A lone black Hummer turned slowly off the main highway, trundling slowly along a desert track. Red dust was kicked off the tyres as the vehicle moved towards a series of rocky cliffs. To anyone who stumbled across this path, it would look like any part of the American southwestern desert. The only clue that this was no ordinary desert path was the sudden appearance of two armed guards at the mouth of a natural passageway through the cliffs.
The car stopped allowing the driver to show his credentials which were enough for the guards to lower their weapons. The rear window began to lower, revealing a woman wearing the blue dress uniform of the United States Air Force. Her blonde hair was tied back in a tight bun and she offered the guard a tight smile, all the while keeping her dark aviator sunglasses in place. She flashed an identification card, the sight of which made the guards snap to attention, "Major," the guard greeted with a salute, "welcome to the Nest."
The Major returned the salute and the car continued on its journey through the narrow passageway. Once clear of the cliffs, the officer got her first sight of her destination. Behind the high wire fences were several hangars built into the side of the rocky red cliffs. There were a few other buildings and an air traffic control tower together with two runways stretching out into the desert. Curiously on the other side of the runway was a blue NASADA shuttle smoking on a launchpad.
The main gates to the base opened and the car rolled towards the glass building near the hangars. Waiting outside was a man similarly dressed in his Air Force uniform, the stripes on his arm indicated that he also held the rank of Major. He removed his sunglasses, revealing a piercing pair of blue eyes. The car stopped and the woman stepped out, "Major Earhardt," the man greeted with a warm smile.
"Knock it off Chris," the blonde began, "no need for formalities," she added whilst adjusting a yellow pin shaped like an eagle on her shirt.
"Come on Taylor, is that anyway to greet an old friend?" Chris Benson replied.
Taylor Earhardt snorted, "I'd be in a better mood if I hadn't been dragged to the Arizona desert on a hundred degree day." She removed her cap and glasses, "Please tell me this building has decent air conditioning at least," she added with a little smirk.
After completing her tour of duty with the Wild Force team, former yellow ranger Taylor Earhardt returned to service with the Air Force. After completely several tours of duty overseas, she returned home and began training the next generation of pilots. Taylor had gained a reputation as one of the best instructors, a strict teacher who took no nonsense from the rookies.
Some were surprised that she still held the rank of Major, despite her two decade of service with the Air Force. Other less experienced officers had been promoted over Taylor in the last few years. Outwardly she claimed to be happy with her current position, stating that a promotion would leave her stuck to a desk but the fact she'd been overlooked on several occasions hadn't gone unnoticed by Taylor.
The two Majors moved through the complex, quietly acknowledging the salutes of the junior officers. Finally they stopped by the entrance to the central hangar, "So, is this the top secret project you've been working on recently?" Taylor asked.
"Yeah, sorry I've missed the last few poker nights," Chris replied, "we've been working all hours trying to get this up and running." Stopping at the final check point, he pointed at the tablet hanging outside the door, "You'll need to sign in and we'll need to take a finger print scan."
"Really?" Taylor sighed, "this better be worth it."
She placed her right hand on the tablet before confirming that she was indeed Major Taylor Earhardt. The main doors opened sideways, opening out into the large hangar and what she saw shocked her immediately. Sitting in the middle of the room was a large aircraft, predominantly red except for a white stripe stretching from the tailfin down to the nose. The nose itself was painted yellow along with an eye painted onto either side of the nose.
Either side of the red jet were four other aircraft of various sizes, painted predominately black, blue, yellow and white, exactly the same colours as her former Ranger team. Taylor gaped for a couple of moments before asking, "Are these zords?" she looked at Chris, "Have the Air Force created their own fleet of zords?"
"Funny that's the first place you go to," Chris replied, "I mean, you do have experience in that area after all."
Taylor frowned at her fellow Major, "I have no idea what you're talking about," she lied.
"Really? Your mysterious year of absence in 2002, that time you disappeared for a week around the same time the Armada invaded," Chris stated, "it's kinda obvious now that every time the Wild Force Rangers appeared, Taylor Earhardt would mysteriously disappear. Not to mention that we rarely see you not wearing something yellow." Instinctively, Taylor covered her yellow eagle badge, "Don't worry, your secret's safe with me," he added.
"How did you find out?" Taylor asked defensively, "that information should be restricted to NATO OF-5's and above."
"I told him," a booming voice grabbed the attention of the two officers.
Taylor immediately recognised the stern expression belonging to their superior officer, "General Harkness," she saluted the grey haired man, "I wasn't expecting you here today."
"At ease Earhardt," General Harkness nodded at Taylor, "Benson," he added towards Chris. The General gazed towards the machines in the hangar, "They're quite something aren't they," he began, "years of research and development has brought us these magnificent machines."
"Permission to speak freely General," Taylor asked, the General sighed and nodded towards the former yellow ranger, "Why?" she asked simply.
General Harkness offered a low chuckle in response, "I was expecting much more Earhardt, your outspoken reputation precedes you." Taylor blushed slightly, adverting her gaze from the General, "The Armada was a wake up call for everyone," he continued, "for nearly thirty years we've allowed the Power Rangers to protect us from the current threat, for which I'd like to personally thank you for by the way."
"You never struck me as a spandex wearer though Taylor," Chris joked, "although why did the other girl in your team get a skirt and you didn't?"
"It's not spandex," Taylor groaned in frustration, "and I hate skirts, have you ever seen me wear one?" Chris smirked back, shaking his head in the process.
"Can I continue?" General Harkness interrupted the friendly banter, "the Armada showed us that we could be easily overrun if the enemy attacks with enough force."
"With respect Sir, we still won that day," Taylor stated, "it was a little touch and go at some points but we got the job done."
"At what cost though?" the General asked, to which Taylor didn't offer a response. She thought about that day often, if she and the others had been just a little quicker maybe more residents of Turtle Cover would've been saved, "It doesn't hurt to be prepared in case of the next attack," the General continued, "as the Romans said, si vis pacem, para bellem."
"If you want peace, prepare for war," Chris translated, "this is just the tip of the iceberg, together with NASADA we've been putting together our own Ranger project."
Taylor allowed herself a couple of moments to let everything sink in. Her powers might have been passed down from the ancient warriors more than three thousand years ago but she was aware that other power were man made. Project Lightspeed immediately sprung to mind, that began as a military project. Something told her that this project wasn't entirely altruistic and solely for the benefit of humanity though, "Why now though," Taylor asked, "the Armada is long gone and there's nothing to suggest they're going to be a threat again. In fact, these last few years have been the quietest on the Range front for a long time."
General Harkness chuckled, "Nothing gets past you, does it Earhardt?" He faced the new zords, placing his hands behind his back, "Truth is that we've been getting pressure from the very top," he continued, "everyone seems to be building a Ranger team, some kid in her bedroom lab to take on those dinosaur monsters, even the Brits got themselves a team of Rangers a couple of years ago." The former yellow ranger heard that story, something about a hidden society of wizards using an ancient branch of magic, "The President took that a little personally," General Harkness sighed.
"More like his approval rating took it personally," Taylor grunted.
"Quite," the General shook his head, "nevertheless we've been tasked with getting this project up and running quicker than expected."
"Where do I come in then Sir?" Taylor asked, "I get a last minute call to come down here without any further orders or instructions."
"Everything's coming online quicker than we anticipated," Chris began, "the chosen recruits haven't received their advanced flight training yet."
"We need the best instructor, that's where you come in," General Harkness continued, "Colonel Benson has spoken highly of you during our briefings, and we'd like to formally invite you onto Project Jet Force."
Taylor opened her mouth, a retort on the tip of her tongue but she managed to hold herself back. She was mulling over the offer when it dawned on her what General Harkness said, "Sorry, did you say Colonel Benson?" she asked coldly.
"I've been meaning to tell you," Chris replied sheepishly, "my promotion to Lieutenant Colonel only came through a few days ago."
The former yellow Ranger turned away, slowly shaking her head. She willed her legs to walk away but a small voice in the back of her head told her to stay put. "This is nothing personal Taylor," General Harkness stated, the use of her first name deflated her anger slightly, "if it was my decision alone you'd be a full Colonel by now. Unfortunately your previous absences count against you, even if you did have a good reason."
"This is another reason that I want you on Project Jet Force," Chris added, quickly moving the conversation on, "no one else has the experience being a Power Ranger that you do. All it takes is a few people in the right positions to see what you can do, you'll have the rank you deserve before you know it."
Taylor slowly turned around, "This all sounds like the decision's been made for me," she sighed. The guilty expressions on Chris and General Harkness answered her question, "Can I at least meet these candidates, I'll warn you now if I don't think they're Power Ranger material I won't have them on this Project," she added with a firm point of her finger.
"Absolutely," General Harkness agreed, "I'll tell the crew that the shuttle will be launching imminently."
"Shuttle?" Taylor asked, "As in we're going into space?"
Chris Benson grinned, "To ensure maximum security we built a testing facility in orbit," he began, "the five candidates along with the research and development team are all on board waiting your inspection."
"And if all goes well," General Harkness added, "the Rangers will receive their powers today."
"This really is a rush," Taylor frowned, "are we sure an attack isn't imminent?"
"You worry too much Taylor," Chris placed an arm on her shoulder, "if you're that worried you can ask Doctor Neuer when you see him. He's the one that's designed everything, I'll warn you he can be a little highly strung."
Taylor nodded slowly, allowing herself to be led towards the waiting shuttle. She couldn't shake the feeling deep in her stomach that something was about to go horribly wrong.
A/N – Am I crazy? After saying I'd never do another full series adaptation I've had these ideas that will not leave me alone. Consider this chapter a pilot (no pun intended) chapter, if you want to read more then leave a comment and I'll continue. I can't promise updates will be quick, especially as I'm only around 10 episodes into Jetman at the moment.
In terms of timeline, this is in the same continuity as my Dino Charge and Harry Potter X-Over stories. The Jet Force Rangers will be entirely original creations (a first for me) but there might be previous Ranger cameos, you never know.
