Epilogue: 5 years after Darius' apparent death, we learn what is happening with the other rangers.
A/N: I'll put it like this: Surprise!
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"Five years." He said, looking down at the mansion-esc log house. A thin smile came to his lips as his eyes flickered shut. He had so many memories of the old house; of Conner, of Kira, of Ethan…Tommy and Kim. A single tear trickled down his face and his eyes opened again. He couldn't bare it any longer…his heart was breaking again. "Its been so long…"
"You're crying?" The Mighty Dragon said, glancing back at the golden-brown haired one. "This is a first…"
He opened his eyes and smiled, raising a hand to brush away the tears. "Sorry Dragon…life has been very lonely, my old friend." He knelt down, petting the giant dragons long neck. "…I feel empty inside within my friends."
"Liar." He said and the stunned man stared wide-eyed at his counterpart. "On more then one occasion have I heard you whimpering on my back at night. Too many, if you ask me." The man looked away and sighed. "You did not fail her and she did not fail you. Let the past be the past…Amanda is gone."
"I know, Dragon…" He winced, a hand resting on his chest. "I know all to well."
"Hayden…"
"Yes, Dragon?"
"We're home, aren't we?"
Silence. Hayden Christopher James looked down at the massive log-house and then looked to Dragon, staring straight into his massive golden eyes. Was this truly his home? Home is where the heart is, they say, but Hayden's was gone – ripped out upon Amanda's death. He lowered his head and stared at Dragons back. But at least here…he could find solace and perhaps a peace of mind. He glanced to the morpher on his wrist. Perhaps more. Finally, after what seemed to be an eternity to Dragon, Hayden nodded.
"Yes Dragon, we're home."
And with that…two smiles came to life…
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Tommy stared at the six gems. They sparkled under the golden-yellow light like diamonds but that was not what drew him to them. It was the many memories they had once held. For many of years him and the others had fought Evil; Mesogog, Vertox and then Darius. Each time, each battle, they seemed to lose a little more they loved. God only knows what one Ranger had lost. But that, as they say, is the past and this is the future. Tommy had far more to look forward to in the future and by the Gods he'd fight to keep it as well. He had a very beautiful Daughter with Kimberly and he still had the other Rangers. "Friends to the end" Conner had said; "Till death do us part" the Priest had said.
A soft smile came to Tommy's face as he reached out and pushed the lid shut. That was the past and it was over. Being a Power Ranger was no longer their future anymore. Ethan, Kat and Eric had created new Morphers and a new set of Rangers. Earth was in a new set of hands; ones that weren't so aging. Still…even now he was missing the thrill of going into battle, knowing it could be his last. It was something…he seemed to look forward to, strangely.
"Of course you would, Tommy." He said to no one, leaning on the bench. "Being a Ranger has been pretty much your entire life. Its not like you could really escape it."
He looked to his right, seeing the Dragonzord Coin sitting in a case on the wall. "Once a Ranger, Always a Ranger, right Zordon?"
He looked away and then his left, the Zeonizers on the opposite wall. Albeit they no longer had the Zeo Crystals to function, they were part of Ranger history after all. Next to them were the Turbo Morphers; also without a power source. Sitting on the desk to his left were two morphers – the Quantum and Chrono Morphers. One had belong to the Late-Great Eric Myers and the other to Wesley Collins. The other four Chrono Morphers were safely in the hands of the Time Force Rangers. On the right side of the desk were another set of Morphers – the Wild Phones. They had power, but even since the Animarium and its Princess had vanished, they had lost all power. Now…they were simple piles of junk.
Tommy tore his eyes away from them and pushed off his desk. A door stood ajar to his right and he eyed it for a moment. It read "Museum" in big, bold, golden letters across the upper-center of the door. The Museum was where the rest of the Ranger history was house. All the old suits, weapons and even photographs of the old zords resided in there. Hesitantly, he pushed it open and flicked the light switch on the wall, peering in at the massive room. It had to be nearly a hundred feet by a hundred feet; the biggest room anyone had ever seen.
On the farthest wall were the Original Mighty Morphin suits along with the Ninja Ranger suits; pre- and post-morph. All their weapons hung on wall next to their respective suits; the Dragon Dagger sitting on one of the five columns in the middle of the room. On the left and right walls were Time Force, Zeo and Turbo suits; each with their respective weapons beside the suits. Pictures were hung on everywhere wherever there was space to put one. Some where of the zords, some where of weapons…some where of friends long gone. Tommy sighed and bowed his head, staring at the floor.
The Space Rangers specifically. They had died fighting Vertox on some planet he couldn't even dream of pronouncing. How he hated himself for sending them there…if he hadn't…they would still be alive to day. "That's the past Tommy, its time to let it go." He said to himself and looked up, staring at the center columns. In the middle most was the Dragon Dagger with a golden light illuminating it. Surrounding it were more pictures; pictures of Tommy in the suit, in action and the emotional day he lost his powers.
"Cursed powers." Tommy scowled at the Dagger. "You just couldn't stay gone could you…" The Dagger flared at him. "Do you know how miserable you made my life?"
"Can you really blame the powers or the owner of them?"
"The powers of course! They ma-" He stopped mid-sentence and felt a chill curl up his spine. God he knew that voice…He shifted his stance and slowly turned around.
Standing in the doorway was all six feet, golden-brown haired Hayden Christopher James. He gave a nonchalant salute and smiled. "Hello Tommy." He said, folding his arms. "It…has been a long time, my friend."
Tommy wasn't sure if he had died and gone to heaven or if he was just seeing things. This couldn't be Hayden standing before him…he was dead – died finishing off Darius. Hesitantly, Tommy took a step forward, reaching out for this "Hayden." "Tommy…?" Hayden spoke, arching a brown brow. "Ah…Tommy, are you o-" He felt Tommy's hand grab his face, squeeze it; the other hand come up, grab his neck, then both hands grab his shoulders.
"You're real?" Tommy said, his eyes going wider yet.
"Tommy, man, you're starting to scare me with this groping. I knew you missed me but this is ridiculous!" Hayden said and slapped both hands away. "And yes, I'm real. You groped me enough to know…"
Tommy stuttered a moment and then took two giant steps back. "Ah…sorry." He said and smiled lightly. "B-But…how are you…still alive?"
He jabbed his finger at the Morpher. "This little baby keeps surprising me day in and day out." He said and rubbed it lightly. "When the users body is put at risk – ala power overload – the Dino Gem, upon explosion, sends a final surge of energy through the body that counteracts the energy discharge." He said and shrugged. "It's a failsafe to keep the user alive…"
"…so more or less you can't die then?" Tommy questioned, arching a brow.
"Not at all. In fact, I can die just like any regular person or ranger can." He shrugged and rubbed the Morpher again. "Its just a lot harder to kill me in Ranger form then it is to kill you." Tommy blushed deeply. "My Gem was created by Evil…and as you know, Evil doesn't exactly abide by the rules."
"I figured after all this time you would have gotten rid of the Morpher…there's no more reason for you to have it." Tommy said glancing from his wrist to his eyes again.
"…in exchange for the power and protection…" Hayden added and looked down at the morpher. "Your soul is sealed to the gem. So…I can't really get rid of the gem. The only way for this morpher to leave my arm…is if It was destroyed – upon which I'll die – or someone kills me."
"Oh." Was all Tommy could mutter, staring wide-eyed at Hayden. "Once a Ranger, Always a Ranger. I guess there was some truth to that after all…"
Tommy looked up and gasped, scrambling to catch the jagged, black object in his hand. He looked down into his palms and saw it was the Black Dino Gem. He looked up at Hayden and saw him raise his arm. "For old time sakes, Tommy?" Hayden said and arched a brow. "Gold Ranger, Dino Thunder, FULL POWER!"
The long, golden beam exploded from his outstretched hand and was replaced by the golden staff. The energy coiled down his arm and shoulder, spreading throughout the rest of his body. His once crisp blue eyes were covered by the red visor and his rich mans clothes were covered by the all to familiar suit.
Tommy stared for a moment as Hayden held out the Dino Morpher. "Its been so long…" Tommy whispered, just staring at it. Hayden stood stoic and emotionless as ever, waiting patiently. He knew what this was doing to Tommy on the inside; tearing him apart limb by limb. Finally, Tommy sighed, snatched up the morpher and slipped it around his wrist. "…perhaps to long." He jammed the Gem into the morpher and snapped it out. "Dino Thunder, Power up!"
The black-golden light flashed through the room and Tommy sank back, angling the Brachio-staff to the floor.
And for once in a long, long time…Tommy felt whole again. He no longer felt like a piece of his was missing on the inside. It was back, replaced by the warmth of the Ranger Powers again. "Once a Ranger, Always a Ranger." Tommy repeated to himself and closed his eyes. He let only a minute slide by, just relishing the powers once more.
And then blade met blade as the two friends pushed hard against each other. Yellow sparks splashed against their suits as they began to circle around one another; their blades screeching and grinding with each movement. They hissed against barred teeth again and split apart; each blade swinging back or high, ready to strike again.
Hayden stabbed for Tommy's stomach but the veteran stepped back, slapping his blade low and parried the thrust. He stepped in again, following through on the block as he pushed the staff high over their heads but received a vicious palm-strike to the side of the head for his troubles. Rattled, Tommy staggered back and collapsed against the wall, trying to right himself again.
"Full Moon Slash!" Hayden hissed, swirling the staff through his fingers as a golden tail of energy followed. End met beginning and Hayden snapped the staff back before thrusting it forward again. A split second later, the wall caved in on itself as Tommy flew through the air, slamming onto the table and sliding off of it onto the floor.
"Get up Tommy. I know you can do better then that." Hayden said, the staff resting arrogantly on his shoulder. "I shouldn't be this much of a problem for you, Old man."
A black glove slammed against the table as Tommy slowly pushed himself up. Smoke drifted off his suit, feeling the spine tingling pain rush down his spine again. Tommy shivered a moment, his knee's going weak again. Normally he hated pain; never enjoying it like this. But this…this was a different pain. It was a type of pain only a Ranger could enjoy.
Tommy hissed against his mask and suddenly shot forward, slashing it staff for Hayden's chest but only struck the rising block. Tommy fell against the wall and dropped to one knee as the staff sliced through the wall, plastering Tommy with large chunks again. The Black Ranger only had a split second to react as knee-met-face and Tommy found himself cracking hard against the wall. Another kick met the side of his head and he slid across the floor and tumbling down several stairs before coming to rest on the floor.
Yet Tommy still managed to stand, his legs wobbling beneath his weight. His body wasn't used to this rigorous fighting anymore and not to mention age was beginning to catch up to him. He let out a breath and scooped up the Brachio-staff again, adjusted the settings and looked up at Hayden again.
"If Earth was in danger again, you'd all perish in record time." Hayden said, the staff simmering with white-hot energy. "I don't understand how you could let yourself waste away."
Tommy brushed his suit off and snapped the blade to attention; jabbing it in Hayden's direction. "There's a new set of Rangers now, Hayden. Special Police Deltaranger." He said and slowly stepped up. "There's no more need for us to be Power Rangers."
"Police Rangers?" Hayden said, tilting his head to the right. "As if Time Force wasn't bad enough…"
Tommy stopped at the top of the stairs, his blade angled outwards, resting against Hayden's Naganata. Special Police Deltaranger not only exists here and now but they've existed for many, many years…far out in the universe."
Hayden slapped the staff away and jammed the end of his hard into Tommy's gut. "No!" Hayden hissed and twisted into a vicious wheel-kick that lifted Tommy high into the air and crashing hard into the stairs. "There is always need for us!" He whispered, the tip of his blade resting only a inch from his throat. "I don't care if there is one or one-thousand other Teams. The world still needs us."
Tommy panted lightly as he laid back against the ground, the suit shrinking away. Hayden's did the same, but the staff remained in his hand. "The world needs its protects, Dr. Oliver." He added and pulled the staff away. "And I'm going to continue to fight until my dieing breath." He turned and held his hand out for Tommy. "One way or another…I will see that this planet is protected…and I'll do everything in my power to make it happen."
Tommy looked at his hand, then to his eyes. Their hands locked and Hayden effortlessly ripped him off the ground and onto his feet. Tommy bent over, leaning on his knees as he tried to gather his wits about him. He looked to the Brachio-morpher on his wrist and then looked up at Hayden, seeing the fire still burning in his eyes.
Perhaps he was right after all…maybe there still was a reason to fight…
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Oliver Journal – the Final Entry
December 24th, 2015
How do you tell your best friends that you're off to save the world again? To make matter worse, how do you turn around ask them to do the same again, especially after doing it for…ten long, painstaking years? The questions and the answers, I know, will not come easily. Kim will freak out and the others will be just as confused as I am right now. Why am I doing this again? I thought after Darius' defeat we could finally hang the morphers up.
Hell, I thought we could do the same after the Dino Gem's power was drained after the fight with Mesogog. And what do you know, Billy finds a way to re-energize them using the Zeo Crystal. Stranger things have happened I guess…such as the Dino Gems still maintain a power supply. Billy said he wasn't sure how long the recharge would last and if it was even permanent. I guess we all got our answers, It seems.
But enough about the moody stuff, I'm sure you'd like to know what's been going on the with family, right? Oh, things are going well. Kimberly and Serenity are still the loves of my life and Serenity is growing into a fine young woman. She's started school already and she seems to be doing rather good. Made lots of knew friends, considering this mansion of a log house is packed nearly every day with five or six people. The Dinner table is always full, whether it be with her friends or the Rangers…things are great with us. I truly couldn't ask for anything better…
Conner and Kira had another baby together! It was quite an exciting time too, considering we hadn't yet hung up the morphers. They have a daughter now, Aerial. Blake has taken quite an interest in S.P.D as well. He says it's his dream to grow up and be part of the Special Police Deltarangers. What an exciting dream to have. If only he knew who his parents were…
Ethan…is well Ethan. Ethan has helped design the current existing morphers for S.P.D and he also is the main software developer for S.P.D's main division as well. We don't see him around a lot anymore considering his loaded down with a great deal of work now. But I'm sure if I asked him nicely he'll come back…I think. Oh, and as far as him actually finding a girl friend…Heh…we're still trying.
And yes, and then last but not least: Hayden Christopher James. Ever elusive and secretive. His reasons behind staying a Power Ranger, however noble, are questionable. Why stay one when there is already team? I guess, in his case he doesn't have a choice. But…I do. Why am I becoming a Power Ranger again? I don't need to be one again. Maybe its just because I desire the combat again…yeah, maybe that's it. Anyway, he still hasn't found anyone to be with, especially after Amanda's death. It seems he's only grown distant and quieter. He still comes around quite a bit, but it just seems he really isn't there…because he doesn't say anything. Oh well, I suppose he's still in shock or in trauma about Amanda's death. But its been five years…
There really isn't anything else to write except…Once a Ranger, Always a Ranger.
Or should I say…Forever a Ranger?
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A/N: Things have been very hectic over here and I'm really sorry about the lateness of this final chapter. My dad passed away in March and I'm just finally getting back into the mood to write. I thank you all for bearing with me and as I said, I'd never give up on my stories. Thank you all and please R&R!