To my faithful reviewers :) -- Sky's Girl Forever, I'm so glad you're enjoying the stories. But if you don't like waiting, you're not gonna like how this chapter ends :). Koulagirl -- like I said, I knew I'd be pushing it with so many subplots, but this is a fairly enormous story, and the only thing I can promise is that if anybody's confused, once they reach the end of the story, it'll all make crystal-clear sense. Anyway, onto chapter five. Trust me, the cool stuff starts happening here :)...

Chapter Five

The Rangers shot down towards the city in eight bright flashes of light, materialising side-by-side across a wide lane by the city outskirts. On one side, stone ruins stretched as far as they could see, empty and silent, while on the other, the crumbling city wall stood only a short distance away, the coastline and crashing surf beyond.

"Creepy and deserted," said Kimberly, gazing around the city. "Cool."

Trini stepped forward, and looked back to the group. "I guess this is Azhron. I don't suppose anyone saw Ian or Brendan on the way in?"

Everybody shook their heads. "We'll have to stick with plan 'A'," said Teresa. "Find whatever is stopping us from teleporting and break it."

The Yellow Ranger nodded. "That's our best bet," she replied. "With luck, we should've arrived fairly close..."

"Guys?" said Scott suddenly, his back to the group. "I think I've got something. Up there on that hill."

Everybody turned in the direction he was pointing - about a kilometre beyond the city outskirts, a tall stone tower about the size of a grain silo stood on a grassy hill overlooking the coastline an array of bristling antennas protruding from the building's tiled roof.

"I think Scott's right," said Sarah.

Billy nodded. "Any kind of machinery designed to block or interfere with planetary teleportation would theoretically need broadcasting facilities," he said. "I'd venture to guess that's your best bet."

"About time we got to break something," said Zac.

Trini turned to Billy and Tommy. "We'll get going, but you'll have to stay here," she said. "Although not here here. Callan probably saw us arrive. If there are Shadow Knights roaming the city, they won't be far away."

"Affirmative," Billy agreed. "On our descent I noticed a large structure approximately one hundred metres back towards the city that still looked structurally sound, a temple or hall of some sort. Tommy and I can shelter there until you return," and raising his morpher, the Rangers saw that the Dragonzord Coin was now faintly glowing. "I think Tommy's Power Coin is almost charged anyway."

"Yay for running and hiding," Tommy said, with too much enthusiasm not to be sarcasm.

Kimberly stepped forward. "We won't be long," she said. "We'll be back before you know it."

Trini stepped over to Billy. "Just promise you'll stay safe," she said softly. "I hate the idea of leaving you here to fend for yourselves."

"Affirmative," the Blue Ranger replied. "We'll be okay."

Trini nodded, and turned back to the others. "Let's move!" With that, the six Rangers immediately turned and raced away, disappearing into the jungle as Billy and Tommy stood watching them go.

Billy turned to Tommy. "I suspect we'd best get moving," he said.

Tommy nodded. "You saw this place," he began. "After you."

The two Rangers turned and quickly began jogging back down the street. Billy nodded as they rounded a corner and the building he'd seen earlier came into view - when the city was alive it had either been a church or a temple, and although weeds covered the walls and there were sizable holes in the building's roof, it still appeared structurally sound. Wide and tall with heavy stone walls, the temple had thick stone doors and was surrounded on all sides by a walled garden with a pair of enormous timber gates at both the building's front and back entrances.

Remembering what Tommy had said earlier, Billy looked to him. "We'll be safe there," he said. "We only would've slowed the others down had we accompanied them, and once they've taken care of the anti-teleportation broadcasts, we can..."

"Billy," said Tommy, "I don't want to talk about it. Drop it, will you?"

Billy looked away. "Sure," he said softly. "My apologies."

Tommy sighed at his friend's tone, about to reply when he caught sight of movement in the distance - a troop of armour-clad Shadow Knights, all armed with staffs and bladed weapons, rounding a corner up ahead straight for the street he and Billy were standing in the middle of. The rubble protecting the teens from view would only hide them for a few more seconds.

"Billy..."

Seeing the approaching soldiers, Billy glanced around quickly, soon spotting a tiny alcove by the side of the building's walled fence. "Over there!" he said tersely, and the two Rangers sprinted over, leaving the street a second before the knights rounded the corner. Ducking behind the stone wall, they crouched down out of sight as the troops marched past, holding their breaths and hoping they hadn't been seen.

Finally, the troops passed by, heading around to the plaza where the Rangers had arrived and disappearing from sight. Watching the street, Billy let out of a sigh of relief. A troop of unsuperpowered soldiers wasn't that worrying, all things considered, but if they had a way of contacting Callan, things would've gotten very difficult very quickly. Peter had said that the Staghorn monster had gone missing mid-fight, which was also a reason to worry. Unknowns made for bad science, and he tried to avoid them as often as possible.

"I believe they're gone," he whispered.

Behind Billy, his back to the road, Tommy was peering through a crack in the stone wall. "Billy?" he began. "I don't think that we're the only ones hiding from those soldiers," and he glanced back to Billy and indicated the gap in the wall. "Check it out."

Stepping forward and kneeling down to peer into the building, Billy immediately saw that Tommy was right - the temple was full of people and movement. Soldiers, dozens of them, all young men wearing armour with even younger teenagers visible in the background. They carried similar weapons to the Shadow Knights but their body armour was red and silver, and although there was a definite tension in the air, these soldiers were neither grim nor silent. A group of them closest to the wall were talking over a table of maps and scrolls, while the men behind appeared to be sparring with swords and staffs.

"Extraordinary," Billy murmured, glancing to Tommy. "What do you think?"

"I think you'd best tell me who you are and what you're doing here," came a sudden voice from behind them. "Rest assured much hangs on the speed of your answer."

They immediately spun around to face the speaker - one of the soldiers stood over them, only a few feet away. He had copper-coloured skin and a head of dark curls, and although he was dressed in the same red and silver armour as the other soldiers inside, the sword at his belt was different, and his gauntlets and boots had a thin blue band around them. But as they looked, they saw that although the soldier's body gave the impression of a hardened warrior, his face was that of a boy, maybe fifteen or sixteen, no older than either of them. It was his eyes that startled them the most - they were hard, the eyes of a far older man.

Billy and Tommy quickly climbed to their feet. "We apologise for the intrusion," Billy said, "but we are neither villains nor spies."

The boy shook his head. "You certainly do not appear to be heroes."

Billy felt Tommy bristle and move to respond, but the Blue Ranger turned and held up his hand, and Tommy sighed and backed down. "I know what you may be thinking," Billy began, turning back to the warrior and hoping his guess-work was correct, "but we are no allies of Callan, and you need not fear for your army. Callan wishes us dead, as we protect a friend he seeks to destroy."

The boy's eyes narrowed, and he was silent for a moment, before suddenly offering them a smile and stepping back. "Forgive me," he said. "Friends are hard to come by in times such as these, but I see the honesty in your eyes. Please, follow me. We must not stay outside."

With Tommy following a half-step behind, Billy followed the teen back around to the back of the building.

Billy stepped forward to catch up to the soldier. "Forgive me for asking," he began, "but who are you?"

The boy nodded. "My apologies," he replied, speaking quickly. "My name is Trystenn. I'm sure you know of the day when Callan the Grey Ranger killed Varian and conquered this city, but what you may not know is that Varian was never meant to be king of Azhron in the first place. He had a brother who's throne he usurped, and that particular line went unbroken."

Billy stopped and turned to him, realising what the soldier was telling them. "And you are the rightful king, aren't you?" he asked.

By now they'd reached the enormous wooden gates. Trystenn nodded as he threw them open, ushered the Rangers into the overgrown courtyard and bolted the gates shut behind them, before crossing the courtyard and pulling open the temple's stone doors.

"Here," he said, and led the two Rangers inside. The temple's interior was wide and airy, with smaller rooms along either wall all occupied by Trystenn's soldiers. But at the sight of the two intruders the soldiers immediately turned to face them, many raising their weapons and stepping forward. There were maybe twenty or thirty of them in total, most of them young men who, like Trystenn, looked far too young for their age.

Trystenn stepped towards them. "These men are friends," he called, looking around the room. "Do them no ill." The men instantly backed down, and Billy knew he'd guessed right - there was a commanding tone to Trystenn's voice that reminded him more than anything of Jason.

Trystenn turned back to the two Rangers. "The rightful prince, technically," he continued. "Callan has been trying to wipe out all traces of Azhron's ruling family for six hundred years, for what purpose I do not know. Some leave the country, some indeed leave the planet, and some are simply not that fortunate."

"So why are you in the city?" Billy asked.

"We saw Callan and a troop of his knights leave yesterday," Trystenn replied. "We thought we could retake the city in his absence."

"I'm afraid your plan stood no chance," Billy said. "Callan was on Earth only briefly."

"That we know," Trystenn replied. "Although..."

At the opposite end of the hall, a sudden commotion caught the attention of all three, and they turned as a young boy, barely ten or eleven years old and lacking the armour of the soldiers around him, raced through the hall towards them.

"Trystenn!" the page called, approaching the group. "We have reports of a hundred Shadow Knights all approaching us from the south and accompanied by a strange horned-beast!"

"Staghorn," nodded Billy, then turned to Trystenn. "They didn't follow us, did they?"

Trystenn shook his head. "They cannot have," he replied. "We watched you approach from the north." He paused, shaking his head. "This is bad," he continued, speaking quickly. "Callan has more power than we can hope to match, and his knights totally outnumber us. If he moves against us now, we stand no chance. Are either of you fighters or great warriors?"

There was a second of silence as Billy glanced down to his communicator, now practically useless thanks to the interference in the planet's atmosphere, and briefly looked over to Tommy, still silent and eyes downcast, before turning back to Trystenn. "Negative," he replied softly. "Not at present."

Billy watched as Trystenn's face turned pale. "Then we're in a great deal of trouble," he said.

As Trystenn's small band of refugees all began readying themselves for battle, outside, Staghorn and the hundred Shadow Knights behind him moved quickly towards the temple, the entire company coming to a hall outside the large timber gates behind the building.

"This is the place?" Staghorn asked, turning to the Shadow Knights' general beside him.

The man nodded. "The exiles are located within this temple," he replied. "Several knights on patrol spotted them earlier. I can't imagine why Trystenn returned, but they're definitely inside. Finally we have the opportunity to wipe out the rebels with a single stroke."

Staghorn's mouth curved into an evil grin. "And if we're lucky, there'll be a Power Ranger or two in there as well," he said, then raised his voice. "Surround the building. You," and he turned to the soldiers on his left, "come with me, we attack from the front. The rest of you, stay here. Break down these gates, burn the courtyard, and as Callan ordered, leave nothing alive inside."

"Sir, they're surrounding the building," one of the soldiers shouted, the fear in his voice audible. "The monster is leading half the army to the courtyard at the front of the temple!"

"The troops at the back have a battering ram," called another soldier from the rear of the hall, a short distance away from Billy, Tommy and Trystenn. "They're trying to break down the gates!"

Helplessness flashed across Trystenn's expression, but was almost immediately replaced by a determined resolve, and the prince looked back to Billy and Tommy beside him. "I'm sorry you were both caught in the middle of this," he said quickly. "If either of you could bear arms, at least we will fall fighting," and with that, Trystenn turned back to the refugees, all of them looking to him for guidance.

"To arms brothers!" he said, striding into the centre of the room and unsheathing his sword. "Our foes are upon us - they expect to find us as cowering fools, but let us meet them as wolves. If it is our blood they want, then we will fight them for every last drop!"

At the back of the room, Billy watched as the soldiers rallied around Trystenn. Frowning, he hesitated for a few seconds but then turned to the Green Ranger nearby. "Tommy," he began, "would it be entirely possible to perhaps have a word with you in private, if I may?"

Looking up, Tommy nodded, and Billy took the Green Ranger's arm and steered across the hall into one of the side rooms before turning back to face him.

"What's the matter?" Tommy asked.

Billy adjusted his glasses, hesitated a second longer, then spoke, looking up and catching Tommy's gaze. "I'm not sure if you've noticed, Tommy, but right now an entire army of Shadow Knights is surrounding this building, every one with the single goal of killing everybody in this temple. Right now, that includes the two of us." Tommy stepped back at Billy's tone, and he opened his mouth to argue but Billy continued. "Of the two of us, one of us is a master martial artist with more than enough experience in defeating large groups of opposing forces, while the other is the tech-support guy who the rest of the team can barely understand."

Tommy lowered his gaze, and shook his head. "Billy, they need a hero," he said softly. "They need a Power Ranger, not a ..."

"And they're going to get one," Billy replied, his voice so strong he surprised himself. "Tommy, you are the Green Ranger, not the other way around. Do you think that Kimberly fell for the Green Ranger the second she saw him? Does Jason consider the Green Ranger his brother and equal? Of course not," and Billy paused, letting what he was saying sink in, before continuing. "That's you, Tommy, that's all you."

Tommy stepped back even further and felt the corner of the room behind him. "But what if...?"

"Callan started his career as a hero and look what happened to him," Billy continued. "Perhaps it's for the best you began evil. But irrespective of everything else," and Billy indicated the hall behind them, "there are approximately three dozen people in immediate danger out there and there is no question that you are going to go back out there and help them, is that clear?"

The Blue Ranger nodded, stepping back, but he glanced to Tommy and frowned. "Sorry for raising my voice," he mumbled.

Tommy paused, stunned into silence, but then slowly, a smile crossed his face. "Billy, you're one in a million," he said, then clasped the Blue Ranger's shoulder. "And I don't know where we'd be without you. Thanks. Now c'mon, powers or not, let's show these guys what happens when they mess with the Power Rangers."

The entire wall shook as the battering ram slammed against the twin wooden gates protecting the temple's courtyard. Quickly backing away, the six soldiers carrying the ram raced forward once again, the gates shaking under the impact. Watching as the soldiers attacked the gates once more, the general stood to one side, smiling as whatever holding the doors closed began to splinter and give way. Another pounding blow saw the gates begin to sag on their hinges, and with one final crash, the gates splintered and broke open.

The soldiers threw the battering ram aside as the general stepped into the courtyard, the rest of the Shadow Knights following him forward and spreading out on either side - only to come to a sudden stop at what lay within. Tommy, his hands folded across his chest and appearing supremely unconcerned at the sudden appearance of the army, stood facing them down from the centre of the garden.

"Hi ya fellas," he said.

The general stepped forward in almost drunken disbelief. "You must be joking," he said, a cruel smile taking shape beneath his helmet. "I have fifty men behind me, and they're relying on one lone boy to protect them? You don't stand a chance."

Tommy nodded. "You know what, you're completely right," he said. "Just me against so many of you," and the Green Ranger grinned. "It hardly seems fair."

"Your confidence is amusing," the man smirked. "But tragically misplaced."

"Really?" Tommy asked. "Well you can think what you want, but trust me on this," and the Green Ranger's voice was suddenly like steel. "Not a single person here will take one step past me, is that clear?"

"If that's your choice, so be it," the man replied, and drawing his sword, he suddenly leaped towards the Green Ranger, swinging the blade as he charged. Tommy ducked the general's first swing and blocked the second, knocking the man back with a palm strike followed by a powerful uppercut. The man roared and swung again, but Tommy stepped around the blow, catching him on the shoulder as he stumbled past. The general turned back to face him, dazed, and while he was still off-balance, Tommy spun around on the spot, kicking high, slamming his heel into the man's helmet and taking him head-over-heels to the ground.

"C'mon boys," he said, turning back to the army and wiping the sweat from his brow. "You're gonna have to do better than that."

The other knights closed in quickly to avenge their fallen leader - one attacked from the left but Tommy caught the man's descending staff and struck him away with a blow to the ribs, before turning back, blocking a blow from the right with his forearm, grabbing his opponent's arm and spinning him off his feet. Two more soldiers attacked, falling towards him from either side - he ducked under a blade and lightly kicked the man away, stepping back around a wide swing from the second knight's staff and flattening the man with a blow to the jaw - the first soldier returned, but Tommy ducked a wide swing and blocked a high punch before taking the man down with a punch to the solar plexus.

More soldiers fell towards him, the closest knight swinging his sword low - Tommy leaped up and over the blade, turning to drop the soldier with a roundhouse right punch that spun the knight off his feet. Turning back around, Tommy dodged around another sword, grabbed the man's shoulder while he was still off-balance and threw him into a third attacker, downing them both. Another soldier struck out for Tommy with his staff, but Tommy dodged the move and kicked the weapon away with his left foot, sending the man crashing with a right spin kick. The soldier dropped his staff as he fell, and spinning around, Tommy kicked the weapon towards a line of approaching soldiers with such force it sent them all crashing back.

Another soldier rushed in from the side, but Tommy stepped around a high punch and sent the man crashing as he passed with a high kick. Two more adversaries attacked, slashing forward, and Tommy took to the air, leaping over their blades and kicking forward, taking several knights to the ground as he landed. His heart pounding, Tommy ducked instinctively as a staff swept towards him. The soldier swung again but Tommy caught the weapon and used it to block an attack from an opponent on the other side. Kicking the first soldier away, he wrenched the staff from the man's grip and used it to bat away the second soldier's weapon before sending him backwards with a blow to the helmet. Spinning the staff around him, Tommy turned back to the rest of the troop, who for their part were now edging back away from him.

A few metres away, Trystenn was watching the battle through one of the temple windows, staring in wide-eyed amazement as beaten and unconscious Shadow Knights continued piling up around Tommy. "Your friend is certainly... impressive," he said finally.

Billy nodded, and turned to the prince. "And there are ten more just like him, all on their way," he said. "Tell your troops to stand down - we're in no danger, not any more. The Power Rangers are here. The threat is over."

Across the courtyard, now wary of their opponent, the Shadow Knights closed in cautiously around Tommy before all falling on him at once - wielding the staff, Tommy blocked a high punch and struck the soldier away with a blow to the chest, spinning the weapon around and striking a second away before ducking under a sword, dropping low and sweeping a third opponent's legs out from under him. Spinning back around to face two more soldiers, he dodged a wide swing from one and blocked the second's staff with his own. The first soldier leaped back towards him, swinging high, but Tommy stepped back and struck him away as he passed, flattening the second knight with a clanging blow to the helmet.

Another soldier raced towards him, swinging high with a sword - Tommy stepped to the side and raised the staff to deflect the blow, the sword slicing the staff neatly in two. But now armed with two weapons, Tommy struck the soldier away with one hand, took out a knight on the opposite side with a blow to the shoulder and spun a third soldier away from him. Turning back as a soldier charged through the courtyard towards him, he launched both weapons through the air towards the man, the weapons knocking the soldier off his feet and taking him to the ground.

Behind Billy and Trystenn, one of Trystenn's guards suddenly raced through the temple towards them. "My prince!" he called, and Trystenn turned to the man. "The monster and his knights have broken through the front gates!"

Billy turned to reply when he suddenly realised he could hear a faint humming noise, and reaching down to his back pocket, he held out his morpher - the Dragonzord Power Coin was now glowing so brightly it hurt to look at. Billy nodded. They were ready. "Tommy!"

The Green Ranger kicked a soldier away and looked over to Billy. "Yeah?"

Billy pulled the coin free and held it up. "It's finished charging!" he called, and taking aim, he threw the coin through the air.

Tommy reached for his back pocket, snagged the coin out of the air with his other hand and slammed it into his morpher. "Awesome," he grinned, as Billy returned his own coin to his morpher and stepped out into the courtyard to join him. "Let's do it! It's morphin' time!"

"Dragonzord!"

"Triceratops!"

The courtyard exploded in light and sound, and when the blaze of light faded away, the Green and Blue Rangers were standing side-by-side facing down the army.

"I still can't take down a monster on my own," said Tommy quickly. "You go, and I'll deal with the rest of these guys."

Billy nodded. "Affirmative," he replied, and raced back into the building.

"Billy!" Tommy shouted, and as Billy stopped and turned back to him, Tommy pulled his Dragon Dagger free and threw it towards the Blue Ranger - Billy reached out and caught the dagger, and in a flash of light, the Blue Ranger was suddenly wearing Tommy's chest shield and golden armour. "Go kick its butt," Tommy called.

With Trystenn and the refugees now watching in silent, open-mouthed astonishment, Tommy turned back to the remaining Shadow Knights.

"Well boys," he said, striding towards them, "the rules just changed," and the Green Ranger charged forward to continue the battle.

With the gates to the front courtyard blasted clean off their hinges, the Shadow Knights marched through the archway before the dust had even begun settling, Staghorn urging them forward from behind.

"Break down the doors!" Staghorn called, as the knights approached the temple. "Storm the building and..."

Without warning the building's stone doors exploded outwards in a blaze of fire and smoke, the knights leaping to safety as rubble and debris rained down over the courtyard. Turning back to the building's entrance, everyone watched as the smoke cloud began to dissipate, only to see the Blue Ranger standing framed in the doorway, the golden Dragon Shield around his chest sparkling in the sunshine.

"The refugees of Azhron are under my protection," said Billy. "And make no mistake, none of you will achieve your goal this day."

Across the courtyard, Staghorn sneered. "And you alone will stop us, will you?" he asked, before lowering his antlers and sending a massive blast of energy spiralling towards the Blue Ranger. The entire area erupted in sparks and fire, but as the blaze faded away, Billy calmly stepped through the haze towards them, totally unaffected by the blast.

"Affirmative," he replied brightly.

Staghorn roared. "Shadow Knights!" he thundered, gripped with white-hot rage. "Get him!"

As one, the knights leaped towards the Blue Ranger, all slashing out with their weapons. Without breaking his stride, Billy caught a staff as it swept towards him and lightly struck its owner away, before turning to block a blade and launching the soldier backwards with a right backhand. Billy continued forward as more soldiers fell towards him - he struck away an attacker on the left, sent an opponent on the right crashing with a rapid palm strike, before catching a high punch and spinning the man off his feet. More soldiers raced towards him, but spinning around on the spot, he took one to the ground with a high kick before sending the other flying back over the wall with a heel to the chest. Another pair of knights attacked from each side, but the Blue Ranger easily caught their helmets, threw them away and continued, as if nothing had interrupted his stroll through the courtyard.

The crowd parted, the soldiers still standing all giving the Blue Ranger a wide berth, and Billy suddenly found himself face-to-face with Staghorn.

"Fancy armour or not, you don't stand a chance," the monster rumbled.

Billy nodded. "Let's test that theory," he replied, and with that, Staghorn attacked.

The monster immediately struck out for the Blue Ranger, but Billy blocked a high punch and batted away a low swipe, striking the monster away with a rapid chest strike. Staghorn stumbled backwards and Billy took to the air, leaping forward and landing a high kick to the beast's snout before dropping to the ground and finding his footing. Staghorn roared angrily and lashed out - Billy struck away one blow and kicked away a stomach-high swipe, landing a powerful blow to Staghorn's stomach before forcing the monster back with a jump kick. Dazed from the assault, Staghorn grunted and blasted again with his antlers, the blast bouncing straight back off the Dragon Shield and slamming the monster backwards.

"Enough," said Billy, and reaching down, he unsheathed the Dragon Dagger and raised it high - glowing with power, he slashed the weapon down towards the monster, power exploding from the blade's arc, scorching across the battlefield and slamming into Staghorn, the beast instantly destroyed in a massive explosion that lit up the courtyard and echoed down through the deserted city.

At this, the remaining Shadow Knights all dropped their weapons and ran, disappearing back out into the city ruins. Billy nodded and turned back to the temple, only to see the Green Ranger watching him from the doorway.

"You know, for the tech-guy," Tommy began, walking towards the Blue Ranger, "that was awesome."

Quickly making their way through the abandoned city, the six Rangers passed the crumbling city wall and continued towards the hill in the distance. Passing fields of stone ruins, they reached the grassy hill in good time, the crashing ocean down to their right and the tower rising above them. Forty feet tall and resonating with a curious humming noise, the tower seemed to lack any kind of window or openings apart from a thick wooden door at its base.

"What do you think?" asked Scott as they approached.

"This is definitely the place," nodded Trini. "I wonder who built it?"

"Probably Callan himself," Teresa replied. "To keep everybody out of his city. I mean, a device designed to mess with teleportation? He probably had us in mind when he built it."

"So let's bring it down and give him one heck of a surprise," said Sarah. "Power Mace!"

Zac nodded. "Power Axe!" he called, the weapon materialising in his hand. "No guards. Guess they're all down in the city looking for us."

"Guys," said Kimberly suddenly, looking back down towards Azhron, "check it out." From their vantage point, they could make out a great deal of movement through the ruined city streets, and even as they watched, there was an explosion behind a large building, a bright fireball rising into the sky.

"Okay, we need to move," said Trini, and turned to the Black Ranger beside her. "Zac...?"

"You got it," he said. Stepping forward, Zac levelled his Power Axe at the wooden door and fired, instantly reducing the door to splinters. Without wasting another second the Rangers charged inside, coming to a stop immediately inside the doorway.

"Wow," said Teresa simply.

Inside the building, heavy-duty machinery seemed to rise up through the tower all the way to the ceiling, a vertical maze of twisting pipes, clanking gears, sparking wires and humming power boxes, all leading to an array of antennas poking out through the tower's roof. Large exhaust fans stood a few metres away on the left, while to the right were several computer consoles, the buttons and keys beneath the monitors decorated in an alien language none of them could identify. However, everyone's attention was drawn to the centre of the room, where a shining black crystal hung suspended in a crackling electrical field between two large metal plates a few metres in front of them.

"It's broadcasting a signal into the planet's atmosphere," said Trini. "Just like Billy said."

"He sure picked the wrong mission to sit out on," Kimberly nodded.

Zac nodded. "Let's just not tell him what we're about to do," he said. "Any ideas?"

Beside him, Sarah stepped forward. "Just one," she said. "We're the Power Rangers - if we can't break it then it can't be broken."

Taking aim, she swung her mace for the black crystal with all her strength, the weapon instantly shattering the jewel into thousands of shards and scattering them across the room. For a second, nothing happened, and Sarah stepped back to join the others. Suddenly, the gears above them began grinding to a shuddering halt as the power boxes around all began to shake erratically. The chain reaction continued up through the tower, machinery screeching and shuddering in protest - sparks and smoke suddenly erupted from a power box halfway up the tower, and pieces of metal began falling free as explosions rocked the towering machinery.

"Great work!" shouted Scott over the noise of the destruction. "Now let's get out of here!"

The Rangers turned and raced back out of the building, leaping clear just as a massive explosion shook the entire building, a fireball roaring up through the tower and blasting the roof clean off. The Rangers reached the edge of the hill and turned back, catching their breath as debris continued to rain out of the sky from the burning tower.

Zac had to smile. "And we didn't even need Megazord," he said.

Trini raised her communicator, and pressed the top button - static no longer issued forth, and she smiled as she heard Billy and Tommy's voices. "Guys, we did it!" she said, looking back to the other Rangers. "Our communicators are online!"

Teresa smiled. "So let's go pick up Billy and Tommy, and then go find Ian and Brendan," she said. And reaching for their communicators, the Rangers teleported from the scene in six bright flashes of light.

The sounds of battle across the city died away as Callan stepped into the throne room, his footsteps echoing off the stone tiles, his gaze locked onto the king's.

"Varian..."

The king smiled coolly. "Callan," Varian said, and Callan felt a surge of white-hot rage at the mere sound of Varian's voice. "I'd heard Zordon had recruited you as a Ranger. You're looking well."

Callan stepped towards him, and was darkly pleased to see Varian raise his sword and take a half-step back. "Bad luck for you," he said.

"On the contrary," Varian replied. "I can finish what I started."

"You pompous bastard," growled Callan, his rage spilling over. "You took everything from me just because you could, and I'm here this night to repay you."

"I know your code hero," Varian replied with a smug smile. "I am but a man, and as a Ranger you are forbidden to..."

But as Varian spoke, Callan threw his blasters aside, reached down to his belt and pried his Power Coin free - he demorphed in a flash of silver light, and as the fallen blasters vanished, he threw his coin away where it clattered to the ground behind him. Varian stepped back again, glancing from the coin to Callan and suddenly realising that things weren't quite going how he'd planned.

"I am here as a man, not as a hero," Callan replied, his expression one of cold fury. "And I promise you Varian you will not live to see this night end!"

Desperation overtook him, and Varian leaped towards Callan, swinging blindly. Callan easily ducked under a wide slice, dodging a second slash and stepping around a third. Enraged, Varian slashed the sword back towards him, but Callan struck the king's arm away and attacked, landing a punch to the king's stomach and a blow to his jaw. Varian stumbled back but swung again - stepping forward, Callan caught Varian's wrist and aimed a blow for the king's arm, breaking the bone with a 'crack' and snapping it backwards at an impossible angle. Varian cried out in pain and dropped the sword, and Callan struck him away with a right backhand that sent the king sprawling to the ground.

Even as Varian scrambled back away from him, Callan coolly reached down and picked up the fallen sword. His heart racing, he calmly walked towards Varian, and stood over the defeated king.

"Please," Varian stuttered, the arrogance and contempt gone from his voice, "please... you're a Power Ranger..."

Callan nodded. "Yes," he said, "and I kill monsters," and with that, he slashed the sword straight for Varian's throat.