Mathais: Ninth Chapter! Woo hoo!
Justin: *jerks his thumb at Mathais* He's just happy his fic got this far.
Adriana: *nods*
Cassy: *yawns*
Lina: Mathais doesn't own Power Rangers, but these particular Elemental Powers do belong to him, just to note.
Mathais: Okay then, enjoy the fic. Any instances of stuff from shows or games belong to those particular legal owners. Just to note, there will be cameos from people from the other seasons, as seen in the last chapter. Maybe not in this one, but in later ones.
Adriana: Just a note. Anything in other languages will be in English with [text] signifying there's a translation. And text is words shared in a mental bond.
* * * * * * *
Dear Journal,
I'm sorry that I haven't written to you in a while. It's just that everything seems too much lately. With the Astros a constant danger to us, our memory beam recently found to be malfunctioning somehow, watching Adriana and her father after her identity was revealed, and with the Dark Elementalists, it's weighing down on us heavily. What's worse, I have been avoiding Adriana lately... I mean...
Justin grew frustrated as his buried his face in his pillow. He remembered what happened the day after Adriana had been knocked unconscious.
All the Elementalists sat in the room with Adriana, Justin holding her hand.
"I'm going out for some fresh air." Alex announced. Right before he swung out of the room, he turned to Justin. "I want an update about her condition and if she wakes up, call me."
"I'm taking his lead and the same applies to me." Lina stood up and followed Alex.
Cassy was the next to leave. "I'm going to get a drink."
Jace turned his head between the door and Adriana, biting his lip all the while.
"If you'd rather be with Cassy than us, I won't hold it against you Jace." Justin was completely sincere.
"All right then. But the moment she wakes up, you tell us, or we're going to tie you up to the pole again." Jace threatened.
Justin winced and frantically nodded. The last time Justin hadn't shared information, he'd been tied to a pole with rope impervious to his magic. He'd stayed up there for three hours before they finally let him down. Needless to say, he learned his lesson.
Jace made his exit as Justin sighed. He looked at Adriana's peaceful face, unmarred and beautiful to his eyes. His hand came up to her face and silently stroked her cheek. The skin was soft under his hand. Justin lost himself in all the old fantasies and stories about princesses waking up when a prince kissed them. He leaned forward and brushed his lips against Adriana's. Justin felt a shift and when he opened his eyes, he found Adriana's blue and silver ones looking back at him in shock.
Standing abruptly, Justin tapped his communicator. "Adriana's awake." He then rushed out of the room.
"Justin, wait!" Her cry went unheard as the chamber's door closed itself.
Removing his face from the wet pillow, Justin picked up his pencil and continued to write.
It's just... Never mind. Anyway, it'll take a few days, but the full moon is almost here. I still have to make the trip to the Power Chamber. I have to fix my relationship with Adriana. The Astros are going to give us grief and our parents are now in danger now that they know the Wind Ranger's identity. It's just so frustrating!!! I need to sort out my feelings.
~Justin
Justin hid his journal as his personal phone rang. "Hello?"
"Justin! You won't believe what I found!" Cassy's voice rang excitedly in his ears.
"What?" Justin looked at his digital clock. "Sorry if I'm rude, but it's 10:00 PM and we've got school in the morning."
"I found the perfect restraining spell! I know that a simple binding spell won't work, but I've found one that will definitely bind him enough so that the Astros cannot trace him!" Cassy continued to chatter, but Justin's voice stopped her.
"What kind of spell is it and will it hurt the one under its effects?"
Justin could hear Cassy shaking her head. "It's a stasis spell. It'll catch the target in a field in which they know nothing. That'll allow us enough time to take the Ranger to the Control Base and properly scan them."
"Yeah." Justin yawned. "Tell me tomorrow. I need to get some sleep."
"Okay!" Cassy hung up as Justin flung himself at his pillow. With one hand, he groped for the switch to his lamp and eventually reached it.
"She's under magic hyperness. Jace will be too. We're doomed..." Justin groaned before falling asleep.
* * * * * * *
Slowly, Justin opened his eyes to the alarm clock blaring its stupid annoying beeping tones. With a fist, he slammed the snooze button, making the top of the clock crack. "Ugh..." Justin grabbed his forehead and slowly made his way to the bathroom. Looking at himself, he sighed before undressing and heading into the shower. Feeling much better after the water lapped against his skin, Justin went through his usual morning routine, heading downstairs when done.
"I'll be out late again." Justin turned to his father.
Dean looked up from his paper. "But you've been doing that for three days."
Justin shrugged sadly. "I'm sorry, but something urgent came up in school."
Slowly nodding, Dean answered. "All right then. Just be careful. And stay away from the area in the outskirts of town where those mysterious marks appeared. I have a feeling it's Angel Grove all over again."
"Don't worry..." Justin replied with a sad smile on his face. "Where ever the monsters appear, heroes young and old will be there to stop them and protect the innocent." Under his breath, Justin whispered so he thought only he could hear. "And I'll protect you, dad, no matter what."
"Okay then... Have a good day." Dean remarked slowly as his son left. "What did he mean heroes young and old?" In an even softer voice, he whispered. "What does he mean that he'll protect me? He's been hiding something... I intend to find out."
Justin boarded the first bus that came along and found Jace, Alex, and, to his discomfort, Adriana.
"Hey Justin." Jace smiled brightly from where he sat next to Adriana. "You look like you could use a seat. Take mine." He stood up.
"No, you can keep your seat." Justin insisted.
Alex appeared behind Justin. "You should remember not to say no to my bro." He nearly pushed Justin into the seat.
"Geez, all right!" Justin sat, but he didn't say anything else.
"Justin?" Adriana asked, voice soft.
"Yes?" He replied, his voice just as soft.
"Do you want to talk about that time in the medical bay?"
"Not really."
"It's just that..." She was interrupted when Cassy boarded the bus and then sort of clung to Jace's waist. That earned him a lot of teasing on Alex's part.
"Yes Adriana?" Justin turned to the Wind Ranger.
"Never mind." Adriana blushed.
The former Blue Turbo Ranger turned away and lost himself in his thoughts.
* * * * * * *
"Sup?" It was lunchtime at school and Justin was sitting at the table his friends and fellow Rangers usually shared. He turned to see one of the friends he made here. Not exactly a Ranger, but one he could reminisce about Angel Grove with.
"Nothing much Fred." Justin smiled as the other boy plopped down next to him with a tray of food.
"Oh really?" Fred Kelman fiddled with his baseball cap that was attached to his waist during school. "I've learned enough about body language to see that you're sad. What is it? Problems with Adriana?" Justin was stunned momentarily as Fred let out a laugh. "It is, isn't it?"
"Quit it!" Justin protested, a blush coloring his cheeks.
"So it is..." Calming down, Fred leaned in. "What's the matter?"
Sighing to himself, Justin let out an edited version of what happened. "You see, me, Adriana, Lina, Alex, Jace, and Cassy were having a sleepover. Don't ask. I mean, I was watching Adriana. She looked so beautiful in her sleep." Justin sighed. "I acted on instinct and brushed my lips with her's. The next thing I know, she's staring at me in shock."
Fred took pity and wrapped his arm around Justin's shoulders. "Maybe you could explain things."
"I don't know. I've never really shown this emotion. I've shown happiness and adoration, but love was hard to show."
Fred nodded. "I guess I can understand what you're going through."
Whatever else he was going to say was interrupted by Jace coming up to them with a bright smile on his face. "Hi Justin! Hi Fred! What'cha up to? Aren't 'cha gonna eat? The lines are so long..." Jace stretched out the word long. "It's already been one-fourth of the period already!"
Both boys looked at the clock in surprise and found it to be true. They immediately attacked their food with gusto, while Jace was smirking in satisfaction as Alex, Lina, and Cassy came from behind him and had listened to the whole conversation.
"Oi!" Alex sighed as the four sat down. "The lines were way too long. I think I saw Adriana like fifteen people back!"
Lina agreed.
"So, did you guys hear about the latest news? They just found some weird markings on the outskirts of town. Burnt marks, explosions, blown dirt. And human sized dents too." Fred remarked. "Sounds like Angel Grove all over again, eh Justin?"
"Lets just hope we have some Power Rangers to protect us." Justin replied.
The rest of them nodded as they continued to eat with Adriana coming in not much later.
* * * * * * *
After school, all six Rangers met in the Young Hangout.
"So, what's this stasis spell Cassy?" Justin had taken charge and grabbed a private room in the Hangout. It cost some money, due to the soundproofing, but for the privacy of the Rangers, he'd do a lot. Adriana had cast a spell on the area to further stop eavesdropping.
"Here." Cassy opened her bag and pulled out some papers. "I've got the chant down, but I need help on the prelims. This spell is sort of a mixture of some Japanese power with Korean words. I don't understand this myself."
Justin took up the papers as the rest stared ahead, faces somewhat solemn. "We need the powers of Fire, Water, Rock, Metal, and Spirit."
At this point, Jace contributed to the conversation. "Metal can be substituted for Wind, such as in Yoroiden Samurai Troopers. Rock and Earth are also practically the same in magical makeup."
"Okay, so we've got Fire, Water, Rock, and Metal down. What about Spirit?"
Adriana spoke next. "Our Ranger Powers are based off of the three divisions of Mind, Body, and Spirit. Not just in the choosing for whom holds which power, but also in the basic magic itself. When it reaches right down to it, when out elements are useless, Justin and I can rely on pure mind magic, as Lina and Alex pure body magic, and Jace and Cassy pure spirit magic."
"Will that be sufficient for the Japanese definition of Spirit?" Alex asked.
"We can only hope." Lina answered.
Cassy stood up. "We're lucky that there are six of us. The drawees cannot cast the actual spell."
"Drawees?" Alex stood up quickly in surprise.
Cassy turned to Alex, a stern look on her face. "The caster must draw the magic from the other five people."
"Looks like that's my job." Lina sat forward.
Cassy nodded. "We can do this here and now if you want. I'll contain the spell inside a bottle and we can just hit a person with the bottle when we want the spell to work."
"So... What are the words?' Lina asked.
"They're on this sheet. You'll need pronunciation, so I put them as best I could in English pronunciation." Cassy handed a sheet to Lina. The Thunder Ranger scanned it before nodding. The other girl also handed her a vial.
Lina closed her eyes and concentrated. She started chanting in Korean, but the Rangers heard it in English.
"[Burning fire, I draw from you.]" Justin glew an orange color and some of that light was transferred into Lina's hand. "[Flowing water, I drink from you.]" Jace's aqua aura joined the orange one. "[Journeying metal, I call upon you.]" A silver aura from Adriana joined those already there. "[Steadying rocks, I ask of you.]" The aura of brown radiating from Alex mixed in an array of colors. "[Residing spirit, I request of you.]" The final, purple aura added to the orb in Lina's hand. "[Draw forth the power of time!]" The orb faded from a rainbow to a gray color. "[Trap your target out of loop! Stasis!]" The orb briefly glew blue before being encased in the vial. Lina slumped down, exhausted, as Jace took the vial and put it in subspace. There was a knock on the door as Justin stood up. Adriana canceled the spell as he opened it, revealing a helper.
"Six large fruit smoothies, five extra-large hamburgers, one extra-large cheeseburger, all with no onion, and six extra-large order of fries, one extra salted. Order number 129." She said.
Justin looked at his slip and nodded while showing it.
"Okay then." The helper put the large tray on the table before turning to leave.
"Here's your tip." Justin put some money in her hand.
"Thanks!" The helper smiled brightly before leaving and Justin shut the door.
"Mmmm..." With hearty appetites, the six dug into their food.
* * * * * * *
It wasn't until 8:00 that their plan had gotten approval from Kamion and put into action.
"Are you sure you want to go through with this?" Kamion asked.
Justin turned to Kamion, a grim look on his face. "We need to end this quickly. We can't let them hold all the cards too long." He sucked in a breath. "They know Adriana's identity and have twelve Rangers on their side. We need to tip this in our favor and when need to do it now."
Kamion nodded. "As much as I wish to disapprove of this, it is probably the best action to take. You have my permission."
Justin nodded as the six raised their arms.
"Element Morph!" Six Rangers stood in the Control Base, tense.
"May the Power protect you." Kamion whispered as they teleported out.
Lina leaned against the tree in the park. They had especially chosen this day because of the park cleaning and the area was sanctioned off for the day. No one was inside and the magic underneath it would be a great asset. "How are we going to call the Astros again?"
"Last time we fought, I had Zeta monitor their communications. I can latch onto their signal and call them here." Justin looked at his bracelet before tapping it three times in succession. "Dark Elementalists..." All five snapped their heads to Justin. "We need to keep up this act." Justin whispered. "Dark Elementalists to Astro Rangers. We request a duel, otherwise Boston goes." Justin closed the communication with the Astros and then opened one with the Control Base. "Lock a tracer of the Astros' teleportation system when they arrive." With an affirmative, Justin closed the link.
"Whom should we use it on?" Lina asked. "I'm not ready for another shot at that spell just yet."
At this moment, Adriana provided the answer. "Blue Astro. They're the tactical genius of the group most of the time."
"Then I'll engage him in a duel." Jace supplied. "I have the spell in subspace."
"Let's split by color." Alex added. "They won't suspect anything that way."
Any more that was going to be said was stopped by the Astros arriving.
Everybody got the plan? Justin asked through their link.
Various affirmatives were his reply through the same method.
Alex smiled grimly under his helmet as he let the newest addition to his arsenal appear.
Justin blinked. When did you get that?
Special order. Chirran kid's practice version, equipped with arsenal like a noble kid needs. Alex's smirk could be heard in his voice as he mounted an arsenalized motor cross bike. Even through the Astro's were morphed, their body language clearly showed they were surprised.
"Stop staring!" Alex yelled as he revved the motor. He streaked across the park and rammed into Black Astro. The two flew into a portal to Alex's specialty area.
I'm heading to my area also. Cassy told them as she ran toward Silver Astro. Adriana wasn't that far behind as she charged at Pink Astro. They disappeared into portals.
Justin sighed mentally. Why don't we all head to our areas also?
Game with that! Lina cried as she headed for Yellow Astro.
Jace softly glided next to the running Justin. With all our tricks, people will mistake us with villains. Only they usually have as much weapons as we do.
Justin snorted. We have pure magic on our side, not just for transformations. Remember that.
Right. Jace gave Justin a reassuring smile through his Ranger body language as Justin and Lina disappeared with Red Astro and Yellow Astro respectively, leaving Jace with Blue Astro.
"Hello!" Jace chirped.
"Uh, hi." Blue Astro slowly eased into a defensive stance, wary of the other Ranger.
Jace waved his hand. "What's your favorite sport?"
"Baseball." Blue Astro replied uncertainly.
"Mine's swimming!!!" Jace shouted gleefully.
"Why am I here if we just going to talk?" Blue Astro asked impatiently.
"'Cause we're going swimming." Jace's voice took upon an edge that Blue Astro quickly identified as one that magic users use. His eyes widened as the ground dropped out from under him and he sunk into an expanse of water. Blue Astro quickly swam to the surface and landed on one of the few small islands in the area. Water was all he could see with islands, small ones in fact, dotting all the way around and a large geyser of water in the center.
"Like my area?" Blue Astro looked up at Jace, who was standing on a jet of water, and growled. The other boy pouted. "You don't? Well, we're going to play a game. You have to dodge my attacks to hit this button." A small piece of land right next to Jace's water pillar appeared with a pillar and a button. "If you fall into the water, you'll have to fight me in my element. If you don't, I'll come down on dry land and fight you there. Well, game start!" Jace pointed his hand and a dagger of water appeared. It was flung at Blue Astro and he ducked it. Several more were created and flung at Blue Astro. The Blue Ranger hopped from one island to the next, dodging and even shooting the water daggers when needed. When he got one-fourth of the
way, Jace piped up.
"Level 2!" The next set of water daggers lengthened to become spears. "Fire!" They flew at an increased speed and Blue Astro had even more trouble trying to dodge it.
"Dual Mode! Fire!" Blue Astro fired a stream of lasers that blew the spears out of existence. It because a small game. Duck, shoot, jump, edge, shoot, repeat. He was halfway to the button when Jace announced the next challenge.
"Level 3!" If Blue Astro could see Jace's face, he'd know he was in trouble because of the dark smile there. "Engage!" Ten bladed discs of water flew out of nowhere and Blue Astro shot at them. They disappeared before reforming again in midair.
"Geez!!!" Blue Astro slapped his forehead. "Galaxy Glider, Hang Ten!" The space glider entered the dimension through the residue the portal left behind. With that on his side, he managed to race toward the button and slap it in no time flat.
Jace pouted again. "That's not fair. Oh well, a promise is a promise." The Water Ranger leapt into the air as all the separate lands converged into one large one and he landed in the center of it. "C'mon! Aqua Water Staff!" The battle-worn staff appeared in his hands and Jace pointed it at the still riding Ranger.
"Astro Axe!" The weapon appeared in Blue Astro's hands. He jumped off of the vehicle and tucked into a somersault. The blade of his axe connected with Jace's staff and the Water Ranger was pushed to the ground.
Jace kicked his legs up and knocked Blue Astro off of him before leaping back and drawing his blaster. "Neptune Blast!" The merman rose from the tip of his gun and struck Blue Astro. The blue Ranger was blown back, but drew his own blaster. "Astro Axe Booster Mode!" Blue Astro returned fire with his own blue lasers. It became a sort of game of firing then dodging. A game that bored Jace.
"Humph..." Jace returned his blaster to his side and ducked another laser array. He quickly summoned his staff again and deflected the next barrage. "Lets play one final game. Aqua Mirage!" Water quickly left his staff and entered the ground. Blue Astro looked on in shock as several copies of his opponent appeared. "If you can destroy my copies or land three blows on me before I strike you four times, you win and I return us to the park with you in perfect shape. If you lose, it's up to me to decide." All six figures pointed their staffs forward and charge. Blue Astro quick found him surrounded and the six enemies constantly changing.
"Astro Axe." Summoning his special weapon, Blue Astro charged and slashed one figure. It disappeared in a shower of water.
A fierce thrust caught him in the side and Blue Astro stumbled from the pain. "One down." Jace faded back into the revolution.
Blue Astro sighed deeply and closed his eyes. He cleared his mind and felt with it the five figures surrounding him. And... There! Blue Astro whipped his axe out and slash. He was rewarded with the sparking sound that signified a bladed weapon on Power Suit. "One down yourself." Blue Astro looked in surprise as the mouthpiece of his opponent's helmet split open and he could see lightly tanned skin. One hand came and brushed off a small trickle of blood there.
"You're good." Jace leaned slightly on his staff, rubbing his stomach. "However, this cannot last long." With that, one figure took up full speed again and dashed by Blue Astro. Several other figures also flew past and Blue Astro did the mistake of turning his back on those remaining. "Mistake number two!" Jace rammed his staff into Blue Astro's back and side-kicked him away. Blue Astro crumpled into a pile. "That counts as two hits. One more before you lose. I thought a Ranger was supposed to put up more of a fight." Jace taunted.
"And you should never trust a downed opponent!" Blue Astro brought up his blaster and started firing an array of shots. When all the firing was done, it was revealed that Blue Astro had only downed two clones. Two more and the original were left standing, a water barrier defending them.
"Nice trick." Jace praised. "But this is getting boring and I want to fight." With that, Jace launched forward with the two copies behind him. Blue Astro dodged the first attack and ducked beneath the second and third ones. Muttering a quick prayer, he charged at the one he thought was Jace and slashed. Blue Astro hit nothing, however, and ended up screaming in pain as Jace jammed his staff into his stomach before launching Blue Astro over his head and rolling backward. Jace tucked into a back flip and jammed the bottom of his staff into Blue Astro's body, wincing at a crack there.
Letting his final copy fade away, Jace sighed and softly breathed out the next phrase. "I win."
Blue Astro couldn't move, however, without much pain.
"Here." Jace laid his hand over Blue Astro's body and concentrated his energy. "Pure Healing..." An intense light flared up and Blue Astro had to close his eyes. When he opened them, he found his body healed of all wounds.
"A promise is a promise. You lost fair and square." Jace whipped the bottle out of subspace and slammed it into Blue Astro's stomach. The spell claimed Blue Astro's body. "Hmm.. The foundation's a bit unstable. Oh well." Jace lifted the body of his opponent, but not with a little bit of effort. "Geez, what's this guy been eating?" As he stepped through the portal, Jace mentally called out to his friends. I'm teleporting back to the Control Base. Blue Astro has been secured.
Hear you.
Got it.
Good job bro.
I didn't finish yet! Oh wait, I just did.
Just a sec... Done.
* * * * * * *
In the Medical Bay of the Control Base, Jace laid down Blue Astro's still body onto a board. Zeta activated the metallic bonds that prevented the person from moving. Justin, Adriana, Lina, Alex, and Cassy followed soon after, still morphed.
"Is there anyway to demorph him Kamion?" Adriana turned to their advisor and surrogate father.
The Grid Master shook his head. "His powers are not under the jurisdiction of any magical energy and as such, I cannot do anything about it."
"I noticed something about the spell." Jace had everyone's attention now. "Its base was weak. I doubt its effects will last for another few minutes, let alone an hour. My guess is that Cassy's spirit magic only barely fit the requirements."
"Thus, the spell's overall effects were weakened." Cassy finished Jace's train of thought.
Alex remembered something. "Justin, you won't believe it. When I was fighting Black Astro, we were in a shooting contest. The Blaster was much like the Auto Blaster you showed us and his main weapon seemed much like my Brown Ground Cannon, only different."
"Yeah, Pink Astro and I went archery." Adriana blinked. "Her bow was like the Turbo Wind Fire or something like that."
Lina nodded. "Yellow Astro and I went head-to-head via two one-handed weapons. Her choice? A pair of bars like those Star Charges."
Justin felt a dark pit growing in his stomach as he turned to Blue Astro. The man was waking up and anytime now, he'd be snapping at them.
"Let me go!" Blue Astro growled fiercely after seeing his captors.
Justin sighed and took up the leader position. "At least demorph so that we can discuss this without the need of powers."
"Why should I?"
Lina interrupted. "Look. We're just trying to help. If you'd just demorph, everything'd be much easier."
"How do I know that this isn't just a trick?" Blue Astro sneered.
Jace sighed. "Remember me?"
"You're the guy who I fought with just a second ago."
"Will you demorph, please?" Jace asked in his best innocent kid voice.
Blue Astro laughed humorlessly. "Is this another ploy? I'm not buying it. How do I know you just won't hurt me hen I demorph?"
Cassy glared irritably. Blue Astro could ever feel it through his black visor. "If we wanted to hurt you, then you'd still have some ribs broken, been in incredible pain, and not likely be in the mood to argue right now. Ja-Water didn't need to heal you, you know."
"As a favor?" Jace's voice border lined pleading.
Blue Astro thought it over and sighed. He willed his transformation away, leaving his civilian form for all the Rangers to see. Needless to say, Justin was shocked.
"TEEJ?"
TJ Johnson started at the familiar nickname. "Who are you?"
Justin sighed and demorphed. Shrinking down to his normal height, he stared at TJ's surprised face.
The Blue Astro Ranger was gaping at the slightly older, taller version of his former teammate. Despite the orange in his eyes and the demeanor of maturity that he held himself in, which wasn't there back when they were the Turbo Rangers. "Justin? But how?"
Shaking himself, Justin stepped forward. "Please TJ. Throw off the darkness spell that binds you."
"Is that really you?" TJ's eyes became hardened.
The boy dressed in orange softened. "It's me. Remember our times sparring? Remember the time we spent in Angel Grove High?" Remember?"
TJ shook his head and started muttering under his breath. "All this is a trick to confuse me. Probably a trick. Yea. They probably scanned my memories or something. Can't let them get what they want."
Justin stiffened at those thoughts. Everyone else had demorphed after him. "Teleport him to the Zord Holding Bay. Jace and Alex, you come with me. You remember the spirit transferring spell?"
Jace nodded.
"Good. Cassy, feed as much purifying magic as you can into TJ. Adriana, make him calmer. Lina, untense him."
The three nodded as light raced across their forms, teleporting them to the Zord Holding Bay with Storm Blaster.
Storm Blaster? Justin mentally called out to his friend.
The attention feeling flooded through him and Justin almost nodded.
Can you sent out a signal to call Lightning Cruiser here? Please?
The affirmative flowed through him and Justin nodded toward the two.
"Image teleportation." Justin explained simply. The brothers nodded as they placed their hands on Justin's back. As Justin envisioned the pace he wanted to go to, the image somewhat transferred over to Jace and Alex, with all three teleporting away.
* * * * * * *
"Where are we?" was the first question out of Alex's mouth as they landed.
The area was densely populated with trees and logs. Amazingly, no litter was on the ground or any signs of a path. Light filtered through the trees, sending an unearthly glow upon the three boys.
"It looks like it's 5:30 here." Jace said in wonder.
Alex whirled to Justin. "We traveled to the Pacific Time Zone? Why?"
"Because..." Suddenly, the Fire Ranger raised his voice. "ERUTAN! I know you're here!"
The wind shifted in the area, blowing against their faces, whipping their hair about. At first, nothing seemed to happen. Then, like a shadow, a figure appeared out of nowhere. A blonde haired boy with a red t-shirt and denim had a suspicious look on his face as he stared at the three before him.
"How do you know that name? I only told that to the one worthy, my friend."
"I was part of his group." Justin explained. "However, I have found him again, this time under a dark spell. I need ones of his past to help break the spell's hold on him. I have Lightning Cruiser, his sentient car, but with you, it might be a bit easier."
"TJ... An interesting proposition." A faint breeze tickled each of their faces. "Suppose that I agree? I'm a spirit of nature. To be precise, of Angel Grove Forest. I cannot leave this area. How can I manage to get myself over to wherever TJ is?" Erutan looked worried for his friend, despite how he tried to keep his face impassive.
"Not too long ago, I discovered a way of teleporting a spirit away from their home for a short time. About five hours tops." Jace answered. "We need your consent to try it, however."
Erutan nodded. "For TJ, I will."
Jace raised his right hand toward Justin and his left to Erutan. "[The fire that burns within every spirit...]" He chanted in Japanese, shifting his right hand to Alex. "[The element that shines so bright...]" Moving the hand to Erutan, Jace finished the chant. "[With your consent, I move you to my will!]" Instantly, Erutan disappeared as Jace's aura of power faded. Wiping his brow, Jace gave a large yawn.
"C'mere bro." Alex gave his brother a large hug as all three teleported away.
* * * * * * *
The sight that overcame the three when they were back was a mess. Erutan was off the side, looking as close to sweatdropping as is possible in this world. Storm Blaster and Lightning Cruiser were making frantic beeping noises as the glow of magic emitted from Cassy, Adriana, and Lina, their chanting still adding to the overall noise. Zeta was bumbling around, reminding Justin of Alpha Five while Kamion was just staring ahead impassively.
"Uh, everyone?" Justin tried.
They all ignored him.
"Everyone?" Justin demanded.
They continued doing whatever they were doing as Alex and Jace backed away.
"EVERYONE SHUT UP!!!"
All eyes turned to Justin, who colored instantly. Storm Blaster honked.
Justin looked sheepish. "I'm sorry. It was just too loud."
"No problems. I couldn't find a way to stop them myself." Erutan gave a tentative smile.
"Who's that? Is that you Erutan?" TJ opened his eyes to see the girls retreating. "Erutan?"
"I'm here." Erutan quickly glided over to his friend.
"How?"
Erutan smiled. "Your friend helped me here."
Lightning Cruiser beeped and honked.
TJ craned his head toward the red car. "Lightning Cruiser? But... I thought this was all a fake."
"It isn't." Erutan placed his hand on TJ's. "Dispel the magic of darkness residing in you."
TJ closed his eyes as Lightning Cruiser gave out a slow beep. A dark light surrounded the former Red Turbo Ranger as black goop fell from his body onto the ground. When the light died down, TJ's eyes became brighter, the light having died down.
Adriana used her magic to lift up the black goop and Cassy used a crystal container to capture it.
"Zeta?" Kamion asked. "Can you run a scan on that and find and antidote?"
"As good as done Kamion." Zeta rushed out to the lab as Lina released TJ.
The man stood and turned toward Justin, who suddenly looked rather small and afraid.
"Justin?" TJ asked tentatively.
A look of something that TJ had never seen on the boy before crossed Justin's face. He soon recognized it. Extreme relief to the point of tears.
"TJ!!!" Justin sobbed as he flung himself into the other former Turbo Ranger's arms.
Wrapping his arms around the boy, TJ made comforting noises. "It's all right. I'm sorry we never came to visit, but we are on a constant search for Zordon still while fending off Dark Specter and Astronema."
"Thank god that you're here." Justin cried. In a voice that only TJ could hear, Justin continued. "It's been really hard here. Probably less than a month since the Power Chamber destruction, I was chosen to be their Orange Fire Ranger. I really missed you guys, you know that?"
"Deep down, I guess we did." TJ's eyes traveled over the thirteen-year-old Rangers assembled in the room. "I guess you've got a new team right now, huh?"
"Yeah. Despite how this team is," Justin continued. "I missed being in the group with you and the others."
"Sometimes we think back to those days also." TJ agreed.
"So," Justin moved away from TJ, wiping his eyes. "Do you remember anything from the time that you were under the spell?"
TJ looked thoughtful. "I remember seeing the Rangers demorph once. They're thirteen-years-olds also."
"Did they name themselves?" Cassy asked, almost tentatively.
TJ nodded. "Said their names were Jake Foster of the Eruption, Lan Yao of the Tsunami, Amanda Bryson of the Tornado, Lisa Jerret of the Storm, Kyle Mizuki of the Quake, and Christina Chan of the Blizzard."
"That just confirms it." Alex sighed.
"Hmm?"
Lina answered. "We go to school with them and we've had our suspicions."
Jace piped up. "How about we all go to different areas of the Control Base and just wait until Zeta tells us the antidote?"
The rest agreed as the girls split off by themselves and the brothers too.
Justin led TJ to his room in the Control Base's residential quarters.
"What's been up since we last saw each other?" Justin asked as he flopped down onto the bed.
TJ sat down on the plush chair. "I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours."
"Deal."
"Well, it all started when our space shuttle landed on the moon..." From then on, TJ explained about the battles, the Zords and whatnot.
"Interesting." Justin then explained about his new self, his telepathic powers, and all the battles.
"Harsh." TJ commented after the uneasy finish of Justin's tale.
"I guess."
TJ cocked his head to the side. "Aren't you supposed to be home by now? It's like 8 to 9 here."
"Our parents are under the impression that we're spending the night at the other's places." Justin gave a small smile. "Some things never change, do they?"
TJ laughed. "I guess not. I remember doing the same thing."
Anything else said was interrupted as a loud voice entered the room. "All Rangers please report to the main chamber."
"That means us." Justin announced. "Follow me."
Letting the younger boy lead him, TJ smiled. Just like old times.
As the two emerged, Erutan and the Rangers were crowding around Zeta. The little robot went over to TJ and handed him a gun loaded with six shots of a white substance.
"As you're our only way into your team, we need you to shoot this at an exposed area of skin on each of your Rangers. You've got only one extra shot, as these materials are hard to come by. So there's only a tiny bit of leeway here." Zeta warned. "I can't reproduce this for another week. And by then, who knows what could happen."
"I got it." TJ nodded.
"Ooh!" Cassy and Adriana spoke at the same time.
"You go first." Cassy said.
"No you."
"I insist."
"No, I insist."
"Just choose one and go with it." Lina intervened.
Adriana nodded. "Okay. We need to make this convincing. Synthesize TJ some new clothes, except battle scarred."
Zeta left for a moment and returned with some very battle worn clothing. TJ took them and waited for the next part.
"Now, do we have holograms effects here?" Cassy asked.
Kamion nodded. "Yes."
"Good. We need to create a holographic explosion and let TJ race out of here with Lightning Cruiser."
"How would you explain Lightning Cruiser?" Erutan asked.
"We could say that we stole them from Divatox." Alex shrugged.
"Got it?" Cassy looked at TJ, who nodded in response and left the room.
"Not now..." Justin looked at one of the readouts and groaned.
All eyes were on him now, even Erutan's.
Looking sad, Justin sighed. "A massive surge of magical energy, the summoning of a large spirit and probably a lot of minor grunts too."
"You can handle this, right Zeta?" Lina looked at the robot, which gave an affirmative.
"Element Morph!"
As the six Rangers teleported out, TJ returned.
"I'll teleport you to the Holding Bay and then release you. You know what to do, right?"
"Right. Let's Rocket!" The Blue Astro Ranger appeared inside the Lightning Cruiser and the two went through an open gate with a holographic explosion in front of them then behind them.
"Guys. It's TJ here. I'm coming in with an old friend!" The teleportation light surrounded them as they returned to the Astro Megaship. The cargo hold to be precise.
"TJ!!!" The Cargo Hold's door opened up as TJ stepped out of Lightning Cruiser.
"Whoa!" The Blue Ranger smiled as Cassie barreled into him. "I'm all right. I'm all right."
"Don't you ever do that to us again." Cassy warned.
"I promise. I promise."
"What happened to your clothes?" Zhane stared, wide-eyed at the mess he was wearing.
"I guess it just, sort of happened when I fought the Water Ranger." TJ shrugged.
"Good to have ya back, man." Carlos grinned.
"Lightning Cruiser?" Ashley looked startled.
"Yep." TJ smiled. "The Dark Elementalists stole him from Divatox and I took him."
As the three former Turbo Rangers crowded the sentient car, TJ turned to Andros.
"Any intel on our enemies?" Andros asked, his face serious, though his eyes showed concern. "If you want to talk about it." He added.
TJ shook his head. "I just wanted out. I got rid of the restraining bonds and played hide-and-seek until I made it to their Holding Bay and blasted out with Lightning Cruiser. I didn't see them unmorphed nor find anything of use."
"Oh..."
TJ stood up. "I would like to be alone, if you don't mind." Quickly, he walked out of the room and headed in the direction of his quarters.
"You think something's up?" Carlos turned to the others.
"I know something's up." Cassie nodded. "I'll go ask him." The Asian girl instantly headed out of the room and followed to where TJ's room as. "Teej?"
The Ranger inside started as he nearly dropped the gun he was given. It was very much like his Astro Blaster, but with a handgun's barrel and each barrel held a white substance. "Yeah Cas?"
"Can I come in?"
TJ paused for a moment. I know I have to do this sooner or later, but now? Steeling himself and hiding the gun, he replied. "Sure."
Cassie opened the door and entered. "Are you sure you're all right?"
TJ nodded. "Yeah."
"Because if something's wrong, you can tell us." Cassie insisted.
"No, nothing." TJ shook his head. "I just want to be alone right now."
"If that's what you want..." The Asian girl turned and TJ acted. He clamped his left hand on Cassie's mouth and put the gun to her exposed neck.
"Don't scream." TJ told her in a soothing voice. When he felt her take in a deep breath, he shot one shot on her neck. The white substance disappeared into the skin upon contact and the Pink Astro Ranger fell unconscious into his arms.
"I'm sorry." Laying her on his bed, TJ changed then left his room and activated his lock. Placing his gun into a pocket, TJ searched for more opportunities.
"Yo Teej!" TJ turned as he spotted Carlos down by the Hispanic's own room.
"Yeah?' TJ nodded in greeting.
Carlos flashed a smile. "I found something in my old room at home when we went back."
Curiosity peaked; TJ could help but make one remark. "You actually found something in your room?"
With a glare, Carlos entered his own room and pulled a picture out.
"This is... Wow... I think I lost this picture a long time ago." TJ smiled.
In Carlos's hands was a picture in a frame. In the picture was a group photo of the second Turbo team, about a week after they received their powers. Justin's arms were wrapped around TJ's and Carlos's necks as the two teens lifted him up. Cassie was to TJ's right and Ashley to Carlos's left.
"I miss the little guy." Carlos whispered.
"Me too." TJ agreed. When Carlos turned his back to TJ, the Blue Astro Ranger took his gun and shot Carlos in the neck. The Black Astro Ranger collapsed and TJ put the other boy in his bed. "Sorry." Leaving and closing the door, TJ was a bit more cautious. With two down, his job would be a lot harder.
A few more corridors and his next target came into view. "Hey Ash."
"TJ." Ashley nodded. "Where's Cassie?"
"Oh, she said she wanted to get some rest." TJ waved his hand in dismissal.
"Oh, okay." An awkward silence followed.
Finally, TJ broke it. "Can I talk to you privately?"
The Yellow Astro Ranger shrugged before leading TJ to her room. "What's up?"
"I'm sorry." TJ whispered, a sad look on his face.
"Sorry?" Ashley raised an eyebrow. "For what?"
"This." TJ pulled his gun out and pointed it at her. Her eyes widened in response, but the shot was fired and Ashley knew no more.
With his heart hurting more than ever, TJ closed Ashley's room as well and replaced his gun.
His stomach started growling and TJ blushed, despite no one being around. "I guess I'll grab a snack." Whispering to himself, he felt the cool caress of the gun in his pants and inwardly shivered as he walked.
At the dining area, TJ froze as he saw Zhane talking to his communicator.
"Yeah. Keep on alert for TJ. Got it."
Making a decision to himself, TJ took the gun out. Aiming it, he snapped off one clear shot that struck Zhane's cheek as the Silver Astro Ranger turned around. Sighing to himself, TJ replaced his gun and listened to what Andros was ranting about.
"Zhane? Zhane! Are you there? Do you copy? If you're there TJ I swear I'm going to get you." At that, TJ closed the communication line. He took his Astro Blaster out and set it to the stun setting, just in case.
TJ then blinked as a handheld machine appeared in his hand.
"TJ." The voice that he identified as Zeta floated from his communicator.
Quickly activating it, TJ replied. "Yeah?"
"That machine is designed to disrupt technological powers for a period of time. When your teammates morph, they'll be invulnerable to the serum, but this will force them back to their natural selves."
"All right." Flicking the switch to on, a beam spread out into the air and a green grid appeared, spreading over the whole Astro Megaship.
"As long as that thing transmits that grid, you'll be fine." Zeta closed the communication.
TJ stored the Technological Morphing Disruptor in, of all places, the area where synthesized food came out of.
Raising both his Astro Blaster and his gun, TJ stalked off after the last Astro Ranger.
* * * * * * *
Let's scroll back awhile.
"Andros?" The said Ranger stopped. For the first time in his life, Andros could have sworn he heard a faint note of hesitance in the synthesized voice of DECA.
"Yes DECA." Andros asked.
"Would you come to the bridge?" Again, the hesitance.
"All right." Turning, Andros changed his course to the bridge. Upon reaching there, he turned to DECA's sensors. "Yes?"
"I managed to track TJ's morpher and get a visual right before he escaped. Watch."
A video of the escape appeared. Right when the explosion happened, DECA froze the image. There, Andros could clearly see the door wide open while the explosion was there.
"DECA, hologram eraser." A bar appeared and wiped the screen. The explosion disappeared.
Andros swore. He then opened his communicator and tapped it. "Cassie. Do you read me? Cassie!" Growling fiercely, he contacted Carlos. "Carlos! Please tell me you're there! Dammit!" He switched to another line. "Ashley, please answer. C'mon! Please answer Ashley!" Almost defeated, Andros contacted the last person on the ship he could. "Zhane!"
"Yeah?" The other Kerovan's voice calmed him.
"Be on guard."
"Why?" There was a confused tone in his voice.
Andros sighed. "TJ's under the Dark Elementalists' control."
A soft growl came from the other side. "Dammit. Did you tell the others?"
"He already got them." Andros's voice was near dead.
"Not another team... I'm heading to the bridge."
"You remember what to do?" Andros interrupted.
"Yeah. Watch out for TJ. Got'cha." Right after, there was a soft thud from the other end.
"Zhane? Zhane!" Andros shouted. "Are you there? Do you copy?" The Red Astro Ranger paused as a thought came to him. "If you're there TJ, I swear I'm going to get you!" The communication clicked close.
Andros swore again. "Let's Rocket!" He flicked open his morpher. Three. Three. Five. Enter. Instantly, his body morphed into the Red Astro Ranger Power Suit.
"All right."
He drew his Astro Blaster and held it for about a moment before a grid flashed above him. His suit warped before disappearing completely. Blinking, Andros turned to DECA. "Status on the grid."
"Emitted from a single device, it is a grid that blocks technological morphing." DECA reported.
Andros swore once more as he shifted his Astro Blaster to his right hand. "Can you pinpoint where the device is?"
After a minute, DECA answered. "No. However, Zhane was last detected in the dining area."
"Thank you. Do you know where TJ is?"
"No."
Andros sighed before raising his blaster and heading off.
* * * * * * *
TJ stalked around the cafeteria, knowing that Andros would be heading there first. He had dragged Zhane to an area of the wall where he wouldn't interfere and set himself behind an overturned table, watching both entrances.
The door opened and TJ made sure his Astro Blaster his Astro Blaster was on its lowest setting. Andros came into view and TJ let loose a volley of shots.
Instincts kicking in, Andros ducked the lasers and fell behind the doorway. Using it as a cover, the native of KO-35 quickly assessed the situation. The fire was probably coming from behind the overturned table and he'd have to get past that before he could get a clear shot at TJ. Setting his gun so that it would paralyze, Andros leapt out of the doorway and a firefight began. Andros ducked one volley and rolled to avoid another that would have gone at his head. Bring his blaster up, he snapped off a few more shots, doing nothing but burning the table. The shootings that followed were your average firefight, until TJ decided to do a gamble.
Bracing himself, he flung himself out of the table's protection. With one hand, he fired a shot from his gun and the white substance shot out. Andros dodged it, but TJ brought his Astro Blaster up and snapped up enough shots so that Andros was stunned. Dashing forward, he shot Andros's neck with the antidote before either could blink. The other male lay limp and TJ sighed with relief. He closed his eyes and sighed briefly before opening them again. TJ did the time-taking task of dragging Andros and Zhane back to their quarters, Cassie to her's, and putting the table upright again (and if anyone noticed the burn marks, no one would be any wiser except for Andros). All that took a lot out of him, especially with his battle with Jace earlier. TJ went to his bedroom and locked it completely, allowing no one in. As soon as his head hit his pillow, he was dead to the world.
* * * * * * *
Let us return to when the Elementalist Rangers had teleported out.
The scene that greeted them from the rooftop of a skyscraper was chaos. People were running away in fright from the army of living armor and at the head of it, there was a knight wielding a giant chain-mace.
"Destroy everything!" The knight cackled. "Destroy everything and kill everyone!"
From their position on the rooftop, they could see the spirits about to spread.
Cassy appeared next to Justin. "Should we go all heroic for our first fight that is going to remembered?"
"I'll stop radio signals from being broadcast out of here. It may short-circuit some stations, but I really don't want this going out of Boston." Lina volunteered.
Justin nodded and a wave of golden power pointed into the sky, the panicking patrons below not noticing.
The Fire Ranger would have flashed a smile, but his helmet would have blocked it, so he nodded. "Let's do this."
The six flipped off the building, their Ranger powers allowing them to land safely on the ground. The people still left stared at the newcomers.
"Orange Fire Ranger..." Justin's left arm went forward, the right resting on the left side of his helmet and his pose told of his leadership position. "...of Mind!"
"Aqua Water Ranger..." Jace thrust his left hand forward and placed his right on the star that rested a little to the left of his heart. "...of Spirit!"
"Silver Wind Ranger..." Adriana moved her left arm forward, the right hand resting on the star that lay on the right side of her helmet. "...of Mind!"
"Gold Thunder Ranger..." Lina's left arm went forward, her right hand resting on the star placed on her right shoulder. "...of Body!"
"Brown Earth Ranger..." Alex pointed at his enemies with his left hand, the right one going to the star on his left shoulder. "...of Body!"
"Purple Ice Ranger..." The right arm of Cassy went to rest on the star a little to the right of her heart as her left went toward the spirits. "...Spirit!"
"Power Rangers..." Every Ranger brought their right hands to their chests and pointed with their left, legs spread. "Elementalist!"
"So, who are you?" Justin asked offhandedly. "What makes you so different from all the other monsters we've faced?"
"My name's Knightion and you'll see how different I am, but first," The monster pointed his left hand. "Living Armors, attack!" A stream of creatures rushed them.
Justin ducked a slash as he rolled to the left. After testing how strong they were, he decided that he should try a different tactic after pain shot up his leg from where he tried to kick a Living Armor. He flipped into the air, soaring high above the mass of Living Armors. With his right hand glowing an orange light, he drew several runes in the air. "Flare Swords!" Fiery lines glowed as numerous blades pierced each creature in range.
Cassy appeared right next to him, both still in mid-air after Cassy lead her enemies into Justin's spell radius. Her own hands drew runes into the air. "Icy Gale!" A blast of temperatures worthy of the top ice mages on Kooriton, one of the coldest planets in the galaxy, swept through their enemies. Every single one that was pierced by Justin's swords froze and the two Rangers landed on the ground. As one, they snapped their fingers and every creature affected shattered.
Alex and Lina were dodging in and out. The two were back-to-back and neither particularly wanted to break that formation. Alex swore mildly as he ducked a sword and had to jump over a low sweeping blade. Lina was trying to dodge both a glaive and a quarterstaff at the same time. After coming to the same conclusion as Justin did, they both turned to each other. Up? Lina cocked her head to the side. Where else? The two jumped into the air as Lina moved her hands in practiced motions. "Thunder's Calling!"
As the two continued to rise, Alex also cast his spell. "Earth Tomb!" As earth captured a large mass of Living Armor's in a dome, Lina's spell left an orb in the center of it. When the dome fully closed, both Alex and Lina landed on it. After a minute, the dome disappeared, revealing a mass of burnt scraps that Alex effortlessly destroyed.
Jace and Adriana had their short ranged weapons out, doing as much damage as they could. After finding that their weapons did no damage on first contact, they summoned magic to strengthen themselves and now they started to destroy the Living Armors. Adriana leapt over a sweep kick and them twisted her body away from a spear thrust before plunging her spear down and destroying a Living Armor. Beside her, Jace was using his enhanced strength to utterly annihilate the Living Armors with his staff. As more seemed to fill the spaces, Adriana gave a side look to Jace. "What's an easy way to defeat metal again?" Jace grinned at the question before answering. "O to rust I think." Adriana smiled. "Think I can conjure up enough oxygen?" Jace narrowed his eyes. "You know you can." With another smile, Adriana spread her arm wide. Jace also crouched, preparing his own spell. Jace leapt into the air as Adriana rid a gust. "Tsunami Uprising!" A large wave of water came from nowhere and swamped a whole quarter of the Living Armors. The water magically disappeared, but the Living Armors were drenched beyond belief. "Oxygen Storm!" Normally an attack of pure oxygen that would improve Justin's fire magic, this spell wove around the drenched Living Armors, leave rust in their wake. At Adriana's call, a gale of wind obliterated the enemies.
Knightion was surprised. He hadn't known that the defenders were this strong. No matter, he'd finish the job himself.
The last quarter of enemies had been easily wiped out after their weakness of being metal were found.
The six Rangers stood in front of Knightion as the press soon came into the area and started to tape this.
"So, you've used their weakness wisely."
Justin glared at the enemy. "What is your objective? They haven't sent in one monster alone for months."
A general intake of breath was heard.
"Oh, my superiors have high faith in me." Knightion laughed, somehow creepy and pathetic at the same time. "For now..." The chain mace sudden came to life and Lina just avoided being decapitated. "Let's fight!"
And the battle began.
The chain mace had a large reach and was fast, despite the weapon's size and weight. Knightion hardly moved and his armor was of a very hard stone.
"Silver Air Bow!" Adriana stayed well out of the chain mace's range as she unleashed a horde of arrows. Not one made it through the spinning weapon and the Wind Ranger growled.
After twenty minutes of dodging, futile attacks, and useless spells, Knightion just laughed. "Is this all you've got? With my stone armor, nothing can hurt me!"
"Buffeting Wind!" Adriana caught on to what was needed immediately. Strong winds repeatedly slammed into Knightion, seeming to do no damage.
Alex was next to figure out what should be done. "Raining Rocks!" Stones twice the size of a man's head crashed repeatedly into the monster, also seeming to do no damage.
Jace crossed his arms, murmuring under his breath. "Rising Water!" Spreading his arms wide, a cyclone of water surrounded Knightion, streaming onto him continuously.
Knightion just laughed. "Is this all you've got?"
Lina took a position in front of Alex, wary of the chain mace or other attacks, as did Justin to Adriana, and Cassy to Jace. The spells continued, as the three Rangers of Wind, Water, and Earth poured their magic.
Justin quickly analyzed the situation. Knightion was protected by his stone armor, something that repelled each attack. He knew what the others were doing, but he was trying to find out some other way he could help. Knightion can't move because his feet are practically stuck under the weight of the stone armor.
The chain mace came his way after being subjected to magic attacks from Lina and Cassy. Justin ducked under it. "Orange Fire Sword!" With his blade in hand, Justin dodged the next swipe and brought it up while dashing forward. Using his telekinetic powers, he slowed the mace long enough so that his blade connected with the chain. At a standstill, Justin poured his magic into the sword and the runes engraved into it responded. Fire blossomed onto material and Justin swiped once more. The mace came cleanly off, flinging the ball into a wall of a nearby building and creating a nice hole.
Knightion growled. "You'll pay for that!" For a brief moment, his form flickered before Justin swore. Knightion managed to launch himself into the air and land with a loud crash. Energy waves flung upon the area and Justin just managed to dodge them. After several more minutes of this, centuries of erosion fast-forwarded by magic took its toll on Knightion as his armor grew cracks in it.
"Now it's my turn." Cassy pointed her palm out. "Growing Ice!" Every single crack was filled with ice, expanding further and further. Soon enough, the ice effectively shattered the rock. All that was left behind was a rather muscular humanoid creature wearing stereotypical knight armor.
Lina cocked her head to the side, the others knowing she was raising an eyebrow. "How stereotypical can one get?"
"No matter..." Alex panted. "Let's just fight." With a flash of light, he called his axe and the others brought out their own melee weapons.
With a battle cry, Knightion drew a large sword and charged, using a shield as protection.
Cassy met with him, daggers coming up in a guard position as the sword swiped down. She gritted her teeth as the force of it sent shockwaves up her arms. "Frozen Dagger-" Before Cassy could finish her chant, Knightion swept his foot up and kicked her in the stomach. With her down for a moment, the warrior turned to the other five, a dark grin staining with of his teeth they could see. The already tired Rangers were no match as Knightion tore through them like dolls.
"So much for a premiere battle." Adriana groaned.
"Our bodies are weak, our mind tired, our Ranger magic exhausted..." Jace left the thought hanging.
Cassy stood up. "Jace and I will take the rest for here." Before any of the other Rangers could protest, the two Rangers of Spirits walked forward.
"Energy surrounding us all, call forth your might and release!" Cassy closed her eyes as her hands weaved a spell. Soon enough, there was a bright glow around Knightion, who couldn't move.
Jace was chanting rapidly under his breath, hands tracing and retracing the runes of sword, light, and power. "Hikari no Hakujin!" With an explosion, a giant sword of bright energy crashed into the enemy knight, piercing him in half. At the same moment the sword touched, the aura surrounding Knightion exploded. A bright flash of light swept through the area, making everyone close his or her eyes.
When the light faded, everyone could see by the luminance of the moon that nothing past some dust on the ground was left.
Both Rangers fell to their knees and panted.
"Water, Ice!" The four Rangers scrambled to their comrades.
Right before they could reach them, however, a symbol of growth dated back to millenias ago, landed in the dust of Knightion. The monster grew to huge proportions and the Rangers dragged the other two back.
"He has his armor again." Justin sighed.
"We need more than the Humanist Megazord for this one." Lina added grimly.
The six took their positions and raised their right hands to the sky.
"We need Beast Elemental Zord Power, now!"
"Purple Bear Zord!"
"Brown Bull Zord!"
"Gold Lion Zord!"
"Silver Eagle Zord!"
"Aqua Serpent Zord!"
"Orange Phoenix Zord!"
"POWER UP!"
Justin found himself in a pilot seat with a joystick in the middle and multiple buttons and screens on both sides. He barely turned his head to the left as he circled Knightion, to see flashes of his teammates. Jace and Adriana were very much like his, although their interiors were aqua and silver, respectively, compared to his orange. Cassy, Alex, and Lina had cockpits with these weird kind of handles that you shift to the left to go left and push to go forward. The weapons were located all on the handles also.
"Okay." Justin said into the com unit as he dodged a strike from Knightion. "How do we do this one?"
From his Bull Zord, Alex replied. "Disarm him then pound. What else?" As Bull charged, the Zord fired eyes lasers continually at the swinging chain mace. Not that it did much, of course. With a near casual flick, Knightion sent Bull hurtling away.
"He's stronger!" Lina growled. With a leap, Lion dodged under the spinning mace and went right up to Knightion. From there, Lion started pawing, scratching, and even doing energy blasts. None of it left even a scratch on the armor. The chain soon ensnared Lion in its grasped. With its entire arsenal covered, Lion could only wait.
Not that Lina had to wait too long to be rescued. Justin piloted in, shooting fire bursts at the chain. As quickly as it appeared, Phoenix flew out, shooting into the sky. Cassy came up, shoot eye lasers that connected with the extremely hot spots left behind from Phoenix. The metal shattered under the pressure, leaving the mace on the ground.
"Heads up!" With Serpent's help, Eagle lifted the mace ball and tossed it at Knightion. With a loud crash, the stone armor weakened in that one spot.
"Full arsenal strike!" Jace called. Serpent's full arsenal came into view. Posed in mid-air, water blasts starting firing from the tail, oxygen missiles form the mouth, and energy beams from the head. All of this was concentrated on the weak defenses left by the attack. Eagle joined in, leaser beams, missiles, and tornadoes joining. Soon enough, every single Zord was firing their arsenal at the weak point. Earth energy, lightning bolts, flames, water, ice, wind... There was no end. Only when Knightion roared and shattered his stone armor, did the attacks stop.
There was awe in Jace's voice as it came over the com. "We're in deep trouble." The knight before them was definitely upgraded form his smaller version. Overall, he was faster and stronger, which he proved by kicking Bear away with as little will as it took to wiggle his finger.
Alex swore softly. "We need Megazord for this one."
"Beastist Megazord power up!" Justin shouted.
The Zords shifted around, twisting and turning to fit in place. Bear was the center, its face the chest as the lower body folded for mounts. Bull folded out, the lower half becoming legs. Serpent lengthened out and then folded inward to become the right arm. Lion also twisted and turned to become the left arm. The torso landed on the legs with the armors coming into place. Eagle attached itself to the back, forming wings and Phoenix folded in to become the head. All came together as the Rangers appeared in the cockpit.
"All ready?" Alex asked from the pilot seat.
"Ready!" Everyone else replied.
"Good." With controls much like the Humanist Megazord, Alex steered the Beastist Megazord toward Knightion.
"Back for more, eh?" Knightion laughed as he drew a sword.
"Well..." Alex said for a moment. "Beast Sword!" A long blade materialized in the Megazord's hands. The Megazord charged, sword clashing with Knightion's. The enemy kicked, catching Beastist in the chest. Stumbling slightly, Beastist once again raises his sword. "Any ideas? What's this thing got?"
Adriana quick scanned the weapons details. "There's a Magi Blaster, a Speed Mode Upgrade that lasts for five minutes, a final strike, and I guess this Raging Blade attack."
Jace cleared his throat a bit sheepishly. "This was designed for power rather than abilities, like the Humanist was."
A minor tremor shook through the Megazord. "See?"
"Raging Blade!" Alex roared. The Megazord charged forward and Knightion dodged easily. The Beastist skidded around and charged again, blade connecting with Knightion's chest. Thus started a series of combos that ended with a hard slash that did nothing more than then crack a bit of Knightion's sword.
Alex made the Megazord back off as he went into a defending position. "Justin..."
"I'm thinking..." Justin mumbled back.
Adriana snapped her fingers. "Can a Megazord run with three people?"
"If you really push the limits of how fast a Ranger can process, relay, and take action for data, then yes." Jace replied as another tremor rocked the battle robot. "One support staff would be doing double while the other, triple."
"Doesn't matter." Cassy shrugged. "How about the girls head over to the Humanist Megazord?"
"Okay." Alex grunted, the battle taking a toll on him.
"Just send your respective stations to me. Gimme yours, Lina and Cassy. Adriana, yours go to Justin." After the taping of keyboards and buttons filled the air, Jace and Justin were maddenly trying to keep everything in check. The three teleported out and raised their arms.
"We Need Humanist Megazord Power, now!"
The three girls found themselves inside of the Humanist Megazord. Cassy's eyes seemed to widen beneath her helmet. "Dear powers above." She immediately began typing at a rapid rate, as did Lina.
Adriana steered the Humanist Megazord toward the battle between Knightion and the Beastist Megazord, in which Knightion was dominating.
"Let's see what this baby can do!" The Humanist Megazord jumped into the air, a two-sided sword appearing in its hands. It raced down and plummeted into the ground after Knightion dodged. As the Humanist Megazord tried to reclaim its weapon, The Beastist Megazord charged.
"Speed Upgrade Mode!" Justin slammed a button and activated the transformation. Suddenly, the Beastist Megazord became thinner and much for maneuverable. With a battle cry, Beastist launched into the air, via Eagle, and dived. The sword jammed into the ground with a loud crack as Knightion rolled away, but was not safe. Humanist appeared next, katana glowing.
"Quad Slash!" Humanist Megazord dashed through Knightion, splitting into two and slicing through him again. Three Humanist Megazords appeared, cutting through him once more and then four came, flashing through the monster one last time. As the four finished their slash, they leapt into the air and formed one, stabbing at Knightion from the air before jumping backwards.
As their enemy was stunned, Jace and Cassy sent the last act into action
"Humanist Megazord..." Cassy started.
"Beastist Megazord..." Jace added.
"Dual Final Strike! Rage of the Elements!"
Beastist Megazord slashed through Knightion with a fire slash, followed by Humanist Megazord, who attacked with a wind slash. Both Megazords skidded around, Beastist attacking with a water slice and Humanist with an ice one. Once more, Beastist attacked with an earth sword strike while Humanist slashed with a thunder one. Beastist went once with, using a light powered attack and Humanist sped through Knightion with a dark based attack. Finally, both struck at the same time with the strongest element on Earth, the element of balance. Both Megazords slowly lowered their blades and Knightion disappeared into steam. Thus, another raging spirit was calmed.
"From the depths of Earth..." Alex whispered.
"The light inside..." Jace followed.
"Energy flowing everywhere..." Cassy continued.
"HEAL!"
Energy from light and earth flooded through out the area, reviving people whose time wasn't up and restoring the damages.
Their Megazords disappeared, the Rangers left standing in front of the mass of reporters. Questions came flying out at them quickly as possible. Lina checked the electric barriers and nodded.
"Stop!" Justin shouted. The noisy people ceased as they looked at the six defenders. "We are the Power Rangers Elementalists, sworn to defend Earth against invading spirits."
"What about the Astro Rangers of the news?" One reporter insisted.
Adriana replied. "Their main objective is a search mission with only occasion return trips here to defend against enemies."
"How did so much damage be repaired and I clearly saw people die, but they were revived. How?"
Jace answered that one with a simple word. "Magic."
"Magic?"
"Magic." Jace repeated, firmer.
"We do not wish knowledge of us to go beyond this city, understand?" Lina asked. "Anyone found transmitting pictures of us or video clips will be facing some computer viruses."
"Thunder." Alex chided. "Not really, but the data will be deleted immediately and the only reason we're appealing to your now is because our memory beam doesn't seem to work on large masses any more."
The reporters seemed to nod.
As an afterthought, Cassy added to that. "Fanfiction of us is appreciated and no legal action will be taken to you, should you write a disclaimer, as ones with our predecessors are quite good."
Random snickers went through the reporters.
"I'm sorry, but we must take our leave. Perhaps we meet here at 5 o'clock tomorrow?" Justin asked.
Murmurs of agreement assented as the six Rangers teleported out.
Back in the Control Base, the six Elementalists sighed as they demorphed.
"Kamion, did we do the right thing?" Justin looked up to their mentor.
"You handled it quite well, actually, both in respect with the reporters and the enemy." Kamion praised. "However, how will you be able to escape the crowds tomorrow?"
"Alley teleportation never failed us before." Lina responded.
"Yes, but perhaps you might rest now?"
"Dear spirits above, I thought you'd never ask." Alex remarked as they teleported away one last time.
"Good luck in your future battle, my children." Kamion whispered.
* * * * * * *
Justin returned to his house and came in. His dad greeted him and Justin immediately went up to his room and then to the bathroom. He cleaned himself thoroughly, letting his mind wander of the long events in the day. I still have to meet with them. I guess I'll do it after the press conference.
After drying himself off and donning his pajamas, Justin looked to his answering machine. There was a message and Justin recalled it. A very familiar voice came out.
"Hey Justin! It's Tommy. Kat and I are planning to visit Boston soon, so I wonder if you could show us around when we get there. Adam and Rocky might visit from their dojo, somewhere, also. Well, see ya!"
Justin froze. This was just not going right.
* * * * * * *
Mathais: I'm sorry it took so long to get the chapter up!
Justin: Yes, he is!
Lina: It's longer than a lot of his other chapters.
Adriana: Yeah!
Alex: And now, some responses.
pyrogirl123 - Thanks again! You're a faithful reviewer!
AzNnEgGrOePnOi - Thanks! Your stories are awesome as well! And I hear ya, there's still time left for other teams, remember!
xx2luv4everxx - Thank you for the complement. And yes, I will bring him back, but maybe not the next chapter. Hope you and AzNnEgGrOePnOi like the last scene!
Ashley22 - Thank you!
Mathais: See you next time!
Everyone: Bye!