AUTHOR'S NOTE: Once again, a special thank you to Writer of the Storm for writing this chapter.
DISCLAIMER: I own absolutely none of the properties you will see here. All rights go to their respective owners.
What If?
Chapter 4: Code Miraculous Power - Part 1
Clockwork, the ghost master of all time, had arrived.
He had come to a new, alternate branch of time that, up until then, had been void of his presence. As he has done from time to time, the ghost had come to see what was so different about this new world. Clockwork was surprised, however, when he found himself in the hall of what looked like a school. He looked around and saw that it was still light out before spotting a clock on the wall that read 2:47 p.m. Clockwork then spotted a boy in a red baseball cap who practically came sprinting out of the boy's bathroom trying to get back to his class. He held his hall pass out plainly for all to see as he kept running along his way.
"How interesting?" Clockwork said as the boy ran right through him.
Of course, he would not be seen by anyone here unless he wished them to see him. Because of this, Clockwork felt no worry about following the boy to the class he was running so quickly to get back to. As they journeyed further down the hall, Clockwork soon recognized who this boy was. It was Nino Lahiffe. A boy who Clockwork knew as the Miraculous holder and the Parisian superhero, Carapace, in the main universe.
Clockwork raised an eyebrow as he watched Nino turn off through a door to a classroom. 'Curiouser and curiouser.'
The ghost master of time floated through the locker-filled wall before ending up on the other side, in the classroom.
"Oh, Mr. Lahiffe, how nice of you to grace us with your return," the teacher said jokingly. Clockwork recognized her as Ms. Mendeleiev. "I hope your brief excursion, which broke our hearts so bad, was rather...relieving."
Some of the students laughed as Nino placed the hall pass on Ms. Mendeleiev's desk and rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly before running back up to his seat.
"Hmm," Clockwork let out as he looked upon the rows of tables and seats going upwards.
He soon spotted a sight that definitely seemed like a hint of a divergence. It actually made his eyes widen a bit. At the third top row on the right, he spotted Marinette Dupain-Cheng and Alya Césaire, who he knew as the Miraculous holders, Ladybug and Rena Rouge. While there was nothing too crazy about that, where it started to get strange was the two individuals in the row directly below and in front of them. Instantly, Clockwork recognized them as Adrien Agreste and Chloé Bourgeois. In the main universe, they were better known as Cat Noir and Queen Bee. Here, Clockwork was not entirely sure yet, but, for the most part, he was operating under the assumption that these four, along with Nino, were still the Miraculous holders they were in the prime universe. Although something was slowly starting to tell him that this may not be the case.
What was so strange about their situation was that none of the four looked bothered by being so close to each other. Marinette and Chloé were not staring daggers or barking at each other with hateful or mean-spirited comments. Nor did Marinette or Chloé seemed too bothered by themselves or each other being so close to Adrien. That was when Clockwork noticed another element was out of place in this picture.
"Where's Sabrina Raincomprix?" Clockwork wondered out loud.
He then spotted the red-headed girl waiting on hand and foot for Lila Rossi at the front left row of the class.
"Alright, class," Ms. Mendeleiev said out loud, getting the students' attention. "Who else can give me three examples of physics being applied in our everyday life?"
The teacher turned from the chalkboard to the class with hands behind her back. "Hmm?... Anyone at all?... Ms. Bourgeois perhaps?"
At this, Chloé looked up and stared like a deer caught in the headlights.
"Yes, you," Ms. Mendeleiev confirmed.
"Who?" Chloé asked nervously.
"YOU!" Ms. Mendeleiev reconfirmed. "Can you give us three examples of physics applied in everyday life, or not? For your sake, I hope the answer is 'yes. Especially after last week's fiasco."
Chloé still looked a bit nervous as she brought her hand to her face. She was almost about to click the ends of her fingernails against her teeth nervously. However, she instantly fought against the urge when she realized her nails looked too good in the pink polish she was wearing. She was still nervous, though, as she looked around from side to side. Almost like she was trying to find a way out. Chloé seemed as worried as a ghazel cornered by a pride of lions.
But then something happened that Clockwork did not expect at all. It was Marinette Dupain-Cheng of all people who first reached out a supportive hand and placed it upon Chloé's shoulder. The daughter of Paris's mayor looked surprised. She turned to see Marinette, along with Alya, giving Chloé smiles of support.
"You got this, girl," Alya whispered.
"Absolutely," Marinette whispered in agreement. "Just remember what we went over."
Both girls gave winks of reassurance to the rich girl. This somewhat surprised Clockwork, who knew Chloé as a snob that was forever at odds with Marinette and Alya in the main universe.
"It's almost as if...they're friends?" Clockwork let out in surprise. "Well, this is certainly getting interesting."
The time ghost's eyes widened further when he saw Adrien take Chloé's hand in his. Chloé seemed just as surprised as she gasped and looked to see her longtime childhood friend smiling at her.
"Go for it, Chloé," Adrien said, sounding just as supportive.
Chloé Bourgeois then nodded before turning to face Ms. Mendeleiev. She took a deep breath and then began to speak.
"Well, first of all, Ms. Mendeleiev, physics gets involved in our daily lives right after we wake up in the morning. Actually, it's involved even before that, but that's not the example I'm using. The example I am using is an alarm clock. The buzzing sound of an alarm clock helps you wake up in the morning as per your schedule. The sound is something that you can't see but hear or experience. Physics studies the origin, propagation, and properties of sound. It works on the concept of Quantum Mechanics.
"Now, that was just my first example. Allow me to move right on to the second. Right after you wake up in the morning and start preparing for school or some dingy office job or possibly working the window at McDonald's, which I'm sure most of yo... Uhh, anyways! You need ironed clothes, and that's where physics comes into play again with the steam iron! The steam iron is a machine that uses A LOT of physics to make it go. The foremost principle of physics used in the steam iron is 'heat.' Heat, in thermodynamics, is a type of energy transfer from a warmer substance to a colder one. Ironing works by having a heated metal base, that being the...um...the soleplate!"
"For my third and final example: walking! When you get ready for school or your office job or scraping gum under the theater seat or whatever it is you've got to do in your petty little lives, you certainly have to walk up to a certain distance. You can easily walk in part because of physics. While on a typical walk, you have a good grip without slipping."
"Unless it's around wintertime," Adrien joked.
"Too funny, Adriekens, but true," Chloé said. "Anyways, your feet have such a good grip when walking EXCEPT during winter because of a sort of roughness or resistance between the soles of your shoes and the surface of the road. That would be called 'friction' or 'traction.' However, when a banana peel comes under your foot, you suddenly fall and that's because of the reduced friction between your shoes and the surface of the road because of the slippery banana peel.
"Now, that's what you really need to beware of because you're TOTALLY gonna slip on a banana peel before slipping on ice, right?"
Everyone laughed, save for Ms. Mendeleiev, who just looked on with a puzzled expression. "Hmm... Very well done, Chloé. Glad to see you're finally taking your classwork a bit more seriously."
Chloé was surprised when Adrien, Alya, and Marinette all started clapping for her. She even gave a bit of an embarrassed smile as she covered her mouth and sat back down. Marinette and Alya even exchanged fist bumps with Chloé while Adrien gave her a regular high-five.
"Great job," Adrien said.
"I knew you could do it, Chloé," Marinette said.
"Looks like all the tutoring you gave her finally paid off, Mar," Alya said.
"Was there ever any doubt?" Marinette asked confidently.
"Not at all," Alya and Adrien said together.
"Th- Thanks a lot... Marinette," Chloé said a bit hesitantly. A grateful smile then slowly crossed her face. "I couldn't have done it without you."
"Yes, you could have," Marinette said supportively. "But I was happy to help anyway."
Clockwork actually found himself smiling at this, especially after all the times he had seen Chloé and Marinette squabbling at each other in the main universe. His smile was soon replaced with a look of surprise upon hearing a particular beeping combination. The quartet of friends he was observing looked just as surprised. They also seemed a little worried as they looked at their wrists and then back at one another. Clockwork floated over and looked more closely at their wrists. His eyes widened at the sight of what looked like a regular wristwatch at first. But upon close inspection, there was clearly something different about them. Clockwork knew exactly what it was.
"Communicators. Just like the ones that-"
"Uh, Ms. Mendeleiev!" Marinette blurted out as she stood up and raised her hand. All eyes turned on her. "Uhh... may I go to the bathroom, please? My stomach's not feeling well."
Marinette put her arms around her stomach and started acting like she was not feeling well.
"Oh, no, Marinette! You had the Thursday surprise at lunch, didn't you?" Alya said. "You know your parents started packing you a lunch for a reason!"
"I...just...thought...it would be...better...this time," Marinette said in a strained voice.
"Ohh, you poor thing," Alya said as she stood up and started rubbing Marinette's back. "Can I escort her there, Ms. Mendeleiev?"
"Me too," Chloé said. "After all, us girls have to stick together."
"I'd like to go with them too!" Adrien said. Suddenly all eyes fell on him, making him look around awkwardly. "Uhh... well, she is my friend too, after all."
"Uhh...um..." Ms. Mendeleiev let out in complete bafflement.
"Okay, thanks, Ms. Mendeleiev!" Alya said as she and the others started walking away.
"We REALLY appreciate it," Chloé said. "You're just a doll."
"The best!" Adrien and Marinette said at the same time.
They were soon out the door and into the hall. Clockwork followed them, floating through the wall and onto the other side. He watched the kids look around before they started to lightly jog towards the stairwell. The ghost lord of time followed the quartet of friends until they got there. They stood and looked around for only a moment when a fifth student joined them, this being Max Kanté. In the main timeline, he was the Miraculous hero known as Pegasus. He was not wearing the green t-shirt he usually wore with his regular outfit, though. Instead, it was a blue shirt
Max sighed in relief upon seeing the others as he walked up to them. "Thank goodness. I calculated only a forty-nine point eight percent of us being able to get out of class together this time. And that was even factoring in that this is the last period of school. Seriously, this is getting dangerous, and I fear we won't be able to keep it up for much longer."
Chloé scoffed at this. "Puh-leeze! You really think a plan involving me would fail? Check your math again. That's just ridiculous. Utterly ridiculous."
"Hey, hey, hey, Chloé, bring it down a bit," Alya said. The girl in the red and white plaid shirt then lifted her communicator to her mouth. "We read you, Zordon."
"Power Rangers, Rita has sent down a monster, and it is attacking the plaza," a voice said back from the communicator.
Instantly upon hearing the voice, Clockwork recognized it. "It really is Zordon."
At this, the ghost master of time grimaced, for the name of Zordon only invoked harsh memories of betrayal. At one time, he was a member of the Cosmic Council just as Clockwork was. He even considered Zordon one of his closest friends. However, upon discovering that the wizard worked with a secret group to teleport the cosmic being known as Phoenix into another dimension, he was quickly dispelled from the council. Clockwork had not spoken to Zordon since.
"We're on our way," Alya said before looking to the others. "Let's do it, guys."
"Right!" the others said with a nod of their head.
"It's morphin' time!" Alya proclaimed.
With that, the kids pulled out small objects that Clockwork recognized as power morphers, instantly making his eye widen. He watched as the kids held them forth and pressed the buttons on the sides to activate the morphers.
"Mastodon!" Adrien proclaimed.
"Pterodactyl!" Marinette said next.
"Triceratops!" Max went on.
"Sabretooth Tiger!" Chloé let out.
"Tyrannosaurus!" Alya finished up.
All at once, the kids began to glow the respective color that came with their called Ranger-Zord combinations before disappearing. This just left Clockwork to look on in surprise.
"So those kids are the Power Rangers in this universe? Hmm...interesting. How, though?...And if they're the Power Rangers, then who are the Miraculous holders here?"
As much as Clockwork wanted to follow this world's Power Rangers to see how they fare in battle, he decided that would be saved for another time. He had all of the time in the multi-verse to see anyways. Thus, he used his magic scythe to slice through the very fabric of time itself and took off to find the Miraculous holders of this particular universe.
It was not long until the lord of time found himself stopping at a particular moment. He heard the cries of battle and the familiar Miraculous names being called out. Thus he settled on this point in the alternate universe's timeline. Here, he found himself in the middle of a street in Paris, as well as a battle. He looked to see what appeared to be holders of the Ladybug and Cat Miraculous both jumping at an opponent.
Before Clockwork could see who it was, a portal opened up next to him. He turned to see what looked like the holder of the Horse Miraculous jumping out. Clockwork then heard what sounded like battle cries and laser blasts coming from behind him. The ghost turned to see the holders of the Bee and Dragon Miraculous fighting monsters of some kind.
'Wait,' Clockwork thought to himself, 'I know those monsters. They look like...'
The master of time was right in his recognition. The creatures were made by the evil A.I. called X.A.N.A. These included the Hornets, the Kankrelats, and the Krabs. The ghost time lord looked around and saw that the group was surrounded by even more monsters of these kinds.
"Give it up, you little pests. You don't have a chance against me this time!"
Clockwork quickly turned and floated over to the spot where the voice came from and saw what looked to be a teenage girl clearly influenced by the Peacock Miraculous.
"Not a chance, Mayura!" Ladybug proclaimed.
"Yeah, you know we can't resist giving you a hard time," Cat Noir said. "Especially since we know you'd be giving everyone else a hard time if we didn't. So don't count on us surrendering anytime soon."
"Or ever for that matter," Pegasus said as he ran up.
"As long as you and your filthy monsters still press on, then so will we," Ladybug declared.
"Oh, I think you might change your mind," Mayura said from atop a Krab. She then plucked a feather from her fan. "Especially when you see what filthy monster I have in store for you next."
She closed her fist tight around the white feather before opening her hand to reveal it was now black. Mayura had turned it into an amuck and was now scanning the area to look for an item to fuse it with. Before she had a chance to do so, however, Mayura and everything else was frozen in time, save for Clockwork. He had been the one to freeze everything. This group of kids looked mighty familiar to the ghost of time, and he wanted to know why.
So he floated over to each Miraculous holder and waved his hand, using his magic to make their masks all fade. Each identity Clockwork discovered intrigued him more than the one before, although he quickly picked up on the pattern. He saw that Ladybug was actually Yumi Ishiyama and Cat Noir was really Odd Della Robbia. Pegasus ended up being Jeremy Belpois. Who Clockwork thought was Ryuko was, in fact, Ulrich Stern. The last two were the most surprising of all to the ghost master of time. As it turned out, Queen Bee, the stinging heroine was none other than Sissi Delmas and Mayura, the villainous Peacock Miraculous wielder was actually...Aelita Schaeffer.
"Well...quite the development," Clockwork let out. "How could this sweet, innocent girl I knew of become this gleefully wicked being I see smirking so sinisterly before me?"
Clockwork then turned back to Sissi. "And how can this girl I knew to be so at odds with the rest of these children in the main timeline become one of their strongest allies? ...I must go back further. I've got to see how this all came to be. The Power Rangers. Zordon being in Paris. These kids getting the Miraculous. Aelita becoming evil. All of it. I need answers."
Thus the lord of time went back further and found them. As it turned out, in this alternate universe, on the night Jeremy went to the factory, rather than stick around after turning on the supercomputer, he ran off when it started to short circuit a bit. It frightened Jeremy so to see electrical surges flying about. Although this would turn out to be a ploy by X.A.N.A. to get rid of Jeremy so the highly sophisticated and immensely evil A.I. could operate under the radar.
Even before that, though, around the time Aelita's father, Franz Hopper, first virtualized his daughter and himself onto Lyoko, X.A.N.A. actually took the pink-haired girl aside. He led her to a tower and began showing her snippets of the most gruesome parts of human history. X.A.N.A. practically force-fed the information to Aelita, getting her to the point where she was practically his brainwashed puppet. Aelita pledged her undying loyalty to X.A.N.A.'s cause of exterminating all human life. That would end up waiting, though, for the supercomputer was shut down before that could happen by unknown forces.
Then, as soon as Jeremy reactivated the supercomputer and was scared off, Aelita was materialized on Earth. X.A.N.A. had detected a great source of power that he wanted for himself and thus sent Aelita and several of his monsters after it. This ended up being the box of the Miraculous. The container of magical items was in the possession of Master Fu, who Aelita and the monsters chased and led toward the factory. They planned to ambush Master Fu here and take all the Miraculous for their own. In the process, he ended up accidentally dropping the Peacock Miraculous, which Aelita quickly took as her own, transforming herself into Mayura for the first time.
What Aelita did not count on was the fact that Jeremy had returned to the factory. Only this time, he had taken Ulrich and Odd with him. They also got two surprises when it turned out Sissi followed them and Yumi followed her. All five kids would end up stumbling across Master Fu, who was terribly injured from running from Mayura. Fu would end up telling them the whole story of the Miraculous and why he was being chased or at least did the best he could to tell them. He then offered them the Miraculous. More so, he begged them to take the magical items and keep them out of evil's grasp.
While most of the kids were hesitant, Yumi readily agreed to take them on as the new guardian of the Miraculous. From there, Odd, Ulrich, Sissi, and Jeremy also accepted the responsibility of being the guardians of the Miraculous. They would soon end up taking on the role of Miraculous wielders as well, for that was when X.A.N.A.'s monsters caught up with Fu and attacked. With his dying breath, Fu watched as the five kids took on their Miraculous identities. Then he succumbed to his exhaustion and injuries. Mayura did not get there in time to see who the Miraculous holders really were, so their identity remained a guarded secret.
"Well, that explains the Miraculous," Clockwork said. A grim look soon crossed his face. "Now, it's time to see what happened with the Power Rangers...and Zordon."
Despite having practically spat out that last word, Clockwork traveled far into this alternate world's ancient past. It was here he discovered that Zordon and Rita Repulsa did not have their great battle of good vs. evil on the Moon. Rather, they had their grand conflict on Earth. Specifically, it was on the spot of land where Paris would one day be built. The conflict was massive and destructive, as one would expect. It would end with Zordon being trapped in a time warp just before the wizard's allies would trap Rita into a dumpster, which would be buried deep under the earth's crust. To keep a close eye on Rita, Zordon had his forces establish a command center beneath the earth's surface as well. Here he would remain ever vigilant. Waiting until the day Rita might be released from her dumpster. Her and her closest allies trapped in the magic prison with her.
That day would come when a mighty earthquake raised the dumpster to the surface. Here, a desperate man would open the dumpster and release the empress of evil and her underlings, Goldar, Finster, Baboo, and Squat. A Faustian deal was reached. The man would end up working for the wicked Rita Repulsa. But this was only under the condition she would one day save his dying wife. From here, she granted the man the sixth power coin, making him her evil Green Ranger and her first lieutenant (much to the annoyance of Goldar).
Soon after, Rita Repulsa went about attacking the planet. Specifically, her sights were first set on Paris, France. Upon re-establishing her temple deep in a mountain range, she cast a spell that shook the earth. While Zordon was able to subdue her spell, he knew he would need more help. To this end, he ordered his trusted assistant to teleport five teenagers with attitude to the command center. Here Zordon offered them the chance to save their world by battling Rita for its survival. Despite some being heavily reluctant, the five eventually agreed and thus became the Power Rangers.
All these revelations almost made Clockwork feel like his head was about to start spinning. Or at least until the ghost lord of time remembered he had seen such deviations from the main timeline before, just not in this form. The more he thought about it, though, it did make sense to some degree.
"Yes, I can see it now," Clockwork said as he smiled in amusement. "Almost got to me...Not that the shock of it all would kill me or anything...Say!"
At that moment, Clockwork thought about something. He kept thinking about it and kept getting more excited until he finally decided he needed to see it for himself.
"Let's see if there's a moment in this timeline where these two teams' paths cross," Clockwork said. "It sounds like a fanfiction writer's wet dream come true."
With that, the master of time sliced his scythe through the very fabrics of time and took off through it so he could see this crossover take place.
"And so, class, I think it's time to reveal why I specifically wanted us to delve into the fashion corner of world cultures today," the teacher at the front of the class announced.
Most of the students attending Cadic Academy that were in this class looked on with renewed interest. The only ones who did not seem so overtly enthusiastic were Ulrich Stern, Odd Della Robbia, Jeremy Belpois, and Aelita Stones (or so she called herself). Aelita was near the front of the classroom, looking on with a rather neutral expression. Jeremy sat near the back wearing a similar expression to Aelita's with maybe the tiniest hint of annoyance in his eyes. However, Odd, who sat next to Jeremy, let his frustration be seen freely. His body was sprawled out across the table as he looked on with disinterested eyes. Ulrich's expression just looked annoyed as he sat back in his chair at the table in front of Jeremy and Odd.
In stark contrast, Sissi, who sat next to Ulrich, looked as happy as a bee in pollen. She seemed completely oblivious to how her friends felt about their situation.
"Remind me again why we have to take this bullshit class," Odd muttered.
"Because Sissi made Ulrich take it with her, and he begged us not to let him go it alone," Jeremy answered bluntly.
"He wasn't alone, though," Odd muttered. "He has his girlfriend up there with him to keep him company."
Ulrich looked back to his friends with an annoyed expression when he suddenly felt Sissi take his hand in hers. Upon looking, he saw Sissi smiling at him.
"Thank you for taking this class with me, Ulrich darling," Sissi whispered. "It's so much better here with you...And it's nice you had our friends follow us. I feel bad they aren't having a good time, though."
"Let them whine," Ulrich replied. "They may be miserable now, but we'll just remind them they could be dissecting frogs with Yumi in Ms. Hertz's class."
"Eww," Sissi let out.
This made Ulrich chuckle a bit before he kissed Sissi on her cheek.
"Ooh, a lot less ew," Sissi said with a giggle.
"Is someone talking during my class?"
"NO!" Ulrich, Sissi, Odd, and Jeremy said in unison.
They quickly looked to one another before covering their mouths to try their best not to bust out laughing. The teacher looked a bit confused before shaking it off and resuming what she was saying.
"Anyways, class, today I wanted to bring in a special guest who can tell us better about the diverse cultural phenomenon surrounding the world of fashion."
She quickly walked over to the door and opened it as she said, "Please join me, class, in welcoming the modern-day fashion icon, Gabriel Agreste."
A bunch of the kids in the room gasped as they watched the fashion designer himself step into the room. He looked as poised and elegant as one of the models who would wear his ensembles. Yet, at the same time, he had some sort of commanding presence about him. A sort of nuance that was hard to define. Still, when he entered the room, everyone seemed to have a renewed interest. This even included Ulrich, Jeremy, and Odd. Although none of them looked that particularly excited. Especially not as much as Sissi, who seemed so giddy that she could barely stay in her seat.
In stark contrast, at the front of the class, Aelita looked ahead at Gabriel with an immensely renewed interest. It almost seemed animalistic, like a predator who had found her prey. The intensity the pink-haired girl's eyes showed while staring at the famous fashion mogul sure seemed to imply as much. Gabriel even caught sight of it out of his prefrail vision. When he turned and looked to make sure his eyes were not deceiving him, his brows raised in surprise. Aelita, the secret disciple of X.A.N.A., merely beamed with a wickedly sinister smile.
Gabriel ignored this and clapped his hands together, signaling his assistants to roll in a board with charts all over it. He then began to lecture the class about how tough you need to be in the fashion world. He added how it's not as glamorous as it looks on the surface. How you have to try and get ahead by making it look as glamorous as possible. That's when he got into the inspiration that can come from other cultures and their fashion and how it can help inspire to make your designs better and so on.
As Gabriel Agreste droned on and on about the world of fashion, Ulrich, Odd, and even Jeremy came very close to falling asleep. On the other hand, Sissi and Aelita's eyes never fell off the man at the front of the class. Sissi seemed like an excited fangirl while Aelita continued to look on as though she had dark intentions.
It continued on like this until Gabriel Agreste was finally finished with his presentation. He turned to the class once he was finished speaking and looked on expectantly. Feeling a sudden obligation to do so, most of the students in the class applauded Gabriel as he allowed a small yet very smug smile to cross his face. He did look a bit annoyed when he noticed Ulrich, Odd, and Jeremy seemed so indifferent to him and what he had to say. However, he was more troubled when he saw that Aelita kept staring so intently at him.
"Thank you for that, Mr. Agreste," the teacher said as she stepped up next to the fashion designer. "Now, class, does anyone have questions for our special guest? Any questions at all?"
"Ooh, ooh, ooh!" Herb and Nicholas called from the far back of the classroom as they raised their hands.
"Is it just me, or do I hear monkeys in the class?" Odd asked.
"It's Nicholas and Herb," Ulrich explained.
"Oh, so I was right," Odd replied.
"Alright, Herb and Nicholas, calm down," the teacher said despite sounding rather hesitant. "G-Go ahead and ask Mr. Agreste your question."
"What do you think about the Power Rangers?!" Nicholas blurted out.
"Yeah, and would you be willing to elaborate on our podcast?!" Herb said, sounding just as excited.
Most of the kids groaned and even facepalmed. Jeremy, Odd, Ulrich, and Sissi, on the other hand, just blurted out laughing.
"I'm sorry about them, Mr. Agreste, sir," the teacher said.
"It's quite alright," Gabriel replied while keeping his neutral poise intact. "I suppose I should be flattered that such...exuberant minds like these paving the way to the future would want my opinion on such a topic. As such, I will provide a quick and brief summary of my thoughts here. I feel, as a good chunk of Parisians do from what I understand, that the Power Rangers do far more harm than good. They've destroyed many parts of Paris and the surrounding area trying to fight off these silly monsters that appear everywhere.
"Frankly, part of me wonders if these freaks would not have shown up if the Power Rangers themselves had not appeared and set up operations here in our fair city. So, no, I have no support for these so-called superheroes. They're a menace and should be treated with the same hostility they treat the beasts they fight."
Some of the kids spoke in agreement. A few others argued against Gabriel Agreste's words. Jeremy and his group of friends seemed neutral as they watched and listened to the debate go on around them.
"Alright, class, enough of that!" the teacher said.
It was at that moment that the bell rang, signaling the end of school for the day. The kids all started to get up and grab their stuff. Most of those that were boarders at the school headed out to their dorms. Non-boarders and a few others took off for other places.
"Okay, now don't forget the assignments I gave you," the teacher said. "I want a write-up on fashion from other world cultures. And don't just copy and paste a Wikipedia article. Herb, Nicholas, that means you two!
"Maybe we can thank Mr. Agreste for coming in today, too?"
"Um, excuse me, Mr. Agreste, sir?" Sissi said upon walking up to the front of the class. The teacher and Gabriel turned to Sissi in surprise as her friends all followed behind her. "I was just wondering if I can take a little bit of your time to talk to you about something."
"Sissi, I don't think Mr. Agreste would want to-"
"Oh, but I would," Gabriel said. "I'm more than interested and rather curious to hear what the youths of our world have on their minds. It can be quite fascinating...as was the case with those two boys, whatever you call them.
"Now, go ahead, my dear. What is it that's on your mind today?"
"Well, first, I just want to say I'm a big fan of your work," Sissi began. "You're one of my top five favorite designers. I own many ensembles you've generously put together."
"Top five?...Which number on the list, dear?" Gabriel inquired.
"Not important," Sissi replied. "Anyways, what IS important is I think you may have stumbled upon your next big breakthrough in a boyfriend-girlfriend modeling and designing team. Oh, Ulrich and I would love to meet up with you and that utterly breathtaking son of yours, Adrien, so we can talk about these ideas!"
"Wait, what?" Ulrich let out in concern.
"At the handsome son part or the you modeling Sissi's clothes part?" Jeremy asked.
"Well, that's nice, but I'm afraid I must be going. Good day, children."
Gabriel quickly turned away and started walking.
"W-Wait!" Sissi exclaimed.
"Do you regret your decision to come here today?" Odd called out.
It was then that the big-time fashion designer stopped and looked back. "You have no idea," Gabriel said before turning and walking away once more.
"Ahh, man!" Sissi let out in a pouty voice as she looked down. "Shoot! Why doesn't anyone recognize untapped, unbridled talent when they see it?"
"There's someone talented in fashion designing here? Where? Is it Jeremy?"
Sissi turned and gave Odd a very dark look.
"Oh, come off it, Sissi," Odd said as the group started walking down the hall. "Did you really expect that guy to be all like, 'Oh, by golly, Sissi, I do believe you're right. You're automatically more special than anyone else, so I'm gonna pluck you right from the bunch'?"
"Well...anything could sound ridiculous when you say it like that!" Sissi argued. "Anyways, I didn't even get a chance to show him my designs. I'm sure if he had seen them, he would have done just what you said, Odd."
"Wow, jeez, Ulrich, are you guys into asphyxiation or something? Because it doesn't sound like she's getting enough airflow to that tiny brain of hers."
Ulrich responded with a hard punch to Odd's arm.
"OW! Hey, what did I say?!"
"Way too much," Ulrich responded.
"As usual," Jeremy said. "Although I have to admit, I'm a bit impressed. I would have thought the word asphyxiation was too big a word for you, Odd."
"Many things are too big for Odd," Sissi chimed in. "You have a lot of gall saying my brain is tiny. Then again, if anyone were to know about things being tiny, it's you, ya scrawny twit."
Odd got a frustrated look on his face. "For the last time...I AM NOT SCRAWNY! I'M SVELTE!"
The shorter boy's friends merely howled with laughter as he looked on with an annoyed frown. Once the laughter dissipated, Sissi took Ulrich's hand in hers. The brown-haired boy looked to his girlfriend, who smiled at him longingly.
"You would make my designs look so amazing, Ulrich dear," Sissi said with the utmost sincerity and love.
"Oh, really? You sure you don't want the 'utterly breathtaking' Adrien to model your clothes for you?"
"Oh, come on, Ulrich, you know you're the only boy for me. I mean, sure, Adrien is nice to look at, but I was partially saying that to try and butter Gabriel up. In fact, it's more than partially. It's actually...more than anything else. You're the only boy I need."
Sissie leaned in and kissed Ulrich so deeply it made Jeremy and Odd feel awkward as they turned away and started whistling. Ulrich then smiled at Sissi, who responded in kind before winking at her boyfriend.
"Hey, wait up!"
The group turned and looked down the hallway to see Yumi running in their direction.
"The great and fabulous Yumi graces us with her presence!" Odd let out.
"Well, I had to, even if it was a pain to get through the after-school rush," Yumi said as she came up and kissed Odd on the cheek. "I can't leave everyone else alone with a maniac like you. Somebody's gotta tame the wild beast."
"Yeah, but who's gonna tame you then?" Odd asked.
"I'm untamable," Yumi proclaimed.
"Challenge accepted," Odd said with a loving smile.
The happy couple shared a quick kiss before turning to the rest of their friends. Jeremy looked away so no one could see his slightly regretful expression. That was when he noticed another of his classmates walking by. His face instantly turned red.
"Oh, uh- um...Hi, Aelita!" Jeremy blurted out as he waved and smiled like a goofball.
The pink-haired girl stopped for just a moment and looked directly at the brilliant yet socially awkward young man before resuming her trek down the hall. A look of disappointment crossed Jeremy's face as he looked down and sighed.
"That... was harsh," Yumi said.
"Yep," Sissi and Odd agreed.
Jeremy's friends then pulled him aside. Yumi particularly wrapped a supportive arm around his shoulders.
"Her loss, Einstein," Sissi said. "She doesn't recognize a good thing even when it's standing right in front of her."
"Yeah," Jeremy simply said in a weak voice.
"So, uh... how was world cultures class today?" Yumi asked.
"An absolutely ridiculous waste of time," Jeremy said. "Instead of talking about things that actually mattered, it was just a silly fluff piece about fashion leading to a just as fluffy assignment and homework. Instead of talking about things like Japan's vast advancements in engineering or the benefit of NASADA working with Russia on space explorations, oh, no, here's something about clothes!"
"Oh, come on, Jeremy!" Sissi said. "Clothes are very important. If we didn't have them, we would all be naked."
"I don't think Ulrich would find that a problem in your case, Sissi," Odd said. "As a matter of fact, maybe instead of being a fashion designer, you should be a nudist enthusiast going around and spreading the good word of all-natural. In fact, how about you get started right now and-OW! My head!"
Odd turned and looked to Ulrich, who just glowered as if to silently warn him.
"Too much?" Odd asked.
Ulrich merely nodded his head.
"Anyway, what Jeremy failed to mention was we had a special guest in class, Yumi," Sissi said.
"Oh, really? Who was that?"
"Only one of the greatest fashion designers of all time," Sissi answered.
"You know that reclusive guy who has a son who models and stuff?" Ulrich asked.
"I think so. Hmm...Isn't his name Gabriel Agreste?" Yumi asked.
"That's him! He was actually in our classroom!" Sissi said excitedly.
"Then Herb and Nicholas scared him away with Sissi helping to finish the job," Odd said. "She decided to get brave and ask him to take her on as a designer or something. Not to mention she said she wanted to discuss it over dinner with him and his 'utterly breathtaking son.'"
"Hey, Odd, you wanna shut up?" Ulrich asked. "You've already gotten hit twice today."
"Besides, I seem to recall you doing something pretty similar," Jeremy said, a hint of mischief in his voice. "Wasn't it during the visit of a certain news reporter? One, Thomas Vincent, AKA, TV, I do believe it was."
"Oh, yep, yep, I remember that," Yumi said. "You were all hyped up about and then..."
"He turned out to be a colossal dick," Ulrich said.
"Although I sometimes wonder who's the bigger one. Him or Odd," Sissi quipped.
The others all laughed as Odd just frowned in annoyance. Yumi then rubbed his back and kissed his cheek.
"What the hell, Yumi? You're supposed to get my back! I'm your boyfriend, for goodness sake!"
"True, but as your girlfriend, I'm also supposed to tease you just a little bit."
"Oh, brother," Odd let out.
But then he looked to his friends and smiled before sharing a laugh with them as they exited the building and headed out into the courtyard.
"So, what does everyone want to do now?" Ulrich asked.
"Weren't you going to go to the arcade after school?" a voice asked.
Everyone looked to Yumi's pocket to see none other than her Kwami, Tikki poking her head out.
"Oh, yeah. Do we still want to do that?" Yumi asked.
"Yeah, you should definitely go, my queen. It'll be fun. It always is."
"That's true, Pollen," Sissi said as she smiled down at her Kwami.
The yellow being was sticking her head out of Sissi's purse and smiling at her.
"I'm mostly indifferent to the idea, but it's ultimately up to all of you," Longg said.
He was hiding in Jeremy's computer bag with Kaaliki. The two Kwamis had been playing cards when the conversation broke out. The horse Kwami's response was to just shrug indifferently before continuing her came with the dragon Kwami.
"Let's go, let's go!" Plagg excitedly called out. "They got a food court there, and I could really use some camembert. Oh, do you think they serve camembert there?!"
"Sssh. Plagg, do the words 'keep a low profile' mean anything to you?" Odd asked.
"Heh, heh. Sorry," Plagg said. "I'm just REALLY hungry."
"I actually do think the food court at the arcade puts whatever kind of cheese you want on a pizza," Jeremy said.
"Then what are we waiting for?!" Plagg shouted before gasping and covering his mouth. He then whispered, "I mean...can we go, please?"
Everyone looked at one another before smiling.
"The arcade?" Odd asked.
"The arcade," everyone, human and Kwami alike, said in agreement.
With that, the group of friends, with their Kwamis in tow, started to head off to the arcade.
Aelita saw Gabriel Agreste walking down the hall and quickly gave chase. She followed him all the way to the principal's office. She stopped at the door and stood patiently outside, waiting for Gabriel Agreste.
"Oh, uh, hi, Aelita," a familiar voice rang out.
The pink-haired agent of evil scoffed silently and rolled her eyes before putting on her sweetest-sounding voice. "Hello, Jim."
"How are you doing today?" the gym teacher inquired as he walked over.
"Fine, and you?" Aelita replied back.
"Fine, fine. What can I help you with today?"
"Oh, nothing, Jim, thank you. This is something I need to discuss with the principal alone."
"You sure?" Jim asked.
"Quite," Aelita replied, trying her best to not let her annoyance show.
"Well, alright. I've got places to be anyways. You be sure and let me know if I can do anything for you, ya hear?"
Aelita giggled before saying, "Have a good day, Jim."
"You as well, Aeli-Oh, Mrs. Hurtz! Hold up! I was wondering if I can talk to you about something! Mrs. Hurtz, I-OW! My biggest left toe!"
Jim ran off to catch up with the science teacher, allowing Aelita to drop her fake kindness and let her demeanor express her true feelings of frustration and annoyance. "What a creep. I still can't believe I'm stuck at this Godforsaken school...But my master wishes it for whatever reason. Maybe to learn more about humanity up close...or possibly to find out the identity of those...annoying, worthless Miraculous holders. Those who stand in our way of conquest. I swear...as soon as I find out who they are...they're dead."
It was at that moment that the door to the principal's office opened up. Gabriel Agreste then walked out to the hall.
"Thank you again for your time today, Mr. Agreste. I'm sure it was most beneficial," the principal, Jean-Pierre Delmas, called.
"It certainly was to me, Mr. Delmas," Gabriel called back. "Barely," he added under his breath. "Good day."
With that, Gabriel walked out to the hall, followed close behind by his assistant, Nathalie, who had opened the door for him. Both of them stopped in surprise to see Aelita standing there with a pleasant-looking smile on her face. Gabriel was especially stunned because he recognized this girl as the same one that looked at him so intently while giving his presentation before. This made her smile seem a bit more unsettling, but not enough for Gabriel to be unnerved or anything like that.
He just continued to look on at the girl as nonchalantly as he did everyone else his eyes fell upon. "I'm sorry, were you waiting to see the principal, young lady?"
"Actually, no. I was waiting for you, Mr. Agreste."
This answer caused Gabriel to raise an eyebrow before it quickly returned to normality. "Me, you say? How flattering."
"My name is Aelita Stones, and I want to talk to you about some of your more extravagant pursuits outside of the world fashion. As much as I enjoyed your 'presentation' in class today, I know you've done far more intriguing things. Things that could be to my benefit."
"I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about, Ms. Stines."
"Stones!" Aelita said in irritation.
"I see. Well, I'm afraid I don't have time for another underage girl throwing herself at me. Good day, Ms. Stans."
Gabriel Agreste and his assistant started to walk away as Aelita watched them with an angry glower. "Don't turn your back on me, Green Ranger."
At this, Gabriel instantly froze in place, surprising his assistant, who nearly ran into him. Gabriel turned around and saw a sinister smirk on Aelita's face.
"I'm sorry, what did you just say?" Gabriel asked.
"Don't try and play dumb with me, Mr. Agreste," Aelita went on. "We know all about you, what you do, and why you do it. We would absolutely LOVE to share it with everyone else too. If you don't cooperate, that is. I'm sure EVERYONE would love to know what the famous Gabriel Agreste's true colors are like.
"Or maybe the more singular word, COLOR is more appropriate here. Come on, Mr. Agreste, what have you got to lose? Feeling a little GREEN right now, are we?"
Despite Gabriel trying to look and sound as firm and in control, as he always appeared to be, inside, he was an emotional and mental wreck. He was full of anger and hatred at this young lady he had only just met. As much as he may try to deny it, Gabriel could tell by the look on the little girl's face that she was being a hundred percent true in her words. She knew for a fact that he, Gabriel Agreste, was secretly the Green Ranger. He was the field commander and second in command over the forces of the evil space witch, Rita Repulsa.
At that moment, he wanted nothing more than to morph and tear Aelita apart. Gabriel knew he could not do that, though. His cover and his life's secret must be kept intact.
"Nathalie, wait outside for me."
"What? But, sir-"
"That's an order," Gabriel said firmly.
Nathalie looked utterly confused by all that was happening, but she dared not defy her boss. Thus, the assistant started walking down the hallway. Gabriel and Aelita both watched her go, the former actually looking a tad nervous while the latter continued to smugly smile.
"Alright, you little brat, start talking," Gabriel said sharply as he looked down hatefully at Aelita. "Before you die, tell me how you knew I was the Green Ranger."
"Temper, temper, Mr. Agreste," Aelita said with a giggle. "I like your fiery spirit. It could be a great help to us."
"Us?" Gabriel asked. "What do you mean?"
"Don't you want to at least hear my proposal?" Aelita asked. "Don't you want to see what I have to offer? WHY my master and I went out of our way to find out who you are?"
"Master?" Gabriel asked.
"Here, let me show you something," Aelita said.
The pink-haired girl then moved a hand over a peacock feather pendant she wore on the front of her dress. Gabriel looked on in surprise as it started to glow. A small ball of light started to form from the pendant, which then took a small shape. Finally, in a flash, the light was gone, leaving a small floating creature in its place. The sight stunned Gabriel, his surprise showing in his facial features as he looked on in disbelief.
Aelita merely smirked as the sad-looking creature floated in front of her. "Gabriel Agreste...Green Ranger...meet Duusu, the Kwami of the Peacock Miraculous."
"Uhh...h-h-hello, sir," Duusu said with a nervous chuckle.
"Duusu, spread my feathers," Aelita said calmly as she held her fists up at her sides.
"Oh, no," the Kwami let out as he felt himself being absorbed back into the Miraculous.
Soon a wave of blue energy covered Aelita's entire body. The sight utterly stunned Gabriel Agreste as he watched it transpire. What was even more surprising to him, though, was the sight he saw after the blue energy wave faded.
"My name is Mayura," Aelita said, now dressed as the supervillainess whose name she took. She waved her fan in front of her face as she stared on menacingly. "I'm here on behalf of one named X.A.N.A. who would like a meeting with you... and your master."
"Wait, I know you," Gabriel said. "You fight those...color... costumed...heroes. A...A team of them."
"Sound familiar?" Mayura asked.
"All too familiar," Gabriel said.
"I sense we're kindred spirits, you and I," Aelita said. "We both have been given a task by our masters, yet we're unable to complete them because some idealized goody goods stand in our way. Goody goods, who just happen to like wearing long underwear and parading around in them while trying to play hero.
"See, I don't particularly care for that. I know you don't either. Especially because you've failed against them more times than you've succeeded...just like me."
"I see where this is going," Gabriel said.
"You want to kill the Power Rangers...I want to kill the Miraculous Heroes," Mayura went on. "And I'm sure you wouldn't mind seeing my pains in the neck go too. I know I certainly wouldn't mind it if the future didn't have the Power Rangers in it. So you already know what I'm going to propose...Interested?"
Gabriel looked on for a moment or two in contemplation before ultimately making his decision. "Yes."
Mayura's eyes lit up with delight. "Excellent. You won't regret this decision, Green Ranger."
"It's Gabriel Agreste to you, child. Also, this decision is not mine to make. I may approve of this enterprise, but we must first see if my empress approves."
"Oh, of course, of course," Mayura said. "I wouldn't dream of having it any other way. Please, lead the way, MR. AGRESTE!"
Gabriel then reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone, texting Nathalie to have the driver take her home without him. He then put his phone away and pulled out a much different item. He looked down at the object as a flash green light enveloped it. The light then dissipated, revealing the item to be the sixth power coin. The secret Green Ranger then balled his open hand into a fist, gripping the mighty coin tight. He then extended his free hand to Mayura.
"Then, child, take my hand," Gabriel said. Mayura beamed with wicked delight as she did so. "Welcome to my nightmare."
Mayura began to laugh as a wave of green energy enveloped both her and Gabriel before they disappeared in a flash.
All the kids of Dupont High School crowded the exits of the educational facility in a desperate effort to escape. The last bell had rung, meaning school was out for the day, which meant the mass majority of the kids did not want to stay there any longer than they had to. This included the quintet of friends Alya, Adrien, Marinette, Max, and Chloé.
As much as they all tried to be the best students they could be (Chloé to a lesser extent than her friends), they still very much loved their downtime.
"SWEET FREEDOM!" Chloé exclaimed. "Oh, my God, I could not stand another moment in that classroom. If I had to keep hearing Lila Rossi go on about how great she is, I think I was going to pass out from boredom and irritation. She was ridiculous. Utterly ridiculous."
"Oh, come on, Chloé," Marinette said. "Admit it. You were just mad that it was working for her and that you weren't the one up there bragging about yourself."
"Who asked you?!" Chloé let out in frustration. "Just for that, you are not welcomed to my next Spring Fling party."
The others just giggled in amusement at their friend's frustration. To this, Chloé rolled her eyes before she felt a gentle and supportive hand on her shoulder. She looked to see the smiling face of Adrien Agreste, which instantly made her face light up.
"Why are they being so mean to me, Adriekins?" Chloé whined as she did a sad puppy dog face.
"Come on, Chloé," Adrien said. "It's just a little light-hearted banter amongst friends. They don't mean anything by it."
"Yes, we do," the others said teasingly.
Chloé growled at them, making them laugh all the more before she turned away. Adrien looked from Chloé to his other friends before shaking his head in amusement.
"Hey, thanks again, Markov, for helping with our group presentation," Alya said to Max's small flying robot companion. "Without those images you were able to project, I don't think it would have gone quite as well."
"Happy to be of service, Alya. Especially when it comes to helping out my buddy Max and all his other pals," the flying robot replied.
Max looked to his creation and smiled with delight.
"So, where do we want to go now that school's out and we're free for rest of the day?" Adrien asked.
"ARE you free for the rest of the day, Adrien?" Alya asked.
"Actually, yes, for once," Adrien replied. "My dad didn't have his assistants schedule anything for me today, if you can believe it."
"I honestly don't believe it," Chloé said. "I know your dad. He was a nobody before my mom found him and made him a fashion sensation and...Oh, wait, right, I was trying to make a point. Anyways, my point is, I know this is very unlike him."
"Tell me about it," Adrien said.
"Yeah, well, I'm glad he cut you a break today, Adrien," Marinette said. "That means we can all go wild today and have a friend's road trip!"
"Yeah!" Alya and Max said enthusiastically.
"And our charity awaits!" Adrien said as he pointed to his limo waiting for him.
"So, where all do we want to go?" Alya asked as she and the others got into the car.
"Hmm," the others let out as they thought about it.
"How about, uh...the Youth Center?" Adrien asked.
"Hmm...Nah," the others let out.
"No offense to Ernie or anything," Max said. "I love the guy and his drinks, but we spend seventy-eight point six percent of our free time there. I feel like we should expand our horizons a bit."
"It's true. The data does support Max's calculations," Markov interjected.
"Look at you being all explorative, Maxie," Alya said. "I remember a time where we could barely get you out of your garage lab."
"Well, the times, they are a-changing," Max said with a chipper tone.
"And all for the better, I'd say," Marinette said with a giggle as she lightly tapped her fist against Max's arm.
"Ugh, gag me with a maggot," Chloé let out. "Must you all act like such cliché buddy buds all the time?"
"Must you ruin the moment with the stick up your ass?" Alya quipped back.
"Why you-!"
"Hey, you guys," Adrien said, interrupting the situation. Everyone turned to see what their famous friend had to say. "Just looked it up, and apparently there's this really well-known arcade downtown that we haven't ever been to before. It's supposed to be the tops."
"Ooh, an arcade sounds like a ton of fun!" Marinette said excitedly.
"You ever been to one, Mare?" Alya asked.
"No, but I would like to," Marinette.
"I'd like to also. I'm so down!" Alya said. "Max, what about you?"
"There is a one hundred percent chance of me saying affirmative," Max said.
"How about you, Markov?" Alya asked.
"Of course! I wanted to go anyways but Max going makes me want to go too!" Markov said excitedly. "Do you think they'll have whack-a-mole there?"
"And you, Chloé?" Alya asked.
"Ugh! Gag me with a maggot," the mayor's daughter let out in disgust. "Why would I voluntarily spend my spare time in a dingy, germ-ridden, sweat-filled, loser-infested wormhole like an arcade? It's ridiculous. Utterly ridiculous."
"They might have Dance Dance Revolution there," Adrien said. "We could play it together, Chloé."
Instantly, her eyes lit up. "What are we waiting for? Let's go! Let's freaking get there already! To the arcade!"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Okay, okay, Chloé! Hang on! I just need to look up the address and give it to the drive..."
Adrien's words trailed off as he looked at his phone. His expression became a frown of disappointment and even sadness. This made all of his friends look at one another questioningly before turning back to him.
"Adrien, what's wrong?" Marinette asked.
"Huh? Oh, it's nothing."
"That look isn't nothing," Alya said.
"Tell me, Adriekins. Please?" Chloé begged.
Adrien looked to his longest friend and saw the sincerity in her eyes, seeing just how much she wanted to help him. To this, Adrien let out a heavy sigh before explaining.
"The arcade is near a school where my dad had volunteered to give a presentation today," Adrien said.
"Oh," everyone else said, instantly understanding the situation.
Adrien's father, Gabriel Agreste, had been distant from his son. Ever since Gabriel's wife had disappeared, the fashion designer turned very reclusive from the rest of the world. Even his own son. Frankly, him agreeing to appear at such a public place like a school was beyond incredible, especially to Adrien, who could barely get even a few seconds with his father.
Everyone looked on supportively. Chloé even rested her hand on Adrien's shoulder. This made him look to her and then the rest of his friends.
"Adrien... if you don't want to go," Max said.
"No, no, it's okay, guys," Adrien said. "Really, I do want to go. It's just...you know, the thing with my dad. I won't let it wreck our day, though. I still need to play Dance Dance Revolution with Chloé, after all! So let's freaking go!"
The others all lit up as they excitedly agreed and started exchanging fist bumps with one another, including Adrien.
With that, they were off as the driver headed for the address Adrien gave him. All the while, Chloé took Adrien's hand in hers as she continued to offer him a supportive smile, to which he responded with a grateful beam of his own.
Hidden within the Mont Blanc mountain range in the Alps, there sat an odd-looking palace. Inside the palace were all sorts of strange supernatural evils lurking about. The most prominent force of evil with a heart colder than the Alps themselves was the empress of evil, who resided over the palace. Rita Repulsa was sitting at her throne flanked by her most direct servants. First, there was the morphed Green Ranger and Goldar, who stood on either side of Rita's throne. Beyond that, there was Squat, Baboo, and Finster.
However, standing before her throne was a being new to these parts, one 'Mayura' Aelita Schaefer. The evil girl had just proposed a plan to the even more sinister Rita Repulsa. One concocted by her master, X.A.N.A., for their forces to join together and take down the Power Rangers and the Miraculous Heroes for good. Now everyone was sitting and waiting to see what the powerful and wicked empress of evil's response would be.
As everyone looked on, a smile crossed Rita's face as she laughed. "Yes, I like it."
"Good," Mayura said as an evil grin crossed her face.
"Phew," Squat and Baboo let out together in relief.
"Finster, start making Putty Patrollers!" Rita barked.
"Yes, my queen," Finster said as he hurried back to his laboratory.
"I'll-"
"I'll lead them down and make the world yours, empress," Gabriel quickly said, cutting off Goldar.
The golden griffin-like warrior of might glared hatefully at the Green Ranger.
"And don't forget, Finster, we must also pick a monster for our little Miraculous holder to work her magic on," Rita said. "She will turn it into an even more powerful senti-monster."
"Yes, my queen," Mayura said with a bow of her head. She then pulled out and opened her fan. "I need only pluck a single feather from my fan and enchant it, turning it into an amuck. Then all I will need to do is merge it with an item the monster is holding. Once I do, the monster will be endowed with the power my amuck grants, increasing its own power a hundredfold."
"Excellent!" Rita let out with a laugh of wicked delight. "And we can also count on this X.A.N.A. to send out his own monsters to assist us too?"
"You saw the squad waiting back at the factory when I had you look through your magic telescope," Mayura said. "They're all waiting for my single to be unleashed. Once our forces go out together, there won't be a presence on Earth who can stand against us."
"Keep in mind, this alliance is only temporary," Rita said.
"Oh, of course, Rita," Mayura said. "We all have our own goals, after all. Until then, I'm sure we can agree it's best to work together."
"It would seem so since neither your master X.A.N.A. and I are making any headway," Rita said in an aggravated voice. "So for now, until the Miraculous Heroes and the Power Rangers are gone, we'll work together."
"Excellent," Mayura said in a pleased tone.
"You never did tell me, though, child, why you want these heroes gone and why you chose to work for X.A.N.A.," Rita said.
A serious look crossed Mayura's face as she stared ahead. "My master showed me the evils of mankind and all the harm they do. The ozone depletion, the destruction of forests, the melting of the ice caps, and all the wars that they keep inflicting on themselves. Frankly, I'm ashamed to be among their masses. I'm ashamed to be a human being...it's in their nature to destroy...so I'll use that nature to destroy them and save this world from their influence."
Rita had an amused smile on her face as she let out a few chuckles. "I see."
"Excuse me, Mayura," Finster called out. "I've chosen the monster. I think you'll agree this one is perfectly suited for the job."
"Sounds like my cue. Excuse me, empress," Mayura said.
"Of course," Rita replied. She then watched Mayura walk away before lightly laughing. "Foolish child. Once those heroes are all destroyed...you're next."
When Mayura entered Finster's laboratory and looked around, what she saw surprised her. Lining the walls were high shelves and low desks filled with clay models of monsters. There were even some large bins full of them, and Mayura suspected there were more in the closed cupboards as well. She looked to see Finster in the middle of the room behind a large table with more clay models on them. He was also surrounded by several freshly made Putty Patrollers. Some had a sword or club replacing their right hand, and others had both hands completely intact. Her eyes then fell upon a large machine in the very back of the room.
"What's that?" Mayura asked as she pointed to it.
"Oh, that's the monster-matic," Finster explained.
"That's how you make monsters?" Aelita asked in surprise.
"Yes, and I'll show you how," Finster said. "But first, feast your eyes upon the specimen I have chosen. For right here before you is what I'm sure is the perfect choice to be infused with the amuck semi-monster power to wipe out our color-costumed problems."
Aelita stepped forth and looked at the clay model elevated on a stand Finster had put it on. It looked like a bat demon with pupil-less eyes, smooth skin, a mouth full of sharp, vampire-like fangs, a hulking physique, large bat wings on its back, large horns on its head, and a sword. The sight of it made Mayura smile.
"Excellent choice, Finster," Mayura said.
"His name it Baturkon," Finster said. "I've been saving him for a special occasion, and I do believe this is it. One of the best features is that the blade of his sword can grow thicker should the monster choose."
"Fantastic," Mayura said. She then pulled out her fan, held it up, and plucked a feather from it. "This monster should make for quite the opponent when infused with my own amuck power."
"I agree completely," Finster said before putting the monster model on a tray. "But first, into the monster-matic, he goes. I think ten seconds should cover it."
Finster carried the monster over to the conveyor belt of the large machine and then rolled it into the device itself before setting the timer. Then, with the pump of a handle on the machine's side, it activated, letting out a loud whistle. Mayura, Finster, and the Putties stood by as they waited at the exit chamber of the monster-matic. After a brief time, there was an explosive burst from the exit chamber.
As the smoke cleared, Rita, Goldar, and the Green Ranger stepped into the laboratory. They watched, along with Mayura and Finster, as the now living, breathing monster Baturkon stepped forward. He stood and walked like a proud warrior as he held his trusted blade at his side. Now that he was fully formed, his smooth skin was shiny and black as night, while his eyes were red as blood.
"At your service, my masters," the monster said with a bow of his head.
"Ahh!" Rita let out in excitement. "Finster, where have you been hiding this mighty beast of a monster?!"
"I've been saving it for a special occasion, my queen," Finster said proudly.
"Time...to make it even more...special," Mayura said.
Aelita then gripped her fist tight around the feather she plucked from her fan. When she opened it back up, the previously white feather had turned black, confirming its transformation into an amuck. Mayura then blew the feather from her hand, and it floated over to Baturkon's sword. Upon touching it, the amuck instantly fused with the mighty blade in a wave of black energy. The wave then washed over Baturkon, who let out a mighty cry of pain as he was changed by the amuck's power.
His original six-foot-five stature was increased to seven-foot-three. It also seemed like Baturkon sprouted a tail while his wings extended and became more dragon-like as opposed to bat-like. The horns on his head also increased in size and sharpness, as did the claws and talons on his hands and feet. Finally, he was covered in violet armor that formed around most of his body, save for his feet, hands, neck, and head.
Once the process of transformation was complete, the black energy wave dissipated and revealed the monstrosity underneath. Baturkon let out a demonic growl as he held his sword tightly in his hand. Rita began laughing evilly, which started off a chorus of maniacally cackling from the others as well.
"With this mighty beast at our side...WE CAN'T FAIL! Now the real fun begins!" Rita Repulsa, the Empress of Evil, let out before cackling all the more.
To be continued...