnumbered and though he was loathed to admit it, outmatched. He was exhausted from a battle with He-Man and his followers. Not to mention a collision with a planet. The heroes he was facing were fresh to the fight and could even have friends. He needed a way out so that he could study his enemies and strike anew.

Fortunately, with them being heroes, he knew how to buy himself such an opportunity. He unleashed a volley of destructive magic. Not at his enemies, but at the ground beneath them, knowing the destruction it would cause to the surrounding city and the lives it would put at risk. He was sending them a challenge to either fight on or save the innocent. He could see the moment they realised his intention and then challenge and the moment they accepted they had no choice but to let him leave.

Even though he had not crushed his new enemies as he had wanted, he was satisfied that he had more than held his own against this planet's defenders. With that in mind, he departed.

Power Chamber
Present

"We managed to stop Skeletor's spell from causing too much damage, but parts of Metropolis were devastated during his attack. There are outside agencies already moving in to provide relief and rebuilding will start immediately. It's going to take a while even with generous contributions from local millionaires," Batman told them.

He had not been surprised when Lex Luthor had stepped up to fund the rebuilding efforts. No doubt much of the construction would be undertaken by Lex's own companies at greatly inflated prizes, but the man cared enough to keep the city intact.

That quasi-governmental agencies like APEX had turned up offering emergency aid had been suspicious but ultimately welcomed. Batman was aware that APEX was part of the government's drive to regain the initiative of extra-terrestrial matters. An aid convoy allowed them access to the scene of a recent battle and access to the people of Metropolis. The Justice League would be keeping an eye on the situation.

"Superman recovered once Skeletor disappeared and his spell was broken. And yes, he managed to keep an active spell on Superman whilst fighting off the rest of us. Suffice to say he is not pleased with how he performed.

Some argued that Superman's vulnerability to magic was no worse than that of any other human. They were wrong. Kryptonians had even less natural exposure to their planet's magic than humans and the magic they did experience was highly regulated energy bound by the rules of their science. In short, their bodies were just unable to handle it especially when unleashed in the manner Skeletor used it as raw magic.

It was one of the reasons why Superman's role in the Justice League had gradually moved away from the front line. Their discoveries about the involvement of magic in the development of the Earth had led them to realise that many of the threats they faced placed Superman in danger.

"So, where do we come in?" Jason asked.

"Yeah," Tommy added. "I thought we were supposed to remain reservists and deal with Rita and Zedd."

"Skeletor is an alien threat," Batman told. "Under the terms of your membership any significant new threats that originated from beyond this solar system or outside of this dimension are to be brought to your attention. Whether you chose to help or not is your decision."

It had been an important part of the discussions leading to the Power Rangers joining the Justice League. The Justice League had recognised that the Power Rangers were occupied protecting Earth from the threat of Rita Repulsa and other space aliens. They had not wanted to distract them with problems like the Joker or some other planetary threat. And so, and agreement had been reached on the areas in which the Rangers would be called upon for aid and the area in which they could call in the Justice League. It was like how John Stewart handled his obligations to the Lanterns with his position as a member of the Justice League; John had first refusal in any cases involving known enemies of the Lanterns.

"What do you think Zordon?" Trini asked.

"Skeletor has proven himself a powerful enemy of this world," Zordon rumbled. "Alpha and I have reviewed our readings from earlier and confirmed that he appeared above the planet from an unknown portal. He can use the Earth's magic and I fear that he might even be able to tap into the power of the Morphin Grid. If he should do so, or if he should encounter Lord Zedd, there is a high chance that he could pose a serious threat. Therefore, Rangers you have my permission to aid the Justice League in tracking down Skeletor and containing him."

Zordon had rules to follow, rules that he either broke or severely bent every time he sent the Rangers into battle. At least on those occasions he could justify his actions as being defensive. This time the Rangers were taking a more active stance and the scrutiny upon their actions would be intense. But he could sense that failing to contain Skeletor swiftly would prove disastrous for the planet... perhaps even the universe.

End of Part