Category: TV Show » Power Rangers
Author: Twix3780
Language: English
Rated: Fiction T
Genre: Fantasy/Family
Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers.
Author's Note: Welcome to the Once a Ranger team up - Power Outage - I hope you enjoy it.
Kali would admit that, in the beginning, she hadn't wanted the title of guardian, much less the title of Power Ranger.
She wasn't the type of person that believed in superheroes or happy endings, mainly because her own life was such a mess that it seemed impossible for anything to change. She had been adopted at a very early age, new born really, and white her adopted family were great, she, like every other adopted child, was eager to know her real family and find out why they had given her up.
The list of reasons were endless - underage parents, dangerous environment, financial difficulties - the list she had complied over the years was endless. The only thing she hadn't considered was that she the next generation of a mystical land known as the Mystic Realm, and her mother was an elven princess that had fallen in love with a Mystic Knight. Both of whom were bound for greatness.
That fantasy was something that belonged in the story books they used to read to her in the orphanage, but they had all ended in happy ever afters, where the heroes went on to live glamourous lives and have a great family. Blah, blah, blah…
But her life was not a fantasy. Her life, while yes, it had magic and mystery, was not destined to end with 'they lived Happily Ever After…'
Kali's life was dangerous. It had magic and mystery, just like she said. It had fairies and elves, goblins and trolls, it even had a hybrid Troblin -the unfortunate union between a goblin and a troll - but her life also had violence and danger. It had darkness and evil. Her life was not a story you told children at night.
Being the Hellhound was difficult.
It was the guardian of the Underworld, a place that people associated with the darkest of Evils, and for a while, Kali would have agreed. However, right now, the Underworld was under reconstruction. She had no idea what was happening down there, only that it would be a place of great safety once it was done.
But, aside from all the doom and gloom, there were a few perks to being the Hellhound - travel, was one. Since accepting her role as the Mystic Guardian, Kali had travelled from state to state within California helping certain Ranger teams that needed it.
Her first adventure had been, of course, in her birthplace of Briarwood. She had arrived with her best friend, Nick Russel, who had just as many important ties into her biological life as he did her adopted one. They had been born, hours apart in the Mystic Realm, and absconded together to the mortal world for protection.
The next adventure was in Blue Bay Harbour. It was where Kali was supposed to be stationed right now, but as of right now she was actually standing in a field somewhere in England, UK, watching from afar as two alien-beings searched the great stone pillars that were known worldwide as Stonehenge.
"Any changes?"
Kali stirred from her thoughts and turned to the older woman standing beside her. She had a small frame with long dark hair, and blue eyes. She wore black pants, a white shirt with a silver jacket, and black boots.
Her name was Rhea Winters.
"No," said Kali. "Personally, I don't think there is anything here. If there was, they'd have found it by now."
Rhea released a breath. "Where are the others?" she wondered. "Shouldn't they have been here by now?"
"Sentinel Knight said it would take a while to collect everyone," said Kali. "But yeah, he should've been back by now."
"I guess it's up to us if anything happens in the meantime."
Kali nodded.
Silence fell. It was a comfortable silence where both parties knew that the other was listening, not just to them, but to anything and everything that was going on around them. Kali not only had Mystic training and magic on her side, but she was an in-training Ninja student with the Wind Ninja Academy at Blue Bay Harbour.
And Rhea was a former Samurai. They both had the training they needed to remain hidden but seen at the same time.
"I wanted to thank you," said Rhea.
"For what?"
"Everything you're doing for Rune and Charlie."
Kali shrugged. "They're great kids," she said. "They deserve the best. Plus, if the Nighlok do rise again, at least Rune will be both mentally and physically prepared to deal with them."
"I'm just concerned the other Samurai don't accept her because she has a different technique to them," Rhea sighed, shaking her head. "She's hard enough on herself because she can't practice the way I do, and it's hard on me to understand her routine. I mean, how can one transfer video game rules into reality?"
Kali smiled. "I guess, we all have our own way of fighting," she said. "Just because your way is more generally accepted, doesn't mean it is the right way."
"True. My mother did teach me her technique, and it was different to the way her mother taught her. Like, for example, my mother did a lot of quick fist jabs, whereas her mother did a lot of high-kicks."
"Exactly. My mother relied a lot on her magic powers when in battle," said Kali. "Now, I prefer the physical aspect. I'm good with magic, but I usually channel it through my punches, if that makes sense."
Rhea nodded. "Being autistic has changed so much for Rune, I guess I just don't want her to be the outsider on the team," she sighed.
"She won't be," said Kali. "Rune is a smart girl, Rhea, and regardless of what she thinks, her ability to make friends is a lot better than she described. Yes, she's quiet, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Being quiet usually means you're more alert and you notice things. You should meet my friend Maddie. She's a shy and timid as a field mouse, but you won't meet anyone with better observational skills. Rune will be able to spot things the other Rangers can't if she prefers to stick to the shadows."
"I guess," said Rhea.
"As for Charlie, he was made for Thunder Ninja training," said Kali. "Hunter says he'll be in the first group signed up once we rescue the schools. He'll get all the help he needs."
Rhea smiled.
"Good. You're both here."
Rhea and Kali turned as a light appeared on the outskirts of the field, and a semi-transparent Knight appeared.
"We've been nearly an hour," said Kali. "What happened? Did you get lost in the time stream?"
Sentinel Knight shook his head. "Finding the right ranger takes time," he said. "Plus, I had to cross dimensions. I wouldn't recommend it if you are thinking of doing it."
"Why would I want to cross dimensions?" Kali asked. She glanced at Rhea.
Rhea shrugged.
"It doesn't matter. Let me introduce your team," said the Knight. He snapped his fingers and several people appeared at once. All of them were ranging in age, gender, appearance, and colour - both race and ranger. "Kali, Rhea, this is Bridge Carson, Billy Cranston, Maisie, Aviva Russell, and Christopher Haynes."
Kali raised an eyebrow at the last name mentioned. She knew a Christopher Haynes from Juvie. Granted he hadn't been in her Juvie Hall, but she had heard about him through the grapevine while inside. He was just as messed up as she was.
"Christopher is from another dimension," said the Knight. "He was particularly difficult to find."
Kali stepped down. If Christopher was from a different dimension, then he wasn't the one she was thinking of. Just a duplicate.
"Are you all Rangers?" Rhea asked, stunned at how many teams there actually were in existence.
"Some of us were," said Billy.
"And some of us will be," said Aviva.
"Will be?" Kali repeated. "As if in, future?"
Aviva nodded.
Kali turned to Rhea. "As if my life couldn't get any more messed up," she said.
Rhea chuckled and patted her shoulder.
"Your different skills are what I need to protect the Corona Aurora from the Evil Alliance," said the Knight. "I thank you for your help. But this will not be easy."
"It never is," said Maisie.
Kali smiled at her. She looked to be the youngest and smallest out of the whole group. She had shoulder-length blonde hair, blue eyes, and a small demeanour which matched her body. She was wearing denim shorts, cowboy boots, and a green off-the-shoulder t shirt with a yellow gem necklace.
"You look familiar," said Rhea, cocking her head to the side and staring at Maisie. "How old are you?"
"Sixteen."
"So, not born yet," Rhea muttered.
Kali's gaze swept around the others. She glanced over the Scarlet Ranger Aviva Russell, and then returned, meeting the teenagers gaze. The soft chocolate brown gaze was familiar, as was the fire that burned inside.
Aviva smiled. Her lips curving at the corner into a smirk. She knew it wouldn't be long before Kali figured out who she was. "Something's happening," she said, passing the Black Ranger and peering out across the field towards Stonehenge.
"We've got company," Maisie agreed.
The rest of the team turned.
Out at the stone pillars, a battle was in progress.
"Time to go to work," said Billy. "Ready?"
"Ready!"
"SPD, EMERGENCY!"
"It's morphin' time, Triceratops!"
"Activate Beast Power, Unleash the Beast!"
"RPM, GET IN GEAR!"
"Dino Thunder, Power Up!"
"Magical Storm, Ranger Form, Power of Darkness!"
"Samuraizer, Go, Go, Samurai!"
~X~
Kamdor and Mig gasped and stepped back as a wave of a darkness erupted between them and the Overdrive Rangers. They looked around, searching the area for the culprit and found a black ranger standing not that far away, a sword in one hand and a small device in the other.
"Who are you?" Kamdor roared.
"Your worst nightmare," Kali replied. "Now!"
On her words, several other Rangers started to appear all over the field. Kamdor jumped aside as a crevice appeared between him and Mig, cutting them off from one another. He looked around and spotted a pink ranger kneeling nearby, their first pressed against the ground.
"What?" Kamdor growled.
"It's the end of the line for you," said Chris,
The ground around Mig exploded and through the smoke stepped a Red Ranger. He rolled his blaster over his fingers and tilted it towards his head. "Hello," Bridge said, striding forward.
"Moon Beam!" shouted a female silver Ranger. She flipped over Kamdor and Mig, landing on top of Stonehenge's nearest pillar. In her hand was a thick, bright silver rope, which she snapped against the stone and hurled at Mig, it wrapped tightly around his waist, hauling him into the air.
Mig howled to be put down.
"As you wish," said Rhea, tugging at the rope and releasing the cat. It landed, not on its feet like most cats, but in a heap at the bottom of the stone wall.
Kamdor cried out as he was kneed, unsuspectingly, in the chest and rammed backwards into a stone pillar by a Scarlet Ranger. He growled and stumbled forward, gaining his footing and raising his sword. The scarlet ranger laughed and blocked his attack with her own blade. "Wolf blade!" she cried, shrugging him off and waving her sword through the air.
There was a flicker of magic, which set Kali's sense on edge, and a black wave of darkness washed over Kamdor. He yelled out as the darkness wave hurled him into the air with explosive results.
"Symbol power!"
Rhea looked around and spotted Maisie nearby. She was holding out a Samuraizer and pointing it at Mig. Thick roots shot out of the ground and wrapped themselves tightly around the cat. He struggled to break free, but with each struggle the vines grew tighter.
"Wait, how are you?" Rhea asked Maisie. She broke off as Billy charged past her, raising his Power Lance into the air and pulling it down, snapping it in two against his knee. He wound back his arm and threw one of the pieces at Mig, searing through the vines and hitting the cat in the shoulder.
Beaten and bruised, Kamdor and Mig struggled to their feet and regrouped. They each hissed and glared at the new team of Rangers as their circled up, putting a human barrier between them and the team that had caused them so much trouble in the last few month.
"Thrax didn't tell us there would be more Rangers," said Kamdor.
"Maybe he's not such a great leader after all," agreed Mig.
Kamdor pointed his sword at the new team before retreating with Mig and disappearing.
"Power Down!"
With their suits gone, Kali turned and led the makeshift team over to the approaching Overdrive team. They were all cradling their arms or shoulders and seemed to be in a great deal of pain.
"Thanks," said one. He was dressed in an all-black suit - similar to the others - but with red threads over the edges of his jacket. "Whoever you are."
"We're glad to help," said Kali.
A young bloke, with blue accents on his jacket, raised his hand. "Is anyone else confused here?" he asked.
"I will answer all of your questions," said the sentinel Knight, appearing in the sky between the two teams.
"But maybe this isn't the best place?" Rhea suggested.
Kali nodded. "Yeah. Out in the open like this, it's going to draw attention from, not only the locals, but the Evil Alliance, too." She turned back to the Overdrive team. "I'm guessing you had a way of getting here from San Andreas?"
"How did you -?" the girl in pink asked.
"I know a lot of things," said Kali. "I'll explain later. For now, let's head back."
The others nodded.
~X~
"I always forget that most teams don't have a state-of-the-art command centre," said Maisie, following behind Aviva into the Overdrive base. "Grid Battle force may be clinical, but it's better than this, I'll admit."
"Grid Battle Force?" Rose, the pink Overdrive ranger, asked.
"It's where I'm from," said Maisie. "My team and I - we're the Beast X Rangers, our command centre is, sort of like a military academy."
"It was designed using schematics of the SPD academy, if I'm not mistaken," said Bridge. He looked around and met Aviva's gaze. "Your mum wanted something similar, but different."
Aviva nodded. "My mum wanted a lot of things," she said. "It's a shame she didn't live long enough to see any of it come to pass."
Kali cocked her head to the side. "I have so many questions for you right now," she said. "You not only seem familiar, but you have strong magic. You're from the Mystic Realm, aren't you?"
"We all are, in a way," said Aviva. "But I can't say much. Future consequences and everything."
Rhea stared at Maisie. "I'm guessing your bound by future consequences, too?" she asked.
Maisie nodded.
Rhea sighed and glanced at Kali. "Only Samurai know how to use Symbol power," she said in a low voice. "It's not something that is easily learned by an outsider. She's a descendant of a Samurai, but I don't know which one."
"Maybe we should leave it," said Kali. "Better to not know that screw up the past and future. I know a certain guinea pig that won't be happy if I mess with time again."
Rhea looked concerned.
"It's a long story," said Kali, shaking her head.
As the last of the new team filed in, Will, the black Overdrive Ranger, cast a glance around at them all. "So," he said, folding his arms. "You've all been Rangers before."
"Yep," Rhea nodded.
"Well, accept for us," said Bridge, raising his hand and also pointing at Aviva and Maisie. "See, we're not Rangers yet, but we will be, in the future. For me, personally, in the future, I'm going to be the Green Ranger and then I'm going to be the Blue Ranger."
"But you're wearing Red?" Rose questioned.
"Oh, well, yeah, long story short -" Bridge cut off as Aviva pressed her hand against his mouth, muffling his words. He frowned down at her.
Aviva shook her head at the others. "Please don't get him started," she said. "He has his own language - we called it Bridge speech - but it's just a bunch of ramblings."
"Oh, we know that feeling," said Ronny. She looked over at Dax.
Kali smiled.
"So, you two know each other?" said Tyzonn, pointing between Bridge and Aviva.
"We were on the same team," said Aviva. "I then moved to a different city because of a virus that was trying to take over the world. I joined a new team to help fight the virus and it's generals - don't ask how it could have generals, it's complicated - but, yeah, that's my story."
"You're fighting a virus?" Maisie asked. "So am I!"
"Coincidence?" Aviva suggested.
Maisie shrugged. "I don't know," she said. "I have an aunt that doesn't believe in coincidences, so…" she trailed off.
"Well, I'm sufficiently confused," said Chris, scratching the back of his neck. "Am I the only one that's not from the present or future, or past, even?" he asked, glancing at Billy.
"Where are you from, then?" Mack asked.
"Reefside," said Chris.
"What team?" Ronny asked.
"Dino Thunder."
Kali cocked her head to the side. "We've never had a Dino Thunder team, at least not yet," she looked at Bridge, Maisie and Aviva.
"I can't say when, but there is one on it's way," said Maisie. "One of my best friend's is the daughter of a Ranger legend."
"The Sentinel Knight did say something about crossing dimensions," said Billy. "I think Chris, here, is from a different universe."
"Whoa, is that possible?" Mack asked, looking excited.
"In any case," Andrew Hartford, the Overdrive Rangers employee and Mentor interrupted. "Welcome. It's great to have you here."
"I have asked these previous Power Rangers to help in this time of crisis," said the Sentinel Knight, appearing once again. "I was able to channel some of my energy to restore most of their powers."
"We're all happy to help," said Kali. "Once a Ranger."
"Always a Ranger," the new team echoed.
"As the guardian of the jewels it is my duty to see that they are protected," said the Knight. "That is why I have chosen, Billy, Bridge, Maisie, Aviva, Chris, Kali, and Rhea to replace you as the new team of Power Rangers."
~X~
Kali craned her neck as she looked up at the Overdrive Zords. It had been a while since she had controlled any form of Megazord, especially since she preferred to not use her Titan form while with the Ninja Rangers. They needed her at full strength and being physically hurt in a Megazord battle was not the way of going about helping.
"So, do we battle it out over who gets what Zord?" Chris asked. "There's only six of them, and we're a seven-man team."
"I'm happy to sit the Megazord battles out," said Kali.
Chris furrowed his brow. "Why?" he asked.
"I have a team waiting for me back in Blue Bay Harbour," said Kali. "I have a titan form, sure, but I can't afford to be hurt because they need me in peak condition."
Chris continued to frown. "We all have to be in peak condition for when we return home, you know," he said.
"I know you do," said Kali. "But as the Hellhound, I can't afford to get hurt too badly. Trust me, last time I got hurt that bad, I was confined to Ninja Ops for months while my friends had to deal with attack after attack."
"It's okay, Kali, you can sit out the Zord battles," said Rhea, swooping in. "Besides, I don't think your magic would combine with them."
"Good point," said Kali, nodding.
"Magic?" Chris asked. "You have magic?"
"Yeah. Don't you have a Mystic Realm in your world?"
Chris shrugged. "If we do, I've never heard or seen it," he admitted.
Kali cocked her head to the side. "You're nothing like I would've imagined," she said.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, I heard of a Christopher Haynes when I was in Juvie," said Kali. "He killed a student during a prank gone wrong. But I never would've guessed he would become a Power Ranger."
"Your Chris sounds like me," Christopher admitted. "I, too, was involved in a prank gone wrong that resulted in a student dying. I regret it but can't deny it. What happened with your version of me, isn't he a Ranger, too?"
"Alternate dimensions don't always work out the same way," said Billy, wandering over. "Just because you became a Ranger, doesn't mean the version of you in our world will, too."
Kali and Chris stared at one another.
"For the record," said Kali. "I never met you in this world. I just heard about you."
"That's fair. There's you in my world, too," said Chris. "She's less scary than you, though."
Kali smirked.
~X~
Aviva and Maisie looked up as the rest of their team entered the kitchen. "Hey, we made the papers," said Maisie, holding up the newspaper.
"New team of Power Rangers save Ancient Monument," said Billy, reading the headline. The picture beneath the bold words showed them, morphed, in front of Stonehenge.
"I guess it's a good thing the picture was taken before we demorphed, huh?" Aviva asked.
Chris shrugged and took the newspaper. "I don't know, some people may be disappointed," he said, reading the article. "The writer seems to be. I mean, according to this, the Overdrive rangers revealed their identity months ago."
"Let me see that," said Kali, taking the paper. Her eyes scanned the words and her lips pursed. "Okay, hear me out, I know my original team - the Mystics - revealed our identities, but isn't it a sort of rule that Rangers don't reveal their secrets to civilians in fear of those innocents getting hurt?"
Billy nodded. "It was the rule that Zordon created back in '93, yeah," he said. "But I don't know, maybe Mighty Morphin' wasn't the first team in existence, and they could've had their own rules."
"True. But the first Rangers in the Mystic Realm would have been Mighty Morphin," said Kali. "I mean, I wouldn't count the Mystic Knights as Power Rangers, seeing as they never morphed into spandex."
"They didn't?" Chris asked.
Kali shook her head. "No. They had their own armour," she said. "If I'm honest, I would prefer the spandex. The Mystic Knights armour looks awkward and heavy." She set the paper down and pushed away from the island counter.
"I still can't believe you're the new Hellhound," said Billy, following Kali down the hall. "I always though Blu would continue the legacy, you know. She never expressed an interest in passing on the head that she possessed."
Kali blinked.
Billy paused. "You don't know who Blu is?" he asked.
Kali shook her head. "No. I've not come across her name in the Mystic library," she said, "and trust me when I say that I have read that place top to bottom."
"That's strange," said Billy. "Blu Raynes was a guardian of one Hellhound head. According to her, the legend of the Hellhound was that no one guardian could handle all three heads, so it was split into three separate people. She was one, her sister was another, and the third one was lost somewhere in the Underworld."
"Her sister?"
"Eithne Devine."
Kali stopped short and wheeled around to face Billy. "That's my mother," she said. "I always knew that she could control the Darkness, and she drew power from the Hellhound, but she never said that she was, specifically, a Hellhound guardian. Why didn't she tell me?"
"I don't know," said Billy. "I'm sorry you had to find out from me."
"Thanks, Billy, I'm glad someone had the guts to tell me, even if by accident," said Kali, smiling.
Billy nodded.
"Changing the subject from something less gloomy and depressing," said Chris, pushing past the two and entering the room beyond the double doors. It opened up into a rec room where the Overdrive Rangers were standing around a pool table.
"Did you check out the Zords yet?" Aviva asked.
"Yes," said Chris. "They're awesome. Of course, nothing beats my Spino Zord, but they come at a close second. I can't wait to get behind the wheel of the Gyro. It's going to be epic."
"You decided on who gets what Zord already?" Maisie asked.
Chris nodded. "Hey, don't pout, you should've been there when we decided," he said. "Kali's not joining the Megazord battles, so the rest of us debated on what Zord we were willing to drive, and I chose the Gyro."
Maisie rolled her eyes.
Aviva, on the other hand, turned to Kali. "Still afraid to get hurt for your current teams?" she asked.
Kali furrowed her brow. "How did you -?" she started, her gaze tracing Aviva from head-to-toe for a second time that day. "Who are you? Why are you so familiar to me?"
Aviva grinned. "I can't tell you that," she said, shaking her head. "Trust me, I want to, but I can't. It's hard and it would hurt too much to get close."
"Get close?"
"And that's enough," said Rhea, stepping between the two. She caught Kali's shoulders and turned her away from the younger ranger. "Future consequences, remember?"
Kali took a deep breath and exhaled. She knew she couldn't pry into Aviva, but it was getting more and more frustrating knowing that there had to be a connection between her and the future Scarlet Ranger.
"It seems you guys are getting along just fine," said Rose, taking advantage of the silence.
"Yeah," said Billy. "I think we make a pretty good team, right guys?" He looked around at the others.
They all grinned and nodded.
The silence that followed the confirmation was deafening.
"Hey, why the long faces?" Aviva asked. "I don't know what you're all so worried about, I mean, it's not like you're going to be out of action for long."
"You don't know that," said Will.
Maisie pointed at Aviva and nodded. "No, she's right," she said. "Look at this way - Kali has a team waiting for her in Blue Bay Harbour, Chris has a team waiting for him in his dimension, Bridge as cadets to train, Aviva has a virus to fight, and so do I. We can't all stay here indefinitely; we have commitments to our own teams to fulfil."
"Exactly," said Rhea. "We all have our own lives outside of being Rangers. I have two kids; I can't afford to just drop them to go hunting for jewels all over the world. Besides, my skills are meant for a more specific set of bad guys, and they were destroyed years ago. In '93 now that I think about it." She glanced at Billy.
Billy frowned at her. "The only other team that was active when I was a ranger was the Samurai team," he said.
"That's the one," said Rhea.
"You were a Samurai Ranger?"
Rhea nodded. "Silver. Power of the Moon," she said.
"Awesome!"
Rhea chuckled.
Bleep. Bleep. Bleep.
At the sound of the alarm, Kali looked around at her current team. "You guys sit tight," she said to the Overdrive team. "We'll get you back to where you need to be in no time. In the meantime," she turned her to newest team. "We got work to do."
They all nodded and filed out of the room.