A/N: A very pleasant Wednesday morning to you all from the Lone Star State. Welcome to the main event of the Project Phoenix series. As a disclaimer, this series is inspired by Kctimes2's The Adoption (one of the best stories I've ever read here). Before reading this, you should read The Crane's Destructive Path and its accompanying one shot, Granted Wishes.

A/N 2: This is the story of when Jayden leads Rangers old and new into a fight for Earth's survival...with his corrupted mother. This particular chapter, Jayden's fate continues to hang in the air while his rescuer searches for a particular item that could change the tide of battle. Meanwhile, the Rangers try to make do without their leader. By the way, this chapter also contains Kim vs Kat.

A/N 3: Couples featured are Jayden/Mia, Memily, Lantonio, Jason/Kat, Adam/Tanya and a slew of other old-school pairings. You'll have to read on to see if there is Tommy/Kim at the end...hehe.

A/N 4: Chapter title named after the famous song by one Diana Ross. Usual disclaimer. Power Rangers doesn't belong to me.

Chapter 18: Keep Me Hanging On

Thursday, October 4, 2012

The Moon Palace

"Agh, Lauren, stop it!" Jayden screamed in pain as his body sizzled with electricity. Lauren, fully morphed, had already hit him with Lightning Fury for a fourth time in about the last 60 minutes.

He knew it was going to be bad, but he had no idea how bad.

Lauren and her boss had proven right from the go that they had endless ways to torture Jayden.

The torture chair they'd used on him was positively brutal; chair covered in spikes, him shackled to said chair. They'd done that for about two hours too.

The Phoenix spirit could heal just about any injury, but even what he'd gone through was making the Phoenix work very hard to heal Jayden's injuries.

It was also Jayden's curse too because every time his wounds got healed somewhat, Lauren, Flammia or someone else could do it all over again.

Being on the wrong end of Lightning Fury, an attack he once employed, wasn't too pleasant either. She'd already hit him with it several times, and each time, it hurt worse than the previous one.

"I'd stop this, but the problem is, it's quite a lot of fun. Believe me, Jayden, the rush of power I get from being on this side of the fight is more than enough to keep me here," Lauren said. "Besides, I can do much worse if you want me to go to another method."

"Oh yeah?" Jayden said defiantly. "What could possibly be worse than what you and Scorpina have done to me all morning?"

"Glad you asked, because I was informed last night that my boss has some even more wicked ways of torture. Some blasts from the past if you will." Lauren said as she nodded at Scorpina. Scorpina disappeared from sight momentarily, but Jayden's relief was short lived. His heart sunk like a rock as a large machine was wheeled in, with Scorpina and Draco pushing it along.

"If this looks familiar it should," Lauren said, smirking as she did so. Her next statement confirmed what he remembered this machine to be.. "This is the machine that nearly took my boss' alter ego's life. You know, almost killed your mother before your father had to intervene."

"You wouldn't dare use that on me," Jayden said, in disbelief that Lauren would actually go that low.

"Oh but I could, and I will if I have to," Lauren said. "If you get too mouthy I may just have to turn this machine on to finish the job it started on your mother. Perhaps, when I go out and whip the Rangers' tails in the next fight, that will take all the fight out of you and I can hook you up to that machine."

That shut Jayden up quickly; for him, there was truly no way out. Not unless help came back, and soon. And it wasn't a guarantee that Lauren wouldn't use the machine on him anyways.

"And just think, if nothing else, I can still take you for my own," Lauren said. "I can have you hollering and screaming with ecstasy all night long."

"See you for some more fun later, dear brother," Lauren said, blowing him a kiss as she left the cell with her fellow soldiers and closed the door behind it.

Jayden looked at the machine that once held his mother captive, and just looking at it sent shivers up and down his spine. He knew the urgency of the situation, so he pulled out a small communication device his alleged rescuer had given him before said rescuer left. Instantly, he put it to his lips.

"J to R, come in," Jayden said.

"I read you, dude. What's going on?"

"Whatever you're trying to get done, you need to do it and get back here fast! Flammia's army still has the life force extractor Zedd used on my mother," Jayden said.

"Damn," came the response. "I knew they had that in the Palace because I live there, but I didn't think they'd actually threaten to use it on you. It hasn't been active since Sis and Ed used it on Kimberly that one time."

"Yeah and not only that, Lauren's threatened to force herself on me if all else fails, and she says there's going to be a battle where she and her goons are allegedly going to kick our tails," Jayden said.

"Yeah they may kick your tails, but they'll never destroy a set of Zords like I did," came the response. "Thanks for reversing the fate of the Firebird and Tigerzords also, dude. Doesn't make me feel so bad."

"Uh, thanks, I guess," Jayden said.

"Listen Jayden, it may seem hopeless, but there are things you can do to buy yourself some time, and keep yourself alive," the voice said. "Here's what I suggest you do..."

Jayden listened to the suggestions given to him. The plan outlined to him didn't sound like a bad idea, but he knew he could only play the card once and if it didn't work, he certainly wouldn't get another chance. And if he was caught, then Lauren probably would try to force herself on him.

"Remember, Jayden, Rangers never give up. They never gave up when I fought them, and nor should you. It's never hopeless until the last bit of hope is gone. Have faith in yourself," the voice said. "Listen, I gotta go. They let me in, but I can't talk with you with what I'm about to do. See you in a while."

"Good luck," Jayden said as the communication shut down. The plan seemed good but he needed something else.

And then he figured out what it was.

Friday, October 5, 2012, very early in the morning

Ranger Chamber of Command

Angel Grove, CA

They'd tried to hold it together for the last 24 hours or so, but without their leader it was truly a difficult time.

They'd all felt the brunt, but because Jayden was Ninjetti, the others who had been touched by the Great Power felt the worst of it...sans that one.

Every hit that Jayden took, the Ninjetti felt just a little bit more. The Wind Ninjas and even the Jungle Fury team, being teams connected by animal spirits, had felt it a little too.

Because of this, none of them knew how they'd made it through work the previous day.

In some ways, it truly did feel like a last stand. Without their leader. Without the Red Samurai Ranger...well, both of them anyways.

Even as hard as they tried, Flammia now seemed to have things under control, as most around the universe figured she'd do eventually. After all, they'd all seen their planets fall before this menace before and none of them thought Earth would be any different.

However, none of them knew that what Jayden's father was about to tell them was going to hit them very hard...but especially the immediate Ninjetti.

"I'm glad you all could make it, again before we have to go do our jobs," Tommy said. "I'm going to get straight to the point. We are in more trouble than we could ever imagine. I talked to Jayden last night. The situation is dire."

"Like we didn't know that already?" Blake said. "This isn't something we don't already know. He's going through torture, and we're going to have to fight without him."

"I wasn't finished," Tommy said, looking sternly at Blake. Clearly, he was disappointed Blake had interrupted him when he clearly wasn't finished. "If only it were that easy. The stakes have been significantly raised. First of all, Jayden is without his power coin, Flammia took it from him when he got captured. That leads me to my next point. We may be getting a case of deja vu all over again, Ninjetti."

"The life force extractor, the FIRST life force extractor, not the one Mesogog used, is back in play and Lauren threatened to use it on Jayden," Tommy said which sent shockwaves throughout all the Ninjetti, but particularly those who were there the first time.

It was doubly hard on Kat, since she was in on the plot when Kimberly almost lost her life. Now, she knew Kimberly's alter ego was gunning to end hers.

Most of the other Ranger teams looked at each other in confusion, so Aisha stepped forward.

"This is hard for any of us to talk about, and I'm going to torture Lauren for this if and when we get both her and Jayden back. Just the thought she might do this really makes me mad," Aisha said, her voice indicating she meant every word of what she said. "Back in the day, when Kat was under Rita's power and stole Kim's power coin, Rita and Zedd made Kat hook Kimberly up to a machine that would drain her powers. Because our life forces are tied to these powers, if our power is drained, we die."

"Even the mighty Phoenix could die from this?" Antonio said, his face turning pale. He knew that while Lauren had been his girlfriend, she was the enemy now and if and when they got her back, their relationship would not be the same.

"Even the mighty Phoenix could die from this, yes, Antonio," Tommy said. "Jayden also said they're going to attack us soon, and that Lauren is going to make him watch, to try to torture him while supposedly we get our heads kicked in."

"Bottom line is, Jayden's life may be at stake in this next battle. We have to give him hope," Jason said. "Remember, the more goons we kill, the more positive we all feel about it. That includes the Phoenix. Also, the more goons we kill, the more Maligore's control over Kimberly cracks."

"Even if we give him hope he can still be embarrassed," Tommy said. "He said one last thing. Lauren threatened to force herself on him...to go...there."

All the Samurai Rangers were aghast. They, and their predecessors knew the rules that Mentor Ji had laid out Day No. 1, namely, no fraternization.

"That means...even if Jayden comes back, if she goes that far, we could have no Red Ranger," Kevin gasped.

"What do you mean?" Tommy said, looking curiously at Kevin.

"Mentor Ji has taken our Samuraizers before for issues that were petty, including mine," Mike said. Mentor Ji nodded, knowing that he'd been too harsh on some members of the team early. "He told us Day 1 if there was any fraternization in the house, no powers. Only if it happened, he wouldn't give us our Samuraizers back. I can only imagine if Lauren forced herself on Jayden."

All Rangers present looked at each other with worry. There honestly was no form of torture that wouldn't affect Jayden, and possibly Lauren, for the rest of their lives. Jayden could be humiliated, seriously hurt, or possibly die while he was up there.

Or even all three.

"Ji, know this. This isn't the Shiba House anymore, and you don't run things around here. The rules you may have enforced in that house aren't the same as here. You best remember that it was because of a night 17 years ago that you even ended up with Jayden in the first place," Tommy said.

"If you even try to strip any of your Rangers of their powers for anything other than Zordon's three rules, you're going to regret it. You know that Lauren is under a spell and isn't herself," Rhiannon said, "I may sic Dulcea on you if you try anything. And she's not too happy with you either."

Ji gulped and knew there was no way out for him. The power he used to wield in the Shiba House wouldn't fly in Angel Grove.

"Now that that's taken care of, one last thing before we go about our day. Know this. I expect 100 percent effort always from every Ranger, but I expect you to be better than your best when we go out there next," Tommy said. "My son's life is at stake right now. You all think about that. All of you are dismissed."

As the various Ranger teams broke up for the day, they were all somber. The task before them was a tough one. Some might have said, the task was actually impossible even as great as the Power Rangers had been over the years.

They were all outnumbered without their leader, and the leader of the Samurai team, but they would have to soldier on through the pain. When the attack came, they were going to have to be ready.

They wouldn't have long to wait for their resiliency to be tested either.

Several Hours Later

The Lunar Palace, in the dungeon

So far, the day had been quiet. No torture, no life force extractor, nothing.

The only time he'd been visited, twice, he'd been fed tasteless gruel. He hated it, but it at least kept him from starving.

It was too quiet, in Jayden's mind.

Which could only mean something big was upcoming.

He couldn't be more right.

Jayden groaned as the doors of his chilly, dank cell swung open. In walked his sister, fully morphed in her scarlet colored Samurai suit, with even more of an arrogant walk than she usually had. The swagger she walked with almost certainly meant trouble.

"I'm disappointed, Jayden. I thought you'd be excited to see me," Lauren said, devilish smirk creasing her beautiful features.

"A few days ago that may have been true. At this point, you're an enemy in my way of my goal," Jayden said.

Lauren had to admit deep down, she was impressed. None of the defiance that he showed in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds had gone away.

It would make what was about to happen all the sweeter. What was about to happen was going to break his will for good. Then, she'd have him all to himself to do what she pleased.

"You still haven't lost your confidence, I see," Lauren said. "Maybe what I'm about to show you will change your mind though. Allow me to introduce one of my new tricks my boss gave me when I finally came to the darkness."

Lauren extended her right hand, and a makeshift screen shimmered to life on the wall of the dungeon.

The scene was Panorama City, and the five Samurai Rangers that were remaining were having all sorts of issues in their own fight. Clearly, without two of their team members, they were not the same team and though they were giving it their all, the battle was completely uphill.

"And the sad part is, if you hadn't gone off and joined that father of yours, we might all be together as one. Think about it...together," Lauren said. "But your big ego just had to run off and join forces with your dad."

"Oh and it gets better than that," Lauren said. "If that didn't break your will, then this almost certainly will do it. The picture shimmered to another scene.

Jayden's heart dropped. The Ninjetti and Space teams were having their own battles, but there was one in particular he'd hoped to avoid at all costs.

Flammia had successful managed to confront Katherine, one on one, away from everyone else. By Lauren's smirk, she was obviously counting on her boss delivering Katherine, and by extension the rest of the Rangers, another crippling blow.

If Jayden didn't know any better, he'd have sworn that Lauren had forgotten how resilient Power Rangers could be. The way she walked, talked and acted, it was all over and the conquest of the mighty Power Ranger line was a foregone conclusion.

It was time for Jayden to delve into the suggestions his new friend had given him. At this point, he had no other choice.

Reaching into his soul, he searched for any positive thoughts he could find that he could lend his Aunt Katherine's way. After all, positive thinking had pulled Ranger teams through a thousand times before. It was time for Lauren to be reminded, once again, that Power Rangers never walked alone.

Downtown Angel Grove, at that very moment

She was hoping it wouldn't happen, but knew it was inevitable.

Truth be told, Katherine Scott tried to look cool, calm and collected. But she was a terrible liar. In truth, the butterflies in the pit of her stomach were swirling.

At the same time her nephew was fighting his demons, no doubt up on the Moon, now she was being forced to come face to face with hers.

Perhaps no Ranger in history had felt the brunt of more bad luck than Katherine Scott. She had the misfortune of following an absolute legend and even though she did a great job, many had still idolized the original Pink as kids.

That reality was staring Kat in the face at that very moment. But Kat could feel positive vibes coming, and even the person giving her those vibes wasn't 100 percent, she knew where it was coming from.

"I see you traded colors, Katherine," Flammia hissed at her. "Orange looks good on you, which is actually saying something."

"I see you changed colors too," Kat snapped back. "The all too familiar black."

"Yeah. Like I said in 1997, pink is out. I admit you've done a lot of good since we last met," Flammia retorted. "You changed colors, got the Great Power and married my big brother, but that still doesn't mean you won't take an ass kicking. And when I'm finished with you, Tommy boy will be next."

"If you think I'm some patsy like I was in the 1990s you are sadly mistaken. You would make a big mistake to take me lightly. I've learned a lot since that point," Kat said.

"Then prove it," Flammia said. "Maligore Fire Bow."

Instantly, a sleek archer's bow appeared in Flammia's hands. Kat nodded, she wasn't surprised.

For most, a bow and arrow would have been cumbersome and a burden. But as Kat knew, a bow and arrow for Kimberly Hart was like second nature.

"Orange Panther Cannon, sword mode," Kat called. Instantly, an orange colored, smaller version of the Power Cannon appeared, but in a form that was more suitable for fighting. "Your move."

But from the word go, the fight didn't quite go as most pundits would have thought. As the two exchanged blows at a fast and furious rate, Flammia realized Kat had been right. No matter what Flammia tried to do to intimidate her, Kat wasn't having it.

Kat didn't have the advantage, of course, but she wasn't getting pummeled either.

Finally, after about 10 minutes, Kat ducked a punch aimed for her head, and before Flammia could recover, Kat whip-kicked her in the face, sending her crashing to the ground.

Immediately, Kat switched her sword mode back to cannon mode. If she knew Kim like she thought she did, she knew what was coming next.

"That does it. You're good, Orange Ranger, and you've proven to be a worthy opponent. Problem is, I don't have time to play around with you," Flammia said as she readied several of her arrows, all laced with fire.

For a brief moment, Kat let the time slow down, took a deep breath, and imagined that no one else was around, just she and her opponent. In slow motion, she could see Flammia let fly an arrow, then another, then another. But she was ready.

"Cannon mode, full power," Kat called. Instantly, she pulled the trigger, and a massive orange laser beam shot forth from the cannon and clashed with the fire of Kimberly's attack. Both strained forward, using their minds to try to put more power into their attacks.

But Kat had the Great Power, and the power of the Phoenix, on her side. With one last rush of concentration, her orange laser beam swallowed Flammia's attack whole, shot towards her, and nailed her full on, causing a fiery explosion in the process.

Before she could think to do anything else, she heard a scream, "Kat, look out!"

She didn't see the attack coming until it was too late. Vipera, who had come down with Flammia and Scorpina, had attacked her when she wasn't looking, wrapping her tail tightly around Kat's waist, pinning her arms to her side. In the next moment, Kat felt her body go on fire as electricity seared from Vipera's tail into Kat, causing her to scream in pain.

Jason stopped the attack and severed Vipera's tail from Kat, but the damage was done.

Kat was still morphed but the attack had taken a lot out of her. Her armor had been singed badly in some places from that attack and she was nearly unconscious.

"Rhiannon. Get her out of here and back to the Command Chamber," Jason called.

Meanwhile, Vipera and Scorpina knelt over their boss, who the Orange Ranger had actually managed to injure to the point where there wouldn't be any attacks for at least a few days.

When they'd come down here with her to see Flammia take her revenge against the Orange Ranger, they had no clue how much better and how much more mature Katherine Scott had become over the years.

It was clear they'd messed with the wrong Ranger, even though Vipera had got a shot in against her. Crossing the Orange Ranger had been a bad mistake.

"Hope you like your infirmary Rangers, because from what I gather from the rest of the attacks, you're going to be in there just as long as we are," Scorpina said. "Until next time, Rangers."

The Lunar Palace, lower dungeon

As soon as those images faded away, Jayden breathed a sigh of relief.

He was all by himself again at this point; his sister's swagger had given way to shock and concern at what happened to her boss. The second Kat had injured Flammia, Lauren had left post haste.

Clearly, what Kat had done to Flammia was just as unexpected to Lauren as everyone else under Maligore's command.

Not only that, the Samurai Rangers, even short handed, had destroyed three different generals in their fight. The Space Rangers had destroyed two, the Ninjetti team three, and all other teams had gotten at least one. They had been beat up, sure, and no doubt they'd be in the infirmary for a while, but it had been worth it. There was hope.

Kat had dented Flammia's armor, had embarrassed Maligore when the whole universe expected her to be embarrassed. He knew now more than ever that if he got free, he could do the same.

Even better was he'd found a way to get free from his shackles. He wasn't going to use it yet, he was going to wait for the right time to do it, but he now had a plan of attack to not just get free of his unenviable position, but if he was lucky, he might just be able to get to his morpher as well. He'd have to play his cards right, but he had a plan of attack.

The problem now was, his teammates were beat up and sore; he could feel it. He recalled an attack than Pistrix had landed on Antonio in Panorama City and knew there was no way Antonio wasn't severely hurt. He likely had some busted ribs, would likely be out at least two to three weeks.

That was probably the worst of the injuries sustained, which made the Rangers extremely lucky.

From the various fights Lauren had shown him, he knew the other teams had their own injuries to deal with, such as concussions (Kat for example), and burns as high as second degree, which had been suffered by various members of the Space, Wild Force, Ninja Storm, Dino Thunder and Operation Overdrive teams.

The infirmary back home was likely overflowing right now, so he knew he'd need to execute the plan of attack soon.

But for now, his teammates, and would be rescuer, had kept him hanging on.

"Good job, Kat. Rest well, and get better from that concussion and any other injuries you have," Jayden said as his body fell into a relaxing sleep...as relaxing as there could be in his predicament.

For now, there was still hope for the world.

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