Summary: A new ranger has arrived, except the only problem is he's evil. And his first battle was with Dr. Oliver. However, the remaining Dino Ranger receive an interesting challenge for the new "friend"…
A/N: Hope you guy's like this chapter! We'll get to see the Gold Ranger in all his glory. Btw, no one knows Hayden is the GR.
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Slowly, Tommy awoke from his forced slumber and groaned when he tried to sit up. Almost instantly he felt two hands pushing him back towards the bed. He couldn't quite make out the voice but it sounded oddly like Kimberly. He sighed and raised a hand to his face, rubbing the blurriness out of his eyes.
"Oh man…what happened?" Tommy groaned, holding his head. "I feel like I got run over by a Semi-Truck."
Kimberly smiled, her hands clasped together as tears ran down her face. Tommy glanced at her and sat up this time, gathering her into his arms. Standing behind her was Billy, Hayley and the other Rangers. Each of them looked relieved and happy. Then he remembered the reason he was in here.
"What happened to the Gold Ranger?" Tommy questioned, glancing between the Rangers. "And how long was I out?"
"Gold Ranger?" Conner said, raising a brow. He shrugged and shook his head. "You were out for about 3 hours and we know nothing of this…Gold Ranger."
Tommy sighed and hugged Kimberly a little closer. "That's the reason I'm here. I want to search for the meteor that crashed and suddenly someone was shooting at me. When I got closer to the meteor, it was gone." He growled and looked to the window. "Next thing I know, I'm be pummeled by the Gold Ranger. Oddly enough, he was morphed with a Dino Gem." He looked to Billy and Hayley, seeing their eyes wide. "That wasn't 3 Dino Gem's as we thought…it was one."
Billy glanced at Hayley and sighed, then turned away. They had work to do. To all the rangers that wasn't good news; a very dangerous, probably even psychotic, ranger on the loose with power very close, if no more than, Trents was definitely not good. Plus, he had to be good if he was able to defeat Tommy, of all people.
Kira sighed and laid a hand on her stomach. At that moment, she felt totally and utterly useless. With a child on the way, there wasn't anything she could do. Both Tommy and Conner forbade her from fighting; she, much like Kimberly was not happy with their bans. However, both of them knew what was at stake and eventually accepted it.
"I feel so useless." Kira sighed, lowering her head. Conner wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close. "Being pregnant…I can't help you guys…"
Conner grinned and kissed her forehead. "Don't worry about it. We'll pull through." He said, rubbing her back gently. He glanced at Tommy, his face stern. "Right, Dr. O?"
Tommy met his gazed and nodded fiercely. "Oh yeah. We are definitely going to kick this guy's ass."
"Speaking of which…guys, you should check this out…" Hayley shouted, peering at the computer screen.
Tommy eased himself off the bed with Kimberly's help and they headed towards the computer. Conner was the first to reach it and he growled angrily. "Well son of a gun…if it's the Gold Ranger."
Everyone peered at the screen now, watching it intently. He was standing there, in the rock quarry with staff on his shoulder.
"Dino Thunder Rangers! I know you can hear me!" He hissed, slamming the staff against the ground. A gold fire burned a ring around him and slowly spread out. Everyone watched wide-eyed as it created a dragon. "I'll give you ten minutes to get here before I start destroying the city. And trust me, I don't think you want to fight my zord…Oh yeah, bring that pathetic Doctor of Paleontology with you to. I'm sure he wants to take another crack at me."
Tommy growled and flicked his wrist. The others followed as their morphers appeared. The other's please fell on deaf ears as Conner, Trent, Ethan and Tommy raised their arms, preparing to morph.
The last words heard through the command center before vanishing in their brilliant lights was…
"DINO THUNDER! POWER UP!"
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Hayden tapped the staff against his shoulder as he stared at the meteor hole and then to his hand. The new power he had acquired was amazing; something he only dreamed of possessing. He grinned beneath his mask and suddenly heard a crack. His smile vanished and he turned to the face the arriving rangers. He frowned, only seeing 4 of the 6 six.
"Hey, where's pinky and goldilocks?" He asked, resting the staff again. "I thought there were six of you?"
"The four of us should be adequate challenge for you." Conner growled and activated his staff, then sank into stance.
The other's followed suit, withdrawing their own weapons and prepared for the battle. Hayden grinned and crossed his arms, taking a deep breath. "Gold Ranger, FULL POWER!" The golden hue consumed his being and the wave of energy struck everyone. Only Trent and Tommy didn't seemed phased by the sudden aura. The golden mantle wrapped around Hayden and he eased the staff to his side. "Dragon Morph – Dragon Dagger." He said calmly and held his staff out. His hand and staff was consumed by a golden light and it soon shrunk. Resting in his hand was now a rather vicious looking dagger. "If you think you can defeat me, then come."
Conner hissed and suddenly charged forward. He stabbed out towards the ranger but quickly found his staff plunging in the wrong direction. A quick switch and the dagger sliced across Conner's chest, sending golden sparks spewing into the air. Quickly, Conner recovered and lashed out again with a high struck. The Gold Ranger ducked out and slashed again, hard across the stomach. A second slash moved across the Red One's chest; the force lifting him into the air. Hayden simply rested his dagger as Conner slammed into the ground, screaming as he clutched his chest.
"One down." He remarked monotonously. "Who's next?"
Trent growled and slowly the two Rangers began to circle Hayden, their eyes watching his every movement; every breath; every sound. But he did none of those, or so it seemed like. Trent lowered his dagger, pointing the tip towards his foe as he scowled beneath his mask. Across from him, Tommy did the same; raising his staff high into a samurai-esc stance.
"I'm getting bored." He said suddenly and growled. "If you don't make your move soon, you're going to regret it."
The two rangers charged forward with a mighty battle cry. They drew their weapons back and with brilliant speed, they slashed at their foe. Except neither attacks touched. Tommy felt the rattle rush through his arms as his staff struck the dagger and Trent found himself almost eating dirt as his sword took a unwanted change of direction. The Gold One had caught the sword perfectly.
"Oh please…" Hayden scowled, shaking his head. "The news greatly over exaggerates your power, I'm afraid." A quick flick of his hands sent the ranger flipping in opposite direction and slamming viciously against the ground. "And Trent, I thought you were suppose to be the strongest one?"
Trent kipped-up and flipped high over Hayden's head as he stabbed towards his back. He landed perfectly and immediately lashed out. Hayden whirled around, parrying the blow and pushed it away. Trent followed through and twisted, striking high again. The Gold One ducked and struck towards his stomach, but Trent pivoted and let the blade slid by harmlessly. Back exposed, Trent struck and cut across the Golden One's back. Sparks flew through the air as Trent stepped back a few feet and fell into stance again.
Hayden hissed and slowly stood up and clutched his dagger tightly. "Dragon Morph – Dragon Staff." He said as the light returned and grew much longer. As quick as lightening, he turned and struck. The two rangers clashed in a volley of quick and powerful attacks; each parrying and dodging, moving to get room for a counter. But each were to skill, to wise to let each scenario's happen and found themselves at a stand still.
The blades collided and the Rangers leaned forward, pushing against each other with all their might. They growled angrily at each other as the energy flowed from their Dino Gems, empowering them more and more. Trent hissed and the two suddenly split apart and exchanged blows again; parrying, striking, sweeping and stabbing.
Trent slashed high as his blade passed over the ducking Hayden. Quickly he moved into a downward strike and swept the incoming staff away. Hayden followed the momentum and fell into a roll, moving to strike again. However, he found himself face to face with Trent and his swinging sword. It struck him across the face and a second swing across the chest. He twisted through the and crashed to the ground with an angry hiss.
Trent moved back again, drawing in his sword and waited, patiently, for his foe to get up. "Who's underestimated one's power now?" Trent taunted, tapping the sword against his shoulder. "Never underestimate us, Gold Ranger…" Suddenly, Hayden lashed out with a vicious thrust, catching Trent across the chest. Sparks flew through the air as the Gold One double timed and twisted, slicing hard down across the chest again. Pain racked Trents body as he rolled across the rocks before coming to near a large bolder. Hayden shook his head, grinning.
"We have the information we need. Leave, Hayden."
He looked down to the Dino Gem and nodded. "Yes Master." Looking up at Trent again, Conner and Tommy helped him to his feet. "Fortunately for you, my master has had enough playing with you. Next time Rangers, will be your last." Two golden wings's extended from his shoulders, spreading out far and wide. With a powerful flap, he lifted into the air and vanished in a blur of light…
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Conner mashed his hands together and growled as he glared at the wall. "Who is this guy?" Conner shouted, turning to face the others. Tommy didn't look any better; Kimberly at his side doing all she could for him. Trent looked more annoyed then injured. Ethan was tapping away as his computer, but an image of the Gold Ranger revolved around the screen. "What are you doing over there, Ethan?"
"I'm analyzing this guy." He said, frowning as he watched the words scroll down the text. "This guy's powers are unbelievable. I don't know who he is or where he came from, but this power isn't too different from ours. If anything, it's very similar to Trents."
Trent glanced at Ethan now; the words having caught his eye. "How so?"
"Well, the dino gem…excuse me, Dino Gem puts off a great deal of power. The second is the powers the Gem grants him. Those wings are one of them. His secondary power supply is another and lastly…he has your Super Speed, Trent." Ethan raised a brow. "However, he can't exactly call upon it at a whim."
"You know this how?" Conner asked, raising a brow.
"Do you even pay attention to anything the guy was doing?" Ethan chided, glancing back at him.
"Forgive me, I was too busy getting my ass kicked by this guy to notice anything else." Conner spat, growling angrily. Ethan rolled his eyes and looked at his computer again.
"Based on my calculations, this guy can only call upon his super speed when he's angry. You saw how fast that guy popped up after Trent knocked him down. Much less on how quick he delivered those blows." He scratched his head and shut the laptop. "Not only is he fast, but he's strong too; strong enough to take Dr. O down in just a chain of hits."
Hayley sighed and ran a hand through her hair. They had enough to deal with and they didn't need this; not now at least. "Look, lets sleep on this for a while. I've get to get the Cyber Café and get it ready. Anyone want to join me?"
All eyes seemed to descend greedily upon her.
"Thought so. All right, come on. We'll talk more about this later." She said and picked up her purse and keys. With a sigh they all headed out…
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Hayden stood before the Cyber Café doors, glaring daggers at them. He looked down at the golden bracelet on his wrist and grinned.
"Remember, you are here only for the rangers: Conner McKnight, Ethan James, Thomas Oliver and Trent Mercer."
Hayden nodded and flicked his wrist, the morpher disappearing. He pushed open the doors and eyed the room, quickly spotting the Dino teens. He grinned devilishly and approached the counter. Hayley smiled wryly as she moved to him. "Can I get you anything?" She asked, raising a brow.
Hayden was silent for a moment and then nodded. "Peach Smoothie." He said, glancing at the Rangers. His eyes wandered over them for a moment before scanning their bracelets. Each wore one very similar to his; their device for transforming and communicating. A moment later, Hayley swung around and sat the Smoothie down. Hayden tossed the money onto the bar and quickly moved to the opposite end of room. Sitting down at the couch, his eyes remained focus on the Dino Thunder Rangers.
"Notice their movements and discussion. They are concerned of your presence, Hayden."
Hayden glanced at his bracelet and then back to the Rangers. "As they should."
"Yes, they should be afraid of your power. Look! New comers to the café."
Hayden glanced at the door as a tall, thin black haired male and his slightly shorter, blonde counterpart walked through. They were Cassidy and Devin; friends since the beginning of Reefside High and just recently friends of the Dino Rangers. Hayden watched them carefully as they moved towards the rangers and sat next to them. They seemed right at home with the Rangers as they did back; another advantage for the Gold Ranger.
"New friends, I see? This is our advantage, Hayden. Leave and prepare; we shall strike soon."
Hayden stood up and set the half empty glass on the counter. Before Hayley could do or say anything, he was gone…
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"I can't believe there's another ranger on the loose." Devin said, rubbing his chin. "Have you guy's managed to find out who it is?"
It was night time now; most of the teens had gone home. Those who lingered were asleep on the couches or in chairs. Tommy shook his head, sipping at his smoothie and sighed. "No, but whoever he is, he's one mean dude; and he definitely has it in for us."
Cassidy shivered and rubbed her arm. "Great; as if Mesogog wasn't bad enough." She sighed. She suddenly shrieked seeing the time on her watch. "Oh god, we've got to go Devin!" Devin glanced his watched and freaked as well. "Thanks for the smoothies you guy! See you tomorrow!" The two of them quickly grabbed their things and headed out the door.
"Car keys." Cassidy said, holding out her hand. Devin tossed them into her palm and suddenly she stopped, her hand crashing into his chest.
"Cassidy, what's wrong?" He asked, seeing her stare into the distance. He followed her gaze and frowned. "Hey, isn't that Hayden?"
Hayden stood before them, his arms crossed firmly over his chest. The two friends watched him closely, frowning. The look on his face was dark…almost…evil. Suddenly, he lowered one arm, leaving the other raised; both of them gasped. It was a Dino Bracelet. With a flick of his wrist, the Golden Dragon head appeared. "Gold Ranger, Dino Thunder, Full Power." A golden light over took Hayden again and all encompassing power ran through his veins once more. He clutched his Dragon Staff tightly as he glared at the two friends.
Cassidy and Devin took a few steps back, their eyes wide with horror. Hayden lowered himself into stance and then…charged…
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A/N: OHH! CLIFFHANGER'D! Don't you just love me :P Hayden's secret is out at his will, but what is going to happen to Cassidy and Devin? Will the rangers be there to help them? Or will something worse happen… Also, what do you guys think of Hayden so far?
May the Powers Protect You.