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Chapter 57 – Army Of Shadows

Despite everything that they had endured in the course of their failed attempt to capture the Power Rangers and rise to a level of renown within the Dark Empire Cleobis-Radix had survived.

Though that was not to say that the hybrid was victorious in any sense.

The most immediate problem the twisted alien had to contend with was the sheer, indescribable agony that had seeped into every part of his ruined body. During the course of the battle with the Power Rangers many of his vine and tendril like limbs had been severed at various points though this was a far less critical injury for him in that it would be for a member of many other species despite how painful the experience was, even now Cleobis-Radix was beginning to regrow new limbs and in fact was sprouting more of them than he had previously possessed as each severed stump burst and split as it regrew like the heads of the mythical hydra. He had sustained more injuries as the conflict progressed and it became apparent that even taking to the gargantuan Pseudo-Zord that had been stationed upon Mercator was not enough to keep the Power Rangers at bay, his already chipped and cracked carapace and the soft, loamy flesh beneath it being injured as the machine was toppled and his cockpit was rattled and jolted by each successive impact before finally he had been forced to teleport to safety and eject as one of the Rangers chose to sacrifice themselves to land a killing blow, destroying the already damaged power supply of the Pseudo-Zord in a cataclysmic explosion that allowed the other Rangers to escape.

The fact that a Ranger had been killed was the one fact that Cleobis-Radix could cling to and use to justify their continued existence in the face of the failure that their ploy had descended into; the Capital of Mercator was aflame, it's communications tower disabled and those warships that had arrived to aid against the Power Rangers had instead found themselves working alongside the ranks of the now leaderless Ragged Ones, putting down opportunistic looting and power plays that were clearly being orchestrated by political rivals hoping to usurp the Acheron Hybrid.

All but one.

Cleobis-Radix had returned to their own base of operations, where their regrowing limbs allowed them to hang suspended from the ceiling of the darkened room and survey events as the unfurled from the countless screens that surrounded them, all the while his roots sank and burrowed into the mounds of bodies that lay festering on the ground. A lone vessel amongst the reinforcements had refused to follow protocol and submit to the will of the appointed commander of the theatre of war in question and had instead ordered a meeting with Cleobis-Radix, the sheer audacity prompting him to learn the identity of the ships' Captain, only to recoil in fright when he did. The ship was the Draco-Ocidendum; a vast and heavily armed vessel that had been personalised to suit its' rulers' tastes since it had departed the shipyards on Mercator itself and its' Captain was Carnifex of Wyvern thirteenth of his name, a feared and revered warrior within the Dark Empire and a renowned executioner of Lord Zedd's vision and enemies alike.

Cleobis-Radix had hastily researched everything about his fellow Acheron Hybrid in a short amount of time, learning what he could to prepare himself for the imminent meeting and in doing so discovering that the winged saurian was currently in an exile of a sort, in disgrace for failings of their own whose exact nature had not been divulged to the official records; seeing this gave Cleobis-Radix a sense of understanding and some confidence that this meeting could end favourably, with their shared shame and defeats along with the honour ties that bound Carnifex was potentially a strong ally in the difficult times ahead.

That confidence wavered the moment Carnifex of Wyvern, thirteenth of his name stormed into his domain.

"The Power Rangers escaped, explain to me what happened and how you allowed this to occur" Carnifex's crimson scales, tinged with blue like the tips of flickering flames were illuminated by the shimmering golden light of the hybrids' own arcane abilities that seemed to pour out from within him, the magical flames casting their light on everything around them as they coalesced around the blade of the monstrous, double-edged and serrated sword he clutched in his mechanical hands. His voice was measured yet filled with a barely restrained primal hunger and terrible fury and whilst his towering and imposing form filled the doorway he had entered Cleobis-Radix was well aware of the fact that several of Carnifex's Knightly household stood mere meters behind him, waiting in the hallway; the vile hybrids' mandibles clacked and chattered as they realised that they were in the presence of death itself and entirely at the mercy of someone who had none to give.

"Faulty information" he began, quickly finding ways to phrase his explanation that would allow him to take credit whilst also laying the blame for the failures elsewhere "I prepared a trap to capture the rebels within the Empire, those who do the Alliance's biddings….I was not made aware that the Power Rangers themselves were working alongside them; there were more of them present than I was led to believe and reinforcements were slow to arrive-"

"I hear excuses and half-truths" Carnifex interrupted, striding forwards and setting the rotting bodies that Cleobis-Radix fed upon ablaze with the sheer might of his presence as he did so, as the humid and pungent air began to fill with smoke the saurian Hybrid loomed closer and let out a low rumbling snarl at odds with his clipped tones.

"Exactly the sort of cowardice and back stabbing I expect from a warrior who eats the corpses of his own people and fights his enemies in a darkened maze rather than the field of battle….Yes my Knights have already seen the footage of your battle against the Rangers; it's clear to me that you are unfit for your titles and your station-"

"You presume to lecture me Carnifex!" Cleobis-Radix snapped, voice buzzing indignantly "I am not one of your lizard people on your boiling backwater full of savages; I am an Acheron like you and I hold sway over this city! I will not be lectured, not by one who skulks the edges of the Empire in disgrace, cast out by Lord Zedd him-"

Cleobis-Radix never finished his tirade.

The roar that Carnifex let out was deafening, the control he imposed over himself shattering in an explosion of unspeakable, hateful rage as his sword flashed out in a blur of motion and cleaved through each and every one of his would be challengers' remaining limbs to send him toppling to the corpse-strewn ground with a muffled thud

"No, no please-" the pleading went unanswered and Carnifex silenced his fellow Acheron Hybrid by driving his sword downwards through their neck, severing his skull completely and living blood that shimmered like oil on water pouring from the wound to pool beneath the still twitching body of Cleobis-Radix.

Carnifex stood in silence for a while, shocked at his own actions and taking a moment to contemplate them; the killing was inconsequential the way it had happened however was not, he had slain an ally he was honour bound to aid and in their own chambers no less, over a slight and yet as Carnifex stared at his still flaming blade he found that the sullying of his own honour in a such a way was of no consequence to him at all.

He had no honour, the Power Rangers had taken it from him and all that remained for him now was vengeance, in whatever form he could inflict it.

"Search all files, this worm hoarded information….they must know something of these cowards that the Rangers have allied themselves with" he spoke to his knights who had entered the room at the sound of violence before opening a comm channel to the Draco-Ocidendum "Our penance forbids us from seeking aid….this city will fall to infighting in the coming days, so we shall simply take what we desire from it. We depart as soon as possible; the hunt is on and the Power Rangers must die"


Mercy was numb.

A quiet and rational, yet oddly detached part of herself noted that she should be happy, or relieved or any of a great number of things but at that current moment she was simply unable to feel them, too much had happened in a short space of time and her mind had walled itself off in an effort to limit the amount of trauma that was more than it could process in one sitting. Rocky DeSantos, former Red Power Ranger and Blue Zeo Ranger, successor to Jason Lee-Scott and hero whose actions had become the stuff of legend on Earth was dead and Mercy had stood by and watched as he sacrificed himself so that she and her friends might live, as she stared silently at the Battleizer that had fitted over her Morpher and yet had still remained unused the Red Ranger silently took the blame for everything that had occurred and placed it on her own shoulders, vowing that something would have to change and she would have to be better.

Currently the Megalodon was in open an empty stretch of space, the vast gulf of nothingness dotted with the light of countless stars whilst the small Command Bridge of the sleek vessel was by contrast far more cramped than it had been intended for and filled with a buzz of frantic activity.

"Okay, we're in the clear" Zhane breathed out as he turned to Karone "I think we lost them" the Megalodon had been pursued through the darkness by several Dark Empire warships that had been among the first to come to the aid of Mercator of Cleobis-Radix and the ship, whilst one of the swiftest ever made lacked the benefits of an Alliance-made teleportation system and Karone had been unable to simply order the entire ship teleported to safety; they had persevered though with the aid of Cullis whose skills as a pilot were seemingly unmatched after spending years as First Mate to a revered space pirate.

"Shall I plot a course home?" the silkworm like alien asked, the question enough to rouse Mercy from her self imposed silence and cause her to pay proper attention to her surroundings for the first time, wincing as she noticed the deeply concerned glances her friends were shooting her way

"We have a base of operations" Karone answered enigmatically, trusting any of her fellow Rangers with her own life but perhaps not with the security of her insurgency "And no….Zhane can you contact the Alliance from here?"

"The signal might be a little spotty but I can try" the Silver Astro Ranger answered, the Megalodon was a spaceship after all and would naturally require the very same kind of long range communications system as the tower that the Aegis Rangers had stormed and upon realising this Mercy was on her feet, placing herself front and centre before the viewscreen as she stood to attention with her friends taking their places around her.

Within a matter of moments the transmission was received and Mercy made no effort to stop herself from weeping with joy as the familiar site of Billy Cranston stood within the Command Centre on Promethea One greeted her.

"Tempestus!" the former Blue Ranger paid the other Rangers no mind as he focused on his adopted son in a display none of them could truly blame him for

"Father" Tempestus, who was being propped up once again by Mari answered

"You're alive"

"Alive….Not groovy, but alive" the young Aquitian confirmed with a dry, rasping cough that seemed to drive home just how unwell he truly was.

"We can fix that" Billy assured him with a gentle smile before turning to the Red Aegis Ranger "Mercy….what happened?" she remained silent for several moments, simply unable to speak until first Aslaug and then each of her friends in turn placed a hand on her shoulders and lent her their support

"A lot….A lot happened" she croaked out before forcing herself to continue "We met Rocky, the Red Ranger Rocky….he sacrificed himself so that we could escape"

"I see" the shocked numbness in Billy's tone was enough to have Mercy hang her head in shame at her inaction though not before she saw Zebidiah Lord's image floating in a stasis tube, visibly saddened by the news and Corcus mouthing something in Aquitian that she assumed was a final blessing or farewell to the fallen Ranger.

"We have plenty to discuss and plenty of time to discuss it" Billy said finally, Mercy saw him reach into his pockets hands closing around a small device that she couldn't identify "And with the Empire being pushed back out of our borders you'll have plenty of time to recuperate when you come home"

"No" the single word left Mercy before she could truly comprehend what it was that she was embarking on and it seemed to echo around the Command Bridge and the Command Centre alike, visibly stunning those who heard it and leaving a tense silence that was broken only when Kay spoke up

"Cousin, what are you doing?"

"What I have to" Mercy answered simply, her gaze remaining locked on Billy as she spoke "I can't come home, not while Lord Zedd is still at the head on an Empire that can destroy entire planets whenever he feels like it; that's not what Rocky would have done, that's not what a Power Ranger does. Bring Tempestus home for medical treatment, bring any of my team that want to go home….Guys I promise I won't judge any of you for leaving but I can't, I have to stay here, I have to finish this" a second silence hung in the air, more profound than the first until finally Karone spoke out

"Mercy would be a valuable addition to my forces"

"Absolutely not Red Ranger!" Corcus bellowed, storming into full view "This is insubordination, this is foolishness! You will return to Promethea One and-"

"Silence Corcus" Zebidiah Lord growled, the air around the former Lord Zedd's psychic manifestation crackling ominously "She knows what she's doing….And Kay I presume that you will be joining her on this crusade?"

"I am sorry Grandfather, she is family as well" the Green Aegis Ranger answered, in return he received a smile from Zebidiah that made it clear that the former tyrant couldn't be more proud with his grandchild and students' choices.

"I follow Mercy" Aslaug answered simply

"I was never planning to stay in one place forever….Hell this is what I was doing before you found me" Panthera noted, her casual demeanour offset by the way her tail wrapped around Kay's waist and hugged them tightly. Rensa merely let out a low hiss and a nod of agreement which was matched by Marigold as she squared her shoulders and locked eyes with Mercy, making it clear that she intended to stay. All eyes fell on Tempestus, the Blue Ranger being the only member of their team left to declare though it was obvious that the decision would not be a simple one, for reasons that he articulated

"I would join you if I could" he whispered "But I can't….I need Aquitian water, I'm dying here" Mercy pulled her friend into a hug

"I get it, I promise that I get it….Stay safe"

"I would do anything to not be abandon my duty" Tempestus replied "To not abandon my friends"

"You may not have to" Billy interjected, reminding the Aegis Ranger's that this conversation was far from private.

"What are you plotting?" Corcus demanded furiously, though Billy made no attempt to answer him and simply turned his attention to Karone

"If you plan on housing a team of Rangers you would do well to have the means to support them….Tell me, would you care for a new chief engineer, chief medical officer, head scientist and experienced field commander?" Karone's face morphed into a wicked smile as she began to understand what it was that was being offered

"I believe we could accommodate those resources" she answered, at which point Billy produced the device from the pockets of his lab-coat that Mercy had seen the outline of

A small and clearly modified remote teleporter.

"Then stand by to receive us"

"Cranston I will have your head for this treachery-" Corcus's tirade was silenced as Billy put his plan into motion and the communication was suddenly ended as all power was diverted to the teleporters aboard Promethea One. The Aegis Rangers and crew of the Megalodon were left momentarily confused though before any of them could speak an answer to their imminent questions was provided as four teleport streams manifested aboard the ships' Command Bridge revealing Billy and those whom he had made part of his plans

"JUSTIN!" Mercy gasped as she rushed over to the former Turbo Ranger and pulled him into a crushing hug

"I missed being part of Mission Control, the hours on the new job sucked" he joked, the attempt at nonchalance lasting mere seconds before he threw his arms around the young woman he was slowly coming to consider his daughter and returned the hug in earnest. Mercy cast her eyes around the now overcrowded bridge and saw that Billy and Cestria were handing several flasks of Aquitian water to Tempestus who already seemed to regained some of his strength whilst Karone, Zhane and Cullis were chattering amongst themselves, clearly impressed at both the feat the former Blue Ranger had performed and the sheer amount of equipment and resources that he had brought with him.

Then Mercy's eyes narrowed.

"You" she hissed as she caught sight of Charlie, the rogue specialist returning her harsh glare with equal contempt before nodding silently and turning away; before Mercy could confront her or demand to know exactly what Billy was thinking by working with this traitor to humanity Karone's voice cut through the sudden buzz of conversation

"Well then, it looks like it's time that you all see our base of operations….Cullis, take us home"


It had been several hours since Billy Cranston had made his decision to abandon his post in spectacular fashion and Project Lightspeed as a whole and certainly the colony ship of Promethea One were still in a state of shocked uproar and panic as they scrabbled to make sense of what had happened. It almost went without saying that the knowledge of a former Power Ranger seemingly turning his back on the Alliance would need to be stifled and hidden, the entirety of the unified front that the countless worlds facing the threat of the Dark Empire needed to present could not be allowed to suffer the kind of blow that would come from the days' revelation being made public though it was a small mercy that, as the investigation into just what Billy and his associates had stolen went on it was revealed that rather than being the beginnings of some grand treachery where the former Blue Ranger and his cohorts turned against humanity and delivered its' secrets to its' enemies Billy was instead preparing to wage his own covert battle against Lord Zedd's forces independently of the Alliance and alongside the Aegis Rangers and Karone, the former Princess of Evil Astronema who was already operating deep within enemy territory.

A matter that Zebidiah Lord and Grace Sterling continued to discuss as they worked.

The former Lord Zedd was currently projecting his psychic presence into one of the several stasis tubes scattered around the joint Project Lightspeed and Promethea base that housed the Command Centre, this one in particular being located within the combined medical facility and laboratory where his heavily wounded and slowly dying physical body was being kept. The sorcerer stared at his withering and almost bloodless husk of a body with cold detachment as Grace, whose abilities continued to impress him continued her work; to Zebidiah the body was inconsequential, it was hardly as though it was the first time his body had been destroyed and he would never have rose to his former position of supreme leader of the Dark Empire if he were unnerved by mortal concerns such as death and pain.

"You know that you're going to be a suspect for something" Grace noted conversationally as she continued to attach various devices to Zebidiah's body and take countless readings from both it and the mechanical frame that lay motionless next to it in preparation for another attempt to give the sorcerer a new form.

"I expect nothing else" Zebidiah noted in an almost conversationally bored tone "I wonder whether it will be TJ himself of Cruger that comes to question me and claim that I somehow influenced Billy's decision"

"You seem to be taking this exceptionally well" Grace noted, a hint of suspicion creeping into her tone which Zebidiah could hardly blame her for

"I was once the head of the very Empire we are at war with and I led attacks against your world on a weekly basis, I would be a fool to believe that I could ever be entirely trusted by the people of Earth" he noted, a small amount of not quite bitterness, but definite annoyances colouring his words as he added "I see that true forgiveness is reserved solely for Power Rangers, they can wage war against those they are intended to protect and be welcomed back into the fold without question at a moments' notice"

"You'd rather they weren't?" Grace asked pointedly

"I'd rather the kindness that humanity has for itself was extended to all, I'd rather my Grandchild hadn't been treated more harshly than any rogue Ranger before them" Zebidiah let out a weary and disappointed sigh "I'd rather your people delivered on their promised decency….Though I suppose nobody has attempted to shoot me yet, so this is an improvement over my initial joining of Project Lightspeed" Grace fell silent at that, she was old and had seen far too much of humanity to be able to counter Zebidiah's argument in any honest or meaningful way and simply continued to prepare his body for the attempt to transfer his consciousness into a new body, eventually however she finally broke the somewhat uneasy silence that had settled between them

"I know humanity falls short of its' most noble beliefs, but we improves constantly….All we can hope for is enough time to make ourselves into something better"

"You sound like an Acheron" Zebidiah chuckles "Constantly remaking ourselves into something new, perhaps one day my people may make themselves into something other than conquerors"

"Perhaps"

"If not there will always be Power Rangers to defend against them"

"Will there?" Grace asked, suddenly unable to hide her anger "Without Billy and Justin and with Dulcea gone the Alliance has very little chance of making new Morphers should another threat arise-"

"Which means that Project Lightspeed will have to find its' lost scientists and by extension the Power Rangers that they are fighting alongside….Which I'm sure was Billy's plan all along" Zebidiah answered calmly and Grace's eyes widened, she remained rooted to the spot for several seconds before slowly turning away from her work to stare at the projection of Zebidiah's bearded and heavily lined face.

"You knew" she stated bluntly, it was neither a question or accusation but merely a simple statement of fact which Zebidiah made effort to deny

"I knew no specifics" he answered "But I was aware that Billy was planning something, he intended to rescue his child, my Grandchild and the heroes that Project Lightspeed and the Alliance as a whole were prepared to abandon….do you truly blame him?"

"No" Grace admitted after a moment "No I don't"

"Good" Zebidiah murmured "I thought you would understand….We should strive to be worthy of the heroes that fight for us" Grace considered that idea for a moment before turning her attention back to the matter at hand and focusing

"We're ready to begin, though I can't promise that this will be pleasant" Zebidiah nodded in understanding and prepared to have part of his consciousness transferred into the latest mechanical shell that had been prepared for it; knowing that it was beyond unlikely that this would be the final step of the process of saving his life, though it was a step in the right direction and many such steps had already been taken with the path ahead becoming steadily clearer.

Which the former Lord Zedd supposed was the best he could hope for in times such as these.


The arrival at the base of operations filled with rebels, insurgents and a ragtag assortment of freedom fighters from across the Dark Empire that would become the Aegis Ranger's new home had shocked Mercy out of her solemn and detached silence and caused her to stare in open, childlike wonder despite herself.

That such a place could exist in the midst of Dark Empire controlled space was simply amazing.

Zhane had explained to the Aegis Rangers as they drew near that the base was situated within a vast asteroid field, with several individual asteroids being almost the size of Earth's moon and that the asteroid field was located between two planets in an entirely uninhabited system that had once been an Empire mining colony, operated entirely by slaves and political prisoners taken from newly conquered worlds and similarly to Rensa's home world of Dread the colony had been abandoned once the ores and minerals that had been mined for were depleted, its' inhabitants having long since perished by the time it had been found by Andros and then Karone who had used the existing, albeit degraded infrastructure as the basis for a stronghold. Much of this explanation had fallen on deaf ears as the Rangers has simply taken in the sight of the base on the viewscreen of the Megalodon and found it beautiful, in a brutal and fierce sort of way.

The hidden base was situated towards the centre of asteroid field, surrounded on all sides by vast masses of barren grey rock whilst the base itself was seemingly largely made of the same material though these asteroids had been hollowed out with biomes built over what had once been mine shafts and reinforced structures built into them, many of them having spacefaring vessels docked at them and weapons emplacements constructed on their outer surfaces. The asteroids that formed the base were connected by a series of transparent tunnels large enough to serve as roads along which several ground vehicles could be seen travelling as they were illuminated from within by the bases' lighting giving the whole affair an appearance not entirely unlike the Lightspeed Aquabase but somehow more primal, as though the asteroid field were being restrained and were still an untamed thing.

Once within however the Aegis Rangers had seen their new base of operations and home for the foreseeable future for what it was, grimly utilitarian in a way that was entirely different from the pristine minimalism of Project Lightspeed bases. The original machinery and infrastructure of the mining colony had been reworked where possible or in several places ripped away entirely before being replaced with whatever could be scavenged, traded for or stolen by Karone's forces to create a chimeric appearance where technology from several dozen species and cultures were merged haphazardly together and made uniform by their unpainted and dull gunmetal colouring. Mercy currently stood inside a large hangar where the Megalodon had docked, looking down at the ship from a rickety gangway above it; the hangar and presumably much of the base beyond it was chilly and dimly lit, its' foreboding and desolate air lessened by the bustle of activity that filled it.

"Hey, Mercy" it was Marigold's voice that snapped the Red Ranger out of her own thoughts and back to her immediate surroundings. The Gold Aegis Ranger was returning alone and only Aslaug, Panthera and Kay had joined Mercy on the walkway, leaving two Rangers unaccounted for.

"Where are-"

"Tempestus is being checked over by medical….Apparently we have medical here, and farms for food and oxygen, and training and rec areas and engineering and Billy was even talking about converting some of the empty hangars for Zords" Mari answered, realising that she was veering off topic and quickly getting back on track "And Rensa went exploring, some of the people here are from his home world so he's planning on seeing if anyone he actually knows is here" Mercy nodded in understanding, noting that the idea of Rensa falling back into old habits was one that she found distinctly unappealing but it was an issue that would have to wait, in the meantime she let out a slow sigh that managed to convey the simple and yet profound weariness she felt

"You didn't have to do this" her voice wavered "You didn't have to come here with-"

"Yes, I did" Aslaug retorted simply, leaning down and resting her forehead against the smaller woman's "I've told you before, where you lead I follow" Mari watched as Mercy all but melted into the contact, finally allowing herself to truly relax and simply be at peace for the first time since they had found themselves stranded within the Dark Empire and found herself silently debating whether or not she should offer her own input and explain that she felt she would be unworthy of the mantle of Power Ranger she had taken up if she had done anything other than stand beside Mercy before finally deciding that it was not worth interrupting the private moment that she and Aslaug were sharing and so instead she gave a knowing and bemused glance to Kay and Panthera

"Wanna go find where we'll be sleeping"

"We call dibs on the biggest bed" Panthera grinned wickedly, the teal skinned aliens' tail wrapping around Kay's waist as the clawed fingers' of one of her hands' laced through her partners' through she seemed to be attempting to look nonchalant as she adjusted her spiked Mohawk with the other hand and sauntered after Marigold, leading Kay along with her

"Who knows" she continued, voice sultry "We might even sleep in it" the sound of Mari squawking in surprise and indignation at the Pink Ranger's behaviour was enough to interrupt the tender moment between Mercy and Aslaug, the Red Ranger giggling softly before locking eyes with the larger woman again

"I love you" she whispered

"I love you too" Aslaug murmured back, planting a gentle kiss against Mercy's lips before asking "Shall we catch up with the others….I'd like to be remember what being properly rested feels like" Mercy chuckled at that and chewed her lip as she considered the idea, the thought of falling asleep in Aslaug's strong arms an appealing one to say the least but eventually she shook her head

"Get some sleep, I'll find you as soon as I can but there's something I need to deal with first" with that she kissed the Yellow Ranger's cheek and departed, footsteps echoing throughout the hanger as she marched purposefully deeper into the base.

There was a matter that she would be unable to sleep or rest peacefully until she had attended to and there was no sense in delaying it any further.


Charlie had found herself in a different part of the base that the freedom fighters and insurgents had laid claim to and was currently watching with what appeared to be rapt attention as massive sheets and billets of some dull and dense metal, almost certainly stolen from some industrialised world or other within the Empire were broken down with specialised tools and prepared to be worked into tools, armour and whatever parts of spaceships needed to be repaired though in truth Charlie was simply taking a moment to enjoy her newly expanded freedoms and take stock of both her surroundings and everything that had happened thus far.

She had been right in her earlier assumptions that she was not being truly freed.

She had been told as much by Karone, the rebel leader who had once been Astronema had taken charge of the situation once it became clear that Billy Cranston and his wife were busy taking their son to find medical treatment and had seen to it that Charlie was escorted off of the Megalodon by armed guards. Karone had rejoined Charlie at her earliest convenience, finding her locked in a darkened and cramped room barely more hospitable than the cell she had just escaped, Zhane had joined her and the Silver Astro Ranger had made a show of morphing and keeping a weapon trained on the traitor in a display that could only fairly be described as overkill against a lone and unarmed opponent who had spent several months subsisting on prison food.

In the frank and blunt discussion that had followed Karone had surprised Charlie by stating that she had no ill-will towards traitors or those who went through a change of heart in war in principle, a large portion of her own forces were made of traitors to the Empire after all and she was herself a particularly notable figure amongst the ranks of Power Rangers who had once fought against humanity, a title shared by other notable names such as Tommy Oliver himself.

Karone had also impressed upon Charlie that whilst she was able to tolerate and forgive she was also practical and far from naive or foolish, promising the former Silver Guardian Specialist that she had a long way to go before she earned any measure of trust and that she would be watched closely by Karone's own agents; with the two of them coming to an understanding Charlie had been allowed to do largely as she pleased until she was required to report for duty; the idea of sleeping had seemed laughable and so she had instead began exploring and integrating herself into surprisingly large crew of the hidden base as skills and instincts that had been honed over years of deep cover and covert operations were mixed with a simple desire to be around other people after spending so long in isolation. She had eventually retreated away to watch from the sidelines however as the controlled chaos and defining noise of a base in full operation assaulted senses that had become accustomed to long, profound silences and featureless grey walls and Charlie felt her stomach clench and bile rise in her throat each time she saw a group of close-knit friends among the guerilla fighters, each instance reminding her painfully of Strike Squad Alpha and the memories of the comrades she both loved and hated were enough to send her all but fleeing. Privately Charlie decided that she would request to be sent to whatever far-flung front line this resistance movement was fighting on, with the Aegis Rangers rescued she was no longer needed for the task she had been freed for after all and if she was to be used then she thought that it would be better to be a liberator, even if she would once again be performing the tasks that those lauded as heroes could never be seen doing.

Motion in the corner of her eye pushed all of those thoughts to the back of her mind.

"Well I'd be an idiot if I didn't see this coming….I kinda hoped you'd leave until tomorrow though" Charlie attempted to sound as cold and aloof as she once ahead, her gruff tone merely coming across as exhausted in a way that went beyond the merely physical instead and Mercy paid no mind to the dismissive comment as she strode closer

"Why are you here?" the younger woman demanded coldly

"Cranston wanted someone with experience of operating in the Empire" Charlie managed a twisted sneer of a smile as she delivered the punchline to the joke fate had played on them all "I was supposed to rescue you, but the Karone and her people found you first and made the whole thing redundant"

"So why are you here?" Mercy repeated, her tone even icier "I don't believe for a second you've changed….the last time I saw you and your team you were attacking the Aquabase"

"Didn't your Green Ranger attack the Aquabase as well?" Charlie noted pointedly, leaving Mercy sputtering and trying to find an answer only for her response to trampled over as Charlie continued "I could give you some big speech about how I love the Alliance but I hate the people running it, about how I want to save lives even if they're part of a system that wouldn't save me but what's the point? You wouldn't listen….So what can I tell you kid, I didn't want to die in a cell" Mercy paused and faltered for a moment until eventually her eyes narrowed into what was admittedly one of the steeliest glares Charlie had ever seen, the teen obviously having experienced much since they had last crossed paths

"You're right" the Red Ranger stated simply "I don't believe you and I'll be watching you"

"Really now?"

"Really" Mercy snapped "Because you don't get to play hero Charlie, Rocky DeSantos was a hero, Kimberly Hart was a hero; they gave their lives for others, you turned bitter because nobody made you a Power Ranger….You will never be a Power Ranger Charlie, you are not capable" with that Mercy turned on her heel and marched away, living Charlie to first glare at the sheer self righteousness of the Aegis Ranger and irritation at being so openly challenged despite expecting nothing less; her expression morphed into a smirk however as she called after her.

"Hey kid….I heard your team stormed an Empire facility, hi-jacked their comms and bluffed your way into a rescue by calling out Lord Zedd by name" she chuckled darkly before delivering the coup de grace "Gotta say, you might've fitted in better with my old team than you want to admit" at that Mercy turned and gave a final, furious glare before departing, likely in search of some admittedly well deserved rest. Charlie remained where she had been stood, her own icy glares being more than sufficient to dissuade anyone nearby from staring or lingering too long after the confrontation had caught their attention; the former Specialist let out an irritable huff as the Red Ranger's words played over in her mind and she found herself disliking just how much truth she found in them.

"Screw it" she hissed under her breath, pushing her concerns to the back of her mind and forcing herself to focus on the more immediately and tangible, namely what life on this base working alongside rebels Guerillas and the Power Rangers themselves would entail.

All that she knew for certain was that it would be interesting for all involved.

Author's Notes:

So, life has continued to hit me like a fucking train….I got laid off and the UK is back on lock-down again; main takeaway from this is that I'm probably gonna change my upload day back to Friday.
I have plans for other stories in other fandoms but since I have free time again I don't think it will interfere with Aegis too much; also I have the barest bones for how the rest of this story will go and trust me I've got some curve-balls left to throw.
It looks like the story will run to eighteen arcs and an epilogue.
There may have to be another week off next week just so I've got time to properly plan out the next arc in full detail, but I'll try to avoid it because I've already thrown my schedule off with the last chapter.
I haven't been keeping up with PR news but I'm vaguely aware that some Dino Fury announcements have been made, but more importantly the people at Power Rangers Unworthy are filming again so go follow them on Instagram if you're not already.

Now, let's summarise shall we?:
So, Cleobis-Radix lived and would have walked that loss off; Rocky sacrificed himself to stop the Pseudo-Zord from going critical and likely saved the villains' life inadvertently along with the civilians.
I think an important take away from this scene, that might get a little lost is just how little control the dictatorship of the Dark Empire really has over its' worlds….One ship made it through their anti-aircraft guns and one defence mecha went down and it was enough to start a small uprising and looting all over the Capital city, and that was just opportunism rather than any co-ordinated effort by a faction like Karone's….That will play a factor in the coming arcs.
"All but one" Carnifex needs some suitably ominous theme music doesn't he?
Two interesting things to note, firstly that this is the first time we've seen anyone talk back to Carnifex since Paradoxa and that's a sign of what being sent into exile means for his standing and secondly that honestly, Carnifex and Cleobis-Radix working as allies would have been a terrifying idea and Carnifex might have shot himself in the dick here.
Carnifex putting his grudges above his honour is gonna be fun to watch.
Let's get all of these kids some therapy.
Still no Battleizer mode for Mercy.
So, the Megalodon doesn't have along range teleporter like the Alliance has; what does that mean for the Rangers going forwards?
Yeah the reunions are great but oof for Billy, he just found out that another one of his friends is dead.
The plan was always for the third act to be set almost entirely in the Empire itself, being rescued doesn't change that and at this point I feel like taking the fight to the Empire was the natural choice for Mercy to make.
Come on, none of the Rangers were gonna leave her behind.
Oh Corcus is pissed.
So, we now have Zhane, Karone, Billy, Justin and Charlie all as possible candidates for the new "Mission Control" and Cestria will be their medic again, fun times.
I really don't like the transition, Zebidiah was in the last scene and he's here as well, normally I'd throw something else between them but it just didn't make sense to.
An interesting idea occurred to me writing this scene, the Dark Empire is a forced hegemony to the point of its' people being literal hybrids of the species that they've conquered and consumed….But the Alliance, in wanting to present a unified front against it could easily slip into becoming just as authoritarian.
Zebidiah is still dying and Grace is working on building him a new body, also I enjoy writing these two together.
Zebidiah does make a very fair point, the Power Rangers kill monsters without hesitation every single week but the second it's a human in a Ranger suit fighting them, then it becomes a matter of winning them over.
Having the former Lord Zedd directly call out the similarities between his own Empire and humanity might be a bit on the nose, but all things considered and looking at the state of the world I think sometimes you've just gotta be blunt.
In my head the base looks really cool, think of the Aquabase but built of an asteroid field.
Little bit of expo from Mari there….yeah this base is well stocked; without the Astro Ultra-Ship Karone needed a central base of operations when she took over from Andros.
Zord Hangars…..
Shout out to Mari for not cock-blocking or ruining a moment, Mercy and Aslaug deserved that.
And Panthera will always be Panthera, she has no shame about things like sex at all.
Yeah Charlie is obviously under a lot of suspicion but at the same time I think Karone is intelligent and honest enough to give her a chance, all things considered she'd be a massive hypocrite if she wasn't.
Yeah, being in a factory right after being in solitary confinement for months is gonna give you a headache.
Also….Charlie's thoughts on her all team are interesting; in her head she still did everything for them, but still wishes she could have killed Ivan herself.
Charlie speaking for all of us here, we all knew that Mercy was gonna come and find her.
Okay so Mercy was harsh here but let's not pretend that it's without reason, also I feel like both of them made some points but it was Charlie that kinda won that argument….I feel like writing their relationship going forwards from a position of Charlie just taking Mercy's shit wouldn't really give either of them any room for growth.
That last line is an almost Fourth Wall break.
And, for those that don't get it….the chapter title is a reference to the insurgency that the Rangers are now part of.

Thank you to Blue Legends for their review on the last chapter.
Yeah, the length of the chapter was honestly the main reason for the week break.
Well you'll be seeing more of Karone now.
I'm glad that it come too out of left field...the key to a good twist is that it was foreshadowed, otherwise you're just doing it for the laugh.
Honestly I'm not entirely sure what inspired the Rangers Vs the Pseudo-Zord scene but I'll freely admit I was probably inspired by something, because let's be real all writers are inspired by something.
There's only actually two Astro Morphers unaccounted for, Carlos and Ashley's and one of those was dismantled and used for part of the original Morpher that Lord Zedd gave to Kay; the other one is either on Lord Zedd's trophy rack somewhere, buried under debris on Acheron itself or has been traded around the Empire by black market dealers.

As always thank you to everyone that reads this, with a special thanks to those of you that follow, favourite and review.