Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers. If I did, do you honestly think I'd be here? No. I'd be in California's beautiful San Fernando Valley drinking something out of those huge coconuts...

RESTLESS WARRIORS

By Etcetera Kit

Chapter Six: Initial Plans

Maya suppressed a sigh and looked around the faces sitting with her in Ninja Ops. The other teachers had gone home with the exception of Dustin and Cam and his father. The latter two lived at the school, so it was no surprise they were around and about. Before leaving earlier that evening, Hunter Bradley had promised them the support and manpower of the Thunder Ninja Academy if they needed or wanted it. She had thanked him. It was helpful to know that they had a veritable army of powerful ninjas willing to help them.

The others sitting around the table obviously did not share that positive sentiment. With the arrival of Taylor, all the confidence and comfortable familiarity Dustin had gained with herself, Kelsey and Kira had gone out the window. Maya had felt good about the group and the dynamic until Taylor showed up. It would take some serious effort of the mind and heart to get used to her and not rise to any of her bait. Maya was not worried about being on the receiving end of Taylor's tongue—she was more worried about the others being in that position. Kira would lash back out at her. Kelsey's self-confidence would slowly chip away under repeated attacks. Dustin would crack after one or two encounters like that.

But it would work. It had to work. The five of them were chosen for this task and they had to find a way to get along. It would be okay.

Kelsey broke the silence that reigned over the room. "I think we should set up camp or whatever in Mariner Bay. The ruins to the old temple are there, plus there're probably underground tunnels that we hadn't explored."

"It's a starting point," Kira agreed. Maya smiled at the pair of them. Kelsey and Kira sat along one side of the low table and were already becoming fast friends. There's no word yet for old friends who just met. It was true. Friendship was not something to be forced. It happened spontaneously and sometimes surprised individuals with its choices. Maya had always believed that one had no control over who became one's friends. Fate had a funny of way putting just the right people into one's life.

"Set up camp?" Taylor asked skeptically.

"Yes," Kelsey replied sounding slightly defensive. "There's a park with campgrounds not too far from the site. Within walking distance in fact. It'd be more convenient than cramming everyone in my apartment and commuting every morning."

"I think it's a good idea," Kira added. "Besides, if those demons start something, we'll be right there to deal with it."

Maya smiled. "Then it's settled. We can leave for Mariner Bay in the morning."

"Not so fast," Taylor interrupted the momentarily good mood. "We all need to tie up loose ends for work and school," she added the latter with a pointed glance to Kira and Dustin. Kira rolled her eyes and Dustin looked guilty.

"How about this," Kira said quickly and impatiently. Maya imagined some of the impatience was coming from her irritation with Taylor. "We stay here tonight and everyone can go their separate ways in the morning, pack, get camping gear together, give the boss an excuse and meet at Kelsey's apartment in Mariner Bay by noon."

"Good idea," Kelsey commented. "We need to see what everyone has in the way of camping gear, in case we need to get something."

"I've got some sleeping bags," Kira offered.

"That's about all I've got," Dustin added in a soft and slightly hoarse voice. Maya looked at him. It was the first time he had spoken since they left the bluff. She glanced at him. His soft brown eyes were distant and confused. He was still trying to work out what Trini had told him—that much was obvious. There were probably things in his life that he had never done or thought about just because they hadn't seemed important.

Maya shrugged, just to indicate that all she had was in her knapsack. Taylor shook her head. "All my stuff like that is back in Turtle Cove."

Kelsey grinned. "Well, you guys are lucky. I've got a ton of camping gear—portable grill, dishes, a six-man tent and a two-man tent, sleeping bags, pads that go under the sleeping bags… all we'd need to do is get food and supplies."

"Not bad," Kira said with an appraising look.

"Am I interrupting?"

Five heads turned to the staircase that led into Ninja Ops. Kanoi Wantanabe was descending the staircase. Dustin snapped to attention from when he had previously looked rather dazed.

"Oh no, Sensei," Dustin said quickly. "We were just talking about camping gear."

"Camping gear?" Kanoi looked amused. "I suppose I should not question such things." He paused with a fond smile for them. Maya liked this man. He had an inner light that shone to all who talked to him. He was wise and serene and seemed like the type who would stop anything to listen to one of his students.

"What's up?" Kira asked him as he entered the room.

"I know that Hunter has offered you the continued support of the Thunder Ninja Academy. Just know that Wind Ninja Academy will do the same. If you need anything at all, then let us know."

"What sort of stuff?" Taylor asked. Maya caught Kira roll her eyes in her peripheral vision and stifled a laugh. Taylor was treating this more like a military operation than a venture into the supernatural.

Kanoi gave her a calm and steady stare. It would have unnerved a lesser person. "Manpower, protection from these demons, food, shelter… all that we have is at your disposal."

That seemed to silence Taylor. Maya grinned and stood up. "We will not forget your kindness," she told Kanoi, before embracing him.

"You five are strong," Kanoi said. "Stronger than any of you know. Working as one, you will defeat this new evil. I know you will."

"How?" Dustin asked. He sounded desperate. "How do you know this?"

Kanoi smiled and walked over to his former student. "Dustin, you are a child of the earth, true to your heart. You, of all people, should know that teamwork prevails above all." He placed his hand on Dustin's head and closed his eyes for a moment, before heading back towards the stairs. He turned to them. "Trust your hearts," he said, before disappearing the way he had come from.

Maya looked to the others and, for the first time, realized how exhausted they must be. They, unlike her, had not had the luxury of a nap that morning. "I think we should turn in," she said softly. "We all need the sleep."

Everyone agreed and Dustin disappeared to find Cam. This quest was certainly going to be interesting if nothing else.


Kira sighed and rolled over, trying to find a comfortable place to sleep. It was fruitless. Sleep was just not coming. Cam had brought pallets and blankets down to Ninja Ops so they could crash on the floor. Some of them obviously found that easier to do than others. She glanced in the dim light of emergency lights on electrical things to Dustin who was on the other side of the room from them. It was a gamble whether he had done that on purpose or subconsciously. He obviously felt the strain of being surrounded by women. Kira was surprised he wasn't basking in the undivided female attention, but realized he was overwhelmed right now. In a day or two, he would be back to being the laughing, chattering class clown. Poor guy. He was lying on his back, sprawled over his pallet and his blankets tangled around him. His mouth was open and he was snoring softly. Some people thought snoring was annoying, but what Dustin was doing was more cute than annoying. Not that she would ever call him 'cute' to his face. It might impugn on his masculinity.

She turned to her other side. Kelsey was asleep, curled into a ball underneath her blankets. Taylor was asleep as well, although it didn't surprise Kira. She was in the military and had probably had to sleep in places less friendly than this. Maya was nowhere to be found—probably out on the roof talking to the birds or something.

This group had to be the oddest ever assembled. She wanted to know what those ancient ninjas had been thinking—the five of them could work together? Well, four out of the five of them got along all right. Dustin was easygoing and easy to get along with. The only thing about him was that his dingbat disposition tended to get annoying after long periods of time. Kelsey was also easy to get along with, but where Dustin tended to lack maturity and intelligence, she didn't. She seemed laidback, but also hardworking. And from the way she talked about her friends in Mariner Bay, she was extremely loyal and had a big heart. Maya was the distant one, kind of mysterious and frightening, but, at the same time, friendly and down to earth, generous to a fault. She was obviously much more in tune with nature than they were.

And then there was Taylor. She was stubborn, more so than the rest of them, had an acid tongue and did not suffer fools. That didn't bode well for Dustin, who tended to think without speaking and sometimes sounded much stupider than he was, or for Maya, an aimless dreamer. Well, her parents always taught her to see good aspects of people too. It made working with them easier. So what was good about Taylor? She was a born leader, organized and thought things through. Those were things the others needed. She would provide direction and keep them focused. However, at the same time, she was a complete shrew, prude, bitch… Kira did not have enough nasty names to describe her.

But, on the bright side, at least she wasn't Trent. That would have been even more awkward. In a way, she was glad she didn't know any of these people really well. It made being forced into close quarters a little less awkward. Nobody had any dirt on anyone else. It wasn't going to turn into 'are you going to wash the dishes?' with the reply being 'well, you had crabs in the sixth grade.'

Dustin suddenly jerked awake, sitting up and looking around disoriented. Kira pushed herself into a sitting position and crept over to the table. "Can't sleep?" she whispered to him as he settled down and realized where he was.

He let out a long breath, ran a hand through his now wildly curling hair, rubbed his eyes and crawled out of his tangle of blankets to the table. "Can't stay asleep," he whispered back and then tried to clear his throat quietly. "I can't stop thinking about what Trini told me," he confessed.

Kira nodded. Live noble dreams now and always. Hers was certainly cryptic enough. His had something to do with finding love. "I know what you mean. I don't get mine."

"Me either," he replied, shaking his head. "It just bothers me that she kept saying 'blue' and 'sapphire' and that stuff."

"What do you think it means?"

"I think it has to do with Tori." He paused. "Either that or I'm in love with Blake and don't realize it yet."

"I think it's safe to say that you're not in love with Blake."

"I hope so, man." He nodded to her. "But what about yours? Any ideas?"

"I'm not sure. Everything I think of keeps spiraling back to that scholarship to NYU that I didn't take."

"You had a scholarship to NYU?" Dustin looked both impressed and jealous. "I'd never have gotten a scholarship to a place like that!"

"Yeah," Kira said. "Had being the key word. Trent wanted me to stay in Reefside so that we'd be close, instead of going to NYU. I stupidly listened to him and here I am—at community college, playing music in a cybercafé and boyfriend-less."

"Trent's your ex?" She nodded. Dustin shook his head. "I never really liked him when we met you guys. I mean he just wasn't the kind of person I'd hang out with."

"He had a lot of problems," Kira agreed. "Overprotective parent, the white gem turning him evil at first, hiding his dad and his knowledge of Mesogog's fortress from us… he never had it easy. Transferring art schools and leaving the state was his way of getting a clean slate." She paused. "Unfortunately, it meant getting rid of me too."

"That sucks."

Kira had never heard anyone put it so succinctly before. "What about you?" she asked, feeling the need to get the spotlight off of her. "You have a girlfriend?"

"Used to," Dustin replied. "You remember Marah?"

How could she forget Marah? She was the insane brunette who ran around with her sister, annoying Cam and ultimately saving the day. It was impossible to forget Marah or Kapri once one met them. "Yeah," she said. "How could I forget Marah?"

"We were going out for a while," he said softly. "Then she and Kapri were sorted into their elements. I was there when they went to the bluff as one of the deciding factors. Two minutes in I knew she was going to be air. She wanted to fly, rise above her old life."

"How was that going to break you two up?"

Dustin rolled his eyes. "We didn't see as much of each other. Marah is the type that has to have her boyfriend around twenty-four seven just to make sure he still cares about her." He shrugged. "She's insecure. Once I knew she wasn't going to be earth, I knew it was over. She broke it off though."

"Sounds like she wasn't that great a catch anyways."

"Hey," Dustin protested. "I don't often have girls around who want to date me. Most of them just go, 'Oh Dustin, I like you as a friend.' I have to take my chances when I can." His girl imitation was classic. Kira snickered.

"You sure sound like a girl. Sure you're not in love with Blake?"

Dustin glowered at her. "I'm not gay. And if I was gay, Blake would so not be my type." Kira laughed. He gave her an appraising look. "So the Trent-man is gone… anyone else special in your life?"

She snorted. "Hardly. Unless you call Conner and Ethan becoming overprotective watchdogs someone special."

"Someones," Dustin corrected.

"I don't think that's a word."

"Could you two please shut-up!"

They both turned. Dustin made a face. "I think that was Miss Sunshine," he hissed sarcastically. "Night, Kira," he whispered before crawling back to his pallet that was away from all the girls.

"Night," she hissed back before going to her own pile of bedding and crawling in. She lay on her back and stared at the ceiling, sleep still not coming.

What Trini had told her made sense all of a sudden. She had let her dreams fall and die until she was living a life she had imagined only in nightmares. She had wanted to be a singer and NYU was that perfect opportunity to break into the music business. There were studios and singers and agents all over the place and they watched the major music schools. She should have ignored Trent when he asked her to stay, should have realized that he was being selfish and should have listened to her parents and Doctor O when they told her she was making a huge mistake staying in Reefside.

Well, there was something to be done about that. Trent was gone and, with him, everything she had given up came back. Conner, Ethan, Hayley, Doctor O… all of them wanted her to go to New York. As soon as this was over, she was calling that school and asking them about that scholarship. Did they still want her there? If not, there were other music schools, other options. She could do this. No, she was going to do this and nothing was going to stop her this time.

She was the unicorn—a creature that was pure and unspoiled by the world. Unicorns seemed to represent the very mystery and beauty of fantasy and dreams. She would become that unicorn and take on the world. Her music expressed who she was and nothing could take that away. This made sense.

Snuggling into her blankets, she smiled to herself. Even Miss Grumpy Bear was not going to spoil her good mood. She couldn't wait to tell Conner and Ethan about this, but especially Conner because she knew he would be genuinely happy for her. That was odd. When had she started thinking about Conner above others? She didn't know and really didn't want to dwell on it.

As her mind gently drifted towards sleep, she realized that she had seen the normal Dustin when they were talking. It was good to know he was going to be ultimately okay.


Lucivar stared out the cathedral-style windows in the Dark Council's meeting room. He had built those several centuries ago when they were popular with the humans. To him, they seemed dark and gothic, mysterious and powerful. They complimented the Dark Council and what it stood for beautifully. The land outside was shrouded in eternal twilight—the sky streaked with dark shades of indigo and violet. It was how they designed the land eons ago. It was what the demons and dark spirits had wanted. That eternal twilight let the others know what realm this was and who they were about the meet—beings of the darkest nature.

He had grown soft over the centuries. Five hundred years ago, he would have killed humans, decimated demons and vaporized spirits for nothing more that sport. Now, after everything that had happened, he was content to fade into that twilight, governing only the ones who wanted his leadership. He recalled the fairy enslavement. Whoever had thought he would have no problem with that was a fool. He loved destruction, death, chaos… but not enslavement. He had fought to be free and would fight for others to be free, no matter how different from himself they were.

Falcon stood at the door. He sighed, knowing that he required an answer. "My Lord," Falcon said tentatively as a question.

He glanced to his steward. The demon was tall, muscular and blonde. He had pale blue eyes that glittered sharply like ice. Unlike spirits, demons had never known a mortal life. They could walk in the mortal realm for a time, until banished by humans or summoned back by their lord. However, if Falcon had ever been mortal, Lucivar would have placed his origins from Sweden or Norway.

"Bring them in," he ordered.

The Magna Defender was here in Zordon's stead, along with him came Iris, Boric's sister and second-in-command to the fairies. He had nothing to fear from the Magna Defender. He was honest and chivalrous, much like the knights of old. He was fair and reasonable at all times. Iris tended to be slightly more hyper than Boric and it was hard to strike a bargain with her, no matter how much the bargain favored the fairies. It was also strange dealing with her since she had Boric were twins—identical. It was weird looking at Boric, suddenly female.

The doors opened and the pair was escorted in by Falcon and Christian. The latter was the opposite of Falcon in regards to hair and eyes. He had dark hair and eyes. The Magna Defender gave a short bow to show respect and honor for Lucivar's superior power. He was also in no-nonsense mode. Iris fluttered nervously near the door.

"Prince Lucivar," the Magna Defender started. "In our alliance, we had agreed to share information at all times. We are here to inform you that the fairies are sending a scout within the week to help the five."

"Why not send a message?" he asked, studying the dark horizon.

"Zordon felt it best to deliver these things in person. We do not know how many followers Vypra and Jareth have."

Lucivar sighed. "If you come across any more renegades, I will personally see to it that they no longer support those two fools."

The Magna Defender nodded, while Iris let out a squeak. Everyone knew what would happen if Lucivar got a hold of a renegade.

"Who is the scout?"

"Arval Parrot," the Magna Defender answered promptly. "In a human disguise."

The fairies were good at disguising themselves as humans, Lucivar would give them that much. He suppressed a smile, trying to imagine Arval in human form. He was also good at picking up trails no one else would see. Combined with the eternal sunshine optimism that the five were supposed to have, he would be a great boon to them.

"Very good," he replied. "You have my approval if that is what you are seeking."

The Magna Defender bowed again to signal his impending exit. Lucivar nodded at him as he left, practically dragging Iris with him.

He wanted this nightmare to be over.

To Be Continued...


Author's Note: The phrase, there's no word yet for old friends who just met, has been used before in this piece, but to give it formal credit now, it comes from the song I'm Going To Go Back There Someday from the Muppet Movie. I'd also like the know which couples that people view as the classic couples from each incarnation and how we can violate those pairings? I'm not particular about whether its m/m, f/f or m/f. I'm just curious to see people's views on this. If you feel the need to write an essay on it, please e-mail me! Also, be forewarned, for this story, things are not as they appear. With that-- reviewer responses! Yah!

fenestrae- Taylor and Dustin will certainly have some issues learning to get along... it's a funny dynamic! Thanks for reading and reviewing!

Funky In Fishnet- What is this Wild Force boxed set? I need information on how to get one! lol I'm glad you're liking the story-- and thanks for all your kind words! As to what appears to be a Tori/Dustin pairing, only time will tell. I find that with incarnations like Ninja Storm and Dino Thunder, it's hard deciding who the lone female should really end up with. I know there're classic pairings... but only time will tell. :)

Hagar- Something drastic, huh? Nah, I won't do anything drastic. I think it's interesting that you gave each of them a 'color' so to speak. I had not thought of that when writing that scene, but it makes sense. Now we just have to see if Taylor can play nicely with others for her role to work out. Thanks for your awesome comments!

Weesta- Thanks for your cool comments! I get the feeling that you're reading each chapter thoroughly and I appreciate that you're taking the time to do that. :) Thanks for your kind words! (And Dustin's not so much afraid of fire, as he is not too crazy about it.)