CHANGE OF COMMAND, PART 1.
Location Unknown.
Ra's Al Ghul, the leader of the League of Shadows, was too upset with what had happened to Bane. Commander Wayne, now being the Dark Ranger and no longer the Red Ranger, managed to defeat him and put him to prison.
And worst of all, the entire squad of Power Rangers from Zone C was still together. He had been surprised that these Rangers were so loyal compared to what Dick Grayson did. This made it more difficult for him to plan, since he couldn't destroy the decaying Zone C with the Rangers there, at least not so easily.
"Lady Shiva, you have failed me for the last time. Now, we'll have to send him to tarnish Wayne's reputation. If he leaves or if the Rangers walk away from him, then there will be a possibility. That is why, instead of continuing to expect failure from you, I have called him," Ra's said.
At that moment, a muscular man came in similar to Bane, but not so big or strong. He had quite powerful weapons in his arms and a red monocle over his right eye. While his clothes were almost dark, there were some parts that showed some skin.
"Now, you know what to do. You have to go take down those Rangers, and when that happens, Wayne will be too. Understood?" Ra's asked the man in the green armor.
"You don't need to tell me twice, Mr. Ra's, especially since no one destroys things better than I do," the gunman replied before leaving.
He wanted to destroy things, and Ra's Al Ghul had called him to destroy something very valuable: the Power Rangers.
Base of the Zone C. 9:00
Commander Wayne had reached his chair. He had already eaten breakfast, but he hadn't slept well in recent days. Since his Rangers had agreed to stay in Area C for a while longer in the fight against Ra's Al Ghul, he was now more determined to protect the Rangers from him, but night terrors and nightmares always attacked him every night.
All the while he was afraid that Ra's would end up eliminating them just like his previous Rangers, and that Zone C would be destroyed. He had fought so hard to keep it safe, so he couldn't let him win.
However, things were about to get worse that day. A few minutes after reaching his chair, he received a message. Opening and reading it, he knew that this was going to be the calm before the storm. He called J'onn, informing him of the situation as well as having him write notes for the five Rangers and put them on their doors before they woke up. J'onn, being as loyal as ever, did as the commander asked and posted the notes on the Rangers' doors.
The Rangers woke up, got dressed, and went outside to find J'onn's note taped to their doors. As they read it, they were surprised that it was going to be a somewhat unusual day.
Dear Ranger, we are hosting an important visitor today, so today's training will not take place. Instead, the base will be cleaned and tidied extensively. Get ready and report to the conference room before noon.
Sincerely, J'onn.
The Rangers thought they should ask him what was going to happen. Before they could do anything, Commander Wayne announced over the loudspeakers to clean up the base if they didn't want to dig trenches with a spoon, so they went to breakfast in the dining room while wondering what was going to happen today.
While they were nervous, they were quite puzzled that Commander Wayne ordered the base to be cleaned and tidy to the extreme. For the first time, the Rangers were seeing all the other soldiers and staff members doing something.
After breakfast, everyone began to tidy up their rooms and clean the base with the help of others. Once they finished that work, they went to their rooms where they all went to bathe and put on their suits. Even Kal combed his hair for five minutes, until he had a pompadour on his forehead, while Barry only adjusted it with his hands because he hated to comb his hair. John luckily didn't need to comb his hair because he had short hair, while Shayera and Diana put thier hair up in a ponytail.
After this, they went to the conference room, finding the commander sitting in the chair with his back to them. J'onn, as always, was on his feet checking that he had everything ready on his table. The commander turned around and got up from his chair to walk towards them.
"Cadets, exactly at noon, the supreme commander of Earth will arrive at the base. For this reason, I warn you not to interrupt anything he says. Do not whisper anything, do not tell jokes, do not move, do not make gestures and do not ask or answer anything unless he orders them," Commander Wayne said using the cold, terrifying gaze that made everyone except Diana fear.
"Was I clear, Cadet Prince?" the commander asked, knowing that she as the Blue Ranger, who was secretly the Princess of the Amazons, would be the first to say something that would get her in trouble.
Obviously, Diana didn't like this because she thought he considered her impatient. Well she was, but this was not the time for another discussion with him.
"Understood, sir," Diana said in a whisper.
"I say this because Supreme Commander Lane would instantly expel you with just a little insult, cadets. So if you're smart, you won't do anything stupid," he said this as he looked at Kal who, like Diana, was offended at believing that he would do something stupid, but in just a few minutes he would see the reason for this.
Two minutes before noon, Commander Wayne gave the alert and all the members of the personnel, including J'onn and his Rangers, went to the hangar and all formed in different lines. For obvious reasons, the commander, J'onn, and his Rangers were in front of everyone. Exactly at noon, the hatch was opened and a ship made for 10 people, escorted by four other small ships, entered the base.
"Remember, you can't lose your cool with him. You know that you hate him, and that he hates him too. It would be catastrophic for the staff if they see you arguing and fighting like old men who have been fighting all your lives "J'onn said, reminding his commander not to matter what happened. He could not insult, growl, contradict or disobey him.
"I know, J'onn, but it's easy for you to say. Nobody hates you to death," said the commander, reminding him of the sad reality that he was someone very hated.
"Yeah, but when someone insults me, I'm better at controlling myself than you," J'onn said with a half smile.
As the ship landed, Barry started laughing. It was the first time he had seen the commander nervous when having a meeting with the supreme commander. If something went wrong, it would be the supreme commander who would scold him.
"What are you laughing at?" Kal asked.
"That now Wayne will have someone who will scold him whenever he is wrong and not us" Barry replied.
"That's true," Kal agreed.
"And, it's fun to see him nervous about meeting with the supreme commander," he said, trying to put everyone in a good mood, but as always, John made them take him more seriously.
"I have never met the supreme commander, and apparently neither have you. And it's obvious that Wayne is going through a difficult time, so we better not laugh until this is all over," John said looking at everyone.
"And they better stop talking, or they'll get into more trouble once this is over," added the commander.
Once the ships had opened their cabins and doors, four soldiers in silver uniforms, instead of black, went to the large ship and two formed on each side. From the large ship a man with somewhat pale skin, a little shorter than Commander Wayne, but with brown hair similar to John's style, stepped out of the ship.
A golden insignia with the symbol of the Justice League was distinguished from his uniform. After this, he advanced towards Commander Wayne and the base personnel, protected by his guards.
"Attention, soldiers, stand firm now," the commander ordered all the personnel to stand in a firm position, saluting the supreme commander. Seeing this, Wayne knew that he wasn't going to say anything nice. He never did.
"I see you cared so much to make me believe that everything is perfect, Wayne, but I know that everything is in a bad state. It has always been since that night when three of your Rangers died," the supreme commander said with too harsh a tone.
Ro everyone's surprise, Commander Wayne did not answer him, but stood still waiting for him to say something else. "And it's obvious that your Rangers are the least qualified to work in Zone C," he said to top it off. This obviously made Diana, John, and Shayera upset about this, but they knew they couldn't say anything.
"Supreme Commander, hearing you say this makes me suppose that you read the files of these Rangers, but they are more capable than you think. But, you decide whether to salute those who have protected Zone C after a long time," Commander Wayne said putting on a cold monotonous expression that hid anger.
"I think you are right. I know them better. Maybe there is something about them that makes them less useless," said the supreme commander as he approached the five Rangers.
At this time, all the Rangers were looking somewhat puzzled at the Supreme Commander, except Kal and Barry who were more focused on seeing how Commander Wayne tried not to lose his patience. Barry was very nervous and very distracted when it came to noticing details when very nervous.
The supreme commander was a somewhat skinny man, surely his black uniform hid his musculature. He had brown hair and a padlock beard. He was very much like someone they knew, but they couldn't say anything because the context was tense. It took them longer to put the pieces together to figure it out.
"Kal-El, an impatient Kryptonian who believes himself to be the best because of his strength; Diana Prince, a woman with skills and training, but very weak in temperament; John Stewart, the most obedient and disciplined, but the easiest to break when there is no order to follow; Barry Allen, the laid-back sprinter who always does stupid things before acting professionally and Shayera Hol, a girl who believes herself too much for anything she does," said the supreme commander, practically in the faces of the Rangers, seeing how each reacted differently.
Kal was angry, as were Diana and Shayera, but John and Barry were more shocked than angry.
"Now that you are done with your evaluation of the Rangers, I think you could inspect the base," Commander Wayne said to prevent his Rangers from causing a blow up prematurely.
"Good idea, although it's strange coming from you, Wayne," said the supreme commander, leaving the hangar entrance, with Commander Wayne and J'onn following. Wayne stopped to speak to the Rangers and personnel.
"Cadets, follow me wherever I go as long as I'm here. The others can go back to their work. I will tell you when we will have to return here when the supreme commander wants to leave," he ordered.
Obviously, everyone obeyed.
The journey was somewhat strange, uncomfortable, tedious and very long. It was very long because the supreme commander was going through every corner to find something that would show that Commander Wayne was not fit to be a commander.
He never trusted him. He had been the Red Ranger at a very young age by showing a lot of dexterity in all areas as well as being someone who thinks coldly to resolve critical situations, and seemed to be a good teammate albeit somewhat obedient.
But then three Rangers died in one night because of a bad decision of his and another Ranger left Zone C, causing any recruits to refuse to work in it. And to top it all off, he'd had to become a commander because, while he was able to replace him with any of his trusted personnel, the supreme commander had wanted to make him suffer for the death of his three Rangers…that and the unfortunate death of Commander Gordon and the scientist Pennyworth.
If only he knew all the suffering and guilt Commander Wayne was carrying all the time, and the great pressure he had every day to keep the zone safe from the great enemy that nearly destroyed Zone C.
At the end of the tour, they all went to the conference room. However, upon reaching the door, Commander Wayne ordered the Rangers and J'onn to stay outside, an order that was obeyed. They wanted some rest from the tense environment, except for Shayera and Diana. Both of them always wanted to be in there.
As the conversation between the two commanders raged in the conference room, the Rangers were breathing after such a long time.
"I can't believe that guy is the supreme commander, especially after what he tells the commander," Diana said.
"I think there is some justification in this, especially since Commander Wayne was partly to blame for the destruction of three Power Rangers, so I can understand that ..." John said before all the angry looks turned on him "... But it's true, he doesn't deserve to talk to us like that."
"They'd better talk about something else because they're both still in there and we're very close to them so they can hear," J'onn warned.
In that moment, Shayera thought what she had been suspecting, as did John and Diana.
"Has anyone noticed anything we've seen before in Supreme Commander Lane?" She asked.
"That was something that crossed my mind, Shayera," John said.
"Shouldn't we be more concerned with how he treats us?" Kal asked.
"That's true. If they treat me badly, my face spoils," Said Barry,
"This is serious, Kal and Barry. I notice that there is something in him that we have seen before," Shayera insisted.
"It is true. I think he's a relative of someone," Diana added.
"Actually, I think you've noticed, haven't you, Kal?" John asked looking at Kal, who didn't understand who they were referring to.
"I don't know what they're talking about," Kal replied.
"I don't know either," Barry said.
"I don't understand. You are the Red Ranger, but you are very blind," John said. That was true, just as Commander Wayne had told him long ago, that he paid attention to what was not important.
"I can't understand who you mean," Kal said.
During this time, Commander Wayne and Supreme Commander Lane had had a somewhat heated conversation. Incredibly, the supreme commander had sat in Commander Wayne's chair, pretending that he had complete authority over him.
"Again you do a job to satisfy me, but you know that I will never trust you at all. Zone C is still the most troublesome I've ever seen, and with these Rangers…" He said the latter making gestures of quotation marks. "... it is obvious that Zone C will not be saved, not in a short time," concluded the supreme commander.
"Supreme Commander, as I told you before, these Rangers are more capable than they look, and unfortunately, saving Area C is something that takes more than less than a year," Commander Wayne replied, trying to make him see that he didn't have to underestimate his Rangers. "And above all, it is necessary for them to be here. Remember that new recruits always refuse to work in zone C because of me, so they are our only option especially now that Ra's Al Ghul has returned."
He said the latter feeling too bad, because this did not leave him calm. However, this fanned the fire more than extinguished it.
"Has Ra's returned? Why didn't you tell me? He could have come to prevent you from making the same mistake," the Supreme Commander said, rising from his chair and approaching Commander Wayne. This was getting ugly.
"Because, Supreme Commander, you do not like me, and you would know that I would be involved in my mission. I am here to save Area C and prevent my Rangers from dying as they did years ago, and with all due respect, I will not let you interfere," Commander Wayne said.
"Do you think I'll let you do whatever you want with those Rangers so that they end up like the others? Better get ready because now I know that I won't be leaving in a short time," the Supreme Commander said.
Before Commander Wayne could respond, the alarm sounded.
Commander Wayne came out and saw that everyone was talking, but it was time to act. The Rangers entered the conference room where the supreme commander was sitting back in Wayne's chair.
"Cadets, there are reports of an armed shooter in Coventry. Your mission is to go stop him, but be careful. This may be a Ra's plan to lure you in," Commander Wayne warned.
"Very good, commander. Come on," Kal said as they all followed him.
"Time to see if you do well or not, Wayne," said the supreme commander.
Curiously, Wayne did not even respond. He just wanted his Rangers not to be ambushed by Ra's himself.
XXX
12:55
When they arrived, the man who was doing the shooting with a submachine gun wearing a brown trench coat and cowboy hat was very happy. Practically destroying things was more of his passion. Luckily the civilians had managed to escape.
Oddly, making plans was what he hated the most, so he set about making a mess because he knew the Rangers would go after him. Obviously, this turned out to be true, and upon seeing them arrive, he unloaded all the bullets from his submachine gun at them.
"Why is that guy shooting us for no reason? " Barry asked.
"I don't know, Barry, but you better catch him. You're the speedy one," Kal answered. Barry just nodded and got up.
"Justice League, actívate," Barry said and transformed into the Yellow Ranger. He ran towards the shooter, but before he could get there, two landmines that the shooter had left on the ground exploded, causing Barry to fly a bit through the air and then fall to the ground.
"Oh no! Barry!" Shayera yelled, but John stopped her with a brick wall.
"Stop, Shayera. If Barry exploded going towards him then there may be more mines," John told her.
"Diana, Shayera, draw guns and shoot close to the shooter," Kal ordered, getting into a more advantageous position and using his heat vision to shoot him to the ground followed by Diana and Shayera's shots.
Once this was done, there were six explosions, which did some damage to the shooter. "It's our chance, let's go," Kal said, jumping up and running towards Barry, followed by the others.
"Barry, are you okay?" Shayera asked. Barry no longer had the suit on him after those explosions and he had a cut on his cheek, but he was fine. He began to breathe.
"Yes, thank you," Barry replied, slowly getting up. "Phew. Thank you that my metabolism is accelerated, because this cut will heal and my beautiful face will return to normal," he said before the Morpho sounded.
"Rangers, I'm glad Cadet Allen is fine, but arrest the criminal now, or he will escape," Commander Wayne ordered impatiently.
"Okay, let's go," Kal said, going to where the knocked out shooter was, followed by Diana and John, while Shayera tended to Barry.
What they could tell, however, was that the explosions had scratched his brown trench coat and removed some traces of his dark clothing and his musculature. Before Kal could touch him to turn him around and handcuff him, an electrical device activated and the three were electrocuted. When the volley was finished, the shooter tore his raincoat and again showed his great musculature and weaponry.
"Wow, I never thought that people as incompetent as you are the Power Rangers of Zone C. I have run into mercenaries tougher than you," said the shooter.
Shayera was already on her feet, shooting at him.
"This doesn't change anything," said the shooter before being hit with a giant baseball bat that John created.
"That's to lower your guard," John said a little weak as he stood up, as did Kal and Diana.
"Alright, it's time," Kal said.
"I'm not going to let him get away with it after he blew me up," Barry said with an angry face.
"We agree on that," Diana said.
"Are we ready?" Kal asked.
"Ready!" The other four answered at the same time.
"Justice League actívate," the five of them said in unison and transformed. At that, the shooter got up and showed two pistols.
"Do you think you can beat me? Nobody can stop the greatest murderer and combatant, nobody stops the KGBeast," said the shooter.
"Well, we are: one, Kal-El, Justice league, red," Kal said.
"Two, Diana Prince, Justice League, blue," Diana said.
"Three, John Stewart, Justice League, green," John said.
"Four, Barry Allen, Justice League, yellow," Barry said.
"Five, Shayera Hol, pink Justice League," Shayera said.
"And the five of us are the Power Rangers of Zone C," Kal said.
"And prepare to be beaten," Shayera said.
The match started with Kal landing blows to KGBeast's chest, but these didn't have much of an effect on him. Diana drew her sword, but he used his pistols and prevented her from attacking. Barry managed to hit him hard to the face and chest, but it wasn't much use. John created two boxing gloves in the air and threw punches to the chest and to the face, but to no avail. Lastly, Shayera began shooting at him from a distance before hitting him in the ribs and legs.
Unfortunately, KGBeast took something out of his pocket and put it on his wrist. Suddenly, a giant mechanical fist formed in his hand. With that giant hand, he struck out at Kal and Diana, throwing them a meter away from him. Barry had to stop because he too was hit.
Shayera got away from her, but the shots were blocked by the giant fist and then he tried to attack her, but luckily, she managed to evade him. It gave John enough time for him to fight back with a giant truck. This latest attack worked for a few seconds before KGBeast threw grenades at everyone, but Barry grabbed them and threw them behind the criminal, sending him flying through the air.
XXX
Base of the Zone C.
As the battle between KGBeast and the Zone C Power Rangers was going on, Commander Wayne and the Supreme Commander were watching it on the conference room monitors. Right now, seeing how the great and terrible marksman had a certain advantage over his Rangers, Commander Wayne wanted to leave the Supreme Commander alone and go help them.
He knew this was only going to bring him more problems than he already had, so it was better to stay still. However, the supreme commander did not like the poor performance they were having.
"It is the most disorganized form of fighting I have ever seen. It seems that even they don't know how to fight despite all this time you've had," he said.
Surprisingly, Commander Wayne didn't respond.
"Also, you could have made green the leader, and sent him only with yellow or pink, and the others could have continued as cadets in training," he added, which made him respond now.
He hadn't said anything because he wanted to let him tell him everything he didn't like, but he wasn't going to let him question his decisions.
"Cadet Stewart is not ready to be a leader. He is too conceited, Cadet Allen and Hol can be more obedient and methodical, but Cadet El and Cadet Prince are necessary for the team," he replied, not wanting to overdo it.
"Still, you better just send two Rangers. Tell the red, blue and pink to stand down," he ordered, hoping he would obey him.
"I will not do it, Supreme Commander. My mission is to protect Zone C and my cadets, and that's what I'm doing. It's better for them to have all five of them instead of having to send rescue teams when two can't. Being Rangers is a job for one squad, not just two," he said, and then it was done.
XXX
When KGBeast fell to the ground, the Rangers were ready to arrest him, but he jerked his head up and many submachine guns began firing at them. He had a large arsenal of automatic weapons that he always kept as a last resort and it was working for him.
"Next time, it won't be that easy, Rangers" KGBeast said before leaving.
"He escaped," Diana said, kicking into the air.
"Yes, but I'm sure he will attack again," Shayera said.
"That's true, but we should have stopped him this time. Above all, with the Supreme Commander here," John said.
"Hey, calm down John. I'm upset that I couldn't capture him, but my face and body are fine, so it could be worse," Barry said.
"That guy was tough. We have to be vigilant next time," Kal said.
"Before you go back, Kal, did you really look at the Supreme Commander?" John asked.
"No, and I still don't understand what you mean," Kal said.
"I think he's related to ..." Diana was going to say, but the Morpho chimed.
"Cadets, to base, and fast," ordered the commander.
"We better go," John said.
XXX
1:20
Upon returning to base, the Rangers saw that all base personnel, including J'onn, were in line and organized. However, they did not expect to see that the two commanders walking down the escalators to reach them.
"Attention, gentlemen. We all know that being a part of the Justice League is a commitment to keep the world and the galaxy protected, a commitment that cannot be broken under any objection. Disobeying an order is one of the greatest offenses and sadly, Commander Wayne has committed one of those big infractions. Therefore, he has been removed from office and expelled from the league. Let this be a warning to you. Former Commander Wayne, you can say your last words," Supreme Commander said, looking at everyone before looking at the former commander that he had hated for so long.
Obviously, by saying this, everyone on the base was quite shocked, the Rangers, the personnel…all except J'onn, who had witnessed it, since he was the one with the two when the battle that triggered this was going on. Former Commander Wayne stepped forward and spoke.
"Gentlemen, and cadets, we know that my methods of running this base have not been the common ones, but all of those have been done with a single purpose in mind: to keep Zone C safe and make it a better place for residents.
"Besides that, I have always tried to do everything so that the mistake I made years ago does not happen again, but now it is time for you to carry out that mission without me. It has been an honor to be the commander of this base and to have met all of you," he said all this with emotion, but with a cold gaze to avoid showing weakness at its worst.
At the end he saluted and began to walk towards the exit to become a common civilian.
"Stop, Wayne," Kal said following him with the other four Rangers. "What happened? Why did they expel you?"
Kal grabbed his arm. Bruce stopped, and just took Kal's hand off him.
"It is not important now. You have to continue with the mission and stay alive," he said before walking out the door.
"Well, now that this has happened, I proudly announce that I will take Commander Wayne's place in Zone C. And remember, any disobedience will not be tolerated. Now, everyone can go back to work. Rangers, follow me," the supreme commander ordered before going up the escalators.
The Rangers followed him into the conference room, where the Supreme Commander took Commander Wayne's position. Everyone took their usual positions around the table.
"Rangers, the man you guys faced today is KGBeast. Real name, Anatoli Knyazev. He was a Russian soldier before the creation of the Justice League. He worked as a spy, and then as a professional criminal stealing high-tech weapons. He is an expert in weapons and in hand-to-hand combat. His mission is to stop him at all cost," said the supreme commander. "I hope you do not fail again."
"Understood, Commander," John said.
"Commander, we would like to know why he expelled Wayne," Kal asked, followed by nods from the other Rangers. They also wanted to know what happened.
"First of all, I am the supreme commander. Second, I don't answer anything that such a clumsy and unqualified Ranger does to me. None of you are qualified. And if you fail me, I am going to make you pay in the worst way possible. So now, you can go. I'll let you know when KGBeast shows up," he said, making a gesture for them to leave. This was hard to tolerate, but everyone left.
They all went to the entertainment room so that they could speak without the supreme commander knowing.
"This guy is amazing. I'm surprised Wayne disobeyed an order," Kal said.
"He sure is annoying, but Wayne was much more annoying," Barry said.
"They're both pretty stiff, but he's overdoing it," John said.
"I always thought he was the most annoying guy in the world," Shayera said.
"And the most ruthless," Diana said. "But I still don't understand why he disobeyed an order when he forced us to go to Themyscira."
"Yes. I never thought he would do that," Kal said.
"Why would he do that?" John asked.
"Because he wanted to protect you," J'onn said entering the conference room. They all looked at him strangely. "Kal, you wanted to know if Commander Wayne was willing to protect you, and that's what he was going to do, whether the Supreme Commander wanted to or not," he said, causing Kal to ponder a bit.
"So he is hell-bent on it," Kal said.
"He always is, but he never lets you see it," J'onn said.
"Please. Obviously he doesn't like us. I don't think he cares much about us," Barry said.
"He doesn't like anyone very much," J'onn added, saying a somewhat obvious characteristic of Wayne.
"Then what do we do?" Diana asked. "Will we see him again at some point? Will he ever come back? " she asked herself, as this was concerning.
"I do not think so. The Supreme Commander hates him, and I don't think anything will change his mind," J'onn replied.
"Couldn't we bring him back?" Shayera asked.
"We cannot do this. The supreme commander is now our boss, and we cannot disobey him," John said.
"You are a coward," Shayera said.
"No, Shayera. John is right. We are Rangers and we must be loyal. Commander Wayne is no longer being here cannot prevent you from doing your duty," J'onn said. Seeing how calm he was, the Rangers snorted when they saw that Commander Wayne would not be coming back. Seeing that everything was ready, J'onn was about to leave, but Diana stopped him.
"J'onn, can you answer this for us?" she asked. J'onn was thinking of leaving, but he looked like he was trapped.
"Do you know if the supreme commander is related to someone we know?" Shayera asked.
"Your suspicions of him are true," J'onn replied. "Kal, keep calm," said him again because the next words were the most shocking and most unexpected. "Because the Supreme Commander's full name is Sam Lane. And he is the father of Lois Lane."
NEXT: CHANGE OF COMMAND, PART 2.