"Hey Jesse, whats up?" Alex asks. It was the day after the monster attack.
Jesse's had gone ballistic. Lucky for Jesse he had been logged onto the
internet at the time Alex had come over, so she never knew that he wasn't
home. But she still gave him an earful when she got home. Alex's parents
were more lenient with him. He told them that he was over at Jesse's house,
helping him search something on the internet.
"Nothing much dude," Jesse replies, "ready to head out?"
"Yep," Alex replies. He reaches for the wrist communicator that the Elder of Atlantis had given him. Jesse had a matching one. Jesse kept his in his pocket though. He presses one of the buttons.
"Yes Alex?" the Elder's voice comes from the speaker on the communicator.
"Jesse and I are ready to teleport to Atlantis," he replies.
"Shouldn't Jesse be the one making this call?" the Elder inquires.
"Jesse couldn't figure out how his worked," Alex replies, "his communicator is a little different from mine."
"It should be," the Elder replies, "it is set to be able to contact he other Rangers if and when we find their Morphers and find a suitable person to wield their Power. We would have done the same with yours, but we have a feeling that it would be best to just make the change for you when it is needed."
"Makes sense," Alex says, "okay, teleport us now."
With that, Jesse disappears in a streak of white light with silver edges while Alex disappears in a streak of blue and green intermixed light.
"Welcome to the training hall," Connerly booms when the two appear, "this is where you shall both train in physical combat. Alex will be trained in the use of magic somewhere else, but he will be trained to fight hand to hand. It would be best to prepare him now for the possibility of becoming an Atlantean Ranger instead of waiting for it to actually happen. Besides, he may get attacked by some Spectrons sometime or another and won't be able to summon any magic in time to stop them. That is, if he even knows any attack spells by then."
"What do you mean?" Alex asks.
"There are various types of spells in most forms of magic," Connerly begins, "there are healing spells, which should be obvious as many RPG video games I believe the two of you play. There are various attack spells, such as fireballs and lightning bolts and small earthquakes. Then there are support spells, such as spells that block stuff." He turns to look at Jesse.
"I believe you were playing a game called Final Fantasy 6 last night," he says, "the spell 'Shell' from that game can be considered a support spell."
"When you put it in terms like that, even I understand," Jesse says with a grin. Alex nods his agreement.
"Of course, there are other types of spells, but many of them only people born on Atlantis or have a natural gift for the type of magic can use them," Connerly says, "luckily, there aren't many. And it's doubtful that you would ever need them."
"Okay, then shall we begin with the training?" Jesse asks, "Alex and I have to prepare for a game night tomorrow at church and we're providing an original game."
"Correction," Alex interrupts, "you are providing the background story for the game, I am coming up with the game itself."
"I mentioned the two of us," Jesse whines, "you don't have to be specific. That's supposed to be my job in this friendship."
"Shall we begin then?" the Elder asks, hoping to forestall an argument.
"Yes, lets," Alex and Jesse say in unison.
A lean, muscular man apparently in his mid twenties to early thirties enters the training hall from the far side.
"Honored Elder, have the two I am to train arrived yet?" he asks.
"Yes, these are the two young men you shall be training," the Elder says, indicating Alex and Jesse.
"What, these twigs?" the man scoffs, "the taller one looks like he might do good if he gained some weight and converted it into muscle, but this other one won't do at all. He needs to either lose a lot of weight or convert it into muscle."
"These are the two you shall train to fight," Eleanor says firmly, "your opinions of them do not matter. You cannot refuse Jacolby. You will train them and you will teach them everything you know. Even your special techniques of manipulating non-magical energy."
"Which one is the Silver Warrior?" Jacolby asks.
"Actually for now it appears that I will be called the Silver Ranger," Jesse answers.
"YOU?!" Jacolby laughs, "you couldn't last in a real fight without the Power protecting you. I even doubt you could even hold your own against me without morphing."
"Shall we give it a try then?" Jesse asks, an eyebrow raised and his head cocked to the right."
Jesse crouches into a crude fighters stance.
"Sloppy," Jacolby grunts, "you've never even had ANY kind of formal training, have you?"
"No sir," Jesse replies, "shall we get on with this? I realize I need training, and the quicker we get on with this the quicker we can get to the real training."
"Then go ahead and attack me," Jacolby says, "like a true warrior, I am ready to fight at any time."
Wordlessly, Jesse charges at Jacolby. Jacolby simply grabs the hand that Jesse tries to punch him with and twists it. To his credit, Jesse hardly even buckles down in pain. He simply tries to kick at Jacolby's gut. Jacolby stops the attack by performing a classic judo throw on Jesse with the hand that he was gripping.
Jacolby follows up by performing a crescent kick aimed right at Jesse's head. Jesse rolls out of the attack's way and quickly gets to his feet. He does his best to perform a standing side kick, but Jacolby simply grabs his foot, twists it, and knocks Jesse to the ground with a kick to the heel of his other foot.
"Pathetic," Jacolby mutters, "even some of the raw beginner's that I've trained can do better than this."
Jesse replies with a spinning uppercut that takes him into the air. Surprised by the attack more than hurt by it, Jacolby backs off.
Alex just watches in amazement as Jesse performs his imitation of the Dragon Punch from Street Fighter.
"What was that?!" Jacolby demands.
"It's just a move from a video game I play," Jesse replies, "it's about the only one I can actually do, though I may be able to do some more after you train me. Particularly when I'm morphed."
"Surprised, Jacolby?" the Elder says, "Jesse obviously could have taken the fight to you if he had tapped into the pool of knowledge that he gets from being the Silver Ranger, but he didn't."
"Yes, why didn't you do that?" Jacolby asks, his interest sparked.
"Jesse wanted to show you what he could do without the Power guiding him," Alex says for his friend, "he knows he's not a fighter, but prides himself on begin able to fight when he has to. About all he's ever shown is that he can take pain well."
:"Yes, those simple maneuvers I pulled on you should have at least caused you some discomfort, if not actual harm," Jacolby asks Jesse, "how wee you able to shrug them off?"
"The actual damage I'll be feeling fairly soon if it was lasting," Jesse replies, "but as for the pain itself, it is all in the mind."
"I know pain is in the mind, but how did you shut it away with such ease?" Jacolby snaps.
"I've dealt with pain most of my life," was Jesse's simple reply, "I've learned to shut it out. In doing this, I have also learned to shut out my senses. When I want to focus, I shut out my sense of hearing. Most of the time I leave my sense of smell shut down to heighten my other senses, particularly my sight." He taps his glasses. "And I need all of the help that I can get when it comes to improving my eyesight."
"Amazing," Jacolby gasps, "you have accomplished something only the most seasoned fighters have been able to do simply by living your life. How sad."
"Don't pity me," Jesse replies sharply, "one thing I never want from anybody is pity."
"Well, can we please begin the fighting lessons?" Jesse asks, "what if the Dark Specter attacks today? I barely defeated Divorx yesterday, and today would be a perfect chance for him to attack again while I am still recuperating from the fight."
"But you did some good damage to him yesterday," Alex protests, "surely he's still healing as well."
"I'm afraid not," Jacolby says, "these monsters have greatly superior healing abilities. In truth they are aliens, but they are twisted. In fact, most alien faces greatly resemble humans. The Red and Silver Astro Rangers are from the planet KO-35 and they actually are humans. Though that is a long story. And the Gold Ranger who helped the Zeo Rangers was actually the prince of Triforia. Though Triforians are a bit different from Earth humans. But that too is a tale for another time."
"Now for us to begin," Jacolby says. And he puts the two of them through the time of their lives.
A week goes by and both Jesse and Alex have learned to defend themselves fairly well against Spectrons without Jesse having to morph. Alex, in turn, has also learned many healing spells from Connerly. And the both of them have also learned a lot about Atlantean society and history. They have also learned everything about past and present Ranger teams.
"The Astro Rangers have all but retired," the Elder explains, "the Galaxy Rangers are busy on Mirinoi. The Lightspeed Rangers have defeated the demons that they were brought together to fight and are now enjoying a time of leisure. The Time Force Rangers are busy trying to capture the mutant Ransik. And the Wild Force Rangers have only just recently found their Red Ranger. The only active Turbo Ranger is around your age now and he hasn't seen any active duty since before the Countdown."
"So I am all on my own?" Jesse asks.
"Since Alex has yet to learn any spells that would prove useful in the heat of battle, yes," Eleanor says, "but worry not. You are a formidable foe for the Dark Specter even on your own."
"He hasn't made a move since that initial attack eight days ago," Alex comments, "though it would seem doubtful that he has given up." Jesse agrees.
"The Dark Specter would never give up," the Elder says, "he was supposedly killed during the Countdown and even we are baffled as to how he is still alive."
"Well, he'll pay for selecting my hometown for his first target," Jesse says vehemently, "he attacked Earth before. He's a danger to everyone in the universe, and that threat must be eliminated."
"You are correct Jesse," Connerly says, "the Dark Specter will not only focus on Earth, as the others who have attacked before have done, but he will attack other planets as well. You may have to go to them and help their defenders."
"What?!" Jesse and Alex yelp, "go to other planets? Like the Astro Rangers?"
"And various other Power Ranger teams," the Elder says, "one of the original Power Rangers teams went to the planet Edenoi. The Power Rangers of Aquitar helped during a very dangerous time some time ago. And the Gold Ranger, Prince Trey of Triforia, came to help the Zeo Rangers against the Machine Empire. The Phantom Ranger, whoever he is, came to help the second group of Turbo Rangers. He was from the planet Eltare."
"Say, does the Dark Specter have the ability to make monsters grow, like all of those others did?" Jesse asks.
"Why do you ask?" Connerly asks.
"Shouldn't it be obvious?" Jesse says, "if he can, then how am I to fight them?"
"Worry about that when the time comes," Connerly says, "for now, just focus on your training."
Aboard the Dark Specter's ship, Divorx is kneeling before the mighty monarch of Evil.
"Divorx, you failed to conquer an unprotected town," he says, his voice tinged with pure anger and hatred, though it was directed at no one, "though even I was taken by surprise by the appearance of this mysterious fighter. I believe he is a Power Ranger, but unlike the others that you could have ever faced. You have fought the Zordon's original Rangers when he fought Rita 10,000 years ago. You fought the Rangers of Aquitar during the Countdown, as well as the Gold Ranger. You were one of the warriors to attack Eltare. Now the Ranger's are without their most respected mentor and weak. But this warrior is unlike any other you have ever fought. His power was as great as that of the Zeo Crystal. Maybe even greater than the Quasar Sabers that Scorpius wanted so badly. What is your opinion of this warrior?"
"He is strong, yet obviously undisciplined and weak," Divorx says, "he took me by surprise. I underestimated his ability. I will not do so again. With your leave, I will finish what I started."
"Go and do so," the Dark Specter says, "take a platoon of Spectrons with you."
"Yes, my lord," Divorx says before standing up and leaving.
"Divorx, if you fail again, do not bother returning," Dark Specter tells the fading figure of Divrorx.
Divorx appears in downtown Jackson with 10 Spectrons. Spectrons were the new minions of the Dark Specter. They were like Quantrons, but they had black shield armor and they generally carries either a sword, a spear, an axe, or a halberd instead of the weapon normally carried by Quantrons. Their strength was slightly more than that of a Quantron, but they were not smarter.
"Attack, Spectrons, and destroy everything in sight!" Divorx commands.
Back on Atlantis, one of Connerly's spells flare up in front of everyone in the training hall.
"What's going on?" Alex asks.
"Dark Specter is attacking Earth," Connerly explains. He makes a few gestures with his hands. A rectangle appears in front of them, a picture forming within it.
"That's downtown Jackson!" Jesse says angrily the moment he sees something he recognizes.
"Divorx has returned to finish the job he started last week," the Elder says.
"Until he is destroyed, he will continue to attack your home," Eleanor says, "but no doubt he will die after this fight anyway. It is likely that the Dark Specter told him to get the job done this time or not to return at all. He will let loose everything within his power in this fight. Be careful Jesse."
"Right," Jess says, nodding. He pulls out the Silver Morpher and presses the buttons in the proper sequence.
"It's Morphin time!" Jesse calls out, "Silver Power of Atlantis!"
He disappears in a flash of silver light.
Jesse appears in his Silver Atlantean Ranger outfit in downtown Jackson.
"Divorx!" he calls out, "this has got to end!"
"I agree, Silver Ranger," Divorx says, grinning wickedly, "but, alas, it is your end, not mine, that will appear today." With that, he hurls an energy bolt at Jesse, who jumps out of the way.
"Spectrons, attack!" Divorx commands. The Spectrons run at Jesse, weapons drawn.
"Silver Staff!" Jesse calls out, extending his hand for his weapon. He immediately transforms it into its sword mode and meets the Spectrons face to face.
Blocking one Spectrons attack with his Silver Saber, he back kicks another as it tries to get the jump on him from behind. He breaks the deadlock with that one Spectron and slashes it across the chest. He back flips, slashing another Spectron on its torso as he lands. He blocks another Spectrons axe, pulling the weapon in closer and kneeing the Spectron in the gut, followed by driving its head into the ground with a wrestling move.
Two Spectrons try a pincer attack on Jesse from the sides, but he simply jumps into the, performs the splits, and kicks both of them in the chest. As he lands, he blasts an oncoming Spectron with his sword.
A few minutes later and the Spectrons have retreated, leaving Jesse to deal with Divorx alone.
"So, human, we meet again on the field of battle," Divorx says, lowering his spear so that it is level with his waist, blade aimed at Jesse, "this time, you will not walk away."
"No, it is you who will not walk away," Jesse says as he crouches into a fighting stance.
Yelling, Divorx charges Jesse. Jesse blocks the stab of Divorx's spear with his sword, pushing it aside. Unfortunately, in doing so he enabled Divorx to land a kick to his chest. The kick sends Jesse flying into the wall of a building. Biting back the pain, Jesse struggles to his feet. But Divorx was not about to let the Silver Ranger have a chance to regroup. He charges in, jabbing his spear down, aiming for Jesse's heart.
Jesse quickly teleports out of the way. He was glad now that Jacolby had insisted on him practicing to incorporating the teleportation system into his fighting style. He appears in the air, slashing down at Divorx's back with his blade charged with energy.
The slash drives deep into Divorx, who screams in pain. He stumbles away, turning around to face his opponent.
"You have improved since our last encounter," Divorx chuckles, "if I hadn't had to heal from that attack that you hit me with when we last met, you would be sorely pressed to win this time around."
"Yeah, but that's the past," Jesse says, grinning beneath his helmet, "we are fighting in the here and now."
"Tell me, young human, where does your Power come from?" Divorx asks, "I would like to know what kind of Ranger I am about to destroy."
"I am a Power Ranger of Atlantis," Jesse replies simply.
Back at the Dark Specter's ship, the Dark Specter roars while Darkonda watches in amusement.
"What is it, mighty monarch of all Evil?" Darkonda asks.
"That is a Power Ranger of Atlantis!" Dark Specter says, not actually answering Darkonda, "but I destroyed Atlantis thousands of years ago. Where does he really get his Power?"
"You expect me to believe you are from Atlantis?" Divorx scoffs, "Atlantis fell twelve thousand years ago at the hands of the Dark Specter. Where do you really get your Power?"
"I tell the truth," Jesse says, crouching into a fighting position, "and you shall soon see that I am not lying."
"Maybe you just believe your Power comes from Atlantis," Divorx says smugly, "but you are not fighting at your fullest. Is it because there are so many civilians nearby? Or do you not want to risk your identity being discovered. I recall that being one of Zordon of Eltare's rules: never let anyone find out your identity. Well, if that is what is holding you back, then let us take this battle to someplace else. Say, an island far away from here? It will still be on this planet, of course. I want to destroy you, but I want a challenge and for you to know that even fighting at your best you couldn't defeat me."
"Then let's go," Jesse says, "see if you can follow my teleportation signal." With that, he teleports to an island that was one of the few remaining pieces of Atlantis in the Atlantic.
"Foolish human," Divorx snorts, but he follows moments later.
The two appear on a deserted island. There was little vegetation, but plenty of room for them to battle.
"So, are you ready now to die?" Divorx asks as he gets into a fighting stance.
"Are you?" Jesse asks, crouching down, ready to pounce and strike.
"As they say in a TV show here on this planet, it is a good day to die," Divorx says before charging.
Jesse leaps over Divorx, slashing at his back as he lands, but Divorx's momentum carries him out of the attacks range. Divorx pivots and fires an energy bolt from his spear. The bolt hits Jesse in the chest, throwing him off balance and to the ground.
Jesse gets up as fast as he can, but not fast enough. Before he can get prepared to defend himself, Divorx swings his spear and cuts Jesse in the cut. The blade goes through the armor and cuts into Jesse's abdomen. The force of the attack knocks Jesse into the air. Divorx quickly spins the spear around and brings it down on Jesse while he is in midair. The force of the strike cuts even deeper into the Ranger armor and dislocates Jesse's left shoulder.
Jesse quickly gets to his feet and prepares to continue the fight.
"You honestly don't know what your doing, do you?" Divorx asks, "your power was able to carry you through the fights with the Spectrons, but against an experienced warrior such as myself you are nothing."
"Never underestimate a human, you dork," Jesse replies. He changes his Silver Saber into the Silver Staff and aims at Divorx. A beam of silver energy fires at Divorx, hitting him in the chest and doing moderate damage.
Divorx quickly counters by firing a massive energy blast from his spear. It hits the ground just in front of Jesse. The explosion knocks Jesse into the air. Divorx leaps into the air, ready to ram his spear into Jesse. Jesse immediately changes the Silver Staff into the Silver Saber. He pivots midair and jams the Silver Saber right into Divorx's abdomen.
The two hit the ground, Divorx landing on top of Jesse. The force of the impact sends the Silver Saber through Divorx's gut and through the other side.
They lay there for a minute or two until Jesse finally shoves Divorx off of him and pulls his Silver Saber out of Divorx. Jesse painstakingly gets to his feet, holding his side where Divorx cut through his armor.
"This guy was tough," he mutters, "I hope all of them aren't this strong." He turns to walk away a respectable distance from the corpse to teleport to Atlantis.
"You haven't won yet, Silver Ranger," Divorx says from behind.
Shocked, Jesse turns around to see Divorx standing, his hand on his gut where the Silver Saber had just been.
"You're good, Silver Ranger," Divorx says, "or did you just get lucky? No matter, you still won't win." He begins laughing. But as he laughs, he begins to grow in size. He continues to grow until he is the size of the Shogun Megazord.
"Dear God," Jesse gasps, "how can I beat that?"
His communicator beeps.
"What is it? I'm facing a ten story tall monster at the moment. I'm trying to decide whether I want to be stepped on or eaten." The Elder's voice comes from the communicator.
"Jesse, you do have a Zord."
"A what?"
"A Zord," the Elder answers, "a giant battle machine that the other Power Rangers have used in the past. Use the Silver Staff to summon the Silver Dragon, the Zord of Atlantis."
"Gotcha," Jesse says as he turns the Silver Saber into the Silver Staff.
"I call upon the Silver Dragon, the Silver Zord of Atlantis!" Jesse calls out. A small silver spark shoots from the Staff. It stops midair, even with Divorx's waist. It begins to grow and take shape. It finally takes the shape of a Dragon.
The Silver Dragon looked fierce. It looked a lot like Serpentera, only its head was more like the Red Dragon Thunderzord. Its color was mostly silver, though it has red, gold, and green highlights in a very beautiful pattern, mostly around its upper torso. But unlike Serpentera and the Thunderzords, it looked smooth and uniform, like the Wild Zords of the Wild Force Rangers.
"Incredible," Jesse murmurs.
"Jesse, leap into the cockpit so you can control it. It has a telepathic relay system. Whatever you do to fight is what it will do."
"Thanks Elder," Jesse says, then leaps into the cockpit of the Silver Dragon Zord.
"Zord of Atlantis, the Silver Dragon is ready for battle," Jesse says as he puts the Silver Staff in a slot before him. The cockpit was remarkably similar to that of the White Tigerzord that the White Morphin Ranger piloted.
"Fire!" Jesse calls out. The Silver Dragon Zord opens its mouth and a silver energy blast spews from it. Divorx blocks it with his spear.
"You'll have to do better than that," Divorx chortles as he launches lightning bolts at the Silver Dragon Zord. Jesse takes to the air and begins swooping down, firing his lasers from the mouth of the Zord.
Divorx deflects the laser shots with his spear, knocking them away. He fires stream after stream of lightning-like energy at the Zord, but Jesse dodges.
"Wow, this is intense!" Jesse whoops as he feels every sensation that the Zord feels. He then notices a set of commands. He enters them.
"Silver Dragon Zord, Warrior mode conversion begin," a mechanical voice says, similar to that of the original Megazord's mode change voice.
The legs extend slightly and begin to change as if a fluid. The arms extend as well and the draconic claws split and separate to reveal human- like hands. The tail splits into four sections and snakes around the legs and arms, then spread out to form a sort of armor. The neck splits and lowers, covering part of the upper torso. The draconic head splits down the middle and sets about forming a humanoid head quite similar to that of the Red Dragon Thunderzord's Warrior mode. The head then lowers and settles itself properly. The wings folds, split, and somewhat retract and form a cape, the talon of each wing focusing just in front of the face, locked together. A the remains of the tail fold and strap across the back, revealing a sword and scabbord.
"Silver Dragon Zord Warrior mode Zord transformation complete," the mechanical voice says, "pilot conversion beginning."
"What the?" Jesse yelps before a silvery substance covers him. It eventually molds to cover Jesse, making him now look like a human sized version of his Zord's Warrior mode.
"Wow, this is incredible!" Jesse cries out, jumping into the air with a fist raised. The Zord mimics his movements.
"What the?" Jesse wonders. He experiments. He leaps into the air and does a back flip. The Zord mimics his movements.
"Cool! It mimics me!" He summons the Silver Saber. The Zord draws the sword that is strapped across its back.
Holding the sword in his right hand, Jesse extends his left hand and motions for Divorx to attack. Divorx obliges. Sensing something now different about how the Zord is acting, Divorx goes for its legs. Jesse flips out of the way, slashing Divorx in the shoulder.
Divorx fires an energy blast from his spear. The blast hits the Silver Dragon Zord in the chest, sending sparks flying.
Jesse charges Divorx, slashing at the spear wielder's chest followed by a punch. Divorx blocks both attacks with a twirl of his spear and counters by slashing upwards from the ground with the blade of his spear. The force of the strike sends the Silver Dragon Zord Warrior Mode into the air.
Jesse quickly begins the conversion and transforms the Zord back into its creature mode. Flying high into the sky, Jesse prepared for a major counter- offensive.
"Take this freak," he mutters as he pilots the Silver Dragon Zord into a dive. Just before hitting Divorx, he switches to Warrior Mode and hits Divorx feet first in the head. The force of the blow knocks Divorx for a loop
Divorx hits the ground and rolls. He picks himself back up and prepares to attack. Unfortunately, Jesse was now relentless in his attack just as Divorx had been in his. The Silver Dragon Zord Warrior Mode slashed at Divorx cutting him in his right arm, shredding some of his armor and muscle. Divorx howls in pain as the blade cuts him. He backs off, holding his injury with his left hand, barely gripping his spear in his right.
"Don't think you've won," Divorx snarls, "I'll be back." The light of teleportation begins to surround him.
"Oh no you don't," Jesse mutters angrily, "you are not gonna harass me again." He presses a button and the Silver Dragon Sword begins to glow with silver energy.
Carving a circle into the air, Jesse then slashes through it three times: once left diagonal, followed by a spin and a horizontal slash, and finally a right diagonal slash. The three slashes leave a mark in the air at the start of the circle cut in the air and cross and one point. Jesse jabs the Silver Dragon Sword through the point where the slashes meet and raises the blade into the air. The newly made disc of energy moves along with it, as if it was a solid object and was being moved due to the sword in its center. Jesse begins to rotate the sword, first slowly, then faster and faster until the blade of the sword was moving so fast it was a blur. The energy from the disc seeps into the blade. Finally, the Silver dragon Zord makes one final diagonal slash at Divorx and the energy is sent flying at his opponent in a sharp wave of edged energy.
The energy slices through Divorx effortlessly. Beneath his helmet, his eyes widen in surprise. He falls to one knee, gasping in pain.
"Good work, Silver Ranger," he says through the haze of pain and the darkness that was beginning to overwhelm him, "but do not think you have won the war. I am still just a flunky. Dark Specter has many warriors far more powerful and more skilled than me. You sheer power has gotten you through this battle, but how long until inexperience and the sheer numbers of your opponents overwhelms you? You will lose, mark my words. You will lose, and on that day your planet is doomed!" Laughing, he falls forward and disintegrates moments after he hits the ground.
Panting at the exertion of the battle, Jesse unclasps the bands on his helmet and removes it. He looks at the scorched mark on the earth that marked where Divorx had fallen. It had been a tough battle, but he had made it. His first real victory. His first defeat of the enemy. His first kill. The realization of the death hits Jesse like a ton of bricks until he realizes that Divorx would have killed or enslaved everyone on Earth if he hadn't been stopped. Sighing in resignation at what he now knows to be an immense battle in the future, Jesse teleports himself and his Zord back to Atlantis.
Sitting on his throne, the Dark Specter witnesses Divorx's destruction.
"So it is true," he mumbles, "the powers of Atlantis are still active and a threat. But there is only one right now. It is possible that the Morphers are scattered and unable to be located. But even one human powered by an Atlantean Morpher is dangerous. Divorx was a good soldier, but he underestimated his opponent. No matter. He was expendable anyway."
The window of magic through which he was watching the battle shows the Silver Atlantean Ranger taking off his helmet. Dark Specter's eyes glow dangerously molten orange at the sight he sees. Once again, a human teenager was in his path of dominance! First, it was Zordon of Eltare's Mighty Morphin Power Rangers that so hideously defeated Rita Repulsa and Lord Zedd time and time again. Next it was the Zeo Rangers, fueled by the Zeo Crystal who held off the Machine Empire and Rita and Zedd at times. Next it was the Turbo Rangers who held off the Space Pirate Divatox. Finally, it was the Astro Rangers. Dark Specter knew that, while they were not as able as many of the other species throughout the galaxy, humans had a far more unbendable will. Even Rita, one of the most powerful sorceresses of all could not control a single human even with the aid of the Sword of Darkness. And even Zedd, possibly the mightiest practitioner of magic in all of the universe, could not turn a mere handful of them into his minions. And even the Wizard of Deception, whose power was legendary, could not control a simple clone of a human. No, these humans were more trouble than they were worth. Even Scorpius, a being whom even the Dark Specter feared at times, was not able to stand up against a band of six humans. Granted, they wielded the mighty Quasar Sabers, but they were still humans. Many a mighty evil had fallen throughout the universe because they had underestimated these humans. Well, the Dark Specter would not underestimate them. Like the Machine Empire, he would fight a war of attrition. But unlike the Machine Empire, he would attack the whole planet. He didn't care to show up Rita and Zedd. If he attacked Angel Grove, then the former Rangers would somehow regain some form of their powers. One of them still held one of the Turbo Keys. Another carried the Dragon Power Coin. And it was still possible for them to regain the Zeo Crystal and be a major hindrance in his plans. And if one Turbo Key could be found, then the other four could be found and used again as well. No, attacking Angel Grove was simply out of the question. He briefly considered attacking Leewood and destroying the Masked Rider, but decided against it. Dex of Edenoi would be returning home before long to combat his uncle on his home planet. Once that happened, he would attack Leewood. If he attacked the Masked Rider, he would call for help. Either in the form of the Masked Rider Warriors or the Power Rangers, he could summon help. No, attacking a place that had a resident hero would not do.
Dark Specter knew that the town they had already attacked had to be the home of the Silver Atlantean Ranger. And since he now knew that it was a normal teenage human boy, he could make plans to destroy him.
"Darkonda!" the Dark Specter roars. Darkonda hurries into the throne room and bows before his master.
"Contact Voricifa," Dark Specter commands.
"Voricifa, my liege?" Darkonda asks.
"Yes," Dark Specter says, "tell her that I have a job that only she can do."
"Yes, mighty Dark Specter," Darkonda says before leaving.
As he walks out of the throne room, Darkonda's mind is ablaze in thought.
'Voricifa?' Darkonda thinks to himself, 'the Dark Specter hardly ever calls upon her talents. She can turn any mans hearts to her will and make them do anything. I remember one time she had a husband who dearly loved his family slaughter them by tearing them apart piece by piece and eating them. It was wonderfully evil. Normally the Dark Specter prefers to crush his opponents in an overwhelming attack. This Silver Atlantean Ranger must really pose a threat to the Dark Specter's plans if he is planning on using Voricifa to destroy him.'
Jesse arrives at Atlantis in his Silver Ranger outfit, but he is holding his helmet in the crook of his arm.
"Jesse, man, that was awesome," Alex says, "you destroyed the monster."
"I killed him," Jesse corrects his friend, his voice glum.
"Man, whats wrong?" Alex asks.
"I just KILLED somebody Alex," Jesse yells, "I ended his life. He wasn't a monster, he was an actual living and breathing sentient being. He may have been twisted by evil, but he was alive."
"Yes, he was alive, but you slew him in the defense of others," the Elder says, "and you will no doubt have to do so many more times. However, many of the creatures Dark Specter sends down will be true monsters and not actually living beings."
"There is nothing to be ashamed of in killing someone in the defense of those who cannot defend themselves," Jacolby adds, "you are the only real defense that this planet has. The Time Force Rangers have captured Ransik and gone back to the future, leaving only the Red Ranger and the Quantum Ranger. The Wild Force Rangers have only just found their Red Ranger. They are no match for the Dark Specter, and probably never will be. We never paid much attention to Animaria so we do not know how much power they can achieve. The Red Time Force Ranger has the power of the legendary Battle Fire, but that couldn't even enable him to equal Ransik, much less one of Dark Specter's minions. The Galaxy Rangers are on Mirinoi and would barely be able to handle the Dark Specter for an extended period of time. Four of the Astro Rangers are here on Earth, but they do not have their Morphers. The other two are out among the stars."
"Elder, Divorx said that the Dark Specter had many minions far more powerful than he was," Jesse says, "is this true?"
"Unfortunately, yes," the Elder says, "you wouldn't even last five minutes alone against the Dark Specter at your current level. Once you gain more experience, you would be able to last against the Dark Specter alone for a little while, but unless we can locate the other Morphers and people worthy to wield their power then you will lose."
"I just hope I can last through the next battle," Jesse mutters, "any idea when the Dark Specter will attack again?"
"We do not know when or where he will attack," Connerly replies, "he will not limit his attacks to one city or town like the previous people to attack Earth. They all wanted to show up Rita Repulsa by taking over the town that she constantly attacked. But the Dark Specter won't care about this. He will attack anywhere on the Earth. He could attack Los Angeles one day and Hong Kong the next and Paris the day after that. The other teams of Power Rangers, even though they were technically protecting the world, they only really defended their home city. Dark Specter was unlucky enough to attack yours first and cause the Silver Morpher to choose its wielder. If he hadn't, then the Earth wouldn't have had a chance. You may even get to work with the other teams of Power Rangers since Dark Specter will probably take out any possible reinforcements you could get. The Time Force Rangers are not magical at all except for the power of the Battle Fire. Same goes for the Lightspeed Rangers. Not a single one of them has any magical power. But they could give you backup and the Dark Specter won't like that. Luckily we can teleport you to any location on Earth, and even as far as the moon. When morphed, you can survive just about anywhere as long as the heat isn't too intense or the gravity isn't more than you can handle."
"So I gotta protect the entire planet?" Jesse asks.
"And then some," Eleanor replies, "we were once allies of Eltare and the rest of those who stand against evil. We were a great threat with the Atlantean Warriors so the Dark Specter took us out first, even if it did cause him to retreat for nearly twelve thousand years. Now, if we receive a distress call from someone else and it involves Dark Specter, then it is your responsibility. Fighting the Dark Specter's elite army is something only the Atlantean Rangers can do."
"So I might be going to other planets?" Jesse asks, apprehensive.
"Other planets?" Connerly says with a bark of laughter, "you'll likely be going to other galaxies! The whole universe is your responsibility, though you will rarely have to take up that level of responsibility."
"I have a feeling I'm gonna hate this," Jesse mutters.
"Do you wish to hand over your Morpher?" the Elder asks, "it is possible that we can find another suitable candidate that will be more willing to take the job."
Jesse sighs. "Its not that. Its just that I don't like having a lot of responsibility. Lucky for me I don't have much of a social life for this to ruin."
Alex grins. "Maybe being a Ranger will mature you enough for you to be able to handle life on your own when the Dark Specter is defeated." Jesse snorts in disbelief.
"Well, we are all very proud of you Jesse," Jacolby says, "you are the Earth's first line of defense against the Dark Specter, though you may as well be the only line of defense seeing as how none of the other heroes of Earth have the power to fight the Dark specter's minions. They would barely hold their own against the Spectrons, and those are only his lowest level of foot soldiers. He has many more, but we are lucky that he is too arrogant to use them."
"Well, Alex and I gotta go," Jesse says, "its almost time for dinner and I'm starving."
"Take care, you two," Jacolby says, "stop by and train whenever possible, even if you can't do it at the same time."
Jesse and Alex thank the Atlanteans and teleport home. Jesse watches the news of the battle between the Silver Atlantean Ranger and Divorx and the Spectrons. He winces as they catch every moment of the fight with the Spectrons. He knew he was gonna have to learn or he would get clobbered. If only they could find even just one more Morpher.
Sighing, Jesse cleans up and eats dinner which consisted of hamburgers and sausage. He had had a long day and he needed to relax.
"Nothing much dude," Jesse replies, "ready to head out?"
"Yep," Alex replies. He reaches for the wrist communicator that the Elder of Atlantis had given him. Jesse had a matching one. Jesse kept his in his pocket though. He presses one of the buttons.
"Yes Alex?" the Elder's voice comes from the speaker on the communicator.
"Jesse and I are ready to teleport to Atlantis," he replies.
"Shouldn't Jesse be the one making this call?" the Elder inquires.
"Jesse couldn't figure out how his worked," Alex replies, "his communicator is a little different from mine."
"It should be," the Elder replies, "it is set to be able to contact he other Rangers if and when we find their Morphers and find a suitable person to wield their Power. We would have done the same with yours, but we have a feeling that it would be best to just make the change for you when it is needed."
"Makes sense," Alex says, "okay, teleport us now."
With that, Jesse disappears in a streak of white light with silver edges while Alex disappears in a streak of blue and green intermixed light.
"Welcome to the training hall," Connerly booms when the two appear, "this is where you shall both train in physical combat. Alex will be trained in the use of magic somewhere else, but he will be trained to fight hand to hand. It would be best to prepare him now for the possibility of becoming an Atlantean Ranger instead of waiting for it to actually happen. Besides, he may get attacked by some Spectrons sometime or another and won't be able to summon any magic in time to stop them. That is, if he even knows any attack spells by then."
"What do you mean?" Alex asks.
"There are various types of spells in most forms of magic," Connerly begins, "there are healing spells, which should be obvious as many RPG video games I believe the two of you play. There are various attack spells, such as fireballs and lightning bolts and small earthquakes. Then there are support spells, such as spells that block stuff." He turns to look at Jesse.
"I believe you were playing a game called Final Fantasy 6 last night," he says, "the spell 'Shell' from that game can be considered a support spell."
"When you put it in terms like that, even I understand," Jesse says with a grin. Alex nods his agreement.
"Of course, there are other types of spells, but many of them only people born on Atlantis or have a natural gift for the type of magic can use them," Connerly says, "luckily, there aren't many. And it's doubtful that you would ever need them."
"Okay, then shall we begin with the training?" Jesse asks, "Alex and I have to prepare for a game night tomorrow at church and we're providing an original game."
"Correction," Alex interrupts, "you are providing the background story for the game, I am coming up with the game itself."
"I mentioned the two of us," Jesse whines, "you don't have to be specific. That's supposed to be my job in this friendship."
"Shall we begin then?" the Elder asks, hoping to forestall an argument.
"Yes, lets," Alex and Jesse say in unison.
A lean, muscular man apparently in his mid twenties to early thirties enters the training hall from the far side.
"Honored Elder, have the two I am to train arrived yet?" he asks.
"Yes, these are the two young men you shall be training," the Elder says, indicating Alex and Jesse.
"What, these twigs?" the man scoffs, "the taller one looks like he might do good if he gained some weight and converted it into muscle, but this other one won't do at all. He needs to either lose a lot of weight or convert it into muscle."
"These are the two you shall train to fight," Eleanor says firmly, "your opinions of them do not matter. You cannot refuse Jacolby. You will train them and you will teach them everything you know. Even your special techniques of manipulating non-magical energy."
"Which one is the Silver Warrior?" Jacolby asks.
"Actually for now it appears that I will be called the Silver Ranger," Jesse answers.
"YOU?!" Jacolby laughs, "you couldn't last in a real fight without the Power protecting you. I even doubt you could even hold your own against me without morphing."
"Shall we give it a try then?" Jesse asks, an eyebrow raised and his head cocked to the right."
Jesse crouches into a crude fighters stance.
"Sloppy," Jacolby grunts, "you've never even had ANY kind of formal training, have you?"
"No sir," Jesse replies, "shall we get on with this? I realize I need training, and the quicker we get on with this the quicker we can get to the real training."
"Then go ahead and attack me," Jacolby says, "like a true warrior, I am ready to fight at any time."
Wordlessly, Jesse charges at Jacolby. Jacolby simply grabs the hand that Jesse tries to punch him with and twists it. To his credit, Jesse hardly even buckles down in pain. He simply tries to kick at Jacolby's gut. Jacolby stops the attack by performing a classic judo throw on Jesse with the hand that he was gripping.
Jacolby follows up by performing a crescent kick aimed right at Jesse's head. Jesse rolls out of the attack's way and quickly gets to his feet. He does his best to perform a standing side kick, but Jacolby simply grabs his foot, twists it, and knocks Jesse to the ground with a kick to the heel of his other foot.
"Pathetic," Jacolby mutters, "even some of the raw beginner's that I've trained can do better than this."
Jesse replies with a spinning uppercut that takes him into the air. Surprised by the attack more than hurt by it, Jacolby backs off.
Alex just watches in amazement as Jesse performs his imitation of the Dragon Punch from Street Fighter.
"What was that?!" Jacolby demands.
"It's just a move from a video game I play," Jesse replies, "it's about the only one I can actually do, though I may be able to do some more after you train me. Particularly when I'm morphed."
"Surprised, Jacolby?" the Elder says, "Jesse obviously could have taken the fight to you if he had tapped into the pool of knowledge that he gets from being the Silver Ranger, but he didn't."
"Yes, why didn't you do that?" Jacolby asks, his interest sparked.
"Jesse wanted to show you what he could do without the Power guiding him," Alex says for his friend, "he knows he's not a fighter, but prides himself on begin able to fight when he has to. About all he's ever shown is that he can take pain well."
:"Yes, those simple maneuvers I pulled on you should have at least caused you some discomfort, if not actual harm," Jacolby asks Jesse, "how wee you able to shrug them off?"
"The actual damage I'll be feeling fairly soon if it was lasting," Jesse replies, "but as for the pain itself, it is all in the mind."
"I know pain is in the mind, but how did you shut it away with such ease?" Jacolby snaps.
"I've dealt with pain most of my life," was Jesse's simple reply, "I've learned to shut it out. In doing this, I have also learned to shut out my senses. When I want to focus, I shut out my sense of hearing. Most of the time I leave my sense of smell shut down to heighten my other senses, particularly my sight." He taps his glasses. "And I need all of the help that I can get when it comes to improving my eyesight."
"Amazing," Jacolby gasps, "you have accomplished something only the most seasoned fighters have been able to do simply by living your life. How sad."
"Don't pity me," Jesse replies sharply, "one thing I never want from anybody is pity."
"Well, can we please begin the fighting lessons?" Jesse asks, "what if the Dark Specter attacks today? I barely defeated Divorx yesterday, and today would be a perfect chance for him to attack again while I am still recuperating from the fight."
"But you did some good damage to him yesterday," Alex protests, "surely he's still healing as well."
"I'm afraid not," Jacolby says, "these monsters have greatly superior healing abilities. In truth they are aliens, but they are twisted. In fact, most alien faces greatly resemble humans. The Red and Silver Astro Rangers are from the planet KO-35 and they actually are humans. Though that is a long story. And the Gold Ranger who helped the Zeo Rangers was actually the prince of Triforia. Though Triforians are a bit different from Earth humans. But that too is a tale for another time."
"Now for us to begin," Jacolby says. And he puts the two of them through the time of their lives.
A week goes by and both Jesse and Alex have learned to defend themselves fairly well against Spectrons without Jesse having to morph. Alex, in turn, has also learned many healing spells from Connerly. And the both of them have also learned a lot about Atlantean society and history. They have also learned everything about past and present Ranger teams.
"The Astro Rangers have all but retired," the Elder explains, "the Galaxy Rangers are busy on Mirinoi. The Lightspeed Rangers have defeated the demons that they were brought together to fight and are now enjoying a time of leisure. The Time Force Rangers are busy trying to capture the mutant Ransik. And the Wild Force Rangers have only just recently found their Red Ranger. The only active Turbo Ranger is around your age now and he hasn't seen any active duty since before the Countdown."
"So I am all on my own?" Jesse asks.
"Since Alex has yet to learn any spells that would prove useful in the heat of battle, yes," Eleanor says, "but worry not. You are a formidable foe for the Dark Specter even on your own."
"He hasn't made a move since that initial attack eight days ago," Alex comments, "though it would seem doubtful that he has given up." Jesse agrees.
"The Dark Specter would never give up," the Elder says, "he was supposedly killed during the Countdown and even we are baffled as to how he is still alive."
"Well, he'll pay for selecting my hometown for his first target," Jesse says vehemently, "he attacked Earth before. He's a danger to everyone in the universe, and that threat must be eliminated."
"You are correct Jesse," Connerly says, "the Dark Specter will not only focus on Earth, as the others who have attacked before have done, but he will attack other planets as well. You may have to go to them and help their defenders."
"What?!" Jesse and Alex yelp, "go to other planets? Like the Astro Rangers?"
"And various other Power Ranger teams," the Elder says, "one of the original Power Rangers teams went to the planet Edenoi. The Power Rangers of Aquitar helped during a very dangerous time some time ago. And the Gold Ranger, Prince Trey of Triforia, came to help the Zeo Rangers against the Machine Empire. The Phantom Ranger, whoever he is, came to help the second group of Turbo Rangers. He was from the planet Eltare."
"Say, does the Dark Specter have the ability to make monsters grow, like all of those others did?" Jesse asks.
"Why do you ask?" Connerly asks.
"Shouldn't it be obvious?" Jesse says, "if he can, then how am I to fight them?"
"Worry about that when the time comes," Connerly says, "for now, just focus on your training."
Aboard the Dark Specter's ship, Divorx is kneeling before the mighty monarch of Evil.
"Divorx, you failed to conquer an unprotected town," he says, his voice tinged with pure anger and hatred, though it was directed at no one, "though even I was taken by surprise by the appearance of this mysterious fighter. I believe he is a Power Ranger, but unlike the others that you could have ever faced. You have fought the Zordon's original Rangers when he fought Rita 10,000 years ago. You fought the Rangers of Aquitar during the Countdown, as well as the Gold Ranger. You were one of the warriors to attack Eltare. Now the Ranger's are without their most respected mentor and weak. But this warrior is unlike any other you have ever fought. His power was as great as that of the Zeo Crystal. Maybe even greater than the Quasar Sabers that Scorpius wanted so badly. What is your opinion of this warrior?"
"He is strong, yet obviously undisciplined and weak," Divorx says, "he took me by surprise. I underestimated his ability. I will not do so again. With your leave, I will finish what I started."
"Go and do so," the Dark Specter says, "take a platoon of Spectrons with you."
"Yes, my lord," Divorx says before standing up and leaving.
"Divorx, if you fail again, do not bother returning," Dark Specter tells the fading figure of Divrorx.
Divorx appears in downtown Jackson with 10 Spectrons. Spectrons were the new minions of the Dark Specter. They were like Quantrons, but they had black shield armor and they generally carries either a sword, a spear, an axe, or a halberd instead of the weapon normally carried by Quantrons. Their strength was slightly more than that of a Quantron, but they were not smarter.
"Attack, Spectrons, and destroy everything in sight!" Divorx commands.
Back on Atlantis, one of Connerly's spells flare up in front of everyone in the training hall.
"What's going on?" Alex asks.
"Dark Specter is attacking Earth," Connerly explains. He makes a few gestures with his hands. A rectangle appears in front of them, a picture forming within it.
"That's downtown Jackson!" Jesse says angrily the moment he sees something he recognizes.
"Divorx has returned to finish the job he started last week," the Elder says.
"Until he is destroyed, he will continue to attack your home," Eleanor says, "but no doubt he will die after this fight anyway. It is likely that the Dark Specter told him to get the job done this time or not to return at all. He will let loose everything within his power in this fight. Be careful Jesse."
"Right," Jess says, nodding. He pulls out the Silver Morpher and presses the buttons in the proper sequence.
"It's Morphin time!" Jesse calls out, "Silver Power of Atlantis!"
He disappears in a flash of silver light.
Jesse appears in his Silver Atlantean Ranger outfit in downtown Jackson.
"Divorx!" he calls out, "this has got to end!"
"I agree, Silver Ranger," Divorx says, grinning wickedly, "but, alas, it is your end, not mine, that will appear today." With that, he hurls an energy bolt at Jesse, who jumps out of the way.
"Spectrons, attack!" Divorx commands. The Spectrons run at Jesse, weapons drawn.
"Silver Staff!" Jesse calls out, extending his hand for his weapon. He immediately transforms it into its sword mode and meets the Spectrons face to face.
Blocking one Spectrons attack with his Silver Saber, he back kicks another as it tries to get the jump on him from behind. He breaks the deadlock with that one Spectron and slashes it across the chest. He back flips, slashing another Spectron on its torso as he lands. He blocks another Spectrons axe, pulling the weapon in closer and kneeing the Spectron in the gut, followed by driving its head into the ground with a wrestling move.
Two Spectrons try a pincer attack on Jesse from the sides, but he simply jumps into the, performs the splits, and kicks both of them in the chest. As he lands, he blasts an oncoming Spectron with his sword.
A few minutes later and the Spectrons have retreated, leaving Jesse to deal with Divorx alone.
"So, human, we meet again on the field of battle," Divorx says, lowering his spear so that it is level with his waist, blade aimed at Jesse, "this time, you will not walk away."
"No, it is you who will not walk away," Jesse says as he crouches into a fighting stance.
Yelling, Divorx charges Jesse. Jesse blocks the stab of Divorx's spear with his sword, pushing it aside. Unfortunately, in doing so he enabled Divorx to land a kick to his chest. The kick sends Jesse flying into the wall of a building. Biting back the pain, Jesse struggles to his feet. But Divorx was not about to let the Silver Ranger have a chance to regroup. He charges in, jabbing his spear down, aiming for Jesse's heart.
Jesse quickly teleports out of the way. He was glad now that Jacolby had insisted on him practicing to incorporating the teleportation system into his fighting style. He appears in the air, slashing down at Divorx's back with his blade charged with energy.
The slash drives deep into Divorx, who screams in pain. He stumbles away, turning around to face his opponent.
"You have improved since our last encounter," Divorx chuckles, "if I hadn't had to heal from that attack that you hit me with when we last met, you would be sorely pressed to win this time around."
"Yeah, but that's the past," Jesse says, grinning beneath his helmet, "we are fighting in the here and now."
"Tell me, young human, where does your Power come from?" Divorx asks, "I would like to know what kind of Ranger I am about to destroy."
"I am a Power Ranger of Atlantis," Jesse replies simply.
Back at the Dark Specter's ship, the Dark Specter roars while Darkonda watches in amusement.
"What is it, mighty monarch of all Evil?" Darkonda asks.
"That is a Power Ranger of Atlantis!" Dark Specter says, not actually answering Darkonda, "but I destroyed Atlantis thousands of years ago. Where does he really get his Power?"
"You expect me to believe you are from Atlantis?" Divorx scoffs, "Atlantis fell twelve thousand years ago at the hands of the Dark Specter. Where do you really get your Power?"
"I tell the truth," Jesse says, crouching into a fighting position, "and you shall soon see that I am not lying."
"Maybe you just believe your Power comes from Atlantis," Divorx says smugly, "but you are not fighting at your fullest. Is it because there are so many civilians nearby? Or do you not want to risk your identity being discovered. I recall that being one of Zordon of Eltare's rules: never let anyone find out your identity. Well, if that is what is holding you back, then let us take this battle to someplace else. Say, an island far away from here? It will still be on this planet, of course. I want to destroy you, but I want a challenge and for you to know that even fighting at your best you couldn't defeat me."
"Then let's go," Jesse says, "see if you can follow my teleportation signal." With that, he teleports to an island that was one of the few remaining pieces of Atlantis in the Atlantic.
"Foolish human," Divorx snorts, but he follows moments later.
The two appear on a deserted island. There was little vegetation, but plenty of room for them to battle.
"So, are you ready now to die?" Divorx asks as he gets into a fighting stance.
"Are you?" Jesse asks, crouching down, ready to pounce and strike.
"As they say in a TV show here on this planet, it is a good day to die," Divorx says before charging.
Jesse leaps over Divorx, slashing at his back as he lands, but Divorx's momentum carries him out of the attacks range. Divorx pivots and fires an energy bolt from his spear. The bolt hits Jesse in the chest, throwing him off balance and to the ground.
Jesse gets up as fast as he can, but not fast enough. Before he can get prepared to defend himself, Divorx swings his spear and cuts Jesse in the cut. The blade goes through the armor and cuts into Jesse's abdomen. The force of the attack knocks Jesse into the air. Divorx quickly spins the spear around and brings it down on Jesse while he is in midair. The force of the strike cuts even deeper into the Ranger armor and dislocates Jesse's left shoulder.
Jesse quickly gets to his feet and prepares to continue the fight.
"You honestly don't know what your doing, do you?" Divorx asks, "your power was able to carry you through the fights with the Spectrons, but against an experienced warrior such as myself you are nothing."
"Never underestimate a human, you dork," Jesse replies. He changes his Silver Saber into the Silver Staff and aims at Divorx. A beam of silver energy fires at Divorx, hitting him in the chest and doing moderate damage.
Divorx quickly counters by firing a massive energy blast from his spear. It hits the ground just in front of Jesse. The explosion knocks Jesse into the air. Divorx leaps into the air, ready to ram his spear into Jesse. Jesse immediately changes the Silver Staff into the Silver Saber. He pivots midair and jams the Silver Saber right into Divorx's abdomen.
The two hit the ground, Divorx landing on top of Jesse. The force of the impact sends the Silver Saber through Divorx's gut and through the other side.
They lay there for a minute or two until Jesse finally shoves Divorx off of him and pulls his Silver Saber out of Divorx. Jesse painstakingly gets to his feet, holding his side where Divorx cut through his armor.
"This guy was tough," he mutters, "I hope all of them aren't this strong." He turns to walk away a respectable distance from the corpse to teleport to Atlantis.
"You haven't won yet, Silver Ranger," Divorx says from behind.
Shocked, Jesse turns around to see Divorx standing, his hand on his gut where the Silver Saber had just been.
"You're good, Silver Ranger," Divorx says, "or did you just get lucky? No matter, you still won't win." He begins laughing. But as he laughs, he begins to grow in size. He continues to grow until he is the size of the Shogun Megazord.
"Dear God," Jesse gasps, "how can I beat that?"
His communicator beeps.
"What is it? I'm facing a ten story tall monster at the moment. I'm trying to decide whether I want to be stepped on or eaten." The Elder's voice comes from the communicator.
"Jesse, you do have a Zord."
"A what?"
"A Zord," the Elder answers, "a giant battle machine that the other Power Rangers have used in the past. Use the Silver Staff to summon the Silver Dragon, the Zord of Atlantis."
"Gotcha," Jesse says as he turns the Silver Saber into the Silver Staff.
"I call upon the Silver Dragon, the Silver Zord of Atlantis!" Jesse calls out. A small silver spark shoots from the Staff. It stops midair, even with Divorx's waist. It begins to grow and take shape. It finally takes the shape of a Dragon.
The Silver Dragon looked fierce. It looked a lot like Serpentera, only its head was more like the Red Dragon Thunderzord. Its color was mostly silver, though it has red, gold, and green highlights in a very beautiful pattern, mostly around its upper torso. But unlike Serpentera and the Thunderzords, it looked smooth and uniform, like the Wild Zords of the Wild Force Rangers.
"Incredible," Jesse murmurs.
"Jesse, leap into the cockpit so you can control it. It has a telepathic relay system. Whatever you do to fight is what it will do."
"Thanks Elder," Jesse says, then leaps into the cockpit of the Silver Dragon Zord.
"Zord of Atlantis, the Silver Dragon is ready for battle," Jesse says as he puts the Silver Staff in a slot before him. The cockpit was remarkably similar to that of the White Tigerzord that the White Morphin Ranger piloted.
"Fire!" Jesse calls out. The Silver Dragon Zord opens its mouth and a silver energy blast spews from it. Divorx blocks it with his spear.
"You'll have to do better than that," Divorx chortles as he launches lightning bolts at the Silver Dragon Zord. Jesse takes to the air and begins swooping down, firing his lasers from the mouth of the Zord.
Divorx deflects the laser shots with his spear, knocking them away. He fires stream after stream of lightning-like energy at the Zord, but Jesse dodges.
"Wow, this is intense!" Jesse whoops as he feels every sensation that the Zord feels. He then notices a set of commands. He enters them.
"Silver Dragon Zord, Warrior mode conversion begin," a mechanical voice says, similar to that of the original Megazord's mode change voice.
The legs extend slightly and begin to change as if a fluid. The arms extend as well and the draconic claws split and separate to reveal human- like hands. The tail splits into four sections and snakes around the legs and arms, then spread out to form a sort of armor. The neck splits and lowers, covering part of the upper torso. The draconic head splits down the middle and sets about forming a humanoid head quite similar to that of the Red Dragon Thunderzord's Warrior mode. The head then lowers and settles itself properly. The wings folds, split, and somewhat retract and form a cape, the talon of each wing focusing just in front of the face, locked together. A the remains of the tail fold and strap across the back, revealing a sword and scabbord.
"Silver Dragon Zord Warrior mode Zord transformation complete," the mechanical voice says, "pilot conversion beginning."
"What the?" Jesse yelps before a silvery substance covers him. It eventually molds to cover Jesse, making him now look like a human sized version of his Zord's Warrior mode.
"Wow, this is incredible!" Jesse cries out, jumping into the air with a fist raised. The Zord mimics his movements.
"What the?" Jesse wonders. He experiments. He leaps into the air and does a back flip. The Zord mimics his movements.
"Cool! It mimics me!" He summons the Silver Saber. The Zord draws the sword that is strapped across its back.
Holding the sword in his right hand, Jesse extends his left hand and motions for Divorx to attack. Divorx obliges. Sensing something now different about how the Zord is acting, Divorx goes for its legs. Jesse flips out of the way, slashing Divorx in the shoulder.
Divorx fires an energy blast from his spear. The blast hits the Silver Dragon Zord in the chest, sending sparks flying.
Jesse charges Divorx, slashing at the spear wielder's chest followed by a punch. Divorx blocks both attacks with a twirl of his spear and counters by slashing upwards from the ground with the blade of his spear. The force of the strike sends the Silver Dragon Zord Warrior Mode into the air.
Jesse quickly begins the conversion and transforms the Zord back into its creature mode. Flying high into the sky, Jesse prepared for a major counter- offensive.
"Take this freak," he mutters as he pilots the Silver Dragon Zord into a dive. Just before hitting Divorx, he switches to Warrior Mode and hits Divorx feet first in the head. The force of the blow knocks Divorx for a loop
Divorx hits the ground and rolls. He picks himself back up and prepares to attack. Unfortunately, Jesse was now relentless in his attack just as Divorx had been in his. The Silver Dragon Zord Warrior Mode slashed at Divorx cutting him in his right arm, shredding some of his armor and muscle. Divorx howls in pain as the blade cuts him. He backs off, holding his injury with his left hand, barely gripping his spear in his right.
"Don't think you've won," Divorx snarls, "I'll be back." The light of teleportation begins to surround him.
"Oh no you don't," Jesse mutters angrily, "you are not gonna harass me again." He presses a button and the Silver Dragon Sword begins to glow with silver energy.
Carving a circle into the air, Jesse then slashes through it three times: once left diagonal, followed by a spin and a horizontal slash, and finally a right diagonal slash. The three slashes leave a mark in the air at the start of the circle cut in the air and cross and one point. Jesse jabs the Silver Dragon Sword through the point where the slashes meet and raises the blade into the air. The newly made disc of energy moves along with it, as if it was a solid object and was being moved due to the sword in its center. Jesse begins to rotate the sword, first slowly, then faster and faster until the blade of the sword was moving so fast it was a blur. The energy from the disc seeps into the blade. Finally, the Silver dragon Zord makes one final diagonal slash at Divorx and the energy is sent flying at his opponent in a sharp wave of edged energy.
The energy slices through Divorx effortlessly. Beneath his helmet, his eyes widen in surprise. He falls to one knee, gasping in pain.
"Good work, Silver Ranger," he says through the haze of pain and the darkness that was beginning to overwhelm him, "but do not think you have won the war. I am still just a flunky. Dark Specter has many warriors far more powerful and more skilled than me. You sheer power has gotten you through this battle, but how long until inexperience and the sheer numbers of your opponents overwhelms you? You will lose, mark my words. You will lose, and on that day your planet is doomed!" Laughing, he falls forward and disintegrates moments after he hits the ground.
Panting at the exertion of the battle, Jesse unclasps the bands on his helmet and removes it. He looks at the scorched mark on the earth that marked where Divorx had fallen. It had been a tough battle, but he had made it. His first real victory. His first defeat of the enemy. His first kill. The realization of the death hits Jesse like a ton of bricks until he realizes that Divorx would have killed or enslaved everyone on Earth if he hadn't been stopped. Sighing in resignation at what he now knows to be an immense battle in the future, Jesse teleports himself and his Zord back to Atlantis.
Sitting on his throne, the Dark Specter witnesses Divorx's destruction.
"So it is true," he mumbles, "the powers of Atlantis are still active and a threat. But there is only one right now. It is possible that the Morphers are scattered and unable to be located. But even one human powered by an Atlantean Morpher is dangerous. Divorx was a good soldier, but he underestimated his opponent. No matter. He was expendable anyway."
The window of magic through which he was watching the battle shows the Silver Atlantean Ranger taking off his helmet. Dark Specter's eyes glow dangerously molten orange at the sight he sees. Once again, a human teenager was in his path of dominance! First, it was Zordon of Eltare's Mighty Morphin Power Rangers that so hideously defeated Rita Repulsa and Lord Zedd time and time again. Next it was the Zeo Rangers, fueled by the Zeo Crystal who held off the Machine Empire and Rita and Zedd at times. Next it was the Turbo Rangers who held off the Space Pirate Divatox. Finally, it was the Astro Rangers. Dark Specter knew that, while they were not as able as many of the other species throughout the galaxy, humans had a far more unbendable will. Even Rita, one of the most powerful sorceresses of all could not control a single human even with the aid of the Sword of Darkness. And even Zedd, possibly the mightiest practitioner of magic in all of the universe, could not turn a mere handful of them into his minions. And even the Wizard of Deception, whose power was legendary, could not control a simple clone of a human. No, these humans were more trouble than they were worth. Even Scorpius, a being whom even the Dark Specter feared at times, was not able to stand up against a band of six humans. Granted, they wielded the mighty Quasar Sabers, but they were still humans. Many a mighty evil had fallen throughout the universe because they had underestimated these humans. Well, the Dark Specter would not underestimate them. Like the Machine Empire, he would fight a war of attrition. But unlike the Machine Empire, he would attack the whole planet. He didn't care to show up Rita and Zedd. If he attacked Angel Grove, then the former Rangers would somehow regain some form of their powers. One of them still held one of the Turbo Keys. Another carried the Dragon Power Coin. And it was still possible for them to regain the Zeo Crystal and be a major hindrance in his plans. And if one Turbo Key could be found, then the other four could be found and used again as well. No, attacking Angel Grove was simply out of the question. He briefly considered attacking Leewood and destroying the Masked Rider, but decided against it. Dex of Edenoi would be returning home before long to combat his uncle on his home planet. Once that happened, he would attack Leewood. If he attacked the Masked Rider, he would call for help. Either in the form of the Masked Rider Warriors or the Power Rangers, he could summon help. No, attacking a place that had a resident hero would not do.
Dark Specter knew that the town they had already attacked had to be the home of the Silver Atlantean Ranger. And since he now knew that it was a normal teenage human boy, he could make plans to destroy him.
"Darkonda!" the Dark Specter roars. Darkonda hurries into the throne room and bows before his master.
"Contact Voricifa," Dark Specter commands.
"Voricifa, my liege?" Darkonda asks.
"Yes," Dark Specter says, "tell her that I have a job that only she can do."
"Yes, mighty Dark Specter," Darkonda says before leaving.
As he walks out of the throne room, Darkonda's mind is ablaze in thought.
'Voricifa?' Darkonda thinks to himself, 'the Dark Specter hardly ever calls upon her talents. She can turn any mans hearts to her will and make them do anything. I remember one time she had a husband who dearly loved his family slaughter them by tearing them apart piece by piece and eating them. It was wonderfully evil. Normally the Dark Specter prefers to crush his opponents in an overwhelming attack. This Silver Atlantean Ranger must really pose a threat to the Dark Specter's plans if he is planning on using Voricifa to destroy him.'
Jesse arrives at Atlantis in his Silver Ranger outfit, but he is holding his helmet in the crook of his arm.
"Jesse, man, that was awesome," Alex says, "you destroyed the monster."
"I killed him," Jesse corrects his friend, his voice glum.
"Man, whats wrong?" Alex asks.
"I just KILLED somebody Alex," Jesse yells, "I ended his life. He wasn't a monster, he was an actual living and breathing sentient being. He may have been twisted by evil, but he was alive."
"Yes, he was alive, but you slew him in the defense of others," the Elder says, "and you will no doubt have to do so many more times. However, many of the creatures Dark Specter sends down will be true monsters and not actually living beings."
"There is nothing to be ashamed of in killing someone in the defense of those who cannot defend themselves," Jacolby adds, "you are the only real defense that this planet has. The Time Force Rangers have captured Ransik and gone back to the future, leaving only the Red Ranger and the Quantum Ranger. The Wild Force Rangers have only just found their Red Ranger. They are no match for the Dark Specter, and probably never will be. We never paid much attention to Animaria so we do not know how much power they can achieve. The Red Time Force Ranger has the power of the legendary Battle Fire, but that couldn't even enable him to equal Ransik, much less one of Dark Specter's minions. The Galaxy Rangers are on Mirinoi and would barely be able to handle the Dark Specter for an extended period of time. Four of the Astro Rangers are here on Earth, but they do not have their Morphers. The other two are out among the stars."
"Elder, Divorx said that the Dark Specter had many minions far more powerful than he was," Jesse says, "is this true?"
"Unfortunately, yes," the Elder says, "you wouldn't even last five minutes alone against the Dark Specter at your current level. Once you gain more experience, you would be able to last against the Dark Specter alone for a little while, but unless we can locate the other Morphers and people worthy to wield their power then you will lose."
"I just hope I can last through the next battle," Jesse mutters, "any idea when the Dark Specter will attack again?"
"We do not know when or where he will attack," Connerly replies, "he will not limit his attacks to one city or town like the previous people to attack Earth. They all wanted to show up Rita Repulsa by taking over the town that she constantly attacked. But the Dark Specter won't care about this. He will attack anywhere on the Earth. He could attack Los Angeles one day and Hong Kong the next and Paris the day after that. The other teams of Power Rangers, even though they were technically protecting the world, they only really defended their home city. Dark Specter was unlucky enough to attack yours first and cause the Silver Morpher to choose its wielder. If he hadn't, then the Earth wouldn't have had a chance. You may even get to work with the other teams of Power Rangers since Dark Specter will probably take out any possible reinforcements you could get. The Time Force Rangers are not magical at all except for the power of the Battle Fire. Same goes for the Lightspeed Rangers. Not a single one of them has any magical power. But they could give you backup and the Dark Specter won't like that. Luckily we can teleport you to any location on Earth, and even as far as the moon. When morphed, you can survive just about anywhere as long as the heat isn't too intense or the gravity isn't more than you can handle."
"So I gotta protect the entire planet?" Jesse asks.
"And then some," Eleanor replies, "we were once allies of Eltare and the rest of those who stand against evil. We were a great threat with the Atlantean Warriors so the Dark Specter took us out first, even if it did cause him to retreat for nearly twelve thousand years. Now, if we receive a distress call from someone else and it involves Dark Specter, then it is your responsibility. Fighting the Dark Specter's elite army is something only the Atlantean Rangers can do."
"So I might be going to other planets?" Jesse asks, apprehensive.
"Other planets?" Connerly says with a bark of laughter, "you'll likely be going to other galaxies! The whole universe is your responsibility, though you will rarely have to take up that level of responsibility."
"I have a feeling I'm gonna hate this," Jesse mutters.
"Do you wish to hand over your Morpher?" the Elder asks, "it is possible that we can find another suitable candidate that will be more willing to take the job."
Jesse sighs. "Its not that. Its just that I don't like having a lot of responsibility. Lucky for me I don't have much of a social life for this to ruin."
Alex grins. "Maybe being a Ranger will mature you enough for you to be able to handle life on your own when the Dark Specter is defeated." Jesse snorts in disbelief.
"Well, we are all very proud of you Jesse," Jacolby says, "you are the Earth's first line of defense against the Dark Specter, though you may as well be the only line of defense seeing as how none of the other heroes of Earth have the power to fight the Dark specter's minions. They would barely hold their own against the Spectrons, and those are only his lowest level of foot soldiers. He has many more, but we are lucky that he is too arrogant to use them."
"Well, Alex and I gotta go," Jesse says, "its almost time for dinner and I'm starving."
"Take care, you two," Jacolby says, "stop by and train whenever possible, even if you can't do it at the same time."
Jesse and Alex thank the Atlanteans and teleport home. Jesse watches the news of the battle between the Silver Atlantean Ranger and Divorx and the Spectrons. He winces as they catch every moment of the fight with the Spectrons. He knew he was gonna have to learn or he would get clobbered. If only they could find even just one more Morpher.
Sighing, Jesse cleans up and eats dinner which consisted of hamburgers and sausage. He had had a long day and he needed to relax.